Through Doorways and Down Corridors: Investigating Asymmetries During Computer Maze Navigation

Area of Science:

• Cognitive Psychology
• Neuroscience
• Human Navigation

Background:

• Pseudoneglect involves attentional biases, leading to leftward bias in near space and rightward bias in far space.
• These spatial asymmetries influence ambulatory activities, often resulting in rightward deviations during navigation.
• Previous research shows rightward deviation in doorways but inconsistent findings (sometimes leftward) in corridors.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the dissociation in spatial bias observed during navigation through doorways versus corridors.
• To directly compare navigation behaviors in doorway and corridor environments within a controlled setting.
• To test the near/far space explanation for spatial biases and propose alternative theories.

Main Methods:

• A simulated environment was used to compare navigation through doorways and corridors.
• Ninety-eight dextral participants completed multiple navigation trials in either the doorway or corridor condition.
• Analysis focused on mean lateral position and variance to quantify spatial bias.

Main Results:

• A rightward deviation was confirmed for navigation through doorways, aligning with prior studies.
• Rightward biases were also observed for corridor navigation, regardless of the participant's position within the corridor.
• The findings contradict the near/far space explanation for spatial biases in corridors.

Conclusions:

• The study demonstrates consistent rightward navigational bias in both doorways and corridors, challenging existing theories.
• An elevation of view hypothesis is proposed as a potential explanation for corridor navigation biases.
• Simulated environments are effective tools for studying spatial attention and navigation asymmetries.