Facilitation of learning spatial relations among locations by visual cues: implications for theoretical accounts of spatial learning.

Full Abstract

Human participants searched in a real environment or interactive 3-D virtual environment open field for four hidden goal locations arranged in a 2 x 2 square configuration in a 5 x 5 matrix of raised bins. The participants were randomly assigned to one of two groups: cues + pattern or pattern only. The participants experienced a training phase, followed by a testing phase. Visual cues specified the goal locations during training only for the cues + pattern group. Both groups were then tested in the absence of visual cues. The results in both environments indicated that the participants learned the spatial relations among goal locations. However, visual cues during training facilitated learning of the spatial relations among goal locations: In both environments, the participants trained with the visual cues made fewer errors during testing than did those trained only with the pattern. The results suggest that learning based on the spatial relations among locations may not be susceptible to cue competition effects and have implications for standard associative and dual-system accounts of spatial learning.

Author information

Author/s: Sturz, Bradley R (BR); Brown, Michael F (MF); Kelly, Debbie M (DM);

Affiliation: Armstrong Atlantic State University, Savannah, GA 31419, USA. bradley.sturz(-atsign-)armstrong.edu

Journal and publication information

Publication Type: Journal Article; Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

Journal: Psychonomic bulletin & review (Psychon Bull Rev), published in United States. (Language: eng)

Reference: 2009-Apr; vol 16 (issue 2) : pp 306-12

Dates: Created 2009/03/18; Completed 2009/06/11;

PMID: 19293099, status: MEDLINE (last retrieval date: 6/11/2009, IMS Date: )

Sourced from the National Library of Medicine. Abstract text and other information may be subject to copyright.

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