2026 David H. Uttal: Psychology Researcher – H-Index, Publications & Awards

Discipline name	D-Index	World Ranking	Current World Ranking	National Ranking	Current National Ranking	Publications	Citations
Psychology	43	7126	6642	3852	3499	170	12051

Overview

David H. Uttal is affiliated with Northwestern University in the United States and has a research focus spanning several fields within the social sciences, psychology, and engineering. Their work primarily explores topics related to spatial cognition, geography education, and developmental psychology.

The scientist's main fields of study include:

Social Sciences
Psychology
Engineering

Within these fields, Uttal has a significant presence in several subfields, such as:

Automotive Engineering
Geography, Planning and Development
Developmental and Educational Psychology
Education
Experimental and Cognitive Psychology

Their research covers varied topics, including:

Spatial Cognition and Navigation
Geography Education and Pedagogy
Geographic Information Systems Studies
Child and Animal Learning Development
Cognitive and developmental aspects of mathematical skills
Cognitive Science and Mapping
Education, Achievement, and Giftedness

Recent publications by David H. Uttal showcase a focus on spatial skills and cognitive science aspects of learning and navigation. Notable papers include:

"The Curious Construct of Active Learning" (2021) published in Gothic.net
"Examining the relations between spatial skills and mathematical performance: A meta-analysis" (2021) published in Psychonomic Bulletin & Review
"Situating space: using a discipline-focused lens to examine spatial thinking skills" (2020) published in Cognitive Research Principles and Implications
"Examining the role of spatial skills and mathematics motivation on middle school mathematics achievement" (2020) published in International Journal of STEM Education
"Building a Cognitive Science of Human Variation: Individual Differences in Spatial Navigation" (2022) published in Topics in Cognitive Science

Frequent co-authors collaborating with Uttal include:

Kinnari Atit
Naomi Polinsky
Catherine A. Haden
Lauren C. Pagano
Emily Grossnickle Peterson

Further, their work has multiple publications in specific venues, such as:

Cognitive Research Principles and Implications
International Journal of STEM Education
Journal of Intelligence
Journal of Experimental Child Psychology
Journal of Cognition and Development

Best Publications

The malleability of spatial skills: a meta-analysis of training studies.

David H Uttal;Nathaniel G Meadow;Elizabeth Tipton;Linda Liu Hand

2226
Citations
Beliefs and Achievement: A Study of Black, White, and Hispanic Children

Harold W. Stevenson;Chuansheng Chen;David H. Uttal

693
Citations
Spatial Thinking and STEM Education. When, Why, and How?

David H. Uttal;Cheryl A. Cohen

678
Citations
Manipulatives as symbols: A new perspective on the use of concrete objects to teach mathematics

David H. Uttal;Kathyrn V. Scudder;Judy S. DeLoache

536
Citations
Cultural Values, Parents’ Beliefs, and Children’s Achievement in the United States and China

Chuansheng Chen;David H. Uttal

481
Citations
Practical Evaluation Guide: Tools for Museums and Other Informal Educational Settings

Judy Diamond;Jessica L Luke;David H Uttal

465
Citations
The Development of Children's Gender-Science Stereotypes: A Meta-analysis of 5 Decades of U.S. Draw-A-Scientist Studies.

David I. Miller;Kyle M. Nolla;Alice H. Eagly;David H. Uttal

461
Citations
Grasping the Nature of Pictures

Judy S. DeLoache;Sophia L. Pierroutsakos;David H. Uttal;Karl S. Rosengren

393
Citations
Exploring and Enhancing Spatial Thinking Links to Achievement in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics?

David H. Uttal;David I. Miller;Nora S. Newcombe

370
Citations
Seeing the big picture: map use and the development of spatial cognition

David H. Uttal

347
Citations
How Much Can Spatial Training Improve STEM Achievement

Mike Stieff;David H Uttal

277
Citations
Should you show me the money? Concrete objects both hurt and help performance on mathematics problems

Nicole M. McNeil;David H. Uttal;Linda Jarvin;Robert J. Sternberg

258
Citations
Scale Errors Offer Evidence for a Perception-Action Dissociation Early in Life

Judy S. DeLoache;David H. Uttal;Karl S. Rosengren

239
Citations
A Research Agenda for Geospatial Technologies and Learning

Tom R. Baker;Sarah Battersby;Sarah W. Bednarz;Alec M. Bodzin

215
Citations
The Origins of Pictorial Competence

Judy S. DeLoache;Sophia L. Pierroutsakos;David H. Uttal

180
Citations
Dual Representation and the Linking of Concrete and Symbolic Representations

David H. Uttal;Katherine O’Doherty;Rebecca Newland;Linda Liu Hand

171
Citations
Conversation and Object Manipulation Influence Children's Learning in a Museum.

Erin A. Jant;Catherine A. Haden;David H. Uttal;Elizabeth Babcock

155
Citations
The initial segment strategy: A heuristic for route selection

Jeremy N. Bailenson;Michael S. Shum;David H. Uttal

152
Citations
A Cross‐Cultural Study of Young Children's Mapping Abilities

Mark Blades;J M Blaut;Zhra Darvizeh;Silvia Elguea

150
Citations
Young Children's Representation of Spatial Information Acquired From Maps

David H. Uttal;Henry M. Wellman

149
Citations

Frequent Co-Authors

Judy S. DeLoache University of Virginia

Catherine A. Haden Loyola University Chicago

Nora S. Newcombe Temple University

Steven Franconeri Northwestern University

Dedre Gentner Northwestern University

Harold W. Stevenson University of Michigan–Ann Arbor

Karl S. Rosengren University of Wisconsin–Madison

Chuansheng Chen University of California, Irvine

Cyrill Stachniss University of Bonn

Thomas F. Shipley Temple University

External Links

Personal website of David H. Uttal

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