Experiential Factors in Sex Differences on Mental Rotation
Abstract
Past research has shown that men score significantly higher than women on mental rotation tests. The present study examined the effects of a prior exposure to a mental rotation task, i.e., adapted Cube Comparison test, and to three-dimensional objects, i.e., Legos, on the performance on the Mental Rotation Test. 113 men and women were randomly divided into three conditions: control, exposure, or detailed instructions. On average, men outperformed women. Further analyses showed that sex differences were significant in the control condition but not in the other two, suggesting that a cuing effect may explain some of the robust sex differences in visuospatial tasks.
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Cherney et al. (2003) found exposure to test items or providing detailed instructions reduced the gender gap in spatial performance.
“In a study looking not at strategy but test experience, Cherney et al. (2003) found exposure to test items or providing detailed instructions reduced the gender gap in spatial performance.”
From Factors Related to Mean Score Group Differences on Cognitive Ability Tests: A Systematic Review (2025) · cites this paper as Cherney et al. (2003)
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References 35 · Cited by 18
- Authors
- Cherney, I. D., Jagarlamudi, K., Lawrence, E., & Shimabuku, N.
- Affiliations
- Creighton University (US)
- Venue
- Perceptual and Motor Skills
- Publisher
- SAGE Publications
- Published
- 2003-06
- Volume
- 96
- Issue
- 3_suppl
- Pages
- 1062-1070
- ISSN
- 0031-5125 (ISSN-L)
- 1558-688X
- OpenAlex
- W1979706124
- Cited by
- 18
- References
- 35
- Citations by year
- 2025: 1 · 2024: 1 · 2020: 2 · 2018: 1 · 2017: 1 · 2013: 1
- FWCI
- 3.22
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Perceptual and Motor Skills (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Physical Sciences › Engineering › Automotive Engineering › Spatial Cognition and Navigation
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Cognitive Abilities and Testing
- Physical Sciences › Mathematics › Statistics and Probability › Cognitive and developmental aspects of mathematical skills
- Keywords
- sex differences, mental rotation, visuospatial ability, 3D objects, mental rotation test
- MeSH terms
- Adolescent, Adult, Cues, Female, Humans, Male, Mental Processes, Surveys and Questionnaires, Rotation, Sex Factors, Space Perception, Visual Perception
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