The ability to recognize temporal patterns and position events in time emerges during the preschool years and is refined in middle childhood. This study explored individual differences in temporal cognition in relation to verbal and nonverbal abilities. Children (30 boys, 32 girls; M[subscript age] = 8;2, age range = 6;0-10;8) completed 3…

In this research we explored the relationship between spatial activities in the home and spatial ability at the start of formal schooling at age four. In total, 30 children participated in this research. Data sources included a demographic questionnaire, a survey of at home spatial activities, and standardized testing in verbal and non-verbal…

Although metamemory has recently received renewed interest by several investigators, individual differences in memory skills have received little if any attention. While individual differences in memory skills have common sense validity, these differences have been difficult to document experimentally. This study used a repeated measures design to…

Four experiments compared three alternative models of linear syllogistic reasoning: (1) linguistic; (2) spatial; and (3) mixed linguistic-spatial. The mixed model, indicating the importance of both verbal and spatial ability, was supported by all four experiments, and for about three-fourths of the undergraduate students studied. (Author/GDC)

Focusing on activity preferences at home rather than activity preferences in nursery school, this study examined the relationship between preschoolers' daily activities and spatial abilities. Parents of 52 preschoolers recorded their children's home activities for 7 days. Children were given three measures of spatial ability and one vocabulary…

Sixty-eight undergraduate college students served as subjects in a study that examined the effects of reader-generated map-like representations (spatial organizers) on subjects' delayed recall of a narrative. Of interest were the possible interactions between individual difference measures (verbal and spatial ability) and map generation on…

There is a growing awareness among researchers that the magnitude of cognitive sex differences is affected by a number of subject variables. To examine spatial and verbal cognitive sex differences as a function of personal and family handedness, the 478 offspring who participated in the Minnesota family study and 454 offspring who participated in…

Although the most desired attributes of a geographer are spatial perception and verbal ability, research reveals that each sex consistently demonstrates superiority in only one of the abilities. In the United States females score significantly higher in verbal abilities and males score significantly higher in spatial abilities. The differences are…

Research on the interaction of keyword treatment with materials or student characteristics in learning foreign languages was reviewed. Most of the studies implied that foreign language vocabulary learning was related to verbal, not visual-spatial ability or elaboration, conditions, and that student-generated keywords were more effective than…

A major issue concerning adult intellectual development is whether intellectual decline in late adulthood is uniform or ability-specific. Differential patterns of ability decline were analyzed by comparing data on longitudinal age change over the age range from 53 to 81 years from two successive 14-year periods (1956-1970 and 1970-1984). The…

Although sex differences in research have received considerable attention, few researchers have examined the bias, social context, and process of that research. In analyzing sex differences in academic achievement over the past 10 years, three areas (mathematics, spatial ability, and verbal ability) would appear to establish consistent sex…

The relationship between students' relative ability in visual-spatial tasks as well as their verbal and numerical skills to their performance in an introductory college chemistry course was investigated. For 700 subjects, verbal and mathematics Scholastic Aptitude Test scores (SAT-V) and (SAT-M) and the following four perceptual tests were…

This longitudinal study was designed to investigate the nature and extent of sex differences in both verbal and spatial abilities among black and white children. Six scales of early cognitive functioning were administered at three times (at 8 months, 4 years and 7 years) to 3,013 children. Two major hypotheses were examined: (1) if cognitive…

In order to investigate the factors that affect the ability of children to decode and elaborate television information, a study was conducted in which verbal ability, spatial ability, and amount of home television viewing were examined, along with viewer attention and three levels of instruction, for their direct and interactive effects on…

Research on hemispheric specialization indicates that the two hemispheres of the brain are specialized to perform different functions. A visual style of thinking is associated with the right hemisphere, while a verbal style is associated with the left hemisphere. The possibility of a relationship between psychological androgyny and sex role…