The Use of the Vandenberg and Kuse Mental Rotation Test in Children

Abstract

Previous studies found that children are able to perform mental rotation (MR) tasks with a gender difference from the age of 4. More recently, gender differences in MR were also reported in infancy. However, different kinds of paradigms and stimuli were used. The present study investigates whether the Vandenberg and Kuse Mental Rotation Test (VMRT; Vandenberg & Kuse, 1978 ) as well as another similar 2-dimensional stimuli test may be used with elementary and middle-school children, and whether gender differences are evidenced. Results show that boys outperform girls in the middle-school group only. Elementary school children encountered difficulties solving both the VMRT and 2D MR tests. The data confirmed recent results showing that gender differences in the VMRT performance were found at age 10. We further concluded that the VMRT and 2D MR tests may not be well-designed for elementary-school children. Further investigations should focus on gender differences in MR for children younger than 9 years old as well as on the underlying causes of such difference, using other experimental paradigms.

Framing the figure: Mental rotation revisited in light of cognitive strategies

“…Experiment 2 used frames of different shapes (circular and rectangular), still 2-D, to explore the frame's role, either as emphasizing the unity of the object (circular and rectangular) or providing a reference frame for comparison (rectangular only). Different versions of the typical mental rotation paradigm use different shaped frames (Borst, Kievit, Thompson, & Kosslyn, 2011;Hoyek, Collet, Fargier, & Guillot, 2012;Kooshabeh & Hegarty, 2010;Miller & Halpern, 2014;Neuburger, Jansen, Heil, & Quasier-Pohl, 2012;Vandenberg & Kuse, 1978). In Experiment 2, we compared rotation performance of two frame types to un-framed figures in order to extensively test framing effects.…”

Mental Rotation With Tangible Three‐Dimensional Objects: A New Measure Sensitive to Developmental Differences in 4‐ to 8‐Year‐Old Children

“…Several studies suggest that 3D mental rotation tasks may be too cognitively demanding for elementary school children (Hoyek, Collet, Fargier, & Guillot, ; Jansen, Schmelter, Quaiser‐Pohl, Neuburger, & Heil, ). For example, Jansen and colleagues () tested children in second and fourth grade ( N = 449) with one of three different mental rotation stimuli: 3D animal drawings, 2D letters, or 3D cube figures.…”

“…Children tested with the 3D animal drawings or the 2D letters performed above chance and demonstrated linear response patterns as determined by angular disparity, suggesting some ability to perform mental rotation tasks. In contrast, children tested with the 3D cubes performed at chance (see also Hoyek et al, ). Thus, the evidence suggests that even children as old as 7 to 10 years have difficulty rotating 3D cube figures.…”

“…Fourth, children might not understand the requirement to distinguish between the target and mirror figures and instead “see” the target and mirror as equivalent. Recently, it has been suggested that prior to testing, children should be asked to distinguish pairs of stimuli as the “same” or “different” (Hoyek et al, ), providing an opportunity for the child to recognize the mirror image as distinct from the target.…”

Developmental Patterns of Cognitive Abilities

“…However, they differed substantially in the presented stimuli. Adult studies are traditionally based on [55] threedimensional mental rotation task in which participants are required to mentally rotate an object in three dimensions to determine its matching to one of several other objects. Previous studies suggested that 3-D tasks may be too cognitively demanding for children.…”