Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 6, 2026
09:44
Methods to Test Visual Attention Online
Published on: February 19, 2015
Sex differences in accuracy and precision when judging time to arrival: data from two Internet studies
Geoff Sanders1, Kamila Sinclair
1School of Psychology, Faculty of Life Sciences, London Metropolitan University, Old Castle Street, London E1 7NT, UK. g.sanders@londonmet.ac.uk
Archives of Sexual Behavior
|December 3, 2010
Summary
Men are more accurate than women in judging time to arrival, a skill crucial for coincidence-anticipation timing (CAT). However, neither study found sex differences in judgment precision.
Area of Science:
- Cognitive Psychology
- Human Factors
- Virtual Reality Research
Background:
- Investigating sex differences in spatiotemporal judgment is crucial for understanding human perception.
- Previous coincidence-anticipation timing (CAT) studies have yielded mixed results regarding sex differences in accuracy and precision.
Purpose of the Study:
- To quantitatively assess sex differences in the accuracy and precision of time-to-arrival judgments using internet-based virtual reality.
- To compare findings with existing CAT literature and explore potential evolutionary explanations.
Main Methods:
- Two internet-based studies utilized a virtual reality computer game where participants judged the time to arrival of a virtual object.
- Accuracy was defined as matching actual time to arrival; precision was measured as intra-participant variation.
Main Results:
- Men demonstrated greater accuracy than women, who tended to underestimate arrival times.
- No significant sex differences were found in the precision of judgments in either study.
- Findings align with some CAT studies but contrast with others reporting greater male precision.
Conclusions:
- Internet-based virtual reality is a viable method for studying spatiotemporal judgments.
- While men may be more accurate, precision in time-to-arrival judgments does not appear to differ between sexes.
- Evolutionary pressures related to ancestral hunting and gathering roles may explain observed sex differences in accuracy.
Related Concept Videos
01:52Accuracy and Precision
Scientists typically make repeated measurements of a quantity to ensure the quality of their findings and to evaluate both the precision and the accuracy of their results. Measurements are said to be precise if they yield very similar results when repeated in the same manner. A measurement is considered accurate if it yields a result that is very close to the true or the accepted value. Precise values agree with each other; accurate values agree with a true value. Highly accurate measurements...
03:37Uncertainty in Measurement: Accuracy and Precision
Scientists typically make repeated measurements of a quantity to ensure the quality of their findings and to evaluate both the precision and the accuracy of their results. Measurements are said to be precise if they yield very similar results when repeated in the same manner. A measurement is considered accurate if it yields a result that is very close to the true or the accepted value. Precise values agree with each other; accurate values agree with a true value.