Search Results

Previous research is inconsistent on how the habitual use of navigation systems affects spatial learning of pedestrian navigators. The present study investigates whether individual differences in navigation strategy choices moderate this. Participants (N = 45) completed questionnaires assessing their navigation strategies and their reliance on pedestrian navigation systems. Spatial learning was evaluated through a real-world navigation experiment conducted in an initially unfamiliar urban environment. Participants repeatedly navigated two routes across three separate days either assisted by a mobile map or by following an experimenter. Different types of spatial knowledge were assessed using five tasks. Linear mixed-effects (LME) models were employed to analyze the relationships between measures. We found that greater habitual use of navigation systems was associated with worse route knowledge acquisition, but only for participants who relied on a map-based navigation strategy. Greater habitual use of navigation systems was also linked to worse survey knowledge acquisition, but only for mobile map-assisted navigators. This new empirical evidence contributes to a more nuanced understanding of how habitual use of navigation systems may impair spatial learning of pedestrian navigators, highlighting the moderating role of individual navigation strategies and navigation conditions.