Updating imagined translational movements.

The aim of this study was to examine the mental processes involved in changes that are the result of imagined translational movements. Participants were presented with a single view of a small spatial display. In a computer-based reaction-time task, spatial judgments were then made relative to four imagined headings that were either the study view or novel views that differed from the study view in terms of imagined rotational and/or translational movements. The main finding was that translational shifts detrimentally affected performance in the absence of concurrent rotations suggesting that imagined translations require additional processing time.