title: The Spatial Representation of Angles.
abstract: We investigated whether angle magnitude, similarly to numerical quantities (i.e., the spatial-numerical association of response codes effect), is associated to the side of response execution. In addition, we investigated whether this association has the properties of a spatially oriented mental line, since angles are taught in a right-to-left progression. We tested two groups of participants: civil engineering students (high familiarity with angles) and psychology students (low familiarity with angles). In Experiment 1, participants were asked to judge the continuity of the angles' arms (continuous vs. dashed). Magnitude of the angles was task-irrelevant. In Experiment 2, they were asked to judge whether the presented angles were smaller or larger than a right angle (90°). Therefore, the angle magnitude was relevant for performing the task. Overall, engineering students responded faster with their left hand to large angles and with their right hand to small angles. Conversely, psychology students did not show any reliable differences between left- and right-hand responses. In the case of engineering students, the spatial association has a right-to-left (counter clockwise) direction, suggesting the influence of education and practice on the mental representation of angle magnitude.
authors: Department of Life Sciences, University of Trieste, Italy.
authors: Antonia
authors: A
authors: Fumarola
authors: Department of Life Sciences, University of Trieste, Italy.
authors: Valter
authors: V
authors: Prpic
authors: Department of Life Sciences, University of Trieste, Italy.
authors: Deanna
authors: D
authors: Fornasier
authors: DAIS, Università Ca' Foscari Venezia, Italy.
authors: Flavio
authors: F
authors: Sartoretto
authors: Department of Life Sciences, University of Trieste, Italy.
authors: Tiziano
authors: T
authors: Agostini
authors: Department of General Psychology, University of Padua, Italy.
authors: Carlo
authors: C
authors: Umiltà
keywords: angles; magnitude; number processing; spatial response compatibility; spatial-numerical association of response codes