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Sex differences in virtual navigation influenced by scale and navigation experience.

Lace M Padilla1, Sarah H Creem-Regehr2, Jeanine K Stefanucci2

  • 1Department of Psychology, University of Utah, 380 S. 1530 E., Room 502, Salt Lake City, UT, 84112, USA. u0747331@psych.utah.edu.

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This study explored how scale and experience impact human spatial navigation using virtual Morris water mazes. Larger scales and greater navigation experience improved performance, particularly for females on proximal cues.

Keywords:
Navigation experienceSex differencesVirtual navigation

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Area of Science:

  • Cognitive psychology
  • Neuroscience
  • Human spatial navigation

Background:

  • The Morris water maze is a common tool for studying spatial learning and memory.
  • Virtual reality (VR) versions of the maze are used, but their scale may differ from natural human navigation.
  • Individual differences, such as navigation experience, may influence spatial abilities.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate how scale (large vs. small) and navigation experience affect human spatial abilities in virtual environments.
  • To examine sex differences in spatial navigation performance across different maze scales and cue conditions.
  • To determine if lifetime mobility influences performance in virtual water mazes.

Main Methods:

  • Two virtual Morris water mazes of different diameters (146.4 m and 36.6 m) were used.
  • Participants' navigation experience was measured using a novel lifetime mobility metric.
  • Performance was assessed under proximal (close) and distal (far) cue conditions.

Main Results:

  • Sex differences in spatial navigation were observed on the large maze in both cue conditions, and on the small maze only with distal cues.
  • Individual differences in lifetime mobility modulated performance, with higher mobility correlating with better performance on proximal cues.
  • This modulation by mobility was evident for females on the small maze, but for both sexes on the large maze.

Conclusions:

  • Maze scale significantly impacts spatial navigation performance and the emergence of sex differences.
  • Navigation experience, measured by lifetime mobility, plays a crucial role in modulating spatial task performance.
  • Findings suggest that large-scale virtual environments may better simulate natural human navigation and reveal experience-dependent effects.