A large sex difference on a two-dimensional mental rotation task.

Mental rotation tests require participants to identify rotated versions of a target stimulus. The Vandenberg Mental Rotations Test depicts rotations in 3-D space and typically yields one of the largest established cognitive sex differences favoring males. It is presently unclear whether this male advantage is related to the nature of rotations depicted in 3-D space or to the high level of difficulty of this task. The present study developed a new test depicting picture plane, or 2-D, rotations. When task difficulty within this 2-D test was varied, a male advantage as large as that seen on the Vandenberg test was found for the difficult component. These findings suggest that processing in 3 dimensions is not a necessary condition for a large sex difference on tests of mental rotation. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Sex Differences in Visuo-Spatial Ability: Task Difficulty, Speed-Accuracy Tradeoff, and Other Performance Factors.

Males have consistently been found to perform better than females on a task that requires the subject to mentally rotate a figure. Recently, Goldstein, Haldane, and Mitchell (1990) suggested that performance factors are operative in explaining sex differences in spatial ability. However, Stumpf (1993) was unable to replicate all of Goldstein et al.'s (1990) findings and to generalize them to other measures of spatial ability. In this study, it was hypothesized (1) that females would take longer to respond and would get fewer correct items than males on a spatial rotation task, and (2) that only females would show a speed-accuracy tradeoff as the difficulty of the spatial task increased from the 90° to 180° rotated conditions. The results confirmed each of these hypotheses. Furthermore, as Stumpf (1993) found, when ratio scores from the number of items correct to number attempted were computed for both males and females, differences in spatial ability were reduced, though still evident. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Sex-related differences in cortical function after medial frontal lesions in rats.

The effects of sex on the performance of 4 spatial mazes (Morris water task, landmark task, radial arm maze, and egocentric radial arm maze) were studied in male and female rats given medial frontal lesions. Operated rats from both sexes were impaired at all of the tasks, but the frontal males were much less impaired than frontal females on the Morris task and the radial arm maze, both of which require animals to use multiple visual-spatial cues for their successful solution. Males also performed better on the egocentric maze. In contrast, frontal females performed better than frontal males at the landmark task, which is best solved by using a single spatial cue. The only sex difference in unoperated rats was a small advantage for females on the egocentric task. The sex differences may reflect an underlying difference in cortical organization or a differential response to cortical lesion in males and females. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Performance of male and female children, adolescents and adults on spatial tasks that involve everyday objects and settings.

Administered 9 spatial tasks to 52 male and 52 female children (aged 7–9 yrs), 30 male and 33 female adolescents (aged 18–19 yrs), and 46 male and 48 female undergraduate (adult) Ss. Eight of the tests involved stimuli and settings with which Ss would have everyday experience. Significant sex differences were observed on 2 of the 9 tasks: estimating the length of a floor and identifying embedded figures. Adults performed better than other age groups on the embedded figures task and a wall height estimation task. In those cases where sex differences were observed, the effect sizes were well below .100, suggesting the magnitudes of sex differences were minimal. The fact that no sex differences were found on 7 or the 9 spatial tasks allows, at most, the statement that males perform better than females on some spatial tasks. There is no justification for the global statement that males excel in spatial abilities. (French abstract) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Sex differences in the correlations among field dependence, spatial ability, sex role orientation, and performance on Piaget's water-level task.

In a study with 8th-grade boys and girls, significant sex differences were found on measures of spatial ability (Card Rotations Test), water-level performance, and sex-role orientation (Bem Sex Role Inventory), but not field dependence (Group Embedded Figures Test). For boys, correlations among field dependence, spatial ability, and water-level performance were significant, while for girls they were not. In contrast, sex role orientation was significantly related to field dependence and water-level performance for girls but not for boys. Results suggest a sex difference in the basis for mastering the water-level task. (9 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The importance of gesture in children's spatial reasoning.

On average, men outperform women on mental rotation tasks. Even boys as young as 4 1/2 perform better than girls on simplified spatial transformation tasks. The goal of our study was to explore ways of improving 5-year-olds' performance on a spatial transformation task and to examine the strategies children use to solve this task. We found that boys performed better than girls before training and that both boys and girls improved with training, whether they were given explicit instruction or just practice. Regardless of training condition, the more children gestured about moving the pieces when asked to explain how they solved the spatial transformation task, the better they performed on the task, with boys gesturing about movement significantly more (and performing better) than girls. Gesture thus provides useful information about children's spatial strategies, raising the possibility that gesture training may be particularly effective in improving children's mental rotation skills. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Sex differences in performance in the Morris water maze and the effects of initial nonstationary hidden platform training.

Sex differences in rats' performance on a stationary hidden-platform task (spatial task) in the Morris water maze and the effects of initial nonstationary hidden platform training (NSP training) were examined. The NSP training was designed to familiarize rats with the general requirements of the water-maze task without providing spatial information. NSP training led to faster acquisition and improved retention of the subsequent spatial task in both males and females. There was a sex difference favoring males on acquisition and retention of the spatial task only in rats that had not received previous NSP training. Moreover, there was an apparent reversed sex difference favoring females on some measures of spatial performance in NSP-trained rats. These results suggest that performance on the water-maze task, including the expression of sex differences, can be altered by previous familiarization with nonspatial aspects of the task. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Spatial Ability and Home-Range Size: Examining the Relationship in Western Men and Women (Homo sapiens).

In mammals, spatial sex differences may have coevolved with sex differences in the size of home ranges. This study first evaluated whether, in keeping with most mammals and traditional human (Homo sapiens) societies, home ranges are larger in male than in female Westerners. Second, it established whether navigation patterns are associated with a broader set of spatial abilities in men than in women. Results showed that current male home ranges surpass female home ranges. Ranging was also positively correlated with achievement in tests of mental rotation, surface development, and location memory among men only, whereas it was associated with embedded figures scores in both sexes. Overall, these findings substantiate the adaptive role of several spatial sex differences in humans. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Sex differences in learning and memory in mice: Effects of sequence of testing and cholinergic blockade.

Sexual dimorphism in spatial and cued navigation using the Morris water maze was examined in C57BL/6 mice both with and without administration of scopolamine, a cholinergic blocker. In Exp 1, female and male mice learned to perform first a spatial, then a cued, navigation task. Both performed a spatial task similarly; males, however, performed a cued task better than females. In Exp 2, the sequence of navigation testing was reversed. Both performed similarly on a cued task; however, males performed a spatial task better than females. In both experiments, females were more sensitive than males to the effects of scopolamine. No significant confounding sex differences were found in either spontaneous activity or passive avoidance retention. These data indicate that sex differences in spatial and cued tasks are dependent on the sequence of task presentation and implicate a role for the cholinergic system in these differences. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Sex differences in problem solving.

Used a 20-item set of problems (similar to those used by E. Sweeney [1953]) in 9 experiments with 558 male and 578 female undergraduates to determine which sex was superior in problem solving, the role of previous experience, whether sex differences extended throughout the domain of problem-solving tasks, whether they extended to other word problems, the role of spatial ability and verbal ability, the role of mathematics aptitude, and the relative importance of aptitude and social learning variables. Results show that the male advantage, averaging 35% across experiments, persisted at the same level as in experiments conducted in the 1950's. Sex differences extended to other word problems. The male advantage was related to similar advantages in spatial and mathematical ability. Aptitude variables dominated attitude and mathematics experience variables in accounting for the sex difference. (48 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Sex differences in children's mathematics achievement: Solving computations and story problems.

Examined the performance of 144,462 male and 142,305 female California 6th-graders (aged 135–261 mo) on 2 types of mathematics items: computations and story problems. Data represent Ss' responses to the Survey of Basic Skills, Grade 6, of the California Assessment Program. Results indicate that girls were more likely than boys to solve computations successfully, whereas boys were more likely than girls to be successful with story problems. Sex is shown to be a significant factor in predicting student success. Problem-solving success for the 2 types of items is also examined in relation to reading achievement, SES, primary language, and age. It was found that girls had higher measured reading achievement than boys; however, girls who achieved higher scores in reading were nonetheless relatively weaker in solving story problems than both other girls and boys. Little or no interaction was found between SES or language and sex. Age was not found to be a factor that contributes to sex differences in performance. (23 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Sex, Age, and Training Modulate Spatial Memory in the Rhesus Monkey (Macaca mulatta).

The authors tested 90 rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatta) on a task of spatial memory, the spatial Delayed Recognition Span Test. The results showed that performance declined significantly with age, males had greater scores than females, and the rate of apparent decline with age was greater in males than in females. Both working and reference memory declined with age, but only working memory showed sex differences. The authors compared these data with that of 22 monkeys who were trained on a simpler version of the task before formal testing. Training had no effect on males but dramatically improved working memory in young females. The results confirm a male advantage in spatial working memory at a young age and confirm a greater decline with age in males than in females. It is important to note that prior training completely reverses the deficits of young females. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Sexual maturation and spatial ability in college students.

194 female and 80 male undergraduates completed mental rotation and card rotation tests of spatial ability and a vocabulary test. Ss were also asked to indicate on a 5-point rating scale when they reached puberty in relation to others of the same sex. Findings provide evidence that the maturation related difference in spatial ability found in adolescents persists into adulthood. Regression analyses demonstrated a significant relation between puberty ratings and performance on the mental rotation test, with later maturers scoring higher than earlier maturers. There were no maturation-related differences on the other tests. Significant sex differences were found on all tests. Consistent with previously reported cognitive differences between males and females, females scored higher on the verbal test, and males scored higher on the 2 spatial tests. (15 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Spatial learning in male and female Long-Evans rats.

Male and female Long-Evans rats were tested in the Morris water maze at age 6 mo. A place training procedure, in which rats learned the position of a camouflaged platform, was followed by cue training, in which rats escaped to a visible platform. No sex difference was found in place learning ability. Search accuracy on probe trials, when the platform was unavailable, was also equivalent for the male and female groups. These results contrast with previous studies of rodents at younger ages, which have reported a male advantage in spatial learning. It is suggested that the age at which rats are assessed may be an important factor, possibly reflecting a different course in the relatively protracted maturation of the hippocampus in male and female rats. The results of this investigation are also discussed with reference to studies of sex differences for spatial abilities in humans. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Amount of verbal information and ear-differences in 5- and 6-year old boys and girls

Tow experiments were performed. The first was to determine the effects of varying the amount of information in verbal instructions presented monaurally on differences between ears and sex in 5-yr.-old boys and girls. Verbal instructions were given for the performance of a visual-motor task. The results indicated that the amount of verbal information affects ear-asymmetry in girls and not boys. The second experiment was performed to determine the effects of varying the amount of verbal information in verbal instructions presented monaurally on differences between ears, sexes, and reading ability of 6-yr.-old boys and girls. The findings indicated that above average readers performed better than below average readers. Ear-asymmetry was observed across sex and reading abilities for sentences containing 7 and 8 stimulus attributes. No ear-asymmetry was observed in sentences containg 9 stimulus attributes. The results appear to support the progressive lateralization hypothesis which states that ear-asymmetry is dependent on task conditions. The results also support sex differences in the development of brain lateralization.     

Medical therapy of active Crohn''s disease

To elucidate neurobiological factors related to gender and sexual orientation, event-related brain potentials of 20 heterosexual (HT) men, 20 HT women, 20 homosexual (HM) men, and 20 HM women were examined for neurophysiological differences. Cognitive tasks which typically elicit sex differences were administered. A mental rotation (MR) task assessed spatial ability, and a divided-visual-field lexical-decision/semantic monitoring task (LD/SM) assessed verbal ability and relative degrees of language lateralization. Slow wave activity recorded during MR was greater for HT men than for HT women and gay men. N400 asymmetries recorded during the LD/SM task revealed differences between men and women, but no intrasex differences.     

Sexual variation in behaviour during spatial and verbal tasks.

Detailed observations of behavior were obtained from 12 male and 12 female right-handed college students while they performed spatial or verbal tasks. Females emitted more rotational hand movements than males during a mental rotation task, and more vocalizations during an oral fluency task. Nonrotational behaviors, verbalizations, accuracy, and error scores did not vary according to task or sex, but females took significantly longer to complete the spatial task. Findings raise questions about the role of task-related movement patterns in spatial problem solving. (French abstract) (10 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The nature of gestures' beneficial role in spatial problem solving.

Co-thought gestures are hand movements produced in silent, noncommunicative, problem-solving situations. In the study, we investigated whether and how such gestures enhance performance in spatial visualization tasks such as a mental rotation task and a paper folding task. We found that participants gestured more often when they had difficulties solving mental rotation problems (Experiment 1). The gesture-encouraged group solved more mental rotation problems correctly than did the gesture-allowed and gesture-prohibited groups (Experiment 2). Gestures produced by the gesture-encouraged group enhanced performance in the very trials in which they were produced (Experiments 2 & 3). Furthermore, gesture frequency decreased as the participants in the gesture-encouraged group solved more problems (Experiments 2 & 3). In addition, the advantage of the gesture-encouraged group persisted into subsequent spatial visualization problems in which gesturing was prohibited: another mental rotation block (Experiment 2) and a newly introduced paper folding task (Experiment 3). The results indicate that when people have difficulty in solving spatial visualization problems, they spontaneously produce gestures to help them, and gestures can indeed improve performance. As they solve more problems, the spatial computation supported by gestures becomes internalized, and the gesture frequency decreases. The benefit of gestures persists even in subsequent spatial visualization problems in which gesture is prohibited. Moreover, the beneficial effect of gesturing can be generalized to a different spatial visualization task when two tasks require similar spatial transformation processes. We concluded that gestures enhance performance on spatial visualization tasks by improving the internal computation of spatial transformations. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The ontogeny of right cerebral lateralization of spatial mental set.

Tested the manner in which right-hemisphere function lateralizes in childhood based on the left-hemisphere bias in visual orientation that results from inducing spatial mental set. 49 male and 49 female 5–12 yr olds identified tachistoscopically presented digits in either half field, given either verbal or spatial priming. The spatial priming even diminished the right-field advantage in the verbal condition when it was conducted in the 2nd session several days later. No evidence of progressive lateralization for the left hemisphere (verbal identification) or for the right hemisphere (spatial priming) process was found. Minor sex differences could be due to strategic factors. (20 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Gender labeling and the adoption of sex-typed behaviors.

A gender-labeling task was used to test the ability of 21 girls and 22 boys ranging in age from 21 to 40 mo to discriminate between pictures of boys and girls and male and female adults. Ss who passed the gender task (mean age 30 mo) were compared with Ss who failed it (mean age 26 mo) on 3 behaviors most often categorized as sex typed (toy choice, aggression, and peer playmate selection). It was predicted that Ss who passed the task would choose more sex-typed toys and same-sex peers and that there would be a drop in aggression for girls who passed but no change for boys. Results confirm the predictions for aggression and peer choice but not for toy choice. The relation between the child's understanding of gender categories and environmental influences is discussed. (18 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)