Turn Left at the Church, Or Three Miles North

Abstract

This study examined how college students give directions from maps, either with maps perceptually available, or after maps had been memorized. Six aspects of direction giving were coded: use of landmarks, use of relational terms, use of cardinal directions, use of mileage estimates, and frequency of omission and commission errors. In accord with predictions, males used more mileage estimates and cardinal directions than did females and made fewer errors. Use of cardinal directions and mileage estimates were rarer, in relation to opportunities to use them, than use of landmarks and relational terms. Correlations among the dependent variables suggested that use of relational terms and use of cardinal directions may trade off, with speakers using one or the other but not both. Results are discussed in the context of the distinction between competence and stylistic preference.