Field Articulation, Sex, Spatial Visualization, Dependency, Practice, Laterality of the Brain and Birth Order

Abstract

Among 25 female and 25 male college students, field-articulation measures correlated with spatial visualization (. −69 to .79) ( P ≤ .05) but not consistently with each other or measures of dependency. Practice significantly affected Rod-and-frame performance for both sexes ( p ≤ .01), but no sex differences were found on measures of field articulation or dependency. Males' mean for spatial visualization was higher ( p ≤ .05); males were more confident than females on RFT performance even though no more accurate ( p ≤ .05). Among Ss oldest of sibs, females were less field-articulated, males more. Males had higher RFT errors when the frame top was tilted to S's left; females had higher RFT errors when the frame was tilted to the right ( p ≤ .05), which is consistent with the hypothesis that for females more frequently than males control of spatial function is located in the left hemisphere of the brain.