The Role of Semantic Information and Temporal Dynamics on Egocentric and Allocentric Spatial Representation Processes

Humans rely on egocentric (body-based) and allocentric (object-based) reference frames to encode spatial relationships. However, everyday spatial behaviour also depends on semantic knowledge about objects and the contexts in which they typically occur, as well as on whether objects appear simultaneously or sequentially. Despite their relevance for natural behaviour, spatial reference frames, semantic context, and temporal dynamics have rarely been examined together. To address this issue, we investigated how semantic context and temporal dynamics influence spatial representations. Forty participants memorized triads of congruent objects presented either simultaneously (static) or sequentially (dynamic) within meaningful (kitchen/bathroom) or meaningless (abstract) virtual contexts. Participants then judged whether a target object was closest to themselves (egocentric) or to another object in the triad (allocentric). Results showed that egocentric judgments were more accurate than allocentric ones in meaningless contexts, but this difference disappeared in meaningful contexts, both in static and dynamic conditions. Crucially, allocentric accuracy improved significantly in meaningful contexts only when objects were presented sequentially. These findings suggest that semantic context selectively facilitates allocentric spatial representations, particularly when spatial information unfolds over time. This effect may reflect an anticipatory mechanism, whereby contextual knowledge supports the prediction of object relationships during spatial encoding.