Imagery and Motor Processes - When Are They Connected? The Mental Rotation of Body Parts in Development

• Published in: Journal of cognition and development Vol. 10; no. 4; pp. 239 - 261
• Main Authors: Krüger, Markus, Krist, Horst
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Colchester Taylor & Francis Group 30.10.2009; Psychology Press; Taylor & Francis; Taylor & Francis Ltd
• Subjects: Adults; Biological and medical sciences; Child; Child development; Children & youth; Cognitive Processes; Developmental psychology; Experiments; Foreign Countries; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Gender Differences; Germany; Grade 1; Human Body; Imagery; Kindergarten; Motor ability; Motor Reactions; Pictorial Stimuli; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychology. Psychophysiology; Psychomotor Skills; Scores; Task Analysis; Validity; Germany; Human; Preschool age; Mental imagery; Mental rotation; Sex; Cognition; Motor imagery; Experimental study; School age; Body movement; Adult; Cognitive development; Motricity; Child
• ISSN: 1524-8372; 1532-7647
• DOI: 10.1080/15248370903389341

Motor influences on the mental transformation of body parts have been observed in both children and adults. Previous findings indicated that these influences were more pronounced in children than in adults, suggesting a stronger link between motor processes and imagery in children. The present series of two experiments casts doubt on the general validity of such an interpretation. Kindergartners' (aged 5-6 years), first graders' (aged 7 years), and adults' performance in the mental rotation of pictures of body parts was monitored for influences of internal representations of motor constraints (motor effect). In both experiments, evidence for mental rotation was obtained for each group. Unexpectedly, kindergarten boys made significantly more errors than kindergarten girls. A motor effect was only found in the second experiment, where it was least pronounced in the youngest age group. Our results suggest that mental transformations of body parts do not necessarily involve motor processes and that embodiment may become stronger with development rather than weaker with certain tasks.