Spatial Ability’s Effect On Map-reading Ability In Orienteering

Spatial cognitive ability (also known as spatial ability) is a special ability differs fr-om the image thinking and abstract thinking. Through creation, reservetion, searching andtransformation, it turns the non-verbal messages into the structured representation image.The study of spatial ability belongs to the category of cognitive psychology. Orienteeringis achieved by participants through maps and compass，which means that orienteeringcan’t be separated from its special maps. Special map is also a kind of map, so map-reading belongs to the catalogue of cartography. With the development of modern cognitive psychology, the cross discipline immerged from cognitive science and cartography orgeography also get their corresponding development. Based on the research results, welearn that the map product is the graphics presentation of space cognitive capacity and isthe results of space cognition.The identifying processof map (i.e.cognitive process)followsthe rules of space cognitive process. As for orienteering, there is relevance between map-reading ability and spatial ability. We can explore the spatial ability’s effect on map-reading ability through the study method of spatial ability. However, in the field of orientee-ring research, study which specifically examine the individual’s ability map-reading arerare. Through cognitive laterality battery (CLB), which is made of four kinds of subtestsrelated to spatial ability (localization, orientation, form completion and touching blocks),this research will explore the difference among undergraduates’ spatial ability and thevariables are major, sporting experience and contact. At the same time, this research willtry to analyze the difference and law. In addition to the effectiveness of the tests relatedto experimental subjects，this research will provided certain quantifiable theoretical basisfor the teaching, training and material-selection of orienteering.According to different majors (PE, typical liberal arts, typical science), Different orienteering-learning experience (whether has or not) and different orienteering-contact degree(continuously and professionally), this research has selected4groups of testees:1. thirty students (Male15, Female15) from Grade2011, PE Institute of Shandong NormalUniversity who have completed thestudy of orienteering and passed the exam.2.16athle-tes (Male8, Female8)from the orienteering team who have attended the23rd UniversityGames of Shandong Province and got the rank before No.9at least in one sport item.3.Thirty undergraduates (Male15, Female15) from typical liberal arts (History,Literature)4.Thirty undergraduates (Male15, Female15) from typical science(Math, Engineering). There are two tests. The first one is cognitive laterality battery which is divided into fourparts. Those four parts study undergraduates’ abilities of localization, orientation, form completion and touching blocks as well as the difference of spatial ability in regard to their different majors (PE, typical Liberal arts, typical Sciences), learning experience(whether have or not)and orienteering-contact degree(continuously and professionally).Mapreading ability test is after the cognitive laterality battery, the difference and law ofmap-reading will also be explored based on different spatial ability. This research will also try to find out which part or parts of the whole test as well have effectiveness onmap-reading ability in orienteering, spatial ability’s effects on map-reading ability andorientation’s effectiveness on the predict of spatial ability. Through the experiment anddiscussion, we can get the conclusion as following:1. There are differences among undergraduates’ spatial ability and map-reading ability asthey are from different majors (PE, typical liberal arts, typical science), has differentorienteering-learning experience (whether has or not) and different orienteering-con-tac tdegree (continuously and professionally).2. Spatial cognition ability has a great influence on map-reading ability in orienteering.3. Orienteering athletes have advantages in spatial ability as well as in map-readingability.4. Orientation test could predict the spatial ability of testees very well.