Abstract
The type of information used to process spatial layouts was assessed by observing the effect of spatial category salience and perceptual grouping (a non-spatial category), on a location memory task. Participants (N = 64) learnt the pairings between twenty objects and twenty marked locations within a “house”. They then placed the objects in the remembered locations, without the aid of location markers. Spatial category salience was manipulated by presenting the house as an open space (no boundary condition) or by dividing the space into quadrants (boundary condition). Perceptual grouping was manipulated by using identical shapes (control condition) or sets of shapes which identified triads of objects (perceptual grouping condition). Both non-spatial and spatial categories improved location memory accuracy. The non- spatial category produced a prototype effect and the spatial category produced a subdivision effect. Different patterns of category dominance (spatial vs. non-spatial) were observed for level of accuracy compared to distortion effects.
Highlights
The concept of a “location” is innately relative; it is described in reference to elements such as other objects (Hund & Plumert, 2003), landmarks (Sadalla, Burroughs, & Staplin, 1980) and regions (Plumert & Hund, 2001)
As predicted by the Category Adjustment (CA) model, and consistent with previous research (Plumert & Hund, 2001), spatial category salience had a positive effect on accuracy, and showed evidence of systematic biases on location memory responses
A similar effect of improved accuracy, and systematic distortions was observed for a non-spatial factor, perceptual grouping
Summary
The concept of a “location” is innately relative; it is described in reference to elements such as other objects (Hund & Plumert, 2003), landmarks (Sadalla, Burroughs, & Staplin, 1980) and regions (Plumert & Hund, 2001). The Category Adjustment (CA) model (Huttenlocher, Hedges, & Duncan, 1991) was put forward to explain how individuals encode spatial location information and retrieve this information from memory. According to this model, spatial location coding involves two steps. Individuals first estimate location using fine-grained information, i.e. the distance and direction of an object’s location from a referent. Estimates are adjusted using categorical information about region membership. Each category is represented by a prototype at the centre of the region; adjustments are made towards the prototype
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