Page 51 - Coespu 2018-3

completed the route, their spatial knowledge of the environment was tested according to three facets
of spatial representation: Landmark-, Route-, and Survey-level representations. Participants were
presented with screen shots of scenes, including some from the virtual environment and some that
were similar, but not actually on the route that the participants took. The participants were required
to identify which screenshots they recognized as part of the route they took (Landmark) and the
order in which they occurred (Route). To assess Survey knowledge of the spatial environment,
participants were asked to sketch a map of their overall route as best they could on a blank sheet of
paper, and to include as many landmarks as they could remember. The results from this study
showed that the participants in the voice navigation group performed significantly worse in
Landmark and Route knowledge of the environment. Further, those in the voice navigation group
drew significantly simpler and more fragmented maps in the assessment of Survey knowledge.
Some recent research has focused on identifying ways in which the detriments of navigation devices
on spatial memory can be mitigated. It has been shown, for example, that spatial knowledge can be
improved by allowing users to request that their position be indicated at any given time during the
navigation episode (Parush et al., 2007). Further, spatial knowledge can be improved if users are
forced to perform mental rotations of on-screen images, as opposed to observing automated
rotations (Boari et al., 2012). This knowledge can be applied by encouraging users to keep their
navigation devices set such that North is always facing up, rather than moving around the compass
as they turn. Finally,
research extending the
Ophir et al. (2009)
findings on media
multitasking also
implicates this behavior
in memory functioning.
Most recently, Uncapher
et al. (2015) showed that
frequent media
multitaskers differed
from light users with
respect to their working
memory capacity, and also exhibited diminished long-term memory functioning. In their study,
frequency of media multitasking specifically predicted how participants encoded information, with
higher rates of media multitasking leading to less precise representations of goal-relevant
information and more task-irrelevant information filling the space. Further, the reduced precision of
information in working memory observed in heavy media multitaskers was associated with
diminished long-term memory performance, as measured by a surprise recognition test for tested
items [with a significant association between heavy media multitasking and memory for target
items in the earlier working memory task, as well as a trend level association for memory of
distractor items; see also Frein et al. (2013) for related findings].

Conclusion
Summary research investigating the relationships between smartphone technology habits and one’s
memory and knowledge capabilities is still scant, but available findings indicate that, as some have
worried, smartphone-related habits can in some cases be detrimental to mnemonic functioning.

49