The Experts below are selected from a list of 1032 Experts worldwide ranked by ideXlab platform
Theresa Powell - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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Use of a virtual-reality town for examining Route-memory, and techniques for its rehabilitation in people with acquired brain injury
2020Co-Authors: Joanne Lloyd, Theresa Powell, J Smith, N V PersaudAbstract:Route Learning difficulties are a common consequence of acquired brain injury, and virtual environments provide a novel tool for researching this area. A pilot study demonstrated the ecological validity of a non-immersive virtual town, showing performance therein to correlate well with real-world Route Learning performance. The first patient study found that a rehabilitation strategy known as ‘errorless Learning’ is more effective than traditional ‘trialand-error’ methods for Route Learning tasks. The second patient study, currently in progress, will assess whether naturalistic Route Learning strategies of map and landmark use can be combined effectively with errorless techniques. A final study will investigate the relationships between Route Learning performance and scores on a select battery of neuropsychometric tests.
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equivalence of real world and virtual reality Route Learning a pilot study
Cyberpsychology Behavior and Social Networking, 2009Co-Authors: Joanne Lloyd, Nathan V Persaud, Theresa PowellAbstract:Abstract There is good evidence for effective transfer of Learning from virtual to real-world environments, and this holds true even for complex spatial tasks such as Route Learning. However, there is little research into the simple equivalence of an individual's performance across real and virtual environments, an important topic which could support the use of virtual reality as an assessment and research tool. This pilot study compared Route-Learning performance in a desktop virtual town with performance around a real-world Route. Participants were “driven” around a Route through a virtual town and around a different (but equally complex) Route through a real-world suburb, then asked to direct the driver back around each of the Routes from memory. They completed strategy checklists after Learning each Route. Results indicated good equivalence between the real and virtual environments, with comparable error rates and no differences in strategy preferences. This demonstrates that simple desktop virtual en...
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errorless Learning of novel Routes through a virtual town in people with acquired brain injury
Neuropsychological Rehabilitation, 2009Co-Authors: Joanne Lloyd, Gerard A Riley, Theresa PowellAbstract:Impaired Route Learning is a common consequence of acquired brain injury (ABI) but has received little attention in the research literature. Errorless Learning may be a method of facilitating the Learning of Routes but this is unclear as previous studies of errorless Learning have focused mainly on verbal skills and the only previous study involving Route Learning was based upon a pencil and paper task. In the present study we therefore use virtual reality to explore the benefits of errorless Learning for Routes in an ecologically valid task. Twenty people with acquired brain injury learned two Routes, of equivalent difficulty, around a virtual town based upon the city of Nice. For one Route, full guidance was provided throughout the Learning trials in an errorless Learning paradigm; the other Route was learned using a procedure that allowed for trial and error. Route recall following the errorless Learning condition was significantly more accurate than recall after errorful Learning. This suggests that t...
Rossana De Beni - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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COSIT (Workshops/Posters) - Route Learning from Maps or Navigation in Aging: The Role of Visuo-Spatial Abilities and Self-assessed Visuo-Spatial Inclinations
Lecture Notes in Geoinformation and Cartography, 2017Co-Authors: Chiara Meneghetti, Veronica Muffato, Rossana De BeniAbstract:It is well known that older adults have an impaired spatial performance than young; but the role of age and visuo-spatial factors in Learning a Route from a map or navigation has not been investigating throughout yet. After performing visuo-spatial tasks and questionnaires, young, young-old and old-old adults learned a map and a video and then performed map drawing and Route repetition tasks. Age, visuo-spatial abilities and self-assessed visuo-spatial inclinations combine together to influence Route Learning.
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not all is lost in older adults Route Learning the role of visuo spatial abilities and type of task
Journal of Environmental Psychology, 2016Co-Authors: Veronica Muffato, Chiara Meneghetti, Rossana De BeniAbstract:Abstract This study explores the role of age and individual visuo-spatial skills in different types of task after Route Learning. Thirty-eight young adults (24–35 years old) and 37 older adults (64–75 years old) completed visuo-spatial working memory (VSWM) and rotation tasks. Then, after Learning a Route in a botanical garden, they performed environmental knowledge tasks. Older adults performed less well in Route repetition, pointing, and map drawing tasks, but not for some demands within these tasks. In a shortcut task, older adults did just as well as young adults in choosing a shorter Route to a landmark. After controlling for age, VSWM and rotation abilities predicted performance in the pointing task, only rotation abilities in the Route repetition and map drawing tasks. Route Learning accuracy in aging depends partly on the type of recall task used to test it, with a variable degree of involvement of individual VSWM and rotation abilities.
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considering spatial ability in virtual Route Learning in early aging
Cognitive Processing, 2013Co-Authors: Chiara Meneghetti, Valerie Gyselinck, Monica Bormetti, Eric Orriols, Pascale Piolino, Rossana De BeniAbstract:The aim of this study is to broaden our understanding of the construction and early decline of spatial mental representations in Route Learning, considering the extent to which spatial ability and age-related differences in environment Learning interact. The experiment examines spatial mental representation derived from taking a realistic Route acquired using virtual environment and compares individuals different in age but with similar spatial ability. A sample of 34 young (20–30 years) and 30 middle-aged (50–60 years) females with good mental rotation ability were chosen. Participants learned a complex Route through its presentation in a virtual environment and then performed a series of tasks (landmark recognition, location of landmarks and verification of spatial relations). Results show that the two participant age groups had similar performance in landmark recognition task and in verification of sentences describing direct spatial relations; instead, the middle-aged group showed a poorer performance than younger in their ability to locate landmarks and to judge the truth of indirect spatial sentences. These results first suggest that spatial abilities have to be seriously considered to avoid any confusion with age, as age-related differences are attenuated when individuals are different in age but similar in spatial ability. Second they confirm a specific difficulty of older participants to handle spatial information in a global configuration.
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Age-differences in environment Route Learning: The role of input and recall-test modalities in young and older adults
Learning and Individual Differences, 2012Co-Authors: Chiara Meneghetti, Erika Borella, Valerie Gyselinck, Rossana De BeniAbstract:article i nfo The aim of this research was to examine age-related differences in young and older adults in Route Learning, using different types of Learning and recall test modalities. A sample of young adults (20-30 years old) and older adults (60-70 years old) learned a city Route by using either a map or a description; they then per- formed a verification (verbal task) and map drawing (visuo-spatial task) tests. Results showed that, in both age groups, the effect of the Learning condition changed as a function of the recall task: only after map Learning did participants perform better in map drawing than in sentence verification tasks (no differ- ences between the two measures were found in the description condition). The type of Learning modality also showed age differences, but was detected only in the map drawing task: after map Learning (but not after description Learning) older adults did perform like younger adults in map drawing. However, age- related differences were mainly found in relation to type of recall task. In the verification test, older adults performed like younger ones in direct spatial sentences, but older adults underperformed in indirect sen- tences (in which test information was not explicitly presented). In map drawing, the two groups performed similarly in remembering and ordering landmarks, whereas older adults underperformed in positioning the landmarks correctly. These results suggest that recall tests are sensitive modalities in examining age-related differences, revealing which abilities are preserved (or otherwise) in mental Route representations.
Arzu Coltekin - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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toward optimizing the design of virtual environments for Route Learning empirically assessing the effects of changing levels of realism on memory
International Journal of Digital Earth, 2019Co-Authors: Isminieleni Lokka, Arzu ColtekinAbstract:Broadly, this paper is about designing memorable 3D geovisualizations for spatial knowledge acquisition during (virtual) navigation. Navigation is a fundamentally important task, and even though most people navigate every day, many find it difficult in unfamiliar environments. When people get lost in an unfamiliar environment, or are unable to remember a Route that they took, they might feel anxiety, disappointment and frustration; and in real world, such incidents can be costly, and at times, life-threatening. Therefore, in this paper, we study the design decisions in terms of visual realism in a city model, propose a visualization design optimized for Route Learning, implement and empirically evaluate this design. The evaluation features a navigational Route Learning task, where we measure short- and long-term recall accuracy of 42 participants with varying spatial abilities and memory capacity. Our findings provide unique empirical evidence on how design choices affect memory in Route Learning with geovirtual environments, contributing toward empirically verified design guidelines for digital cities.
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EVALUATING Route Learning PERFORMANCE OF OLDER AND YOUNGER ADULTS IN DIFFERENTLY-DESIGNED VIRTUAL ENVIRONMENTS: A TASK-DIFFERENTIAL ANALYSIS
ISPRS - International Archives of the Photogrammetry Remote Sensing and Spatial Information Sciences, 2018Co-Authors: Isminieleni Lokka, Arzu ColtekinAbstract:Abstract. Navigating in unfamiliar environments is a complex task that requires considerable cognitive resources to memorize (and eventually learn) a Route. In general, virtual environments (VEs) can be useful tools in training for Route Learning and improving Route recall. However, the visual information presented in VEs, that is, what we choose to present in a virtual scene, can strongly affect the ability to recall a Route. This is especially relevant when we consider individual differences, and people’s varying abilities to navigate effectively. Taking various cognitive processes involved in Route Learning into account, we designed a multi-level experiment that examines Route recall effectiveness in a navigation context. We conceptualized that the participants would have to recall information related to the Route that is demanding on primarily visual, spatial, or visuospatial memory systems. Furthermore, because there is a clear link between memory capacity and ageing; we conducted our experiment with two different age groups (total 81 participants: 42 young people aged 20–30 yo and 39 older people aged 65–76 yo). We also measured participants’ spatial abilities and visuospatial memory capacity for control purposes. After experiencing a pre-determined Route in three different VEs (that we varied in levels of visual realism, and named as AbstractVE, MixedVE, and RealisticVE), each participant solved a list of tasks that was designed to measure visual, spatial, and visuospatial recall of the scene elements and information about the Route. Participants solved these tasks immediately after experiencing the Route in each VE, as well as after a week, thus we could measure ‘Learning’ (delayed recall). Results from our study confirm the well-known decline in recall with age (young vs. older), provide new information regarding memorability of Routes and VE scene elements over time (immediate vs. delayed), and most importantly demonstrate the crucial role the visual design decisions play in Route Learning and memorability of visuospatial displays.
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Virtual environments as memory training devices in navigational tasks for older adults.
Scientific Reports, 2018Co-Authors: Ismini E. Lokka, Jan M. Wiener, Arzu Coltekin, Sara Irina Fabrikant, Christina RöckeAbstract:Cognitive training approaches using virtual environments (VEs) might counter age-related visuospatial memory decline and associated difficulties in wayfinding. However, the effects of the visual design of a VE in Route Learning are not fully understood. Therefore, we created a custom-designed VE optimized for Route Learning, with adjusted levels of realism and highlighted landmark locations (MixedVE). Herein we tested participants’ Route recall performance in identifying direction of turn at the intersection with this MixedVE against two baseline alternatives (AbstractVE, RealisticVE). An older vs. a younger group solved the tasks in two stages (immediate vs. delayed recall by one week). Our results demonstrate that the MixedVE facilitates better recall accuracy than the other two VEs for both age groups. Importantly, this pattern persists a week later. Additionally, our older participants were mostly overconfident in their Route recall performance, but the MixedVE moderated this potentially detrimental overconfidence. Before the experiment, participants clearly preferred the RealisticVE, whereas after the experiment, most of the younger, and many of the older participants, preferred the MixedVE. Taken together, our findings provide insights into the importance of tailoring visualization design in Route Learning with VEs. Furthermore, we demonstrate the great potential of the MixedVE and by extension, of similar VEs as memory training devices for Route Learning, especially for older participants.
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the effects of visual realism spatial abilities and competition on performance in map based Route Learning in men
Geographic Information Science, 2018Co-Authors: Arzu Coltekin, Rebecca Francelet, Kaiflorian Richter, John C Thoresen, Sara Irina FabrikantAbstract:We report on how visual realism might influence map-based Route Learning performance in a controlled laboratory experiment with 104 male participants in a competitive context. Using animations of a ...
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not all anxious individuals get lost trait anxiety and mental rotation ability interact to explain performance in map based Route Learning in men
Neurobiology of Learning and Memory, 2016Co-Authors: John C Thoresen, Arzu Coltekin, Rebecca Francelet, Kaiflorian Richter, Sara Irina Fabrikant, Carmen SandiAbstract:Navigation through an environment is a fundamental human activity. Although group differences in navigational ability are documented (e.g., gender), little is known about traits that predict these abilities. Apart from a well-established link between mental rotational abilities and navigational Learning abilities, recent studies point to an influence of trait anxiety on the formation of internal cognitive spatial representations. However, it is unknown whether trait anxiety affects the processing of information obtained through externalized representations such as maps. Here, we addressed this question by taking into account emerging evidence indicating impaired performance in executive tasks by high trait anxiety specifically in individuals with lower executive capacities. For this purpose, we tested 104 male participants, previously characterised on trait anxiety and mental rotation ability, on a newly-designed map-based Route Learning task, where participants matched Routes presented dynamically on a city map to one presented immediately before (same/different judgments). We predicted an interaction between trait anxiety and mental rotation ability, specifically that performance in the Route Learning task would be negatively affected by anxiety in participants with low mental rotation ability. Importantly, and as predicted, an interaction between anxiety and mental rotation ability was observed: trait anxiety negatively affected participants with low—but not high—mental rotation ability. Our study reveals a detrimental role of trait anxiety in map-based Route Learning and specifies a disadvantage in the processing of map representations for high-anxious individuals with low mental rotation abilities.
Joanne Lloyd - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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Use of a virtual-reality town for examining Route-memory, and techniques for its rehabilitation in people with acquired brain injury
2020Co-Authors: Joanne Lloyd, Theresa Powell, J Smith, N V PersaudAbstract:Route Learning difficulties are a common consequence of acquired brain injury, and virtual environments provide a novel tool for researching this area. A pilot study demonstrated the ecological validity of a non-immersive virtual town, showing performance therein to correlate well with real-world Route Learning performance. The first patient study found that a rehabilitation strategy known as ‘errorless Learning’ is more effective than traditional ‘trialand-error’ methods for Route Learning tasks. The second patient study, currently in progress, will assess whether naturalistic Route Learning strategies of map and landmark use can be combined effectively with errorless techniques. A final study will investigate the relationships between Route Learning performance and scores on a select battery of neuropsychometric tests.
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equivalence of real world and virtual reality Route Learning a pilot study
Cyberpsychology Behavior and Social Networking, 2009Co-Authors: Joanne Lloyd, Nathan V Persaud, Theresa PowellAbstract:Abstract There is good evidence for effective transfer of Learning from virtual to real-world environments, and this holds true even for complex spatial tasks such as Route Learning. However, there is little research into the simple equivalence of an individual's performance across real and virtual environments, an important topic which could support the use of virtual reality as an assessment and research tool. This pilot study compared Route-Learning performance in a desktop virtual town with performance around a real-world Route. Participants were “driven” around a Route through a virtual town and around a different (but equally complex) Route through a real-world suburb, then asked to direct the driver back around each of the Routes from memory. They completed strategy checklists after Learning each Route. Results indicated good equivalence between the real and virtual environments, with comparable error rates and no differences in strategy preferences. This demonstrates that simple desktop virtual en...
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errorless Learning of novel Routes through a virtual town in people with acquired brain injury
Neuropsychological Rehabilitation, 2009Co-Authors: Joanne Lloyd, Gerard A Riley, Theresa PowellAbstract:Impaired Route Learning is a common consequence of acquired brain injury (ABI) but has received little attention in the research literature. Errorless Learning may be a method of facilitating the Learning of Routes but this is unclear as previous studies of errorless Learning have focused mainly on verbal skills and the only previous study involving Route Learning was based upon a pencil and paper task. In the present study we therefore use virtual reality to explore the benefits of errorless Learning for Routes in an ecologically valid task. Twenty people with acquired brain injury learned two Routes, of equivalent difficulty, around a virtual town based upon the city of Nice. For one Route, full guidance was provided throughout the Learning trials in an errorless Learning paradigm; the other Route was learned using a procedure that allowed for trial and error. Route recall following the errorless Learning condition was significantly more accurate than recall after errorful Learning. This suggests that t...
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An investigation into Route Learning strategies for people with acquired brain injury
2007Co-Authors: Joanne LloydAbstract:Individuals with acquired brain injury-related memory impairment learned Routes around a complex virtual reality town under various conditions. Errorless Learning, a technique used with considerable success in verbal Learning tasks after brain injury (e.g. Baddeley & Wilson, 1994), resulted in significantly fewer Route errors than trial-and-error (or 'errorful') Learning, demonstrating the technique's potential for training practical daily living skills. The combining of explicit, naturalistic Route Learning strategies of cognitive map creation and landmark memorization with errorless Learning did not, within the sample as a whole, further improve its efficacy. However, closer analysis of performance by participants with impaired verbal ability or deficits in executive function indicates that people with such cognitive profiles may derive particular benefit from these additional strategies. Applications and suggestions for further research are discussed.
Mark Blades - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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the development of Route Learning in down syndrome williams syndrome and typical development investigations with virtual environments
Developmental Science, 2015Co-Authors: Harry R M Purser, Emily K Farran, Yannick Courbois, Axelle Lemahieu, Daniel Mellier, Pascal Sockeel, Mark BladesAbstract:The ability to navigate new environments has a significant impact on the daily life and independence of people with Learning difficulties. The aims of this study were to investigate the development of Route Learning in Down syndrome (N = 50), Williams syndrome (N = 19), and typically developing children between 5 and 11 years old (N = 108); to investigate use of landmarks; and to relate cognitive functions to Route-Learning ability in these groups. Overall, measures of attention and long-term memory were strongly associated with Route Learning, even once non-verbal ability was controlled for. All of the groups, including 5- to 6-year-old TD children, demonstrated the ability to make use of all landmark types to aid Route Learning; those near junctions, those further from junctions, and also distant landmarks (e.g. church spire, radio mast). Individuals with WS performed better than a matched subset of TD children on more difficult Routes; we suggest that this is supported by relatively strong visual feature recognition in the disorder. Participants with DS who had relatively high levels of non-verbal ability performed at a similar level to TD participants.
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short term memory executive control and children s Route Learning
Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 2012Co-Authors: Harry R M Purser, Emily K Farran, Yannick Courbois, Axelle Lemahieu, Daniel Mellier, Pascal Sockeel, Mark BladesAbstract:The aim of this study was to investigate Route-Learning ability in 67 children aged 5 to 11 years and to relate Route-Learning performance to the components of Baddeley’s model of working memory. Children carried out tasks that included measures of verbal and visuospatial short-term memory and executive control and also measures of verbal and visuospatial long-term memory; the Route-Learning task was conducted using a maze in a virtual environment. In contrast to previous research, correlations were found between both visuospatial and verbal memory tasks—the Corsi task, short-term pattern span, digit span, and visuospatial long-term memory—and Route-Learning performance. However, further analyses indicated that these relationships were mediated by executive control demands that were common to the tasks, with long-term memory explaining additional unique variance in Route Learning.
