Abstract
Males and females inherently perceive cognitive load differently due to their biological make-up. Research indicates that males outperform females in spatial tasks. There is an increased demand for solutions to minimise the gap in visuospatial abilities between sexes. Augmented reality (AR) techniques offer a range of options to minimise the inter-sex gap in visuospatial perception and cognitive processes. However, research on the causes of cognitive differences between sexes in visuospatial tasks is obscure. Studies have shown that males have better reaction time and accuracy than females when performing spatial visualisation and orientation tasks with AR. There are no investigations on the factor of sex-specific differences that might impact user performance. Hence, this research focuses on inter-sex differences in perceptions of AR solutions and their effect on user reaction time and accuracy. The study employs an alternative research design with spatial AR – involving object-identification processing and spatial processing – to research the design criteria for AR solutions. The goal is to reduce participants’ cognitive load and reaction time and, ultimately, increase their performance.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References
Abramov, I., Gordon, J., Feldman, O., Chavarga, A.: Sex & vision I: spatio-temporal resolution. Biol. Sex Dif. 3, 20 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1186/2042-6410-3-20
Ahmad, A.M., Goldiez, B.F., Hancock, P.A.: Gender differences in navigation and wayfinding using mobile augmented reality. Proc. Hum. Factors Ergon. Soc. Ann. Meeting 49, 1868–1872 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1177/154193120504902111
Buchner, J., Buntins, K., Kerres, M.: The impact of augmented reality on cognitive load and performance: a systematic review. Comput. Assisted Learn. 38, 285–303 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1111/jcal.12617
Carpenter, P.A., Just, M.A., Keller, T.A., Eddy, W., Thulborn, K.: Graded functional activation in the visuospatial system with the amount of task demand. J. Cogn. Neurosci. 11, 9–24 (1999). https://doi.org/10.1162/089892999563210
Carpenter, P.A., Just, M.A.: Linguistic influences on picture scanning. In: Monty, R., Senders, J. (eds.) Eye Movements and Psychological Processes, pp. 459–472. Erlbaum, Hillsdale (1976)
Casey, M.B.: Understanding individual differences in spatial ability within females: a nature/nurture interactionist framework. Dev. Rev. 16, 241–260 (1996). https://doi.org/10.1006/drev.1996.0009
Casey, M.B., Nuttall, R.L., Pezaris, E.: Spatial-mechanical reasoning skills versus mathematics self-confidence as mediators of gender differences on mathematics subtests using cross-national gender-based items. J. Res. Math. Educ. 32, 28 (2001). https://doi.org/10.2307/749620
Cherney, I.D.: Mom, let me play more computer games: they improve my mental rotation skills. Sex Roles 59, 776–786 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11199-008-9498-z
Colby, C.L.: Spatial cognition. In: Squire, L.R. (ed.) Encyclopedia of Neuroscience, pp. 165–171. Academic Press (2009). https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-008045046-9.01120-7
Cutmore, T.R.H., Hine, T.J., Maberly, K.J., Langford, N.M., Hawgood, G.: Cognitive and gender factors influencing navigation in a virtual environment. Int. J. Hum. Comput. Stud. 53, 223–249 (2000). https://doi.org/10.1006/ijhc.2000.0389
Dietrich, T., et al.: Effects of blood estrogen level on cortical activation patterns during cognitive activation as measured by functional MRI. Neuroimage 13, 425–432 (2001). https://doi.org/10.1006/nimg.2001.0703
Dirin, A., Alamäki, A., Suomala, J.: Gender differences in perceptions of conventional video, virtual reality and augmented reality. Int. J. Interact. Mob. Technol. 13, 93–103 (2019). https://doi.org/10.3991/ijim.v13i06.10487
Dünser, A., Steinbügl, K., Kaufmann, H., Glück, J.: Virtual and augmented reality as spatial ability training tools. Presented at the CHINZ 2006: Proceedings of the 7th ACM SIGCHI New Zealand Chapter’s International Conference on Computer-Human Interaction: Design Centered HCI (2006)
Durlach, N., et al.: Virtual environments and the enhancement of spatial behavior: towards a comprehensive research agenda. Presence: Teleoperators Virtual Environ. 9, 593–615 (2000). https://doi.org/10.1162/105474600300040402
Eme, P.-E., Marquer, J.: Individual strategies in a spatial task and how they relate to aptitudes. Eur. J. Psychol. Educ. 14, 89–108 (1999). https://doi.org/10.1007/bf03173113
Goswami, A., Dutta, S.: Gender differences in technology usage—a literature review. OJBM 04, 51–59 (2016). https://doi.org/10.4236/ojbm.2016.41006
Hou, L., Wang, X.: A study on the benefits of augmented reality in retaining working memory in assembly tasks: a focus on differences in gender. Autom. Constr. 32, 38–45 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.autcon.2012.12.007
Jordan, K., Wüstenberg, T., Heinze, H.J., Peters, M., Jäncke, L.: Women and men exhibit different cortical activation patterns during mental rotation tasks. Neuropsychologia 40, 2397–2408 (2002). https://doi.org/10.1016/s0028-3932(02)00076-3
Just, M.A., Carpenter, P.A.: Cognitive coordinate systems: accounts of mental rotation and individual differences in spatial ability. Psychol. Rev. 92, 137–172 (1985). https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-295x.92.2.137
Just, M.A., Carpenter, P.A.: Eye fixations and cognitive processes. Cogn. Psychol. 8, 441–480 (1976). https://doi.org/10.1016/0010-0285(76)90015-3
Kimura, D.: Are men’s and women’s brains really different? Can. Psychol./Psychologie canadienne 28, 133–147 (1987). https://doi.org/10.1037/h0079885
Linn, M.C., Petersen, A.C.: Emergence and characterization of sex differences in spatial ability: a meta-analysis. Child Dev. 56(138–151), 1479–1498 (1985). https://doi.org/10.2307/1130467
Mayer, R.E., Fiorella, L.: Principles for reducing extraneous processing: coherence, signaling, redundancy, spatial contiguity, and temporal contiguity principles. In: Mayer, R.E. (ed.) The Cambridge Handbook of Multimedia Learning, pp. 279–315. Cambridge University Press (2014). https://doi.org/10.1017/cbo9781139547369.015
Newcombe, N.S., Mathason, L., Terlecki, M.: Maximization of spatial competence: more important than finding the cause of sex differences. In: McGillicuddy-De Lisi, A.V., De Lisi, R. (eds.) Biology, Society, and Behavior: The Development of Sex Differences in Cognition, Greenwood, Westport, pp. 183–206 (2002)
Newcombe, N.S.: Taking science seriously: straight thinking about spatial sex differences. In: Ceci, S.J., Williams, W.M. (eds.) Why aren’t There More Women in Science: Top Researchers Debate the Evidence, pp. 69–77. American Psychological Association, Washington DC (2007). https://doi.org/10.1037/11546-006
Peters, M., Laeng, B., Latham, K., Jackson, M., Zaiyouna, R., Richardson, C.: A redrawn Vandenberg and Kuse mental rotations test - different versions and factors that affect performance. Brain Cogn. 28, 39–58 (1995). https://doi.org/10.1006/brcg.1995.1032
Ro, H., Byun, J.-H., Park, Y.J., Lee, N.K., Han, T.-D.: AR pointer: advanced ray-casting interface using laser pointer metaphor for object manipulation in 3D augmented reality environment. Appl. Sci. 9, 3078 (2019). https://doi.org/10.3390/app9153078
Shaqiri, A., et al.: Sex-related differences in vision are heterogeneous. Sci. Rep. 8, 1 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-018-25298-8
Stancey, H., Turner, M.: Close women, distant men: line bisection reveals sex-dimorphic patterns of visuomotor performance in near and far space. Br. J. Psychol. 101, 293–309 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1348/000712609x463679
Tagaris, G.A., Kim, S.-G., Strupp, J.P., Andersen, P., Uürbil, K., Georgopoulos, A.P.: Quantitative relations between parietal activation and performance in mental rotation. NeuroReport 7, 773–776 (1996). https://doi.org/10.1097/00001756-199602290-00022
Thomsen, T., Hugdahl, K., Ersland, L., et al.: Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) study of sex differences in a mental rotation task. Med. Sci. Monit. 6, 1186–1196 (2000)
Tsai, C.-H., Huang, J.-Y.: Augmented reality display based on user behavior. Comput. Stand. Interfaces 55, 171–181 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.csi.2017.08.003
Unterrainer, J., Wranek, U., Staffen, W., Gruber, T., Ladurner, G.: Lateralized cognitive visuospatial processing: is it primarily gender-related or due to quality of performance? Neuropsychobiology 41, 95–101 (2000). https://doi.org/10.1159/000026639
Voyer, D., Voyer, S., Bryden, M.P.: Magnitude of sex differences in spatial abilities: a meta-analysis and consideration of critical variables. Psychol. Bull. 117, 250–270 (1995). https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.117.2.250
Voyer, D., Voyer, S.D., Saint-Aubin, J.: Sex differences in visual-spatial working memory: a meta-analysis. Psychon. Bull. Rev. 24, 307–334 (2017). https://doi.org/10.3758/s13423-016-1085-7
Waller, D., Hunt, E., Knapp, D.: The transfer of spatial knowledge in virtual environment training. Presence 7, 129–143 (1998). https://doi.org/10.1162/105474698565631
Wolfe, J.M., Horowitz, T.S.: Five factors that guide attention in visual search. Nat. Hum. Behav. 1 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41562-017-0058
Yan, Z., Shan, Y., Li, Y., Yin, K., Li, X.: Gender differences of cognitive loads in augmented reality-based warehouse, pp. 500–501 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1109/vrw52623.2021.00132
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2024 The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG
About this paper
Cite this paper
Bend, J., Öörni, A. (2024). Effects of Augmented Reality on Visuospatial Abilities of Males and Females. In: García Márquez, F.P., Jamil, A., Ramirez, I.S., Eken, S., Hameed, A.A. (eds) Computing, Internet of Things and Data Analytics. ICCIDA 2023. Studies in Computational Intelligence, vol 1145. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-53717-2_12
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-53717-2_12
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-031-53716-5
Online ISBN: 978-3-031-53717-2
eBook Packages: EngineeringEngineering (R0)