Object Location Memory and Sex Difference: Implications on Static vs. Dynamic Navigation Environments

Abstract

In the present study, the effect of a two-type multimedia navigationenvironment (dynamic vs. static) was investigated on recall performancesof learners with different object location memory (OLM) spans (low vs. high). The OLM spans of 34 male and female undergraduate students weredetermined by a revised location memory test, and the students were separatedinto high and low groups. In a 2x2 nested ANOVA design, one group studiedthe static navigation environment, while the other explored the 3-D dynamicenvironment. While in the 3-D dynamic environment individuals navigatedthrough the smooth display of view changes; in the static environment, 2-Drepresentation of the 3-D real world, objects did not change with the movementof the observer. As participants finished the navigation task, they were givena spatial knowledge recall test. Findings indicated that learners showed higherrecall performances in the static environment than the dynamic environment. Gender differences were also observed in terms of recalling spatial knowledge,with males earning the highest scores in the dynamic navigation environment.