Language and spatial frames of reference in mind and brain.
Some language communities routinely use allocentric reference directions (e.g. 'uphill-downhill') where speakers of European languages would use egocentric references ('left-right'). Previous experiments have suggested that the different language groups use different reference frames in non-linguistic tasks involving the recreation of oriented arrays. However, a recent paper argues that manipulating test conditions produces similar effects in monolingual English speakers, and in animals.
Rutgers Center for Cognitive Science, Rutgers University, 152 Frelinghuysen Road, 08854-8020, Piscataway, NJ, USA
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