B.: Visuospatial processing and learning effects in virtual reality based mental rotation and navigational tasks. Lect

Abstract. Visuospatial function and performance in interactions between humans and computers involve the human identification and manipulation of computer generated stimuli and their location. The impact of learning on mental rotation has been demonstrated in studies relating everyday spatial activities and spatial abilities. An aspect of visuospatial learning in virtual environments that has not been widely studied is the impact of threat on learning in a navigational task. In fact, to our knowledge, the combined assessment of learning during mental rotation trials and learning in an ecologically valid virtual reality-based navigational environment (that has both high and low threat zones) has not been adequately studied. Results followed expectation: 1) learning occurred in the virtual reality based mental rotation test. Although there was a relation between route learning and practice, a primacy effect was observed as participants performed more poorly when going from the first zone to the last