Elsevier

Cognitive Development

Volume 28, Issue 4, October–December 2013, Pages 386-399
Cognitive Development

Development of mental rotation in 3- to 5-year-old children

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cogdev.2013.06.002Get rights and content

Highlights

  • We assessed 3- to 5-year-olds’ mental rotation abilities using a puzzle paradigm.

  • Pairs of asymmetrical ghost figures were presented in seven different orientations.

  • Children were asked to pick the ghost that would fit into a hole.

  • Results indicate considerable development between 3 and 5 years of age.

  • This new paradigm allows for assessing mental rotation abilities below age 5.

Abstract

We assessed 3- to 5-year-olds’ mental rotation abilities using a new puzzle paradigm. It allows for assessment of mental rotation abilities in children younger than 5 years, using a task comparable to ones used with older children and adults. Children saw pairs of asymmetrical ghost figures, either as three-dimensional cut-outs or two-dimensional paper versions, in seven orientations. One of the ghosts fit into a hole if rotated right-side up – the other ghost was its mirror image and would not fit. Children were asked to turn the ghosts in their heads and choose the one that would fit into the hole. The number of children who chose the correct ghost above chance in the three-dimensional version of the task increased dramatically from 10% of 3-year-olds to 95% of 5-year-olds; average accuracy also increased significantly, from 54% to 83%. The two-dimensional paper version yielded similar results. These results indicate considerable development in mental rotation between 3 and 5 years.

Section snippets

Participants

Sixty children participated, with 20 children (10 girls) in each of three age groups: 3-year-olds (mean age 42 months, range 41–44 months), 4-year-olds (mean age 54 months, range 52–56 months), and 5-year-olds (mean age 66 months, range 65–68 months). The mean age difference between boys and girls was no more than 6 days in any age group. Four additional children were tested but excluded from analyses: two 3-year-olds perseverated and chose the ghost in the same location on all trials, one

Participants

Forty children participated, with 20 children (10 girls) in each of two age groups: 4-year-olds (mean age 55 months, range 53–56 months), and 5-year-olds (mean age 66 months, range 65–68 months). The mean age difference between boys and girls was 10 days. One additional 4-year-old was tested but excluded from analyses because he perseverated and chose the ghost in the same location on all trials. The sample was recruited and tested as in Experiment 1.

Stimuli, procedure, and design

The ghost stimuli were printed on

General discussion

Results showed a clear developmental trend with a considerable increase in mental rotation abilities between 3 and 5 years of age. In Experiment 1, children were presented with mirror-image pairs of ghosts in different orientations and asked to choose the one that fit into a hole. The percentage of correct responses increased from 54% to 83%, and the number of individual children who performed above chance increased from 10% to 95% between 3 and 5 years of age. In Experiment 2, a paper version

Acknowledgements

This research was supported by research grants from the Swiss National Science Foundation #PBZH1-117012 and from the US National Science Foundation #SBE-0541957 and #SBE-1041707.

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