sborník

25. KONFERENCE O GEOMETRII A POČÍTAČOVÉ GRAFICE
Mária Zvariková, Zuzana Juščáková
GENDER DIFFERENCES IN TESTS OF SPACE
ABILITIES
Abstract
The paper gives information about verification of construct validity of
Spatial Skills Test composed by our team. Differences in test results
were analysed on a sample of 901 students of secondary schools and
universities in the Czech and Slovak Republics. The verified
differences between the two sexes correspond to the data quoted in
literature on this topic. Males achieved better results using methods
proposed by our team.
Keywords
Spatial skills, Spatial intelligence, Sex differences
1 Introduction
Creating a new psychodiagnostic method - Spatial Skills Test (TPS) -
requires verifying its construct validity. Seven aspects of construct validity
are quoted [1], one of which is the analysis of individual differences in test
results (e.g. depending on sex, age, etc.). This paper gives information about
verification of individual differences depending on sex. The validity of the
proposition of better male results in spatial skills tests was verified on the
basis of data from secondary school students and university students in the
Czech and Slovak Republics. This data was obtained by means of our test as
well as by standardized psychodiagnostic methods.
Differences between males and females in cognitive abilities are
generally discussed by lay public, especially the differences in motory
skills, perception or observation and verbal skills, where females show
better results, and differences in spatial skills and mathematical skills,
where males show better resulsts. Also psychologists state that males and
females differ in specific cognitive skills [2].
Although the differences between sexes in test results are globally
diminishing, there are consistent differences in visual-spatial
relations.Males show better performance in spatial skills tests, especially
when the tasks have a time limit and require application of geometrical
properties of space, such as mental rotation of objects (i.e. tests measuring
the ability of mental rotation of three - dimensional geometrical shapes). On
313