The Use of a Route and Survey Composite Display for Navigational Training in Virtual Environments

Abstract

The present study examined if spatial knowledge gained from a virtual environment (VE) is affected by the spatial ability of the participant and whether information can be more efficiently acquired and applied to a physical space when participants are given a display featuring both an overhead map and first-person visual cues. Seventy-four participants were randomly assigned to one of three VE conditions: first-person view, overhead map, or first-person view with an integrated map. Participants learned the locations of 7 targets in a desktop-based computer simulation of a building. Spatial knowledge for these targets was assessed in the physical building. Results indicated that spatial orientation ability facilitated performance by the group with only the map view. Spatial orientation ability did not affect the other two groups.