Cognitive mapping is a research tool for learning about people's knowledge of places. Researchers in environmental psychology, city planning, law enforcement, and recreation and tourism use cognitive mapping to find out whether a place is well-known or poorly known, to identify desirable and undesirable locations, and in some cases, to locate dangerous parts of a city.

Generating the map:

• The most common technique is to ask people to draw a map of an area, including all landmarks, natural features, and points of interest.
• You can also present people with an outline map of a place and ask them to fill in the details.
• Or you can present them with a detailed map of a place and ask them to draw a circle around the most desirable places to live or visit, places with the most historic buildings or sits, or places that are most dangerous.

Here is an exercise to get you thinking in terms of cognitive maps.

Think of the city or town in which you live (or the nearest city if you live in a rural area). On a piece of paper, draw a map of this city showing the important buildings, landmarks, natural features, and other important locations (inclluding water features, if any).
Then draw a circle around

1. the most desirable section of town in which to live.
2. the least desirable section of town in which to live.
3. each of the parks.
4. the most noisy parts of town (e.g., traffic, industry).
5. any areas that sometimes have a bad smell or odor.
6. areas where people gather (e.g., teenagers, streetpeople, or streets for cruising).

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