Transfer of Spatial Knowledge to a Two-Level Shopping Mall in Older People, Following Virtual Exploration

• Published in: Environment and behavior Vol. 37; no. 2; pp. 275 - 292
• Main Authors: Foreman, Nigel, Stanton-Fraser, Danae, Wilson, Paul N., Duffy, Hester, Parnell, Richard
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Thousand Oaks, CA SAGE Publications 01.03.2005; SAGE PUBLICATIONS, INC
• Subjects: Age; Aged; Ageing; Cognition; Elderly people; Layout; Older people; Perceptions; Physical environment; Shopping centers; Shopping centres; Spatial knowledge; Understanding; Virtual reality; virtual-real transfer; spatial cognition; older people; virtual environments; age

Groups of older and younger participants explored a virtual shopping mall composed of more than 60 retail outlets on 2 levels. They were then compared with guessing controls for their understanding of the spatial layout of the real equivalent building. Experimental groups showed greater accuracy in...