INDIRECT EXPRESSION OF PREFERENCE IN SKETCH MAPS

First graders, fifth graders, university students, and older adults dr ew sketch maps of familiar environments. Not until after the sketch ma ps were collected did subjects have any idea that the study had anythi ng to do with expression of preferences. At that time, subjects were a sked to identify (recall) objects located in the environment drawn tha t they liked most, disliked most, and about which they felt neutral. T hese items were compared with other items on the sketch maps to determ ine whether they were drawn on the same scale, were emphasized, or wer e absent. A similar pattern of results was found across age groups; mo st of the subjects did not draw items they disliked on their sketch ma ps. These results suggested a dissociation between indirect (map drawi ng) and direct (specific recall) approaches to expressing preferences.