Topographic Hierarchy: an Interdisciplinary Study of Mental Space in the Perspective of Topographic Preferences

Abstract

The article differs from the usual scientific articles, since it refers to the genre of the pre-project that is rarely published in journals related to the social sciences. The pre-project contains the results not of the study as a whole, but of its preparatory stage. A thorough study of the hypothesis, scientific problem, methods, research boundaries, as well as the possibility of object transformation and practical applicability are developed before launching a research project and need extensive discussion from colleagues who are not involved in the research. It is important especially if the project claims to be global in scope. This article just offers to discuss the main provisions of the future study of topographic preferences. It is planned to start realization of the project from a study of the topographical preferences of large city residents. As main activities on this stage should be testing the main preliminary installations, improving the tools for collecting materials, building the parameters of the analysis in accordance with the first data received. As a result of this stage, the stage of practical verification of the theory, it is planned to get an idea of the preferences themselves and their motivators, to develop universal basic tools for identifying topographic preferences that are applicable for use in different cultures. The next stage should be the development of tools for studying the topographical preferences of migrants in order to identify the parameters that affect the choice of directions of migration flows. At this stage, it is planned to involve foreign colleagues to test methods, tools and hypotheses about the cross-cultural nature of mental maps and topographic representations. The published pre-project formulates the terminological apparatus of the planned project, indicates the markers of inclusion of toposes in mental maps, as well as factors affecting the configuration of the topographic hierarchy (a complex of topographic preferences).