Research Interests

My research primarily focuses on human spatial memory, and I am interested in both theoretical and applied (Human Factors) issues. Recent research projects include an investigation into whether spatial memory is modality-specific, people's ability to learn spatial information from maps, navigation through virtual environments, and gender differences in spatial ability.

Postgraduate Students

Selected Publications

Tlauka, M., Donaldson, P., & Wilson, D. (2008). Forgetting in spatial memories acquired in a virtual environment. Applied Cognitive Psychology, 22, 69-84.

Tlauka, M., Drummond, A., & Leffers, J. (2008). Spatial knowledge of geographical globes: Evidence of vertical alignment effects. British Journal of Psychology, 99, 395-411.

Tlauka, M., Williams, J., & Williamson, P. (2008). Spatial ability in secondary school students: Intra-sex differences based on self-selection for physical education. British Journal of Psychology, 99, 427-440.

Tlauka, M., Keage, H., & Clark, C. R. (2005). Viewing a map versus reading a description of a map: Modality-specific encoding of spatial information. Cognitive Science, 29, 807-818.

Tlauka, M., & McKenna, F. P. (2000). Hierarchical knowledge influences stimulus-response compatibility effects. Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology, 53A, 85-103.

Wilson, P. N., Tlauka, M., & Wildbur, D. (1999). Orientation specificity occurs in both small- and large-scale imagined routes presented as verbal descriptions. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 25, 664-679.

Contact Details

School of Psychology
Flinders University of South Australia
GPO Box 2100
Adelaide, South Australia 5001

Office: Social Sciences North
Phone: (+61 8) 8201 2621
Fax: (+61 8) 8201 3877
Email: Michael.Tlauka@flinders.edu.au