Individual Differences in Mental Rotation

2013 ◽  
Vol 60 (3) ◽  
pp. 164-171 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter Khooshabeh ◽  
Mary Hegarty ◽  
Thomas F. Shipley
Keyword(s):  
Individual Differences ◽  
Mental Rotation ◽  
Response Times ◽  
Task Demands ◽  
Mental Rotation Task ◽  
Imagery Ability ◽  
Alternative Strategies

Two experiments tested the hypothesis that imagery ability and figural complexity interact to affect the choice of mental rotation strategies. Participants performed the Shepard and Metzler (1971) mental rotation task. On half of the trials, the 3-D figures were manipulated to create “fragmented” figures, with some cubes missing. Good imagers were less accurate and had longer response times on fragmented figures than on complete figures. Poor imagers performed similarly on fragmented and complete figures. These results suggest that good imagers use holistic mental rotation strategies by default, but switch to alternative strategies depending on task demands, whereas poor imagers are less flexible and use piecemeal strategies regardless of the task demands.

Sex Differences in Mental Rotation Performance Through Holding Weights By the Hands

2020 ◽  
pp. 027623662095233
Author(s):  
Hiroyuki Muto ◽  
Soyogu Matsushita ◽  
Kazunori Morikawa
Keyword(s):  
Sex Differences ◽  
Embodied Cognition ◽  
Mental Rotation ◽  
Response Times ◽  
Error Rates ◽  
Female Students ◽  
Mental Rotation Task ◽  
Hands On ◽  
Sensorimotor Processes

Mental rotation is known to be mediated by sensorimotor processes. To deepen our understanding of the role of somatosensory inputs in mental rotation, we investigated the effects of holding weight by the hands on mental rotation performance. In an experiment, 22 male and 22 female students performed a chronometric mental rotation task while holding either light or heavy bags in both hands. Results showed that females holding heavy bags were quicker and more accurate at mental rotation than females holding light bags, as evidenced by shallower slopes for response times (RTs) and error rates. In contrast, males showed no such heavy-bag-induced improvement. Unlike slopes, intercepts for RTs and error rates were equivalent regardless of sex and bag weight. Consistent with previous research on embodied cognition, the present findings demonstrated the facilitatory role of somatosensory cues by weight in mental rotation and suggested sex differences in embodied processes in mental rotation.

The Embodied Nature of Motor Imagery Processes Highlighted by Short-Term Limb Immobilization

2014 ◽  
Vol 61 (3) ◽  
pp. 180-186 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aurore Meugnot ◽  
Yves Almecija ◽  
Lucette Toussaint
Keyword(s):  
Mental Rotation ◽  
Motor Imagery ◽  
Response Times ◽  
Mental Rotation Task ◽  
Hand Movements ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Left Hand ◽  
Post Test ◽  
Limb Immobilization

We investigated the embodied nature of motor imagery processes through a recent use-dependent plasticity approach, a short-term limb immobilization paradigm. A splint placed on the participants’ left-hand during a brief period of 24 h was used for immobilization. The immobilized participants performed two mental rotation tasks (a hand mental rotation task and a number mental rotation task) before (pre-test) and immediately after (post-test) the splint removal. The control group did not undergo the immobilization procedure. The main results showed an immobilization-induced effect on left-hand stimuli, resulting in a lack of task-repetition benefit. By contrast, accuracy was higher and response times were shorter for right-hand stimuli. No immobilization-induced effects appeared for number stimuli. These results revealed that the cognitive representation of hand movements can be modified by a brief period of sensorimotor deprivation, supporting the hypothesis of the embodied nature of motor simulation processes.

scholarly journals Different representations and strategies in mental rotation

2018 ◽  
Vol 71 (7) ◽  
pp. 1574-1583 ◽  
Author(s):  
Binglei Zhao ◽  
Sergio Della Sala
Keyword(s):  
Mental Rotation ◽  
Visual Imagery ◽  
Mental Representations ◽  
Visual Representations ◽  
Task Demands ◽  
Imagery Ability ◽  
Standard Object

It is still debated whether holistic or piecemeal transformation is applied to carry out mental rotation (MR) as an aspect of visual imagery. It has been recently argued that various mental representations could be flexibly generated to perform MR tasks. To test the hypothesis that imagery ability and types of stimuli interact to affect the format of representation and the choice of strategy in performing MR task, participants, grouped as good or poor imagers, were assessed using four MR tasks, comprising two sets of ‘Standard’ cube figures and two sets of ‘non-Standard’ ones, designed by withdrawing cubes from the Standard ones. Both good and poor imagers performed similarly under the two Standard conditions. Under non-Standard conditions, good imagers performed much faster in non-Standard objects than Standard ones, whereas poor imagers performed much slower in non-Standard objects than Standard ones. These results suggested that (1) individuals did not differ in processing the integrated Standard object, whereas (2) in processing the non-Standard objects, various visual representations and strategies could be applied in MR by diverse individuals: Good imagers were more flexible in generating different visual representations, whereas poor imagers applied different strategies under different task demands.

Relation between Sport Activity and Mental Rotation: Comparison of Three Groups of Subjects

2002 ◽  
Vol 95 (3_suppl) ◽  
pp. 1141-1154 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sylvie Ozel ◽  
Jacques Larue ◽  
Corinne Molinaro
Keyword(s):  
Mental Rotation ◽  
Response Times ◽  
Sport Activity ◽  
Mental Image ◽  
Mental Rotation Task ◽  
Image Transformation ◽  
Abstract Stimuli ◽  
And Performance ◽  
Regular Practice

The aim was to observe the relation between sport activity and performance on a mental image-transformation task. A classical mental rotation task using abstract stimuli was administered to three groups: (a) gymnasts who used mental and physical rotations in their practice, (b) athletes whose activities required very little motor rotation, and (c) nonathletes. Both sport groups performed similarly and obtained significantly shorter response times than those of the nonathletes. We suggest that the regular practice of spatial activities, such as sports, could be related to the spatial capacities of the participants.

scholarly journals Motor Area Activity During Mental Rotation Studied by Time-Resolved Single-Trial fMRI

2000 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 310-320 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wolfgang Richter ◽  
Ray Somorjai ◽  
Randy Summers ◽  
Mark Jarmasz ◽  
Ravi S. Menon ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Rotation ◽  
Primary Motor Cortex ◽  
Response Times ◽  
Mental Rotation Task ◽  
Motor Area ◽  
Button Press ◽  
Single Trial ◽  
Time Resolved ◽  
Area Of Interest ◽  
Dynamic Imagery

The functional equivalence of overt movements and dynamic imagery is of fundamental importance in neuroscience. Here, we investigated the participation of the neocortical motor areas in a classic task of dynamic imagery, Shepard and Metzler's mental rotation task, by time-resolved single-trial functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI). The subjects performed the mental-rotation task 16 times, each time with different object pairs. Functional images were acquired for each pair separately, and the onset times and widths of the activation peaks in each area of interest were compared to the response times. We found a bilateral involvement of the superior parietal lobule, lateral premotor area, and supplementary motor area in all subjects; we found, furthermore, that those areas likely participate in the very act of mental rotation. We also found an activation in the left primary motor cortex, which seemed to be associated with the right-hand button press at the end of the task period.

scholarly journals Correlational Evidence for the Role of Spatial Perspective-Taking Ability in the Mental Rotation of Human-Like Objects

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-8
Author(s):  
Hiroyuki Muto
Keyword(s):  
Mental Rotation ◽  
Perspective Taking ◽  
Response Times ◽  
Judgment Task ◽  
Mental Rotation Task ◽  
Spatial Perspective ◽  
The Road ◽  
Road Map ◽  
Strategy Shift ◽  
Spatial Perspective Taking

Abstract. People can mentally rotate objects that resemble human bodies more efficiently than nonsense objects in the same/different judgment task. Previous studies proposed that this human-body advantage in mental rotation is mediated by one's projections of body axes onto a human-like object, implying that human-like objects elicit a strategy shift, from an object-based to an egocentric mental rotation. To test this idea, we investigated whether mental rotation performance involving a human-like object had a stronger association with spatial perspective-taking, which entails egocentric mental rotation, than a nonsense object. In the present study, female participants completed a chronometric mental rotation task with nonsense and human-like objects. Their spatial perspective-taking ability was then assessed using the Road Map Test and the Spatial Orientation Test. Mental rotation response times (RTs) were shorter for human-like than for nonsense objects, replicating previous research. More importantly, spatial perspective-taking had a stronger negative correlation with RTs for human-like than for nonsense objects. These findings suggest that human-like stimuli in the same/different mental rotation task induce a strategy shift toward efficient egocentric mental rotation.

Individual differences in Cantonese Chinese word recognition: Insights from the Chinese Lexicon Project

2020 ◽  
Vol 73 (4) ◽  
pp. 504-518 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rosemarie YH Lim ◽  
Melvin J Yap ◽  
Chi-Shing Tse
Keyword(s):  
Individual Differences ◽  
Word Recognition ◽  
Lexical Decision ◽  
Lexical Processing ◽  
Response Times ◽  
Recognition Performance ◽  
Processing System ◽  
Task Demands ◽  
Chinese Word ◽  
The Stability

The Chinese Lexicon Project is a repository of lexical decision data for 25,286 Cantonese Chinese two-character compound words. To create that repository, 594 participants responded to approximately 1,404 words and 1,404 nonwords over three sessions. Using the data in this repository, the present study examines the variability and reliability of Chinese lexical decision performance, along with the moderating influence of individual differences on lexical processing. We generally found high to very high within- and between-session reliabilities for mean response times, ex-Gaussian parameters, accuracy rates, and a composite proficiency measure tapping lexical processing fluency. Using linear mixed effects models, we also found reliable interactions between fluency and two lexical effects. Specifically, more fluent readers showed larger effects of word frequency and semantic transparency. These results attest to the stability of Chinese word recognition performance, and are most consistent with a flexible lexical processing system that adapts optimally to task demands.

scholarly journals Progesterone and Mental Rotation Task: Is There Any Effect?

2014 ◽  
Vol 2014 ◽  
pp. 1-9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Donatas Noreika ◽  
Inga Griškova-Bulanova ◽  
Aidas Alaburda ◽  
Mindaugas Baranauskas ◽  
Ramunė Grikšienė
Keyword(s):  
Mental Rotation ◽  
Luteal Phase ◽  
Response Times ◽  
Follicular Phase ◽  
Mental Rotation Task ◽  
Progesterone Level ◽  
Subjective Fatigue ◽  
Long Duration ◽  
Spatial Tasks ◽  
Long Time

Mental rotation task (MRT) incorporates elements of spatial abilities, important in many professions, with people of both genders involved. Importantly, these are the areas where spatial tasks might be performed for long time periods; thus adverse effects of mental fatigue are highly unwanted. Substantial variation of MRT performance in relation to estrogen levels has been observed in many studies, whereas the role of progesterone remains elusive. Here we aimed to elucidate the effect of progesterone level on the long-duration (1.5 hours) performance of MRT. We included three groups of subjects: a group of males as a control, a group of females in their follicular phase (low progesterone) and a group of females in their luteal phase (high progesterone), MRT accuracy and response time, subjective fatigue ratings and cardiovascular measures together with 17β-estradiol and progesterone concentrations were analyzed. We found that subjective ratings of fatigue increased, performance accuracy increased, and mean response times decreased during the task in all groups. Females in luteal phase were significantly slower not only than men, but also than females in their follicular phase. An increase in subjective fatigue ratings was positively related to progesterone level—at higher progesterone levels, females felt more tired.

Large-Scale Demonstration Experiment of Mental Imagery Ability

1993 ◽  
Vol 76 (3_suppl) ◽  
pp. 1089-1090 ◽  
Author(s):  
F. Richard Ferraro
Keyword(s):  
Gender Differences ◽  
Individual Differences ◽  
Present Article ◽  
Mental Imagery ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Introductory Psychology Class ◽  
Imagery Ability ◽  
Psychology Class ◽  
Demonstration Experiment ◽  
And Gender

The present article describes a demonstration experiment used in a large introductory psychology class pertaining to mental imagery ability. The experiment is effective in providing a concrete instance of mental imagery as well as an effective discussion regarding individual differences and gender differences in imagery ability.

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