Montclair State University, 1 Normal Av, Montclair, NJ 07043, United States of America.
Cognition. 2025 Jan;254:105982. doi: 10.1016/j.cognition.2024.105982. Epub 2024 Nov 5.
Wayfinding, a large-scale spatial ability, involves the navigation of one's environment and can be classified into three types of knowledge: route, landmark, and survey. Newcombe and Shipley (2015) proposed a double-dimension spatial framework that classifies spatial abilities into four categories: intrinsic-static, intrinsic-dynamic, extrinsic-static, and extrinsic-dynamic. These abilities are usually assessed in small-scale environments, such as in desktop settings. Examining the relationship between wayfinding knowledge and small-scale spatial abilities has important theoretical implications for understanding spatial cognition at different environmental scales. It also has practical implications for designing more effective training programs to improve wayfinding skills. However, the existing literature linking the two is limited and mixed, especially in children. The current study utilized the double-dimension framework to examine the relationship between small-scale and large-scale spatial abilities in children. We hypothesized that intrinsic abilities should be associated with landmark knowledge while dynamic abilities should be related to route knowledge. Eight small-scale spatial tasks measuring four spatial categories and one wayfinding task measuring route and landmark knowledge were administered to 171 typically developing children between the ages of four and nine. Dynamic spatial abilities significantly predicted route knowledge and mediated the effects of age and sex on route knowledge. In addition, dynamic and intrinsic-static abilities predicted landmark knowledge and also mediated the effects of age on landmark knowledge. These results showed the associations between small-scale spatial abilities and large-scale spatial abilities were selective and specific yet strong, providing insights into further theoretical advancements in spatial cognition. Practical implications were also discussed.
寻路能力是一种大规模的空间能力，涉及到对环境的导航，可以分为三种知识类型：路线、地标和图式。Newcombe 和 Shipley（2015）提出了一个二维空间框架，将空间能力分为四类：内在静态、内在动态、外在静态和外在动态。这些能力通常在小规模环境中进行评估，例如桌面设置。研究寻路知识与小规模空间能力之间的关系，对于理解不同环境规模的空间认知具有重要的理论意义。它对于设计更有效的培训计划以提高寻路技能也具有实际意义。然而，将两者联系起来的现有文献是有限的，并且存在混合情况，尤其是在儿童中。本研究利用二维框架来检验儿童中小规模和大规模空间能力之间的关系。我们假设内在能力应该与地标知识相关，而动态能力应该与路线知识相关。我们对 171 名年龄在 4 至 9 岁之间的典型发育儿童进行了八项小规模空间任务，这些任务测量了四个空间类别，以及一项测量路线和地标知识的寻路任务。动态空间能力显著预测了路线知识，并介导了年龄和性别对路线知识的影响。此外，动态和内在静态能力预测了地标知识，并且也介导了年龄对地标知识的影响。这些结果表明，小规模空间能力和大规模空间能力之间的关联是选择性的、具体的但又是强大的，为空间认知的进一步理论发展提供了新的见解。还讨论了实际意义。
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