Four blind adults were observed to determine the extent of the natural movement of their centers of gravity in relation to arc height during the two-point touch technique for long cane travel. The Ss learned and practiced a modified technique using their center of gravity as much as possible. (Author)

This study evaluated the accuracy of 9 pointing methods used by 20 blind adults. Substantial differences were found, with the most accurate methods involving a body part or extension. The verbal "clockface" was the least accurate and most variable method. The long cane is recommended as a pointing method for adults in applied and…

Three blind adults were trained in a 7-step structured procedure for asking questions to solicit information concerning the location of businesses they wished to visit. Completeness of information obtained increased dramatically with the use of this procedure. (Author/DB)

Four groups (sighted, blindfolded sighted, legally blind, and blind) of adults were trained to traverse a five-block route in a residential neighborhood and were then asked to reconstruct the route from memory. Results showed the blind and sighted adults demonstrated similar abilities to learn routes but showed significant differences in memorial…

An easy-to-use objective method for evaluating a blind person's knowledge about the spatial layout of a locale was used with 10 adventitiously blind adults. Preliminary evidence indicated that the representations of spatial knowledge generated from the scaling procedures are related to the person's mobility performance in that space. (Author)

Ten sighted adults were blindfolded and asked to find four objects in the open space of a room. A perimeter pattern, a gridlike search pattern, and a reference-point strategy were variably effective, indicating that different kinds of experience may result in different kinds of knowledge that are optimal for different spatial judgment tasks.…

The study evaluated the consistency of goodness-of-example ratings by 27 orientation and mobility (OM) instructors for photographs depicting five environmental concepts (curb, hallway, intersection, shoreline, sidewalk). Results, which were highly consistent across raters, are discussed in relation to design instructional and directions for future…

Semistructured telephone interviews with 10 visually impaired adult cane users found that early negative attitudes of stigma were usually replaced by more positive attitudes and that there was a mean of 1 3/4 years between the onset of severe visual impairment and commencement of orientation and mobility training. (Author/DB)

Three experiments examined the ability of blind individuals and individuals simulating the visual acuity of 20/400 to monitor the behaviors of a cane traveler in various environments and at distances between 10 feet and 25 feet. Results suggested that at least some vision is needed for instructors monitoring visually impaired individuals learning…

Two blind adult males, both of whom were labeled mentally retarded and institutionalized for 34 years, were able to achieve a level of independence enabling them to integrate into society through orientation and mobility training and guide dog training. (IM)

The article reports a retrospective study of the records of 183 blind men and women who had received mobility training. How well and quickly the trainees learned to travel was affected by age, sex, presence of other handicaps, visual acuity, and whether or not they still traveled at intake or had previously received mobility training. (Author)

Adventitiously blind adults (n=79) who had accepted mobility training were compared to 60 subjects who had rejected training. Personality profiles varied significantly between groups on seven scales of the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory: psychasthenia; schizophrenia; psychopathic deviate; depression; hypomania; paranoia; and…