Learning a Map of Environment: The Role of Visuo-Spatial Abilities in Young and Older Adults

The present study examines age-related differences between young and older adults in spatial mental representation derived from learning a realistic city map. A sample of 30 young (20–30-years) and 30 older (60–72 years) adults learned a simplified map of a city; afterwards participants performed map-drawing and pointing-aligned and counter-aligned tasks. Tasks measuring visuo-spatial abilities were also administered to explore their relationship with map learning. Results showed an agerelated impairment in older adults in both map tasks, as well as in visuo-spatial ones. Furthermore, performance on counteraligned pointing was poorer than on aligned pointing in young and older adults, and its relationship with visuo-spatial abilities changed as a function of age group: The performance of counter-aligned pointing in older adults was related to all visuo-spatial abilities, and in young adults with perspective-taking measures only