Spatial Task Performance: A Meta-Analysis

Abstract

The literature which compared spatial task performance of blind and sighted subjects was analyzed using a meta-analytic approach. Effect sizes were computed for comparisons between early versus late onset visually impaired subjects, early onset versus sighted, late onset versus sighted, and mixed onset versus sighted. The results are based on 47 studies that analyzed the spatial task performance of 1,289 sighted subjects, 691 early onset subjects, 183 late onset, and 657 mixed onset. The early onset group generally showed poorer performance in comparisons with either the late onset or the sighted groups. Comparisons involving the mixed onset group showed inconsistent results. This finding is discussed in light of the need to more exactly specify the variable of age of onset. The findings from this study synthesize the past research efforts in this field. Suggestions for a future research agenda include a shift toward examining within group differences among visually impaired persons.