Lee, Sang AhSpelke, Elizabeth2013-01-302010Lee, Sang Ah, and Elizabeth S. Spelke. 2010. A modular geometric mechanism for reorientation in children. Cognitive Psychology 61(2): 152-176.0010-0285http://nrs.harvard.edu/urn-3:HUL.InstRepos:10246799Although disoriented young children reorient themselves in relation to the shape of the surrounding surface layout, cognitive accounts of this ability vary. The present paper tests three theories of reorientation: a snapshot theory based on visual image-matching computations, an adaptive combination theory proposing that diverse environmental cues to orientation are weighted according to their experienced reliability, and a modular theory centering on encapsulated computations of the shape of the extended surface layout. Seven experiments test these theories by manipulating four properties of objects placed within a cylindrical space: their size, motion, dimensionality, and distance from the space’s borders. Their findings support the modular theory and suggest that disoriented search behavior centers on two processes: a reorientation process based on the geometry of the 3D surface layout, and a beacon-guidance process based on the local features of objects and surface markings.en-USreorientationspatial navigationgeometrymodularityimage matchingbeacon homingJournal Article2013-01-3010.1016/j.cogpsych.2010.04.002