It has been reported that the overall shapes of spatial categorical patterns of projective spatial terms such as
above and
below are not influenced by the rotation of a reference object on a two-dimensional (2D) upright plane. However, is this also true
in three-dimensional (3D) space? This study shows the dynamic aspects of the apprehension of projective spatial terms in 3D
space by detailing how the rotation of a reference object with an inherent front influences the apprehension of projective
spatial terms on a level plane by mapping their spatial categorical patterns. The experiment was designed to examine how spatial
categorical patterns on a level plane changed with the rotation of a reference object with an inherent front in 3D computer
graphics space. We manipulated the rotation of a reference object with an inherent front at three levels (0°, 90°, and 180°
rotations) and examined how such manipulation changed the overall spatial categorical patterns of four basic Japanese projective
spatial terms:
mae,
ushiro,
hidari, and
migi (similar to
in front of,
behind,
to the left of, and
to the right of in English, respectively). The results show that spatial term apprehension was affected by the rotation of the reference
object in 3D space. In particular, rotation influenced the
mae–ushiro and
hidari–migi systems differently. The results also imply that our understanding of projective spatial terms on a level plane in 3D space
is affected dynamically by visual information from 3D cues.
Keywords Spatial cognition - Spatial term apprehension - Rotation of a reference object - Three-dimensional space