The different types of cognitive mapping

The cognitive maps I usually discuss are the result of Causal Cognitive Mapping.
This was developed by Ackermann and Eden originally for operational research purposes. But technically "Causal Cognitive Mapping" may be better referred to as "Strategic Options Development and Analysis" or "SODA". SODA is essentially the whole package containing the cognitive mapping, the way it is used, support methods but also considers the wider context of the people involved in the mapping exercise.

Maps following the Ackermann and Eden (AckEd) approach usually contain statements of phrases of up to 8 to 12 words. Additionally there is emphasis on imposing a hierarchical map structure in that assertions and options should lead over action and strategies to goals and values. [4]

Example for AckEd cognitive map

A similar form of cognitive mapping goes back to Axelrod [5] who developed it from a political science standpoint initially for foreign policy analysis. Axelrod's approach appears to be somewhat harder than AckEd's since he speaks of "concept variables" (p5) rather than statements. I have seen this implemented literally, i.e. maps consisting of actual variables, or loosely, i.e. maps consisting of statements of one or two words. The map should be structured from left to right with choices on the left and variables expressing "utility" on the right (p62). Axelrod did not package his version of cognitive mapping but instead e.g. made the method of obtaining the statements contextual to the study.

Example for Axelrod cognitive map with variable-like statements (data adopted from [8], p49)

See also Axelrod's book "Structure of Decision - The Cognitive Maps of Political Elites" [5] on p126 for an example of a cognitive map with actual variables as statements.

Fuzzy cognitive maps

Fuzzy cognitive maps developed by Kosko [1] are like an add-on to the ones discussed. They "combine aspects of fuzzy logic, neural networks, semantic networks, expert systems, and nonlinear dynamical systems." [2] They were developed based on Axelrod's work [1] hence they look very similar. However every link in a fuzzy cognitive map is quantified either loosely by phrases such as "a lot" or "a little" or by actual numbers. The term fuzzy refers to "[f]uzzy logic [which] arises by assigning degrees of truth to propositions". [1] This contrasts with an "ordinary" cognitive map where links are only "there" or "not there".**

However, the fuzziness "is often understood in a very wide sense...of degrees of some kind" [3]. So in a fuzzy cognitive map you can express strength, weight, importance, certainty, etc. of links - yet you retain the causal nature of a link. Judging by the papers I have screened, I would assume that fuzzy cognitive maps are primarily used as means for quantitative analysis so that the explicit use of fuzzy cognitive mapping seems to abandon the qualitative side of cognitive mapping.

It is a bit like in Systems Dynamics where the text labels only really facilitate the mathematical modelling. Speaking of which, fuzzy cognitive maps are actually dynamic as well. Each map statement has an initial value. This value is adjusted by the value of the links that go into the particular statement. You can do this adjustment process several times so that your map becomes dynamic.

Example for a fuzzy cognitive map (data adopted from [8], p49)

Cognitive map "maps"

These seem like an outlier to the present listing yet were the first named as such. Tolman [7] used the term in the sense of a spatial map a living being draws of its surrounding in its mind. Hence such a cognitive map "map" consists of landmarks, streets and the like. Well ,at least human beings seem to do it like that.

See the following website for an example map: http://psc.dss.ucdavis.edu/sommerb/sommerdemo/mapping/cogmap.htm [9]

More?

If you know of any other cognitive mapping approaches please let me know in the comments.


(C) CC BY (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), Jo. Richter, http://causal-cognitive-mapping.blogspot.com/2017/05/the-different-types-of-cognitive-mapping.html

** Links can also be negative, i.e. inverse causality.

References

[1] Kosko, B. (1986) "Fuzzy cognitive maps", Int. J. Man-Machine Studies, 24, pp. 65-75.
[2] Glykas, M. (2010) "Fuzzy Cognitive Maps - Advances in Theory, Methodologies, Tools and Applications", Springer, Germany.
[3] Cintula, P., Fermüller, C. G. and Noguera, C. (2016) "Fuzzy Logic", Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy [online]. Available at: https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/logic-fuzzy/ accessed 2017.
[4] Reynolds, M. and Holwell, S. (2010) "Systems Approaches to Managing Change: A Practical Guide", London, Springer London.
[5] Axelrod, R. (1976) "Structure of Decision - The Cognitive Maps of Political Elites", New Jersey, Princeton University Press.
[6] Mauri Laukkanen and Päivi Eriksson. (2013), “New designs and software for cognitive causal mapping”, Qualitative Research in Organizations and Management: An International Journal, Vol. 8 No. 2, pp. 122–147.
[7] Tolman E. C. (1948) "Cognitive maps in rats and men", Psychological Review, 55, pp. 189-208.
[8] Özesmi, U. and Özesmi, S. L. (2004) "Ecological models based on people’s knowledge: a multi-step fuzzy cognitive mapping approach", Ecological Modelling, 176, pp. 43-64.
[9] ucdavis.edu (no date) "Mapping: Cognitive maps" [online] http://psc.dss.ucdavis.edu/sommerb/sommerdemo/mapping/cogmap.htm accessed 5-Mai-2017.