Individual Differences in Handedness Effects on Categorical versus Coordinate Spatial Processing
Abstract
Inconsistent- (ICH) versus consistent-right-handedness (CRH) is associated with increased access to right hemisphere processes. Coordinate versus categorical spatial processing may be right versus left hemisphere mediated, respectively. During learning, participants navigated, landmark-to-landmark, in succession, to 20 locations, within a 3-dimensional, urban virtual environment (e.g., "You have reached the MARKET, now head to the HOSPITAL), and in doing so they learned about the environment's landmarks and layout (e.g.; Bruny, Gardony, Mahoney, and Taylor, 2012). During the Categorical Task participants viewed a landmark in the center of the screen and were asked which cardinal direction they would navigate to get toward another landmark (e.g., the MARKET is in the center of the screen, which direction would you go to get to the SCHOOL?). During the Coordinate Task, participants estimated how far away one landmark was from another landmark, as the crow flies (referenced to the actual distance between the two landmarks in the learned space; e.g.; Wang, Taylor, Bruny, and Maddox, 2014) Preliminary analyses revealed that ICH outperformed CRH regardless of task type. ICH may have superior spatial processing generally or different strategy use.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- May 17, 2017
- Accession Number
- AD1051262
Entities
People
- Ruth Propper
Organizations
- Montclair State University