Mental mapping
Mental mapping, also known as cognitive mapping, is a psychological concept that refers to the internal representation individuals create of their surroundings. It encompasses the way people perceive, navigate, and interact with their environment, influenced by both personal experiences and objective realities. Each person's mental map is unique, shaped by prior experiences, motivations, and subjective feelings, allowing for efficient navigation in both familiar and unfamiliar spaces. For instance, a person may find their daily commute seems shorter due to their mental familiarity with the route, while new locations may evoke feelings of uncertainty.
The study of mental mapping emerged from interdisciplinary research in psychology, geography, and anthropology, highlighting the connection between spatial perception and behavior. Notably, researchers like Edward Tolman and Kevin Lynch have contributed to our understanding of how mental maps function and are formed. Modern influences, such as technology and media, play a significant role in shaping mental maps, as tools like GPS and exposure to visual representations of places affect perceptions of distance and familiarity. However, these influences can also lead to misconceptions, highlighting the complex interplay between cognitive processes and societal constructs. Overall, mental mapping is a crucial aspect of how individuals engage with and interpret the world around them.
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Mental mapping
Mental mapping, sometimes called “cognitive mapping,” is part of the study of behavioral geography that provides understanding about every person’s internalized representation of where things are. It is a perspective of a person’s area of interaction, realized through a series of psychological processes that combine subjective feelings and objective facts. It is also the method the brain grasps, codes, stores, and then recalls the desired information about a person’s environment or surroundings. This subconscious map exists in a person’s mind to help them to recognize a place and understand how to interact with that place. The concept of mental mapping shows how human behavior is a response to environmental stimuli. The understanding of this subconscious representation has inspired behavioral geographers to research how people interact with the world through the use of their mental maps.
In every person’s mind exists a mental map of their surroundings, although it may differ somewhat from reality or from physical maps or images of their environment. It is affected by subjective information and is largely dominated by prior experiences, abilities, and motivation. Mental mapping is what makes a person’s hour-long commute to work seem shorter than an hour-long drive to a new place. It is also responsible for making one’s own neighborhood seem safe or friendly when compared to a neighborhood that is new or unknown.
Background
Understanding one’s environment and how best to navigate it is a hallmark of conscious existence. The study of behavioral geography seeks to understand this phenomenon. The study of mental mapping came out of parallel interdisciplinary research in the 1960s that was influenced by the fields of psychology, geography, linguistics, and anthropology. Although some argue that the researched concept has been around much longer, at least since the early 1900s, when it was identified simply as the way the brain processes spatial information related to geography. However, documented experiments by Edward Tolman in the late 1940s in the field of psychology involving rats showed that there is a close link between a person’s perception of space and their behavior.
Kevin Lynch, considered by some the father of mental mapping, published a book in 1960, The Image of the City, in which he links ethology and how people orient themselves in cities. He explained how mental mapping relies more on memory than a pre-existing image or map. Other researchers followed in the 1970s in the fields of geography, anthology, and psychology to better understand the link between an area or space and social conditions.
More complex data processing of theoretical models became possible with the advent of advanced computer technology in the 1980s. In 1993, researcher Barbara Tversky categorized cognitive mapping into cognitive collages and spatial mental models to better understand the constructivism, or the way that people make their mental maps, rather than just the maps themselves. Cognitive collages piece together information from related knowledge to influence a person’s idea of space and time related to where they are. Spatial mental models explain that a person’s mental map may not form a coherent or rational image, and the mind may fill in the blanks between well-known reference points to make a logical connection. New approaches and theories continue to emerge in this rapidly expanding field as researchers seek to understand how technology and media influence a person’s mental map and the decisions they make.
Overview
Mental mapping is a cognitive characteristic found in each person’s mind. It does not matter whether a person is good at finding their way or understanding directions; everyone has a mental map. It allows a person to navigate important parts of their world; for example, it allows a person to go from their bedroom to their kitchen, to find their way back home from a short trip, or travel without thought to familiar landmarks. A mental map is used for just about any activity that involves any amount of movement, from everyday activities to complex travel.
Larger mental maps help a person understand sizeable geographical relationships, such as where states or countries are in relation to each other. Smaller mental maps help a person navigate lesser surroundings, such as where the dishes are stored in the kitchen and what side of the refrigerator holds the milk. Mental mapping makes tasks easier and less thought-consuming. Without even consciously thinking about it, each time a person moves, they consult a mental map of their environment.
No two people’s mental maps are the same because they are influenced by personal experience and subjective opinion. For example, two different people who work in the same office building may describe the building in different ways. The general idea may be the same, but the people will probably place more emphasis on areas that are more important to them personally.
In addition, mental maps are also based on presumptions, especially about places that are unfamiliar. A person may know a place exists and know some basic information about it but must use the subconscious mind to fill in the missing details. Because of this, mental maps can also have significant effects on behavior and relationships. For example, a perception of the national borders of a country or territory can be called into question by those who inhabit or govern the area based on how each person interprets the boundaries. These conflicts can be difficult to resolve because they rely on internal perception and, often, emotions.
Modern technology and media have also influenced mental mapping. In many cases, tools such as global positioning systems (GPS) have expanded people’s ability to create a mental map or comprehend a geographical route. Most people can also recognize a famous landmark or skyline from a city they have never been to, based solely on repeated exposure to photographs and images. Movies, social media, and news have made faraway and personally unfamiliar places seem closer and more understandable. On the other hand, however, these forces may sometimes also shape unfair or inaccurate perceptions or prejudices.
Bibliography
Allen, John Logan. “Mental Mapping: How We Get Around.” Discover Lewis & Clark, lewis-clark.org/sciences/geography/mapping-unknown-lands/mental-mapping. Accessed 2 Jan. 2025.
Gibbons, Sarah. “Cognitive Maps, Mind Maps, and Concept Maps: Definitions.” Nielsen Norman Group, 14 July 2019, www.nngroup.com/articles/cognitive-mind-concept. Accessed 2 Jan. 2025.
Gould, Peter and Rodney White. Mental Maps, 2nd Ed. Routledge, 2002.
“Guide to Mental Mapping.” MindManager, www.mindmanager.com/en/features/mental-map. Accessed 2 Jan. 2025.
Holmén, Janne and Norbert Götz, editors. Mental Maps: Geographical and Historical Perspectives. Routledge, 2022.
Lynch, Kevin. The Image of the City. MIT Press, 1960.
Rosenberg, Matt. “Mental Maps.” Thought Co., 3 Dec. 2019, www.thoughtco.com/mental-map-definition-1434793. Accessed 2 Jan. 2025.
“What is Mental Mapping?” International Mental Map Association Platform, mentalmap.org/mi-a-mentalis-terkepezes. Accessed 2 Jan. 2025.