A Sex Difference in Mental Rotation in Young Infants

@article{Quinn2008ASD,
  title={A Sex Difference in Mental Rotation in Young Infants},
  author={Paul C. Quinn and Lynn S. Liben},
  journal={Psychological Science},
  year={2008},
  volume={19},
  pages={1067 - 1070}
}
Three- to 4-month-old female and male human infants were administered a two-dimensional mental-rotation task similar to those given to older children and adults. Infants were familiarized with the number 1 (or its mirror image) in seven different rotations between 0° and 360°, and then preference-tested with a novel rotation of the familiar stimulus paired with its mirror image. Male infants displayed a novelty preference for the mirror-image stimulus over the novel rotation of the familiar… 
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270 Citations
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Background Citations
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Methods Citations
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Results Citations
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270 Citations

Mental Rotation in Human Infants
TLDR
Evidence is provided for a sex difference in mental rotation of an object through three-dimensional space, consistently seen in adult populations.
A Sex Difference in Mental Rotation in Infants: Convergent Evidence
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It is revealed that the sex difference in mental rotation is observed in 6- to 7-month-olds and 9- to 10- month-olds, suggesting that a sex difference is present at multiple ages during infancy.
Adults’ Sex Difference in a Dynamic Mental Rotation Task: Validating Infant Results
With the Mental Rotation Test (MRT), large and reliable sex differences are found. Used with children younger than about 9 or 10 years, MRT performance is at chance level. Simpler tasks used with…
Mental Rotation of Dynamic, Three-Dimensional Stimuli by 3-Month-Old Infants.
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The data support the interpretation that mental rotation of dynamic 3-dimensional stimuli is relatively difficult-but possible-for 3-month-old males.
Preschoolers' mental rotation of letters: Sex differences in hemispheric asymmetry
TLDR
Sex differences in functional hemispheric asymmetry during mental rotation do not require hormonal changes that occur during puberty and are not found in this study.
Mental object rotation and motor development in 8- and 10-month-old infants.
Touching up mental rotation: effects of manual experience on 6-month-old infants' mental object rotation.
TLDR
It is demonstrated that 6-month-olds' mental rotations benefit from manual exploration, highlighting the importance of motor experience for cognitive performance.
Influence of Rotational Axis and Gender-Stereotypical Nature of Rotation Stimuli on the Mental-Rotation Performance of Male and Female Fifth Graders
TLDR
Overall, results suggest that rotational axis is more influential in determining the gender difference than the stereotyped nature of the stimuli.
Age and Sex Differences in Verbal and Visuospatial Abilities
TLDR
Results showed a significant Sex × Age interaction on the mental rotation task, with men outperforming women in the 3D task, but with no sex differences shown in childhood in the 2D task.
The development of mental rotation ability across the first year after birth.
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