Knowledge Representation of Spatial Relations

Previous research on the mental representation of spatial knowledge has shown the utility of modelling hierarchical relationships through the ordered tree clustering algorithm applied to repeated free-recall data. This chapter examines differences in ordered tree representations as a function of the distribution of points in space. In particular, ordered trees are derived from subjects in each of three conditions: a homogeneous distribution, a heterogeneous by location, and a heterogeneous by size. The results indicate differences both in the free-recall strategy and in the structured representation derived from the recall data, given similar recall strategies. The benefits of and limitations of the ordered trees are compared to additive tree representations and a network analysis.

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