What is spatial ability?

education have been the skills required to construct

efficient mental models of objects from verbal descriptions
Spatial ability is the capacity to understand and remember in textbooks or instruction. In some fields, textbooks and
the spatial relations among objects. This ability can be instruction materials have been developed that are
viewed as a unique type of intelligence distinguishable explicitly designed to use spatial skills as a key to mastering
from other forms of intelligence, such as verbal ability, the subject matter. Several such books are listed in the
reasoning ability, and memory skills. Spatial ability is not a Readings section at the end of this document.
monolithic and static trait, but made up of numerous
subskills, which are interrelated among each other and While the development of such materials continues to be
develop throughout your life. an important concern, recent technological developments
have added further emphases to the issue.
Why is spatial ability important? Visual-spatial ability is becoming increasingly important
with the development and proliferation of new
Visual-spatial skills are of great importance for success in
technologies such as imaging, computer graphics, data
solving many tasks in everyday life. For instance, using a
visualization, and supercomputing. Highly demanding
map to guide you through an unfamiliar city, merging into
spatial tasks include the construction of mental
high-speed traffic, and orienting yourself in your
representations of object configuration from images on
environment (as when you are learning your way around a
several screens representing different perspectives, as in
new school building) are all activities that involve spatial
some fields of surgery.
ability. Other examples of tasks requiring visual-spatial
ability include packing (as when you must decide if a
In other fields, powerful computer graphic technologies
certain box is large enough for the objects you want to put
are being used to create complex visual images of
into it) and using mirror images (as when you are combing
processes that occur in the natural world. These
your hair while looking into a mirror).
techniques are used to depict the intricate workings of the
immune system, the complex meteorological interactions
Spatial ability is also important for success in many fields
that occur in a developing thunderstorm, hurricane, or
of study. Mathematics, natural sciences, engineering,
tornado, and the relations of atoms and molecules in
economic forecasting, meteorology and architecture all
chemistry.
involve the use of spatial skills: For instance, an
astronomer must visualize the structure of a solar system
Despite their importance in so many fields, in science
and the motions of the objects in it. An engineer
education, spatial skills rarely work in isolation from other
visualizes the interactions of the parts of a machine.
abilities, such as logical reasoning, efficient memory
Radiologists must be able to interpret the image on a
retrieval, and verbal skills, and deficits in one area can
medical X-ray. Chemical sum formulas can be viewed as
often be compensated by excellence in others. An
abstract models of molecules with most of the spatial
important type of exceptional talent in math and science,
information deleted; spatial skills are important in restoring
however, is the ability to easily switch form one efficient
that information when more detailed mental models of the
mode of representation to another (e. g., from a
molecules are needed. More formal evidence on the
conceptual to a spatial mode and vice versa).
importance of spatial ability in math and science education
has been compiled by many researchers, including
Humphreys, Lubinski, Shea, Wai, and Webb. Some of their
publications are cited in the Readings section below.

Traditionally, critical features of spatial ability in science

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THE STB AND EDUCATIONAL PLANNING
CTY introduced The Spatial Test Battery (STB) in 1995 to your parents should establish a close working relationship
aid in the identification of scientific and mathematical and dialogue with your teachers and counselors as soon as
talent. The types of items included on the STB have been possible. With good information and careful planning,
used in numerous studies in the past to measure the you, your parents, and your school can ensure that you
construct of general spatial ability, various subskills, and to obtain an outstanding education.
predict a variety of educational and occupational criteria.
Results of research conducted at CTY indicate that spatial CTY's Diagnostic and Counseling Center (DCC) offers
ability is predictive of success in math and science courses fee-based educational planning services and in-depth
offered by CTY. testing for students. Most testing is performed on-site in
Baltimore, Maryland; however, some educational planning
Since 1996, thousands of students who would not have can be conducted over the telephone. The DCC also offers
otherwise qualified for CTY courses with SAT, ACT or an Academic and Career Guidance service for highly able
SCAT scores alone, have been able to establish eligibility students that is available by mail. Visit the DCC website at
by combining their STB scores with their SAT, ACT or cty.jhu.edu/dcc/index.html for more information.
SCAT scores. Follow-up studies have shown that these
students have performed as well as students qualifying
with SAT scores alone. In 2011, CTY established eligibility
Can Spatial Ability be further Developed?
criteria so that students may qualify for math and science
It is important to note that the skills that make up spatial
courses using solely their STB score. Many students who
ability are the results of long learning and training
have SAT, ACT or SCAT scores that are well above the
processes (beyond developmental gains and other factors).
CTY cutoff for program eligibility also elect to take the
The level of spatial performance someone is capable of
STB simply to know the level of their spatial abilities.
may change over time. You are likely to gain in
Many are surprised to find that they have a special talent in
performance through practice, training, and learning, but
this area.
you may also lose in standing relative to others if they
acquire more experience that supports their performance
Educational Planning or make more progress in their intellectual development.
So, if you are interested in getting a long-time perspective
Your STB scores can provide you with valuable on your spatial skills, it is advisable to have the testing
information that you can use in planning your education. repeated from time to time. This, of course, applies the
While interpreting your scores, you should keep two basic more the younger you are when you take a spatial test.
concepts in mind. First, spatial ability is a relatively
enduring trait, but the scores are momentary snapshots of If you wish to improve the level of performance you have
it and may be affected by other factors as well (such as reached, an important consideration is the possibility to
fatigue, illness, disturbances and distractions during the enhance it through practice, training, and leaning. Modern
testing, inefficient test taking strategies, etc.). Second, computer software, among other things, offers many
despite being relatively stable over time, spatial ability is options to practice spatial skills. Even computer games
also subject to middle- and long-term changes, especially that were not developed with the explicit intent to provide
through practice, training, maturation, and influences such training, such as Block Out and several versions of
affecting health. These two points are discussed in more Tetris, have been found to contribute to enhancing spatial
detail in the two following sections. skills. On a more technical and advanced level, training
materials have been provided in books and other
Ideally, your education should be matched to your abilities publications, some of which are listed in the bibliography
and interests so that you can be appropriately challenged of this guide. If you decide to engage in such training, it is
and maximally motivated to learn. Knowing as much as important to consider a broad range of tasks and not to
possible about your strengths and interests in all areas is focus on a few isolated functions exclusively. Research has
critical. You will probably have numerous opportunities to shown that significant gains can be made on isolated tasks
get feedback about your verbal and mathematical abilities, relatively quickly, but that extended effort is required to
but spatial abilities are not often measured. Since you have achieve substantial, broad, and lasting improvements in
taken the STB, you will have this valuable information to performance.
combine with all you know about yourself. Students who
score well on the STB (above 500) may wish to consider Two references in the Readings list are meant to give you an
careers that place a high emphasis on spatial ability. impression of the breadth of what is subsumed under
Careful educational planning should be an ongoing process “spatial ability:” The edition by Eliot and Smith provides a
with both short- and long-term goals being set. You and good overview on the variety of existing types of spatial
2
tasks; the book edited by Gilbert provides interesting
examples from the study of the sciences. These latter • Explore careers which employ your spatial skills such
publications, however, are scientific documentations and as mathematics, engineering, physics, chemistry,
were not written for training purposes. architecture, medical technology, radiology, surgery,
meteorology, astrophysics, graphic design, the
Formal training, however, is not the only way to develop computer or movie industry (specializing in computer
spatial skills. You may pursue a large range of options if animation and special effects).
you are interested in understanding more about your
spatial ability and developing this important talent. You • Consider finding a mentor or performing an
should carefully consider each option listed below and internship in one of the fields mentioned above with
match the options to your age, interests, and abilities. an emphasis on developing your spatial skills.

• Find out more about spatial ability by reading some of

the articles and books on the Readings list in this guide.

• Study some of the materials provided in the

publications by Baartmans & Sorby, Eliot & Smith,
Nelsen, Nelsen & Watkins, and Sorby & others listed
in the bibliography.

• The study of geometry has also been found to

improve spatial visualization skills. This finding is not
surprising but important to note, because geometry is
often neglected in school curricula and educational
practice. Geometry textbooks, if studied carefully, are
likely to offer more benefits than just the accumulation
of formal knowledge.

• Play computer games that involve manipulation of

moving objects. The article by Martín-Gutiérrez and
others cited in the Readings section mentions some of
the promising recent software used for training spatial
skills.

• Enroll in additional coursework in school in subject

areas (like math, science, art, mechanics, or
computers) where you could employ and develop your
spatial talents.

• Take advantage of programs outside of school that

could help you pursue visual-spatial interests. For
example, you may want to join a photography or chess
club or consider taking a course in computer graphics,
architecture, or astronomy.

• Pursue hobbies or activities that can help to improve

your visual-spatial skills, such as Lego building
(including computer versions), photography, doing
jigsaw puzzles, playing chess, drawing, geography,
studying origami or practicing visual memory games.

3
Further Readings on Visual-Spatial Ability
Baartmans, B.G., & Sorby, S.A. (1996). Introduction to 3-D spatial visualization. Englewood Cliffs, New
Jersey: Prentice Hall. (Contains exercises to improve spatial ability). ISBN 0-13-191610-6
Barke, H.D., et al. (2009). Misconceptions in chemistry. Addressing perceptions in chemical
education. Heidelberg (Germany), New York: Springer-Verlag. ISBN 978-3-54070988-6.
Carroll, J. B. (1993). Human cognitive abilities (chapter 8: Abilities in the domain of visual perception).
New York: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-3871-4
Eliot, J., & Smith, I.M. (1983). An international directory of spatial tests. Windsor, Great Britain: NFER-
Nelson Publishing. ISBN 0-7005-0517-2
Gilbert, J. K. (Ed.). (2005). Visualization in science education. Dordrecht, The Netherlands: Springer-
Verlag. (A collection of scholarly articles on the importance of spatial visualization in science
education with instructive examples). ISBN 1-4020-3612-4
Humphreys, L.G., & Lubinski, D. (1998). Assessing spatial visualization. An underappreciated ability for
many school and work settings. In C. P. Benbow & D. Lubinski (Eds.), Intellectual talent.
Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. ISBN 0-8018-5302-8
Humphreys, L. G., et al. (1993). Utility of predicting group membership and the role of spatial visualization in
becoming an engineer, physical scientist, or artist. Journal of Applied Psychology, 78, pp. 250-261.
Lohman, D. F., et al. (1987). Dimensions and components of individual differences in spatial abilities. In S. H.
Irvine & S. E. Newstead (Eds.), Intelligence and cognition (pp. 253-312). Dordrecht, The
Netherlands: Martinus Nijhoff. ISBN 9-02473-523-8
Martín-Gutiérrez, J., et al. (2009). Do video games improve spatial abilities of engineering students? International
Journal of Engineering Education, 25, pp. 1194-1204.
Nelsen, R.B. (1993). Proofs without words: Exercises in visual thinking. Washington, D.C.: The
Mathematical Association of America. (A fascinating collection of examples of how spatial
approaches can be used to solve a variety of mathematical problems). ISBN 0-88385-700-6
Nelsen, R.B., & Watkins, W. (2001). Proofs without words II. Washington, D. C.: Mathematical
Association of America. (See remarks on previous reference). ISBN 0-88385-700-6
Nelsen, R.B., et al. (2006). Math made visual. Washington, D. C.: Mathematical Association of
America. ISBN 0-88385-746-4
Shea, D.L., et al. (2001). Importance of assessing spatial ability in intellectually talented young adolescents: A 20-
year longitudinal study. Journal of Educational Psychology, 93, pp. 604-614.
Sobanski, J. (2002). Visual math. See how math makes sense. New York: Learning Express (An
introduction to fundamental mathematical concepts based on a visual approach).
ISBN 1-576855-404-3
Sorby, S.A., et al. (1998). 3-D visualization for engineering graphics. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.
ISBN 0-13191-602-5.
Souvingier, E. (2000). Förderung räumlicher Fähigkeiten. New York: Waxmann. (An overview of
research on enhancing spatial ability in an educational context; in German).
ISBN 3-89325-897-3
Stumpf, H., & Eliot, J. (1999). A structural analysis of visual-spatial ability in academically talented students.
Learning and Individual Differences, 11, 137-151.
Stumpf, H., & Haldimann, M. (1997). Spatial ability and academic success of sixth grade students at
international schools. School Psychology International, 18, 245-259.
Wai, J., et al. (2009). Spatial ability for STEM domains. Journal of Educational Psychology, 101, 817-
835.
Webb, R., et al. (2007). Spatial ability: A neglected dimension in talent searches for intellectually precocious youth.
Journal of Educational Psychology, 99, 397-420.
West, T.G. (1997). In the mind’s eye: Visual thinkers, gifted people with learning difficulties, computer images,
and the ironies of creativity (2nd ed.). Buffalo, NY: Prometheus Books. ISBN 0-88385-746-4

4
Exploring Career Options: Excerpts from an interview by Carol
Blackburn first appearing in Imagine, Vol. 2,
Architecture, Landscape No.4
Architecture, And Exhibit
Design

In this interview, three professionals talk about their work together in uplinks. A third studies life in geothermal vents on the
a Seattle-based specialized design firm called the Portico Group. ocean floor, and others are using remote sensing to map
Chuck Mayes, an architect and exhibit designer, is one of the environmental changes within the Northwest forests. Our
founders of The Portico Group. Dennis Meyer, a landscape design goal was to help the uninitiated visitor appreciate
architect and exhibit designer, has been at Portico for eight years. the complex scientific research being conducted at the
Elizabeth Bumpas, an architect intern and interpretive planner, Center.
began working at Portico two years ago, immediately after completing Elizabeth: And the design we created for the
her Master of Architecture degree. Center reflected those people and their interests both
explicitly, through interactive exhibits within the Center,
What does the Portico Group do? and subtly, through design elements—a series of spiral
Chuck: Our firm does unusual work. We’ve a patterns that create a recurrent visual link. The entry drive
diverse group of about 25 creative people who have is laid out on the line of an immense spiral, bringing the
gathered together to practice architecture, landscape visitor to the Center building with its entry courtyard, both
architecture, exhibit design, and interpretive planning. of which are also abstracted spiral forms. The spiral evokes
The other aspect of what we do as exhibit images of two realms that are important in the Center’s
designers and interpretive planners is to tell stories. We try research: nature (a snail’s shell) and abstract thought
to use design and storytelling to make informal educational (fractal geometry).
experiences more meaningful. Dennis: What was wonderful about that project
was that it gave us the opportunity to take the realm of
Storytelling seems like an unusual activity for an architect. Could you pure ideas and translate it into three-dimensional site and
explain what you mean? building designs. The spiral design element reappeared
Chuck: For example, at the Woodland Park Zoo visually and spatially in many manifestations: in paving
in Seattle, we designed a Tropical Rain Forest Complex, patterns, in building entryways, even in tree positioning—
which depicts plants and animals in their natural habitats. we laid out the plantings using a chaos theory formula. Its
The exhibit path leads visitors through a sequence of subtle, unifying presence throughout the site is intended to
tropical habitats, from an “edge of civilization” biosphere remind visitors that scientists—and the scientist in each of
through a secondary forest succession to a primary us—are always seeking to find underlying patterns to
rainforest. Within the rainforest, the exhibit path moves structure our experience and understand our world.
from the forest floor up through the middle zones of the
canopy and eventually out to the top of the vegetation Do you have any advice for young people on their own path? Any
canopy, revealing the complexity of the web of life that is observations to make with the wisdom of hindsight?
the undisturbed forest. Dennis: It’s important to be flexible. When you
Each habitat—and even each vertical zone within follow your intuition and see where it leads, various career
it—has its own characteristic animal and plant inhabitants, paths or interests become evident.
with their stories of life within that world. And by A final hint: Your skills and abilities shine more
exhibiting the sequence of habitats, we can also show how when you’re fascinated. If you can find something that
modern development has affected the native biosphere. really interests you, you’ll not only be happier, but you’ll do
The designer and the storyteller in us worked together to better, more creative work—and it won’t feel like work.
create a spectrum of homes for animals and plants that
also communicates something about their
interrelationships.
Could you describe a project you’ve especially enjoyed doing?
Chuck: We’ve recently completed a very exciting
project at Oregon State University Hatfield Marine Center.
The Center has some amazing scientists
doing fascinating work. One is using chaos theory to
model the learning behavior of sea slugs; another is
tracking whales at sea using radio transmitters and satellite
5