Principles of spatial problem solving

Evaluated the hypotheses that (a) spatial learning produces a cognitive map and (b) this map is picturelike. It was also hypothesized that special properties of pictures would be demonstrated by the behavior of the Ss. The special properties were (a) simultaneous representation of sequentially placed points and (b) orientation. 106 blindfolded college students learned simple paths either by moving their fingers over the successive points of a map of the path, walking through the path laid out on the floor, or (with blindfold temporarily removed) viewing a map of the path. They were tested for knowledge of the path by having to locate a target; still blindfolded, they were placed at a point on that path and required to move to another point on the path. This required either moving toward the next point in the sequence or taking a shortcut. It is concluded that Ss had an internal pictorial map since they took shortcuts with the same ease as they took the originally learned path segments. The manifestation of orientation was particularly dramatic, with Ss moving in the wrong direction (angle error greater than 90°) on more than 25% of the specified trials. (39 ref)