Egocentric reference frames in memory

描述（由申请人提供）：在一个人的直接环境中感知和心理表征物体和地点的位置是大多数人类行为的基本先决条件。由于位置只能在参照系中或通过参照系来确定，因此对用于感知和记忆的参照系的科学研究已成为当代空间认知研究的一个极其重要的领域。在过去的十年里，几条研究路线汇聚在一起，提出了以自我为中心的参考系统的重要性（即，那些编码相对于观察者的位置，这样的地方就与身体的组织联系在一起）。当人们记住周围环境中不同物体的位置时，以自我为中心的参照系尤其有影响力。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Perceiving and mentally representing the locations of objects and places in one's immediate environment is a fundamental prerequisite to most of human behavior. Because locations can be specified only in and through a reference system, the scientific investigation of the reference systems used in perception and memory has become an extremely important area of contemporary research in spatial cognition. In the last decade, several lines of research have converged to suggest the importance of egocentric reference systems (i.e., those that code locations relative to the observer, such that places are linked to the organization of the body). Egocentric reference systems are particularly influential when people remember the locations of different objects in their immediate environment. Given the importance of egocentric reference systems in memories of object layouts, it is surprising that existing research has done little to understand more precisely the nature of this coding system. In particular, it is unknown which among three possible bases for an egocentric reference system (retina-based, head-based, and body-based) dominates spatial coding in memory. This research will examine this issue more closely, determining both the dominant bases for egocentric coding and the degree to which the influences of various egocentric reference systems are altered by the nature of the learning and testing environments. Completion of the project will lead to a clearer understanding of how humans encode spatial information in memory. This basic research will have immediate implications for computational models of spatial cognition as well as offering insight into the degree to which populations that do not have access to the sensory bases for certain reference systems (such as the blind and paraplegic) may productively use other systems in order to remember spatial information. Findings may also lead to ways of improving spatial abilities in the general population.