The role of modality and organization in learning spatial information

The main goal of this research was to investigate the effects of two factor s on the construction of spatial representations : the modality of presenta tion of spatial information (Spatial configuration versus Text) and the typ e of organization of this information (Linear versus Non Linear). In a prel iminary experiment, we examined the internal structure of subjects' descrip tions of features of an imaginary island. The results showed that most subj ects organized linearly their descriptions. We used these findings in our e xperiment investigating which conditions allow the construction of spatial representations. After learning the content of an imaginary island, subject s had to judge the location of the items they had learned previously. Follo wing our hypotheses, the main results showed that the quality of the spatia l model elaborated depends on the modality of information, and that the eff ects of organization on the quality of the spatial model vary according to the modality of information.