Assessment Of Spatial Abilities Research Articles

Assessing the Speed–Accuracy Tradeoff in Psychological Testing Using Experimental Manipulations

The speed–accuracy tradeoff (SAT), where increased response speed often leads to decreased accuracy, is well established in experimental psychology. However, its implications for psychological assessments, especially in high-stakes settings, remain less understood. This study presents an experimental approach to investigate the SAT within a high-stakes spatial ability assessment. By manipulating instructions in a within-subjects design to induce speed variations in a large sample ( N = 1,305) of applicants for an air traffic controller training program, we demonstrate the feasibility of manipulating working speed. Our findings confirm the presence of the SAT for most participants, suggesting that traditional ability scores may not fully reflect performance in high-stakes assessments. Importantly, we observed individual differences in the SAT, challenging the assumption of uniform SAT functions across test takers. These results highlight the complexity of interpreting high-stakes assessment outcomes and the influence of test conditions on performance dynamics. This study offers a valuable addition to the methodological toolkit for assessing the intraindividual relationship between speed and accuracy in psychological testing (including SAT research), providing a controlled approach while acknowledging the need to address potential confounders. Future research may apply this method across various cognitive domains, populations, and testing contexts to deepen our understanding of the SAT’s broader implications for psychological measurement.

Kemampuan Spasial Dalam Menyelesaikan Soal Geometri

This research includes qualitative research. This research aims to determine spatial abilities in solving flat-sided geometric shape problems. The trial respondents in this research were 3 students in class IX9 of SMP Negeri 1 Parepare. The spatial ability assessment consists of a test sheet and an interview guide sheet. The spatial abilities produced in this research are indicated to meet the spatial ability indicators. Data analysis in this research went through data reduction, data presentation, and concluding/verification. The research results show that students show spatial abilities (1) Able to compare or connect cubes with blocks. (2) Knowing the number of small cubes that can fill the block. (3) Know how to calculate the volume of the beam.

Under My Skin: Reducing Bias in STEM through New Approaches to Assessment of Spatial Abilities Considering the Role of Emotional Regulation

Reducing gender bias in STEM is key to generating more equality and contributing to a more balanced workforce in this field. Spatial ability and its components are cognitive processes crucial to success in STEM education and careers. Significant gender differences have consistently been found in mental rotation (MR), the ability to mentally transform two- and three-dimensional objects. The aim of this pilot study is to examine factors in psychological assessment which may contribute to gender differences in MR performance. Moreover, findings will inform the development of the new approaches to assessment using computer adaptive testing (CAT). (1) Background: The study examines the impact of emotional regulation on MR performance in primary school children whose mean age was 9.28 years old. (2) Methods: Skin conductance was measured to assess the impact of emotional reactivity (ER) on performance during an MR task. (3) Results: Patterns of ER influence response time (RT) on specific items in the task. (4) Conclusions: Identifying the effects of emotional arousal and issues of test construction such as stereotyped stimuli and item difficulty in tests of spatial ability warrants ongoing investigation. It is vital to ensure that these factors do not compromise the accurate measurement of performance and inadvertently contribute to the gender gap in STEM.

Comprehensive Assessment of Spatial Ability in Children: A Computerized Tasks Battery

Spatial ability is known to have an important role in learning different skills in childhood and achieving success in specific professions. A vast majority of the studies on this topic have focused on adults, and few on in children. In this study, eight tasks were selected to assess eight factors of spatial ability and were modified to be suitable for children. Computerized versions of the tasks were designed and their reliability was measured. One-hundred and ten Iranian children aged 9 to 12 years old participated in the study. In order to assess the test-retest reliability, half of the participants were tested twice. Internal consistency reliability was calculated for some of the tasks. Intraclass correlation coefficients were obtained by test-retest reliability analysis for all tasks ranging from 0.689 to 0.997. The range of Cronbach's α coefficient was found to be between 0.335 and 0.784. The range of the ω coefficient was from 0.428 to 0.798. Each modified task had adequate reliability for assessing the respective spatial ability factors. This battery can help to identify the level of spatial performance in children.

Interest in spatial activities predicts young children’s spatial ability development: A two-year longitudinal study

Studies have indicated the important impact of spatial abilities on science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) achievement. However, little is known about the predictors of individual differences in the growth trajectory of spatial ability. Children’s interest in learning activities plays a significant role in their ability development in literacy, math, and science. Therefore, the current study explored the role of children’s interest in spatial activities in their spatial ability development. We hypothesized that children’s interest in spatial activities would positively predict both the initial level and subsequent growth rate of spatial ability. The spatial ability of 197 Hong Kong preschool children (mean age = 52.72 months and SD = 3.30 months in the first wave of spatial ability assessment [Time 1]) was assessed four times over a two-year period, using a visual–spatial skills task. Their mothers ranked the children’s interest in various activities from 1 (most interested) to 13 (least interested) at Time 1. A growth curve analysis was performed to examine the relationships between interest in spatial activities at Time 1 and initial level and subsequent growth of spatial skills, controlling for parents’ expectations concerning spatial development, children’s interest in art activities, and demographics. The results showed that children’s interest in spatial activities significantly predicted their spatial ability growth (β = 0.252, p = .042), explaining 5.7% of the variance in growth, but was unrelated to the initial level of spatial skills. This finding highlights the importance of preserving and enhancing young children’s interest in spatial activities, among other activities, for the development of their spatial abilities.

Spatial Ability Stress Test for Screening and Selection: The Development of SCOUT-R

Spatial abilities are often predictive of occupational success. Specifically, they are thought to play a role in aviator success and thus, are evaluated in Naval and Air Force aviation selection. However, the selection process only includes a single assessment of spatial ability which recent findings have called into question its validity. The creation of a speeded spatial ability stress test with face validity for the Navy and Marine Corps aviation community was investigated. We developed SCOUT-R, a multitask environment where participants quickly discriminated target objects from distractors, all of which could appear in any 90° orientation. The results showed the speeded presentation affected subjective workload and task strategy; however, target discrimination improved as the speed of presentation increased. The implications for SCOUT-R as a spatial ability selection test are considered.

Evaluating the impact of a Spatial Reasoning Mathematics Program (SRMP) intervention in the primary school

As part of the Connecting Mathematics Learning through Spatial Reasoning project, a Spatial Reasoning Mathematics Program (SRMP) intervention was implemented with one cohort of 30 students in grades 3 through 4. The SRMP embedded transformation skills in learning sequences comprising repeating and growing patterns, 2D and 3D relationships, structuring area and perimeter, directionality and perspective-taking. Analysis indicated a significantly better gain by the experimental group on the PASA-2 measure of awareness of pattern and structure and on the PASA-Sp assessment of spatial ability at the post-SRMP period. However, there were no significant differences found between groups on the PATMaths4 test of mathematics achievement. Qualitative analyses indicated that students demonstrated the development of complex spatial concepts well beyond curriculum expectations. The SRMP highlighted the important role of patterning and spatial structuring in the formation and representation of spatial concepts.

The Influence of Display Parameters and Display Devices over Spatial Ability Test Answers in Virtual Reality Environments

This manuscript analyzes the influence of display parameters and display devices over the spatial skills of the users in virtual reality environments. For this, the authors of this manuscript developed a virtual reality application which tests the spatial skills of the users. 240 students used an LG desktop display and 61 students used the Gear VR for the tests. Statistical data are generated when the users do the tests and the following factors are logged by the application and evaluated in this manuscript: virtual camera type, virtual camera field of view, virtual camera rotation, contrast ratio parameters, the existence of shadows and the device used. The probabilities of correct answers were analyzed based on these factors by logistic regression (logit) analysis method. The influences and interactions of all factors were analyzed. The perspective camera, lighter contrast ratio, no or large camera rotations and the use of the Gear VR greatly and positively influenced the probability of correct answers on the tests. Therefore, for the assessment of spatial ability in virtual reality, the use of these parameters and device present the optimal user-centric human–computer interaction practice.

Manipulate Me

Abstract. The cube construction task represents a novel format in the assessment of spatial ability through mental cube rotation tasks. Instead of selecting the correct answer from several response options, respondents construct their own response in a computerized test environment, leading to a higher demand for spatial ability. In the present study with a sample of 146 German high-school students, we tested an approach to manipulate the item difficulties in order to create items with a greater difficulty range. Furthermore, we compared the cube task in a distractor-free and a distractor-based version while the item stems were held identical. The average item difficulty of the distractor-free format was significantly higher than in the distractor-based format ( M = 0.27 vs. M = 0.46) and the distractor-free format showed a broader range of item difficulties (.02 ≤ pi ≤ .95 vs. .37 ≤ pi ≤ .63). The analyses of the test results also showed that the distractor-free format had a significantly higher correlation with a broad intelligence test ( r = .57 vs. r = .17). Reasons for the higher convergent validity of the distractor-free format (prevention of response elimination strategies and the broader range of item difficulties) and further research possibilities are discussed.

Test-retest reliability of BSP, a battery of tests for assessing spatial cognition in visually impaired children.

Blind individuals are particularly dependent on their hearing for defining space. It has been found that both children and adults with visual impairments can struggle with complex spatial tasks that require a metric representation of space. Nonetheless the variability of methods employed to assess spatial abilities in absence of vision is wide, especially in the case of visually impaired children. For this reason, it would be necessary to define a battery of tests that appropriately assess different aspects of spatial perception and to investigate its reliability in order to provide a standard assessment of spatial abilities not only in experimental but also in clinical settings. The aim of this study is to determine the test–retest reliability of a battery of six spatial tasks (BSP, Blind Spatial Perception) and provide the first gold standard for assessing spatial cognition deficits in visually impaired children. Thirty visually impaired children aged 6–17 participated in two identical sessions, at a distance of 10 weeks, in which they performed six spatial tasks: auditory bisection, auditory localization, auditory distance discrimination, auditory reaching, proprioceptive reaching, and general mobility. Test–retest reliability was assessed using the test-retest scatter plots, intra-class correlation coefficient (ICC), and coefficient of variation (CV). The results showed good-to-excellent reliability for all six tests, with average ICC values ranging from 0.77 to 0.89 and average CV values ranging from 3.44% to 15.27%. In conclusion, the newly proposed battery (BSP) results as a reliable tool to identify spatial impairments in visually impaired children.

Construct Your Own Response

Abstract. The cube construction task represents a novel format in the assessment of spatial ability through mental cube rotation tasks. Instead of selecting the correct answer from several response options, testees construct their own response in a computerized test environment. The format has several advantages: It is no longer possible to guess the correct response or to compare the reference cube to the response options, resulting in a higher demand for spatial ability. Moreover, it is possible to create items with a particularly high difficulty which are needed for the assessment of intellectual giftedness. In the present study, we developed 28 items and presented them to a sample of 130 university students. Test results showed that the items possess a very high statistical difficulty. Furthermore, the item set yielded a very high internal consistency. The results of an exploratory factor analysis as well as of a multidimensional IRT analysis indicated that a two-factor solution (“spatial relations” vs. “spatial visualization”) is plausible. Response time had a negligible influence on accuracy. Perspectives on further research concerning the cube construction task and possibilities for practical applications are being discussed.

Exploring the Spatial Ability of Undergraduate Students: Association With Gender, STEM Majors, and Gifted Program Membership

Spatial ability has been valued as a talent domain and as an assessment form that reduces cultural, linguistic, and socioeconomic status biases, yet little is known of the spatial ability of students in gifted programs compared with those in general education. Spatial ability is considered an important indicator of potential talent in the domains of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). This study explored undergraduate students’ spatial ability, focusing on mental rotation, by investigating the relationships of three variables with performance on a spatial ability test, in terms of test scores and test completion time. A three-way analysis of variance revealed statistically significant main effects of gifted program participation, choice of academic major, and gender, suggesting that students who participated in a gifted program, who majored in a STEM discipline, or who were male outperformed their counterparts on a measure of spatial ability when the other conditions were equivalent. No interaction effects existed among the three variables, indicating that none of them functioned as a moderator of students’ performance on the spatial ability assessment. However, when spatial ability was considered as a mediating variable in a path model, gender had the largest total effect on the probability of students majoring in a STEM area. In addition, the more time students spent on the spatial ability test, the better they tended to perform, which is a finding inconsistent with current literature.

A Case Study on the Spatial Conceptualization Abilities for Sixth Grade Elementary Students from Urban, Suburban and Remote Schools

Background:The main objective of this study was to investigate and compare the spatial conceptualization performance for sixth grade elementary school students from urban, suburban and remote schools in Taiwan.Material and methods:This study involved 27, 25, and 26 sixth grade students from one remote indigenous school in eastern Taiwan, one suburban indigenous school in northern Taiwan, and one urban Han Chinese school in northern Taiwan, respectively. Spatial ability assessments were carried out on the students to explore the spatial conceptualiza-tion abilities and the possible relationship between school children's spatial abilities and urban-rural, ethnic, and cultural diversities.Results:The research tool utilized in this study was a scenario-based spatial ability assessment test, which had been carefully reviewed and pre-tested by experts. Test results revealed that: (1) Sixth grade students from the sub-urban and remote indigenous school shared no significant difference in their spatial abilities; (2) Sixth grade students from the urban Han Chinese school exhibited significantly better spatial performance than those from the suburban indigenous school.Conclusions:The spatial conceptualization performance for sixth grade elementary school students from urban, suburban and remote schools in Taiwan is different.

A téri képességek vizsgálata papír alapú és online tesztekkel

A téri képességek vizsgálata papír alapú és online tesztekkel

Do patients with traumatic brain injury learn a route in the same way in real and virtual environments?

An increasing number of studies address the use of virtual environments (VE) in the cognitive assessment of spatial abilities. However, the differences between learning in a VE and a real environment (RE) remain controversial. Purpose: To compare the topographical behavior and spatial representations of patients with traumatic brain injury navigating in a real environment and in a virtual reproduction of this environment. Methods: Twenty-seven subjects with moderate to severe traumatic brain injury were consecutively included and allocated to one of two groups. The subjects were taught the same route in either the virtual environment or the real environment and had to recall it twice immediately after learning the route and once after a delay. At the end of these sessions, the subjects were asked to complete three representational tests: a map test, a map recognition test recognition and a scene arrangement test. Results: No significant difference was found between the two groups with regards to demographics, severity of brain injury or episodic memory. As a main result, the number of error rates did not significantly differ between the real and virtual environment [F (1, 25) = 0.679; p = 0.4176)]. Scores on the scene arrangement test were higher in the real environment [U = 32.5; p = 0.01]. Conclusions: Although spatial representations probably differ between the real and virtual environment, virtual reality remains a trusty assessment tool for spatial abilities.Implications for RehabilitationThe transfer of cognitive skills and strategy acquired during rehabilitation programs into daily life situations remains a matter of debate.Virtual reality might provide ecological and rehabilitation scenarios that can be used to look at the daily functioning of patients.The route learning performance after traumatic brain injury shows no significant difference between the real environment and its virtual reproduction in this study.

Predicting space telerobotic operator training performance from human spatial ability assessment

Our goal was to determine whether existing tests of spatial ability can predict an astronaut's qualification test performance after robotic training. Because training astronauts to be qualified robotics operators is so long and expensive, NASA is interested in tools that can predict robotics performance before training begins. Currently, the Astronaut Office does not have a validated tool to predict robotics ability as part of its astronaut selection or training process. Commonly used tests of human spatial ability may provide such a tool to predict robotics ability. We tested the spatial ability of 50 active astronauts who had completed at least one robotics training course, then used logistic regression models to analyze the correlation between spatial ability test scores and the astronauts' performance in their evaluation test at the end of the training course. The fit of the logistic function to our data is statistically significant for several spatial tests. However, the prediction performance of the logistic model depends on the criterion threshold assumed. To clarify the critical selection issues, we show how the probability of correct classification vs. misclassification varies as a function of the mental rotation test criterion level. Since the costs of misclassification are low, the logistic models of spatial ability and robotic performance are reliable enough only to be used to customize regular and remedial training. We suggest several changes in tracking performance throughout robotics training that could improve the range and reliability of predictive models.

Effects of Acute Insulin-Induced Hypoglycemia on Spatial Abilities in Adults With Type 1 Diabetes

OBJECTIVETo examine the effects of acute insulin-induced hypoglycemia on spatial cognitive abilities in adult humans with type 1 diabetes.RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODSSixteen adults with type 1 diabetes underwent two counterbalanced experimental sessions: euglycemia (blood glucose 4.5 mmol/l [81 mg/dl]) and hypoglycemia (2.5 mmol/l [45 mg/dl]). Arterialized blood glucose levels were maintained using a hyperinsulinemic glucose clamp technique. During each session, subjects underwent detailed assessment of spatial abilities from the Kit of Factor-Referenced Cognitive Tests and two tests of general cognitive function.RESULTSSpatial ability performance deteriorated significantly during hypoglycemia. Results for the Hidden Patterns, Card Rotations, Paper Folding, and Maze Tracing tests were all impaired significantly (P ≤ 0.001) during hypoglycemia, as were results for the Cube Comparisons Test (P = 0.03). The Map Memory Test was not significantly affected by hypoglycemia.CONCLUSIONSHypoglycemia is a common side effect of insulin therapy in individuals with type 1 diabetes, and spatial abilities are of critical importance in day-to-day functioning. The deterioration in spatial abilities observed during modest experimental hypoglycemia provides novel information on the cerebral hazards of hypoglycemia that has potential relevance to everyday activities.

The comparative efficacy of 2D- versus 3D-based media design for influencing spatial visualization skills

This study explored the effects of 2D- versus 3D-based media representations on the influence of the spatial visualization ability of undergraduate science majors. A pre-test/post-test comparison-group experiment was conducted with 23 participants involved in the study. Participating students were randomly assigned either to the interactive 3D media representation group (n=13) or the conventional 2D media representation group (n=10); learning materials in both groups deliver the same information to students, but employ different media representations. All the activities were performed in a self-paced, web-based instructional system. The results of ANCOVA analysis showed statistically insignificant difference between groups in terms of students' post-test scores on the spatial visualization ability test with the students' pre-test scores as the covariate. However, a medium effect size was observed in favor of the 3D group in terms of practical significance. As a pilot study with a small sample size aiming to probe the research direction of this problem, the result of medium-sized effect magnitude is likely to implicate that the discrepancy of different representational design on students' performance of spatial ability assessment is noteworthy. Future study of this nature appears to merit further replications and investigations.

Dynamic Assessment of Spatial Abilities of Young Children: Effects of Gender and Task Characteristics

The main objectives of this study were to investigate: (a) gender differences in spatial abilities of kindergartners, (b) the effects of a teaching, using dynamic assessment (DA), on cognitive modifiability of spatial abilities, and (c) the effects of task characteristics (rotation, symmetry, complexity) on mental rotation performance. Thirty two boys and 32 kindergarten girls, 5 to 6 years old, were administered the Spatial Relations subtest (PMA), the Mental Rotation subtest (CMB), the Visual Figure Ground test, and the Dynamic Embedded Figures Test. The results revealed a significant pre- to postteaching improvement in mental rotation and spatial visualization in both gender groups. Boys showed higher performance than girls on easy preteaching mental rotation tasks but the girls closed the gap on the postteaching test. On difficult mental rotation tasks (e.g., higher rotation or higher complexity) boys and girls showed similar pre-teaching performance, but boys showed higher performance than girls on the postteaching test. Pearson correlations between spatial and verbal abilities were higher among girls than among boys — a result which was explained by the girls’ tendency to use their verbal abilities for solving spatial problems, especially for the spatial visualization tasks. Boys tended to separate between the two domains and use a holistic spatial strategy.

Planning optimal paths: A simple assessment of survey spatial knowledge in virtual environments

In spatial cognition studies several cognitive factors were analysed in order to identify the aspect that could constitute the basis for the capacity of organising spatial knowledge into survey maps. This study presents a method for evaluating spatial ability, based on the capacity of obtaining a survey-type spatial knowledge organisation, in a recently explored virtual environment. The ability to plan optimal paths in virtual environments was examined in 40 female adult subjects. Spatial evaluation deriving from navigation of a simple virtual environment was compared with classical spatial survey tasks (wayfinding, pointing and sketch maps) performed after the active exploration of a complex virtual environment. Results show that there is a relationship between planning optimal paths and other spatial tasks related to survey representation. These findings highlight how the navigation-supported learning capacity results in a predictive factor for individuals’ assessment of spatial ability.