Psychology of computer use: XLVI. Age-related differences in the mapping of auditory icons to visual icons in computer interfaces for children.

An investigation was conducted to characterize how children ages 6 through 9 identify auditory icons present in educational software. 24 subjects were require to map auditory icons to visual icons, both present in a computer interface. The interface used in the experiment was constructed with Visual Basic and involved 40 auditory icons, 40 corresponding visual icons, and 66 extraneous visual icons. It was hypothesized that older children would be better able to map the auditory icons to visual icons due to more extensive exposure to everyday sounds. The results supported the hypothesis and suggestions for additional research were provided.