Women and men exhibit different cortical activation patterns during mental rotation tasks

Jordan, Kirsten; Wüstenberg, Torsten; Heinze, Hans Jochen; Peters, Michael; Jäncke, Lutz

doi:10.1016/s0028-3932(02)00076-3

Cited by 335 publications

(281 citation statements)

References 57 publications

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“…Males consistently perform better than females on visuospatial tasks (for a review, see Voyer et al, 1995). Further, recent fMRI studies have demonstrated gender-specific activation patterns during mental rotation, theorizing that females use more detail-oriented analytic strategies, whereas males use more "gestalt" perceptual strategies (Jordan et al, 2002;Thomsen et al, 2000;Weiss et al, 2003). Thus, anterior cingulate deactivation among females in this study could represent greater attentional demand to maintain performance.…”

Section: Fmri Response and Gendermentioning

confidence: 61%

fMRI reveals alteration of spatial working memory networks across adolescence

Schweinsburg

Nagel

Tapert

2005

J. Inter. Neuropsych. Soc.

104

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Recent studies have described neuromaturation and cognitive development across the lifespan, yet few neuroimaging studies have investigated task-related alterations in brain activity during adolescence. We used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to examine brain response to a spatial working memory (SWM) task in 49 typically developing adolescents (25 females and 24 males; ages 12−17). No gender or age differences were found for task performance during SWM. However, age was positively associated with SWM brain response in left prefrontal and bilateral inferior posterior parietal regions. Age was negatively associated with SWM activation in bilateral superior parietal cortex. Gender was significantly associated with SWM response; females demonstrated diminished anterior cingulate activation and males demonstrated greater response in frontopolar cortex than females. Our findings indicate that the frontal and parietal neural networks involved in spatial working memory change over the adolescent age range and are further influenced by gender. These changes may represent evolving mnemonic strategies subserved by ongoing adolescent brain development.

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Section: Fmri Response and Gendermentioning

confidence: 61%

fMRI reveals alteration of spatial working memory networks across adolescence

Schweinsburg

Nagel

Tapert

2005

J. Inter. Neuropsych. Soc.

104

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Section: Inxuence Of the Mental Transformation Strategymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Several neuroimaging studies in healthy subjects have shown that cerebral activations associated with egocentric and object-based strategies can be diVerentiated during spatial navigation (Jordan et al 2002;Hartley et al 2003) and mental transformation (Zacks and Tversky 2005). The exact anatomical location of these mental transformation processes is still controversial and seems to depend on additional variables such as sex, handedness, task diYculty and the control task (Kosslyn et al 1998;Jordan et al 2002). Nevertheless, as described in a meta-analysis by Zacks and Michelon (2005), object-based transformation would rely predominantly on unilateral right fronto-parietal cortex, while egocentric transformation would involve a more bilateral network (temporo-parieto-occipital junction; superior parietal lobule) with either right or left hemispheric predominance (Vallar et al 1999;Zacks et al 1999;Creem et al 2001;Vogeley and Fink 2003;Blanke et al 2005).…”

Section: Inxuence Of the Mental Transformation Strategymentioning

confidence: 99%

Influence of galvanic vestibular stimulation on egocentric and object-based mental transformations

2007

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The vestibular system analyses angular and linear accelerations of the head that are important information for perceiving the location of one's own body in space. Vestibular stimulation and in particular galvanic vestibular stimulation (GVS) that allow a systematic modiWcation of vestibular signals has so far mainly been used to investigate vestibular inXuence on sensori-motor integration in eye movements and postural control. Comparatively, only a few behavioural and imaging studies have investigated how cognition of space and body may depend on vestibular processing. This study was designed to diVerentiate the inXuence of left versus right anodal GVS compared to sham stimulation on object-based versus egocentric mental transformations. While GVS was applied, subjects made leftright judgments about pictures of a plant or a human body presented at diVerent orientations in the roll plane. All subjects reported illusory sensations of body self-motion and/ or visual Weld motion during GVS. Response times in the mental transformation task were increased during right but not left anodal GVS for the more diYcult stimuli and the larger angles of rotation. Post-hoc analyses suggested that the interfering eVect of right anodal GVS was only present in subjects who reported having imagined turning themselves to solve the mental transformation task (egocentric transformation) as compared to those subjects having imagined turning the picture in space (object-based mental transformation). We suggest that this eVect relies on shared functional and cortical mechanisms in the posterior parietal cortex associated with both right anodal GVS and mental imagery.

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“…Cependant, l'étude sur des effets activateurs potentiels des hormones gonadiques sur la capacité spatiale n'a fourni que des résultats contradictoires. Certaines études (par exemple [12]) ont montré des effets négatifs des oestrogènes et positifs des androgènes sur la performance, mais d'autres n'ont pu confirmer ces effets (par exemple [13] [9]. Il a donc été proposé que les femmes utilisent une stratégie différente de celle des hommes pour résoudre la tâche.…”

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“…Elles analysent et manipulent les différents éléments des objets tridimensionnels. Au contraire, les hommes utiliseraient plutôt une image mentale de l'objet entier [9]. La plupart des études portant sur l'origine des différences sexuelles dans les capacités spatiales ont mis l'accent sur les effets organisateurs et/ou activateurs des hormones gonadiques.…”

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Le syndrome d’insensibilité aux androgènes et activité cérébrale chez la femme

Bakker

Hemmen

2016

Med Sci (Paris)

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Women and men exhibit different cortical activation patterns during mental rotation tasks

Cited by 335 publications

References 57 publications

fMRI reveals alteration of spatial working memory networks across adolescence

fMRI reveals alteration of spatial working memory networks across adolescence

Influence of galvanic vestibular stimulation on egocentric and object-based mental transformations

Le syndrome d’insensibilité aux androgènes et activité cérébrale chez la femme

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