Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 17, 2026

Protocol for Studying Extinction of Conditioned Fear in Naturally Cycling Female Rats
Published on: February 23, 2015
Influences of gender role socialization and anxiety on spatial cognitive style
Raffaella Nori1, Noemi Mercuri, Fiorella Giusberti
1Department of Psychology, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy. raffaella.nori@unibo.it
Abstract:
Research on the relationship between personality and social factors in spatial cognitive style is sparse. The present research was conducted to help fill the gap in this domain. We investigated the influence of specific personality traits (masculine/feminine, spatial and trait anxiety), state anxiety, and sex on spatial cognitive style. One hundred forty-two participants completed a battery of spatial tasks in order to assess their spatial cognitive style and filled in questionnaires about the personality traits under examination. Results showed that state anxiety, spatial anxiety, sex, and masculine/feminine trait of personality are predictors of spatial cognitive style. More specifically, it seems that masculine/feminine trait mediates the relationship between sex and spatial cognitive style. Such findings confirm the importance of personality in determining differences in spatial representation.
Related Concept Videos
Socioemotional Experience and Gender Development
Stereotype Threat and Self-fulfilling Prophecies
Panic Disorder
Horney's Sociocultural Approach
Generalized Anxiety Disorder
The Influence of Cognition on Affect

