On the development and measurement of spatial ability
Keywords:
spatial ability, gender differencesAbstract
The importance of spatial ability in learning different school subjects and being successful at certain jobs
has been recognized globally. The vast majority of the studies on the topic have focused on the nature of
the phenomenon, the factors that affect its development), and the difference between males and females
on spatial ability. However, still there is a need to conduct research studies to have a better
understanding of the construct, its relations with other abilities, and the ways to foster its development.
By providing a literature review, this study addresses those issues and summarizes different ways of
measuring spatial ability and fostering its development to suggest study directions to future researchers.
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References
Alexander, G. M., & Hines, M. (2002). Sex differences in response to children's toys in nonhuman
primates (Cercopithecus aethiops sabaeus). Evolution and Human Behavior, 23, 467-479.
Allen, G. L. (1999). Cognitive abilities in the service of wayfinding: A functional approach. Professional
Geographer, 51(4), 554-561.
Allen, G. L. (2003). Functional families of spatial abilities: poor relations and rich prospects.
International Journal of Testing, 3(3), 251-262.
Anderson, J. R. (1990). Cognitive psychology and its implications (3rd Ed.). San Francisco, CA: Freeman.
Aszalos, L., & Bako, M. (2004). Paper presented at 6th International Conference on Applied Informatics,
Eger, Hungary.
Bell, S., & Saucer, D. (2004). Relationship among environmental pointing accuracy, mental rotation, sex,
and hormones. Environment and Behavior, 36(2), 251-265
Carroll, J.B. (1993). Human cognitive abilities: a survey of factor analytic studies. Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press.
Cohen, J. (1977). Statistical power analysis for the behavioral sciences. San Diego, CA: Academic Press.
Colom, R., Contreas, M.J., Shih, P.C., & Santecrau (2003). The assessment of spatial ability through a
single computerized test. European Journal of Psychological Assessment, 19(2), 92-100.
Cooper, L. A., & Mumaw, R. J. (1985). Spatial aptitude. In R. F. Dillman (Ed.). Individual differences in
cognition (2nd. Ed., pp.67-94). New York, NY: Academic Press.
Daniel L. Shea, D.L., Lubinski, D., & Benbow, C. P. (2001). Importance of assessing spatial ability in
intellectually talented young adolescents: a 20-year longitudinal study. Journal of Educational
Psychology, 93 (3), 604-614.
de Lacoste, M. C, Horvath, D. S., & Woodward, D. J. (1991). Possible sex differences in the developing
human fetal brain. Journal of Clinical and Experimental Neuropsychology, 13, 831—846.
Ekstrom, R. B., French, J. W., Harman, H. H., & Dermen, D. (1976). Kit of factor referenced cognitive
tests. Princeton, NJ: Educational Testing Services.
Glea, L. A. (1993). Sex differences in route-learning. Personality & Individual Differences, 14(1), 53-65.
Green, V. A., Bigler, R. S., & Catherwood, D. (2004). The variability and flexibility of gender-typed toy
play: a close look at children's behavioral responses to counterstereotypic models. Sex Roles,
51(7-8), 371-386.
Guay, R. & McDaniel, E. (1977). The relationship between mathematics achievement and spatial abilities
among elementary school children. Journal for Research in Mathematics Education 8(3), 211-
215.
Halpern (2000). Sex differences in cognitive abilities (3rd Ed.). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum
Associates.
Hampson, E., Rovet, J. F., & Airman, D. (1998). Spatial reasoning in children with congenital adrenal
hyperplasia due to 21-hydroxylase deficiency. Developmental Neuropsychology, 14, 299-320.
Hegarty, M. & Waller, D. (2005). Individual differences in spatial abilities. In P. Shah & A. Miyake
(Eds). The Cambridge handbook of visuospatial thinking. New York, NY: Cambdridge
University Press.
Hier, D. B., & Crowley, W. F. (1982). Spatial ability in androgen-deficient men. New England Journal of
Medicine, 306, 1202-1205.
Huttenlocher, J., Newcombe, N., & Vasilyeva, M. (1999). Spatial scaling in young children.
Psychological Sciences, 10(5), 393-398.
Jacklin, C. N., Maccoby, E. E., & Dick, A. E. (1973). Barrier behavior and toy preferences: sex
differences (and their absence) in the year old child. Child Development, 44, 196-200.
Kimura, D. (1999). Sex and cognition. Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press.
Law, D. J Pellegrino, J.., W., & Hunt, E. B. (1993). Comparing the tortoise and the hare: gender
differences and experience in dynamic spatial reasoning. Psychological Science, 4, 35–40.
Leng, X., & Shaw, G. L. (1991). Toward a neural theory of higher brain function using music as a
window. Concepts in neuroscience, 2, 229-258.
Lewine, S. C., Huttenlocher, J., Taylor, A., & Langrock, A. (1999). Early sex differences in spatial skill.
Developmental Psychology, 35(4), 940-949.
Linn, M., & Petersen, A.C., 1985, Emergence and characterization of sex differences in spatial ability: A
meta-analysis, Child Development, 56, 1479-1498.
Lohman, D. F. (1988). Spatial abilities as traits, processes, and knowledge. In R. J. Stenverg (Ed.).
Advences in the psychology of human intelligence (pp. 181-248). Hillside, NJ: Erlbaum.
Lohman, D. F. (1993). Spatial ability and g. Paper presented at the first Spearman Seminar, University of
Plymouth, England.
Lytton, H., Romney, D. M. (1991). Parents’ differential socialization of boys and girls: A meta-analysis.
Psychological Bulletin 109, 267-296.
Maccoby, E. E., & Jacklin, C. N. (1974). The psychology of sex differences. Stanford, CA: Stanford
University Press.
Mazur, J. E. (2005). Learning and behavior. New Jersey: Prentice Hall.
McGee, M. G. (1979a). Human spatial abilities: sources of sex differences. New York, NY: Preager.
McGee, M. G. (1979b). Human spatial abilities: psychometric studies and environmental, genetic,
hormonal, and influences. Psychological Bulletin, 86(5), 889-918.
McKelvie, P., & Low, J. (2002). Listening to Mozart does not improve children’s spatial ability: final
curtains for the Mozart effect. British Journal of Developmental Psychology, 20, 241-258.
Newcombe, N.S. & Learhmont, A. E. (2005). Development of spatial competence. In P. Shah & A.
Miyake (Eds). The Cambridge handbook of visuospatial thinking (pp. 213-256). New York, NY:
Cambdridge University Press.
Oliviera, T (2004). Dynamic spatial ability: an exploratory analysis and a confirmatory study.
International Journal of Aviation Psychology, 14(1), 19-38.
Pallegrino, J. W. & Hunt, E. B. (1991). Cognitive models for understanding and assessing spatial
abilities. In H. A. H. Rowe (Ed.). Intelligence: reconceptualization and measurement. Hillside,
NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
Piaget, J., Inhelder, B. (1967). The child’s conception of space. New York, NY: Norton.
Rauscher, F. H., Shaw, G. L., Levine, L. J., Wright, E. L., Dennis, W. R., & Newcomb, R. L. (1997).
Music training causes long-term enhancement of preschool children’s spatial-temporal
reasoning. Neurological Research, 19, 2-8.
Rauscher, F. H. (1996). A cognitive basis for the facilitation of spatial-temporal cognition through music
instruction. In V. Brummet (Ed). Ithaca conference ’96- music as intelligence: a sourcebook (pp.
31-44).
Rauscher, F. H., Shaw, G. L., & Ky, K. N. (1993). Music and spatial task performance. Nature, 385, 611
Rosser, R. (1994). The developmental course of spatial cognition: evidence for domain
multidimensionality. Child Study Journal, 24(4), 255-280.
Saucier, D. M., McCreary, D. R., & Saxberg, . K. (2002J). Does gender role socialization mediate sex
differences in mental rotations? Personality & Individual differences, 32(6), 1101-1111.
Siemankowski, G. & MacKnight, F. (1971). Spatial cognition: success prognosticator in college science
courses. Journal of College Science Teaching 1(1), 56-59.
Sherman, J. A. (1978). Sex-related cognitive differences. Springfield, IL: Charles C. Thomas.
Snow, R. E., & Lohman, D. F. (1989). Implications of cognitive psychology for educational
measurement. In R.L. Linn (Ed). Educational Measurement (3rd Ed., pp.263-331). New York,
NY: Macmillan.
Skolnick, J., Langbort, C., & Day, L. (1982). How to Encourage girls in math and science. Englewood
Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall.
Velez, M., Silver, D., & Tremaine, M. (2005). Understanding visualization through spatial ability
differences. Paper presented at the IEEE Visualization 2005 Conference, Minneapolis, MN.
Voyer, D., Nolan, C., & Voyer, S. (2000). The relation between experience and spatial performance in
men and women. Sex Roles, 43(11-12), 891-915.
Voyer, D., Voyer, S., & Bryden, M. P. (1995). Magnitude of sex differences in spatial abilities: a metaanalysis
and consideration of critical variables. Psychological Bulletin, 117, 250-270.
primates (Cercopithecus aethiops sabaeus). Evolution and Human Behavior, 23, 467-479.
Allen, G. L. (1999). Cognitive abilities in the service of wayfinding: A functional approach. Professional
Geographer, 51(4), 554-561.
Allen, G. L. (2003). Functional families of spatial abilities: poor relations and rich prospects.
International Journal of Testing, 3(3), 251-262.
Anderson, J. R. (1990). Cognitive psychology and its implications (3rd Ed.). San Francisco, CA: Freeman.
Aszalos, L., & Bako, M. (2004). Paper presented at 6th International Conference on Applied Informatics,
Eger, Hungary.
Bell, S., & Saucer, D. (2004). Relationship among environmental pointing accuracy, mental rotation, sex,
and hormones. Environment and Behavior, 36(2), 251-265
Carroll, J.B. (1993). Human cognitive abilities: a survey of factor analytic studies. Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press.
Cohen, J. (1977). Statistical power analysis for the behavioral sciences. San Diego, CA: Academic Press.
Colom, R., Contreas, M.J., Shih, P.C., & Santecrau (2003). The assessment of spatial ability through a
single computerized test. European Journal of Psychological Assessment, 19(2), 92-100.
Cooper, L. A., & Mumaw, R. J. (1985). Spatial aptitude. In R. F. Dillman (Ed.). Individual differences in
cognition (2nd. Ed., pp.67-94). New York, NY: Academic Press.
Daniel L. Shea, D.L., Lubinski, D., & Benbow, C. P. (2001). Importance of assessing spatial ability in
intellectually talented young adolescents: a 20-year longitudinal study. Journal of Educational
Psychology, 93 (3), 604-614.
de Lacoste, M. C, Horvath, D. S., & Woodward, D. J. (1991). Possible sex differences in the developing
human fetal brain. Journal of Clinical and Experimental Neuropsychology, 13, 831—846.
Ekstrom, R. B., French, J. W., Harman, H. H., & Dermen, D. (1976). Kit of factor referenced cognitive
tests. Princeton, NJ: Educational Testing Services.
Glea, L. A. (1993). Sex differences in route-learning. Personality & Individual Differences, 14(1), 53-65.
Green, V. A., Bigler, R. S., & Catherwood, D. (2004). The variability and flexibility of gender-typed toy
play: a close look at children's behavioral responses to counterstereotypic models. Sex Roles,
51(7-8), 371-386.
Guay, R. & McDaniel, E. (1977). The relationship between mathematics achievement and spatial abilities
among elementary school children. Journal for Research in Mathematics Education 8(3), 211-
215.
Halpern (2000). Sex differences in cognitive abilities (3rd Ed.). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum
Associates.
Hampson, E., Rovet, J. F., & Airman, D. (1998). Spatial reasoning in children with congenital adrenal
hyperplasia due to 21-hydroxylase deficiency. Developmental Neuropsychology, 14, 299-320.
Hegarty, M. & Waller, D. (2005). Individual differences in spatial abilities. In P. Shah & A. Miyake
(Eds). The Cambridge handbook of visuospatial thinking. New York, NY: Cambdridge
University Press.
Hier, D. B., & Crowley, W. F. (1982). Spatial ability in androgen-deficient men. New England Journal of
Medicine, 306, 1202-1205.
Huttenlocher, J., Newcombe, N., & Vasilyeva, M. (1999). Spatial scaling in young children.
Psychological Sciences, 10(5), 393-398.
Jacklin, C. N., Maccoby, E. E., & Dick, A. E. (1973). Barrier behavior and toy preferences: sex
differences (and their absence) in the year old child. Child Development, 44, 196-200.
Kimura, D. (1999). Sex and cognition. Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press.
Law, D. J Pellegrino, J.., W., & Hunt, E. B. (1993). Comparing the tortoise and the hare: gender
differences and experience in dynamic spatial reasoning. Psychological Science, 4, 35–40.
Leng, X., & Shaw, G. L. (1991). Toward a neural theory of higher brain function using music as a
window. Concepts in neuroscience, 2, 229-258.
Lewine, S. C., Huttenlocher, J., Taylor, A., & Langrock, A. (1999). Early sex differences in spatial skill.
Developmental Psychology, 35(4), 940-949.
Linn, M., & Petersen, A.C., 1985, Emergence and characterization of sex differences in spatial ability: A
meta-analysis, Child Development, 56, 1479-1498.
Lohman, D. F. (1988). Spatial abilities as traits, processes, and knowledge. In R. J. Stenverg (Ed.).
Advences in the psychology of human intelligence (pp. 181-248). Hillside, NJ: Erlbaum.
Lohman, D. F. (1993). Spatial ability and g. Paper presented at the first Spearman Seminar, University of
Plymouth, England.
Lytton, H., Romney, D. M. (1991). Parents’ differential socialization of boys and girls: A meta-analysis.
Psychological Bulletin 109, 267-296.
Maccoby, E. E., & Jacklin, C. N. (1974). The psychology of sex differences. Stanford, CA: Stanford
University Press.
Mazur, J. E. (2005). Learning and behavior. New Jersey: Prentice Hall.
McGee, M. G. (1979a). Human spatial abilities: sources of sex differences. New York, NY: Preager.
McGee, M. G. (1979b). Human spatial abilities: psychometric studies and environmental, genetic,
hormonal, and influences. Psychological Bulletin, 86(5), 889-918.
McKelvie, P., & Low, J. (2002). Listening to Mozart does not improve children’s spatial ability: final
curtains for the Mozart effect. British Journal of Developmental Psychology, 20, 241-258.
Newcombe, N.S. & Learhmont, A. E. (2005). Development of spatial competence. In P. Shah & A.
Miyake (Eds). The Cambridge handbook of visuospatial thinking (pp. 213-256). New York, NY:
Cambdridge University Press.
Oliviera, T (2004). Dynamic spatial ability: an exploratory analysis and a confirmatory study.
International Journal of Aviation Psychology, 14(1), 19-38.
Pallegrino, J. W. & Hunt, E. B. (1991). Cognitive models for understanding and assessing spatial
abilities. In H. A. H. Rowe (Ed.). Intelligence: reconceptualization and measurement. Hillside,
NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
Piaget, J., Inhelder, B. (1967). The child’s conception of space. New York, NY: Norton.
Rauscher, F. H., Shaw, G. L., Levine, L. J., Wright, E. L., Dennis, W. R., & Newcomb, R. L. (1997).
Music training causes long-term enhancement of preschool children’s spatial-temporal
reasoning. Neurological Research, 19, 2-8.
Rauscher, F. H. (1996). A cognitive basis for the facilitation of spatial-temporal cognition through music
instruction. In V. Brummet (Ed). Ithaca conference ’96- music as intelligence: a sourcebook (pp.
31-44).
Rauscher, F. H., Shaw, G. L., & Ky, K. N. (1993). Music and spatial task performance. Nature, 385, 611
Rosser, R. (1994). The developmental course of spatial cognition: evidence for domain
multidimensionality. Child Study Journal, 24(4), 255-280.
Saucier, D. M., McCreary, D. R., & Saxberg, . K. (2002J). Does gender role socialization mediate sex
differences in mental rotations? Personality & Individual differences, 32(6), 1101-1111.
Siemankowski, G. & MacKnight, F. (1971). Spatial cognition: success prognosticator in college science
courses. Journal of College Science Teaching 1(1), 56-59.
Sherman, J. A. (1978). Sex-related cognitive differences. Springfield, IL: Charles C. Thomas.
Snow, R. E., & Lohman, D. F. (1989). Implications of cognitive psychology for educational
measurement. In R.L. Linn (Ed). Educational Measurement (3rd Ed., pp.263-331). New York,
NY: Macmillan.
Skolnick, J., Langbort, C., & Day, L. (1982). How to Encourage girls in math and science. Englewood
Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall.
Velez, M., Silver, D., & Tremaine, M. (2005). Understanding visualization through spatial ability
differences. Paper presented at the IEEE Visualization 2005 Conference, Minneapolis, MN.
Voyer, D., Nolan, C., & Voyer, S. (2000). The relation between experience and spatial performance in
men and women. Sex Roles, 43(11-12), 891-915.
Voyer, D., Voyer, S., & Bryden, M. P. (1995). Magnitude of sex differences in spatial abilities: a metaanalysis
and consideration of critical variables. Psychological Bulletin, 117, 250-270.
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Published
2017-08-25
How to Cite
Yılmaz, H. B. (2017). On the development and measurement of spatial ability. International Electronic Journal of Elementary Education, 1(2), 83–96. Retrieved from https://iejee.com/index.php/IEJEE/article/view/279
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