Tool details
Cognitive Map
A tool to help you understand how users navigate through a design solution, where they create a mental map of the real or virtual space of your service.
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When to use
When you need to gain understanding of the way users navigate through a design solution.
Why you should
Most solutions are developed by people that are not the end users, this allows to test of the users understand the design.
What you get
List of what works and what doesn’t work in the design.
Steps to take
Recruit participants and organise materials and a space for a creative session.
As a moderator ask a participant to create a map showing how they navigate in a real or virtual space. This can be done several times. Keep in mind that maps can be created in collaboration by a group of people to incorporate different viewpoints.
Ask other participants to navigate through the map, how they perform a task or how they “read” the space.
Take notes of what participants describe, take special note of moments where the participants backtrack or change their primary goal.
Analyse the different maps and the flow each of them has.
Further reading
Space doesn’t necessarily have to be physical, a website or an app also require navigation skills.