Reaction time assessments of gender differences in visual-spatial performance

Abstract

This research examined gender differences in reaction time and accuracy on four visual tasks. Twenty-nine female and 29 male first-year college students responded via joysticks to video displayed stimuli. Computer-controlled sessions consisted of trial blocks during which subjects indicated (1) a choice depending on the form of a simple stimulus, (2) which two-dimensional representation of a "folded" box was equivalent to an "unfolded" box, (3) whether test stimuli of varying rotations were the same as or different from an upright standard displayed simul taneously, and (4) whether test forms of varying dissimilarity were the same as or different from a standard. Women were more accurate but slower on the choice task; they had higher reaction times on the mental rotation and the shape-comparison tasks. These latter gender differences interacted significantly with degree of rotation and dissimilarity of the test form, suggesting the presence of gender differences in visual-spatial strategies. © 1987 Psychonomic Society, Inc.