ERIC Number: EJ874832
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2010-Apr
Pages: 7
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0010-0277
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: N/A
The Role of Experience in Location Estimation: Target Distributions Shift Location Memory Biases
Lipinski, John; Simmering, Vanessa R.; Johnson, Jeffrey S.; Spencer, John P.
Cognition, v115 n1 p147-153 Apr 2010
Research based on the Category Adjustment model concluded that the spatial distribution of target locations does not influence location estimation responses [Huttenlocher, J., Hedges, L., Corrigan, B., & Crawford, L. E. (2004). Spatial categories and the estimation of location. "Cognition, 93", 75-97]. This conflicts with earlier results showing that location estimation is biased relative to the spatial distribution of targets [Spencer, J. P., & Hund, A. M. (2002). Prototypes and particulars: Geometric and experience-dependent spatial categories. "Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 131", 16-37]. Here, we resolve this controversy by using a task based on Huttenlocher et al. (Experiment 4) with minor modifications to enhance our ability to detect experience-dependent effects. Results after the first block of trials replicate the pattern reported in Huttenlocher et al. After additional experience, however, participants showed biases that significantly shifted according to the target distributions. These results are consistent with the Dynamic Field Theory, an alternative theory of spatial cognition that integrates long-term memory traces across trials relative to the perceived structure of the task space. (Contains 2 tables and 4 figures.)
Descriptors: Long Term Memory, Experimental Psychology, Geometric Concepts, Evaluation Methods, Spatial Ability, Schemata (Cognition), Theories, Models, Bias, Task Analysis
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Evaluative
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
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Author Affiliations: N/A