Linn M C, Petersen A C
Child Dev. 1985 Dec;56(6):1479-98.
Sex differences in spatial ability are widely acknowledged, yet considerable dispute surrounds the magnitude, nature, and age of first occurrence of these differences. This article focuses on 3 questions about sex differences in spatial ability: What is the magnitude of sex differences in spatial ability? On which aspects of spatial ability are sex differences found? and When, in the life span, are sex differences in spatial ability first detected? Implications for clarifying the linkage between sex differences in spatial ability and other differences between males and females are discussed. We use meta-analysis, a method for synthesizing empirical studies, to investigate these questions. Results of the meta-analysis suggest that sex differences arise on some types of spatial ability but not others, that large sex differences are found only on measures of mental rotation, that smaller sex differences are found on measures of spatial perception, and that, when sex differences are found, they can be detected across the life span.
空间能力方面的性别差异已得到广泛认可，但围绕这些差异的大小、性质以及首次出现的年龄仍存在相当大的争议。本文聚焦于关于空间能力性别差异的三个问题：空间能力的性别差异有多大？在空间能力的哪些方面存在性别差异？以及在生命历程中，空间能力的性别差异最早何时被发现？文中还讨论了明确空间能力性别差异与男性和女性之间其他差异的联系所带来的影响。我们使用元分析（一种综合实证研究的方法）来探究这些问题。元分析的结果表明，性别差异在某些类型的空间能力上存在，而在其他类型上则不存在；仅在心理旋转测试中发现了较大的性别差异；在空间感知测试中发现的性别差异较小；并且，当发现性别差异时，在整个生命历程中都能检测到。
