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Spatial Abilities (spatial + ability)

Distribution by Scientific Domains

Psychology	52%
Medical Sciences	29%

Selected Abstracts

Spatial Reasoning With External Visualizations: What Matters Is What You See, Not Whether You Interact

COGNITIVE SCIENCE - A MULTIDISCIPLINARY JOURNAL, Issue 7 2008
Madeleine Keehner
Abstract Three experiments examined the effects of interactive visualizations and spatial abilities on a task requiring participants to infer and draw cross sections of a three-dimensional (3D) object. The experiments manipulated whether participants could interactively control a virtual 3D visualization of the object while performing the task, and compared participants who were allowed interactive control of the visualization to those who were not allowed control. In Experiment 1, interactivity produced better performance than passive viewing, but the advantage of interactivity disappeared in Experiment 2 when visual input for the two conditions in a yoked design was equalized. In Experiments 2 and 3, differences in how interactive participants manipulated the visualization were large and related to performance. In Experiment 3, non-interactive participants who watched optimal movements of the display performed as well as interactive participants who manipulated the visualization effectively and better than interactive participants who manipulated the visualization ineffectively. Spatial ability made an independent contribution to performance on the spatial reasoning task, but did not predict patterns of interactive behavior. These experiments indicate that providing participants with active control of a computer visualization does not necessarily enhance task performance, whereas seeing the most task-relevant information does, and this is true regardless of whether the task-relevant information is obtained actively or passively. [source]

Do healthy preterm children need neuropsychological follow-up?

DEVELOPMENTAL MEDICINE & CHILD NEUROLOGY, Issue 10 2010
Preschool outcomes compared with term peers
Aim, The aim of this study was to determine neuropsychological performance (possibly predictive of academic difficulties) and its relationship with cognitive development and maternal education in healthy preterm children of preschool age and age-matched comparison children born at term. Method, A total of 35 infants who were born at less than 33 weeks' gestational age and who were free from major neurosensory disability (16 males, 19 females; mean gestational age 29.4wk, SD 2.2wk; mean birthweight 1257g, SD 327g) and 50 term-born comparison children (25 males, 25 females; mean birthweight 3459g, SD 585g) were assessed at 4 years of age. Cognition was measured using the Griffiths Mental Development scales while neuropsychological abilities (language, short-term memory, visual,motor and constructive spatial abilities, and visual processing) were assessed using standardized tests. Multivariable regression analysis was used to explore the effects of preterm birth and sociodemographic factors on cognition, and to adjust neuropsychological scores for cognitive level and maternal education. Results, The mean total Griffiths score was significantly lower in preterm than in term children (97.4 vs 103.4; p<0.001). Factors associated with higher Griffiths score were maternal university education (,=6.2; 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.7,11.7) and having older siblings or a twin (,=4.0; 95% CI 0.5,7.6). At neuropsychological assessment, preterm children scored significantly lower than term comparison children in all tests except lexical production (Boston Naming Test) and visual-processing accuracy. After adjustment for cognitive level and maternal education, differences remained statistically significant for verbal fluency (p<0.05) and comprehension, short-term memory, and spatial abilities (p<0.01). Interpretation, Neuropsychological follow-up is also recommended for healthy very preterm children to identify strengths and challenges before school entry, and to plan interventions aimed at maximizing academic success. [source]

Gender differences in self-estimated intelligence and their relation to gender-role orientation

EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF PERSONALITY, Issue 5 2002
Beatrice Rammstedt
Previous research has demonstrated that gender differences in self-estimated intelligence are domain specific: Males estimate their mathematical, logical and spatial abilities significantly higher than females. It has been frequently hypothesized that these differences are moderated by the individual's degree of gender-role orientation. However, studies investigating the effect of gender-role orientation on self-estimated intelligence revealed highly inconsistent results. In the present study, 267 participants estimated their own abilities in 11 intelligence domains and completed the Bem Sex Role Inventory (BSRI). Factor analysis of the 11 intelligence domains yielded four interpretable factors. Gender differences were identified for the mathematical,logical and the artistic intelligence factor. Additional analyses revealed a moderating effect of gender-role orientation on gender differences in factor scores. Thus, the present study provided direct evidence for the notion that in male, but not in female individuals, self-estimates of specific aspects of intelligence are markedly influenced by gender-role orientation. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]

Spatial differences in acquisition of soil phosphate between two arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi in symbiosis with Medicago truncatula

NEW PHYTOLOGIST, Issue 2 2000
F. A. SMITH
Responses of Medicago truncatula to colonization by two arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi, Scutellospora calospora isolate WUM 12(2) and Glomus caledonium isolate RIS 42, were compared in the light of previous findings that the former fungus can be ineffective as a beneficial microsymbiont with some host plants. The plants were grown individually in two-compartment systems in which a lateral side arm containing soil labelled with 33P was separated from the main soil compartment by a nylon mesh that prevented penetration by roots but not fungal hyphae. Fungal inoculum was applied as a root,soil mixture in a band opposite the side arm. Nonmycorrhizal controls were set up similarly, without inoculum. There were harvests at 28, 35, 42 and 49 d. Both sets of mycorrhizal plants grew better than nonmycorrhizal plants and initially had higher concentrations of P in shoots and roots. Plants grown with S. calospora grew better than plants grown with G. caledonium, and this was associated with somewhat greater fungal colonization in terms of intraradical hyphae and numbers of arbuscules. Scutellospora calospora formed denser hyphae at root surfaces than G. caledonium. By 28 d there were extensive hyphae of both fungi in the side arms, and after 35 d S. calospora produced denser hyphae there than G. caledonium. Nevertheless, there was very little transfer of 33P via S. calospora to the plant at 28 d, and thereafter its transfer increased at a rate only c. 33% of that via G. caledonium. The results showed that plants colonized by S. calospora preferentially obtained P from sites in the main soil chamber relatively close to the roots, compared with plants colonized by G. caledonium. Hence formation of a highly beneficial arbuscular mycorrhizal symbiosis does not necessarily depend on development of hyphae at a distance from the roots or on large-scale translocation of P from distant sites. The results are discussed in relation to previous studies with compartmented systems that have involved the same fungi. Possible causes of the variable effects of S. calospora in symbiosis with different host plants are briefly assessed. Differences in spatial abilities of individual arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi to acquire P might have strong ecological implications for plant growth in soils low in P. [source]

Cognitive and mood changes in men undergoing intermittent combined androgen blockade for non-metastatic prostate cancer

PSYCHO-ONCOLOGY, Issue 3 2009
M.M. Cherrier
Abstract Purpose: Men with prostate-specific antigen (PSA)-only relapse of prostate cancer after primary therapy are generally fully functional and asymptomatic with a life expectancy of up to 10 or more years. Androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) is a common treatment option. This study examined mood and cognitive changes in otherwise healthy men with prostate cancer prior to, during and after ADT. Experimental design: Twenty hormone naïve, eugonadal prostate cancer patients without evidence of metastases and with a rising PSA were treated with intermittent ADT consisting of 9 months of complete androgen blockade (CAB) achieved with combined leuprolide and flutamide followed by an ,off treatment' period. Cognitive function tests and mood measures were administered at baseline, after 3 and 9 months of ADT and after 3 months of no treatment. Twenty healthy control patients without prostate cancer range matched for age and education were tested at the same time intervals. Results: ADT patients evidenced a significant decline in spatial reasoning, spatial abilities and working memory during treatment compared with baseline. No changes were noted for measures of verbal or spatial memory, selective attention or language. Significant changes in self-rated mood such as increased depression, tension, anxiety, fatigue and irritability were evident during treatment compared with baseline for ADT patients. No significant changes in either cognitive tests or mood measures were noted for the healthy control group. Conclusions: These findings, suggest that 9 months of combined androgen blockade may result in some adverse changes in cognition and mood. However, many but not all of these changes can return to baseline after cessation of ADT. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]

Gender effects in spatial orientation: cognitive profiles and mental strategies

APPLIED COGNITIVE PSYCHOLOGY, Issue 5 2004
Andrea Bosco
Experimental evidence and meta-analyses offer some support for gender-related differences in visuo-spatial ability. However, few studies addressed this issue in an ecological context and/or in everyday tasks implying spatial abilities, such as geographical orientation. Moreover, the relation of specific strategies and gender is still unclear. In the present investigation, we compared men and women in a newly designed battery of spatial orientation tasks in which landmark, route and survey knowledge were considered. In addition, four visuo-spatial working memory (VSWM) tasks were presented. Significant differences favouring men in VSWM tasks were reported, supporting existing evidence. However, men and women did not significantly differ in orientation tasks performance. The patterns of correlation between working memory and spatial orientation tasks indicated that men and women used somewhat different strategies in carrying out the orientation tasks. In particular, active processes seem to play a greater role in females' performance, thus confirming the importance of this variable in interpreting gender effect in VSWM tasks. Altogether, results indicate that gender effects could well result from differences in cognitive strategies and support data indicating that adequate training could reduce or eliminate them. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]

Ability and Trait Complex Predictors of Academic and Job Performance: A Person,Situation Approach

APPLIED PSYCHOLOGY, Issue 1 2010
Ruth Kanfer
A battery of cognitive ability, knowledge, and non-ability measures were administered to 105 college students enrolled in a cooperative school-work program and used to predict academic and job performance. Composite scores for each domain were derived from factor analyses of 11 measures of verbal, numerical, and spatial abilities, four measures of domain knowledge, and 27 measures of personality and motivational traits, vocational interests, and self-assessments. Both ability and non-ability trait composites were significant predictors of academic performance, but only the non-ability trait composites predicted job performance. Implications for the integrative assessment of individual differences and their predictive validities for performance in different active work contexts, as well as the importance of trait composites across contexts, are discussed. Un ensemble de mesures relatives aux connaissances, aux aptitudes et autres dimensions furent obtenues auprès de 105 étudiants de 1° cycle impliqués dans un programme de travail scolaire coopératif, avec pour objectif de prédire les résultats universitaires et la performance au travail. Des scores composites pour chacun de ces deux domaines ont été constitués à partir d'analyses factorielles des onze mesures des aptitudes verbale, numérique et spatiale, des quatre mesures portant sur les connaissances et des 27 mesures relevant de traits de personnalité, de la motivation, des intérêts professionnels et de l'auto-évaluation. Les scores des aptitudes et des traits de personnalité furent des prédicteurs significatifs du succès universitaire, mais seuls ces derniers ont prédit la performance au travail. On réfléchit aux conséquences sur l'évaluation synthétique des différences individuelles et leur validité prédictive de la performance dans différents contextes de travail productif, ainsi que sur l'importance des scores composites selon les situations. [source]

Spatial Reasoning With External Visualizations: What Matters Is What You See, Not Whether You Interact

Strategy Generalization Across Orientation Tasks: Testing a Computational Cognitive Model

COGNITIVE SCIENCE - A MULTIDISCIPLINARY JOURNAL, Issue 5 2008
Glenn Gunzelmann
Abstract Humans use their spatial information processing abilities flexibly to facilitate problem solving and decision making in a variety of tasks. This article explores the question of whether a general strategy can be adapted for performing two different spatial orientation tasks by testing the predictions of a computational cognitive model. Human performance was measured on an orientation task requiring participants to identify the location of a target either on a map (find-on-map) or within an egocentric view of a space (find-in-scene). A general strategy instantiated in a computational cognitive model of the find-on-map task, based on the results from Gunzelmann and Anderson (2006), was adapted to perform both tasks and used to generate performance predictions for a new study. The qualitative fit of the model to the human data supports the view that participants were able to tailor a general strategy to the requirements of particular spatial tasks. The quantitative differences between the predictions of the model and the performance of human participants in the new experiment expose individual differences in sample populations. The model provides a means of accounting for those differences and a framework for understanding how human spatial abilities are applied to naturalistic spatial tasks that involve reasoning with maps. [source]

Who benefits from learning with 3D models? the case of spatial ability

JOURNAL OF COMPUTER ASSISTED LEARNING, Issue 6 2006
T. Huk
Abstract Empirical studies that focus on the impact of three-dimensional (3D) visualizations on learning are to date rare and inconsistent. According to the ability-as-enhancer hypothesis, high spatial ability learners should benefit particularly as they have enough cognitive capacity left for mental model construction. In contrast, the ability-as-compensator hypothesis proposes that low spatial ability learners should gain particular benefit from explicit graphical representations as they have difficulty mentally constructing their own visualizations. This study examines the impact that interactive 3D models implemented within a hypermedia-learning environment have on understanding of cell biology. Test scores in a subsequent knowledge acquisition test demonstrated a significant interaction term between students' spatial ability and presence/absence of 3D models. Only students with high spatial ability benefited from the presence of 3D models, while low spatial ability students got fewer points when learning this way. When using 3D models, high spatial ability students perceived their cognitive load to be low whereas the opposite was true for low spatial ability students. The data suggest that students with low spatial ability became cognitively overloaded by the presence of 3D models, while high spatial ability students benefited from them as their total cognitive load remained within working memory limits. [source]

Do prior knowledge, personality and visual perceptual ability predict student performance in microscopic pathology?

MEDICAL EDUCATION, Issue 6 2010
Laura Helle
Medical Education 2010:44:621,629 Objectives, There has been long-standing controversy regarding aptitude testing and selection for medical education. Visual perception is considered particularly important for detecting signs of disease as part of diagnostic procedures in, for example, microscopic pathology, radiology and dermatology and as a component of perceptual motor skills in medical procedures such as surgery. In 1968 the Perceptual Ability Test (PAT) was introduced in dental education. The aim of the present pilot study was to explore possible predictors of performance in diagnostic classification based on microscopic observation in the context of an undergraduate pathology course. Methods, A pre- and post-test of diagnostic classification performance, test of visual perceptual skill (Test of Visual Perceptual Skills, 3rd edition [TVPS-3]) and a self-report instrument of personality (Big Five Personality Inventory) were administered. In addition, data on academic performance (performance in histology and cell biology, a compulsory course taken the previous year, in addition to performance on the microscopy examination and final examination) were collected. Results, The results indicated that one personality factor (Conscientiousness) and one element of visual perceptual ability (spatial relationship awareness) predicted performance on the pre-test. The only factor to predict performance on the post-test was performance on the pre-test. Similarly, the microscopy examination score was predicted by the pre-test score, in addition to the histology and cell biology grade. The course examination score was predicted by two personality factors (Conscientiousness and lack of Openness) and the histology and cell biology grade. Conclusions, Visual spatial ability may be related to performance in the initial phase of training in microscopic pathology. However, from a practical point of view, medical students are able to learn basic microscopic pathology using worked-out examples, independently of measures of personality or visual perceptual ability. This finding should reassure students about their abilities to improve with training independently of their scores on tests on basic abilities and personality. [source]

Virtual reality and brain anatomy: a randomised trial of e-learning instructional designs

MEDICAL EDUCATION, Issue 5 2007
Anthony J Levinson
Context, Computer-aided instruction is used increasingly in medical education and anatomy instruction with limited research evidence to guide its design and deployment. Objectives, To determine the effects of (a) learner control over the e-learning environment and (b) key views of the brain versus multiple views in the learning of brain surface anatomy. Design, Randomised trial with 2 phases of study. Participants Volunteer sample of 1st-year psychology students (phase 1, n = 120; phase 2, n = 120). Interventions, Phase 1: computer-based instruction in brain surface anatomy with 4 conditions: (1) learner control/multiple views (LMV); (2) learner control/key views (LKV); (3) programme control/multiple views (PMV); (4) programme control/key views (PKV). Phase 2: 2 conditions: low learner control/key views (PKV) versus no learner control/key views (SKV). All participants performed a pre-test, post-test and test of visuospatial ability. Main outcome measures, A 30-item post-test of brain surface anatomy structure identification. Results The PKV group attained the best post-test score (57.7%) and the PMV group received the worst (42.2%), with the 2 high learner control groups performing in between. For students with low spatial ability, estimated scores are 20% lower for those who saw multiple views during learning. In phase 2, students with the most static condition and no learner control (SKV) performed similarly to those students in the PKV group. Conclusions Multiple views may impede learning, particularly for those with relatively poor spatial ability. High degrees of learner control may reduce effectiveness of learning. [source]

Generalist Genes: Genetic Links Between Brain, Mind, and Education

MIND, BRAIN, AND EDUCATION, Issue 1 2007
Robert Plomin
ABSTRACT, Genetics contributes importantly to learning abilities and disabilities,not just to reading, the target of most genetic research, but also to mathematics and other academic areas as well. One of the most important recent findings from quantitative genetic research such as twin studies is that the same set of genes is largely responsible for genetic influence across these domains. We call these "generalist genes" to highlight their pervasive influence. In other words, most genes found to be associated with a particular learning ability or disability (such as reading) will also be associated with other learning abilities and disabilities (such as mathematics). Moreover, some generalist genes for learning abilities and disabilities are even more general in their effect, encompassing other cognitive abilities such as memory and spatial ability. When these generalist genes are identified, they will greatly accelerate research on general mechanisms at all levels of analysis from genes to brain to behavior. [source]

Individual differences in use of external visualisations to perform an internal visualisation task

APPLIED COGNITIVE PSYCHOLOGY, Issue 6 2007
Cheryl A. Cohen
Thirty participants performed a novel spatial inference task, which required them to imagine and draw the cross section of a three-dimensional (3-D) object. While performing the task, participants could interactively control two computer visualisations (animations) of the object. There were large individual differences in how frequently participants used the computer visualisations, which were related to spatial ability. Use of the interactive visualisations was highly predictive of performance on the cross-section task and mediated the correlation between spatial ability and performance. These findings suggest that interactive computer visualisations can aid performance on spatial inference tasks, but that they do so only for a subset of individuals who can discover how to best use the additional information that they provide. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]

Visuo-spatial working memory in navigation

APPLIED COGNITIVE PSYCHOLOGY, Issue 1 2002
Sharin Garden
Two experiments employed dual task techniques to explore the role of working memory in route learning and subsequent route retrieval. Experiment 1 involved contrasting performance of two groups of volunteers respectively learning a route from a series of map segments or a series of visually presented nonsense words. Both groups performed learning and recognition under articulatory suppression or concurrent spatial tapping. Both concurrent tasks had an overall disruptive effect on each learning task. However, spatial tapping disrupted route recognition rather more than did articulatory suppression, while the nonsense word recognition was impaired more by articulatory suppression than by concurrent spatial tapping. Experiment 2 again used dual task methodology, but explored route learning by asking volunteers to follow the experimenter through the winding streets of a medieval European town centre. Retrieval involved following the same route while the experimenter followed and noted errors in navigation. Overall the results partially replicated those of Experiment 1 in that both concurrent tasks interfered with route learning. However, volunteers with high spatial ability appeared more affected by the concurrent spatial tapping task, whereas low spatial subjects appeared more affected by the concurrent articulatory suppression task. Results are interpreted to suggest that different aspects of working memory are involved in learning a route from a map with a greater emphasis on visuo-spatial resources, but in tasks set in real environments where many cues of a varied nature are available, only high spatial ability subjects appear to rely heavily upon the visuospatial component of working memory. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]