Cognitive Mapping Process Research Articles

Agroeconomic Indexes and Big Data: Digital Marketing Analytics Implications for Enhanced Decision Making with Artificial Intelligence-Based Modeling

Agriculture firms face an array of struggles, most of which are financial; thus, the role of decision making is discerned as highly important. The agroeconomic indexes (AEIs) of Agriculture Employment Rate (AER), Chemical Product Price Index (CPPI), Farm Product Price Index (FPPI), and Machinery Equipment Price Index (MEPI) were selected as the basis of this study. This research aims to examine the connection between digital marketing analytics and the selected agroeconomic indexes while providing valuable insights into their decision-making process, with the utilization of AI (artificial intelligence) models. Thus, a dataset of website analytics was collected from five well-established agriculture firms, apart from the values of the referred indexes. By performing regression and correlation analyses, the index relationships with the agriculture firms’ digital marketing analytics were extracted and used for the deployment of the fuzzy cognitive mapping (FCM) and hybrid modeling (HM) processes, assisted by using artificial neural network (ANN) models. Through the above process, there is a strong connection between the agroeconomic indexes of AER, CPPI, FPPR, and MEPI and the metrics of branded traffic, social and search traffic sources, and paid and organic costs of agriculture firms. It is highlighted that agriculture firms, to better understand their sector’s employment rate and the volatility of farming, chemicals, and machine equipment prices for future investment strategies and better decision-making processes, should try to increase their investment in the preferred digital marketing analytics and AI applications.

The social-ecological system of the Kenai River Fishery (Alaska, USA)

We present a collaboratively developed social-ecological model of the Kenai River Fishery. We developed the model through iterative interviews with stakeholders throughout the Kenai Peninsula using a novel participatory Fuzzy Cognitive Mapping process grounded in Ostrom's social-ecological systems framework. Individual social-ecological models, developed one-on-one with stakeholders, were combined into a single aggregated model representing the system's structure and function. We validated this aggregated model through subsequent interviews with stakeholders and focused literature reviews. The result is a model that can: 1) illustrate the breadth and interconnectedness of the Kenai River Fishery's social-ecological system; 2) be used to facilitate discussions around management of the fishery; and 3) be used to explore the components and interactions that move the system toward or away from sustainability. Using the model, we identify how the nature of salmon (migratory) and their habitat (large and unpredictable) leads to uncertainty about effective management strategies. This uncertainty, in addition to a large and diverse set of resource users, creates conflicting management goals that ultimately limit the governance system in making decisions that might increase the sustainability of the fishery.

Analyzing Greece 2010 Memorandum’s Impact on Macroeconomic and Financial Figures through FCM

The financial crisis of 2008 has caused a series of drawbacks to economies around the world. Greek economy has been hit twice at 2009, since its credibility worsened, provoking the implication of harsh fiscal measures from the 2010 Memorandum of Understanding (MoU). The effects of these measures to Greek macroeconomic figures have been widely criticized. Authors aim to estimate these effects at the macroeconomic figures of Greece through utilization of Decision Support Systems, and propose accurate insights regarding their efficacy. By capitalizing on regression analysis and Fuzzy Cognitive Mapping processes, specific results from 2010 Memorandum’s measures arise. It has been calculated that measures implied by 2010 Memorandum have been harsh and posed a negative effect on key Greek macroeconomic figures like GDPR, public debt, etc., especially with the ongoing 2008 financial crisis.

Where’s the Gig At?

Young residents of East Los Angeles neighborhoods use their involvement in punk rock cultures to forge new social identities and new social relations. The essay introduces the concept of the “mission,” a term that barrio youths use to describe their efforts to forge an oppositional cognitive mapping of space. The mission serves as a node in a network of tactics that utilize seemingly obscure and forgotten places as key sites for community congregation and self-definition. Putatively private spaces in backyards and abandoned public areas like alleys and freeway underpassesin East Los Angeles get turned into public performance venues by young people who are cut off from other sites for creativity and congregation. City streets, public transit vehicles, and alleys become part of a complex process of cognitive mapping for young people who own no property of their own, whose movements are aggressively policed, and who must create unexpected uses for seemingly routine and functional places and spaces.

Perception of urban subdivisions in pedestrian movement simulation.

The perception of urban subdivisions, deriving from regionalisation processes and the identification of separating elements (barriers), has proven to dynamically shape peoples' cognitive representations of space and route choice behaviour in cities. However, existing Agent-Based Models (ABMs) for pedestrian simulation have not accounted for these particular cognitive mapping processes. The aim of this paper is to explore the behaviour of pedestrian agents endowed with knowledge about urban subdivisions. Drawing from literature in spatial cognition, we adapted a region-based route choice model, which contemplates a high- and a local planning level, and advanced a barrier-based route choice model, wherein the influence of separating elements is manipulated. Finally, we combined these two approaches in a region-barrier based model. The patterns emerging from the movement of agents employing such approaches were examined in the city centres of London and Paris. The introduction of regions in the routing mechanisms reduced the unbalanced concentration of agents across the street network brought up by the widely employed least cumulative angular change model (-.08 Gini coefficient). The inclusion of barriers further raised the dispersal of the agents through secondary roads, while leading agents to walk along waterfronts and across parks; it also yielded a more regular usage of pedestrian roads. Moreover, the region- and the region-barrier based routes showed deviation ratio values from the road distance shortest path (region-based: 1.18 London, 1.16 Paris, region-barrier based: 1.43 London, 1.33 Paris) consistent with empirical observations from pedestrian behaviour research. A further evaluation of the model with macro-level observational data may enhance the understanding of pedestrian dynamics and help tuning the interplay amongst urban salient elements at the agent level. Yet, we consider the movement flows arising from our current implementation insightful for assessing the distribution of pedestrians and testing possible interventions for the design of legible and walkable spaces.

Using cognitive mapping to understand conservation planning.

We considered a common research tool for understanding the mental models behind conservation decisions: cognitive mapping. Developed by cognitive psychologists, the elicitation of mental models with cognitive mapping has been used to understand soil management in Spain, invasive grass management in Australia, community forest management in the Bolivian Amazon, and small‐scale fisheries access in Belize, among others. A generalized cognitive mapping process considers specific factors associated with the design, data‐collection, data‐analyses, and interpretation phases of research. We applied this tool in a study about the integration of social data in shoreline master plans of Washington State. Fourteen policy makers and managers (approximately 85% of the region's potential sample) were asked to identify the factors they considered when making their plans. Researchers coded these factors into mental‐model objects and summarized mental‐object frequency and co‐occurrence trends. Although managers prioritized the perceived needs of social groups in their mental model of shoreline master plans, they focused specifically on tribal and private property rights, even though existing social data identified a diversity of interests around timber harvesting, tourism, and agriculture. Understanding their mental models allowed us to more effectively present this social data so that it could fit within their existing thoughts around planning. Although our case study provides a description of the cognition of a particular policy process, cognitive mapping can be used to understand cognitive processes that influence any conservation planning context.

The effectiveness of an interactive audio‐tactile map for the process of cognitive mapping and recall among people with visual impairments

BackgroundPeople with visual impairments can experience numerous challenges navigating unfamiliar environments. Systems that operate as prenavigation tools can assist such individuals. This mixed‐methods study examined the effectiveness of an interactive audio‐tactile map tool on the process of cognitive mapping and recall, among people who were blind or had visual impairments. The tool was developed with the involvement of visually impaired individuals who additionally provided further feedback throughout this research.MethodsA mixed‐methods experimental design was employed. Fourteen participants were allocated to either an experimental group who were exposed to an audio‐tactile map, or a control group exposed to a verbally annotated tactile map. After five minutes’ exposure, multiple‐choice questions examined participants’ recall of the spatial and navigational content. Subsequent semi‐structured interviews were conducted to examine their views surrounding the study and the product.ResultsThe experimental condition had significantly better overall recall than the control group and higher average scores in all four areas examined by the questions. The interviews suggested that the interactive component offered individuals the freedom to learn the map in several ways and did not restrict them to a sequential and linear approach to learning.ConclusionAssistive technology can reduce challenges faced by people with visual impairments, and the flexible learning approach offered by the audio‐tactile map may be of particular value. Future researchers and assistive technology developers may wish to explore this further.

Big Data Analytics for Search Engine Optimization

In the Big Data era, search engine optimization deals with the encapsulation of datasets that are related to website performance in terms of architecture, content curation, and user behavior, with the purpose to convert them into actionable insights and improve visibility and findability on the Web. In this respect, big data analytics expands the opportunities for developing new methodological frameworks that are composed of valid, reliable, and consistent analytics that are practically useful to develop well-informed strategies for organic traffic optimization. In this paper, a novel methodology is implemented in order to increase organic search engine visits based on the impact of multiple SEO factors. In order to achieve this purpose, the authors examined 171 cultural heritage websites and their retrieved data analytics about their performance and user experience inside them. Massive amounts of Web-based collections are included and presented by cultural heritage organizations through their websites. Subsequently, users interact with these collections, producing behavioral analytics in a variety of different data types that come from multiple devices, with high velocity, in large volumes. Nevertheless, prior research efforts indicate that these massive cultural collections are difficult to browse while expressing low visibility and findability in the semantic Web era. Against this backdrop, this paper proposes the computational development of a search engine optimization (SEO) strategy that utilizes the generated big cultural data analytics and improves the visibility of cultural heritage websites. One step further, the statistical results of the study are integrated into a predictive model that is composed of two stages. First, a fuzzy cognitive mapping process is generated as an aggregated macro-level descriptive model. Secondly, a micro-level data-driven agent-based model follows up. The purpose of the model is to predict the most effective combinations of factors that achieve enhanced visibility and organic traffic on cultural heritage organizations’ websites. To this end, the study contributes to the knowledge expansion of researchers and practitioners in the big cultural analytics sector with the purpose to implement potential strategies for greater visibility and findability of cultural collections on the Web.

Pre-Navigation via Interactive Audio Tactile Maps to Promote the Wellbeing of Visually Impaired People.

Pre-navigational tools can assist visually impaired people when navigating unfamiliar environments. Assistive technology products (eg tactile maps or auditory simulations) can stimulate cognitive mapping processes to provide navigational assistance in these people. We compared how well blind and visually impaired people could learn a map presented via a tablet computer auditory tactile map (ATM) in contrast to a conventional tactile map accompanied by a text description objectives. Performance was assessed with a multiple choice test that quizzed participants on orientation and spatial awareness. Semi-structured interviews explored participant experiences and preferences. A statistically significant difference was found between the conditions with participants using the ATM performing much better than those who used a conventional tactile map and text description. Participants preferred the flexibility of learning of the ATM. This computer-based ATM provided an effective, easy to use and cost-effective way of enabling blind and partially sighted people learn a cognitive map and enhance their wellbeing.

Effects of active and passive exploration of the built environment on memory during wayfinding

Previous research shows that travel type influences cognitive mapping processes. However, little is known about the effect of active versus passive exploration of the built environment on visual processing. This paper aims to investigate the differences between active and passive travellers in terms of their recognition memory for details of the visual environment. Participants were randomly assigned to either active or passive travel conditions. Participants in the active group navigated a pre-defined route on a university campus by walking, and passive participants followed an experimenter around the same route. We examined the effect of active travel by measuring performance on spatial and visual memory tasks and by tracking participants' eye movements during a scene recognition task. Active travellers had better recognition of scenes encountered during way finding and were better able to discriminate the veridical orientation of these scenes from mirror-reversed copies. The results indicate that active travellers had enhanced visual memory for the built environment. Results are discussed in the context of visual memory and urban design and place-making for legible cities.

Leader metaphors in Ekegusii language

AbstractThis is a cognitive linguistic study of a cultural-specific metaphor of a leader in Ekegusii, an African Bantu language in Kenya. A descriptive research design was used whereby the natives were asked to identify and explain the Ekegusii leader metaphorical terms and phrases, describe the social cultural values and to account for the cognitive mapping processes involved. The data collected were analyzed using the Cognitive Metaphor Theory (CMT) ofLakoff and Johnson (1980). The results show that a leader in Ekegusii is conceptualized as a plant, animal, object or the behavior the leader exhibits (also act as X domains). It was also found out that context, values, attitude of the speaker and cultural knowledge play a major role in interpreting and understanding Ekegusii leader metaphors. The study concludes by suggesting further research of metaphors in African and other languages to enable comparisons.

Comparing supply chain risks for multiple product categories with cognitive mapping and Analytic Hierarchy Process

The risk management framework includes the practice of keeping safety stocks and safety lead time buffers. However, in today's high-tech and highly globalized world where competition is so fierce and paramount that managing and mitigating the risk by creating a more resilient supply chain has become indispensable for any organization. Assessing and managing the supply chain risks become very important in this context and one such risk assessing tool is Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP). AHP supports managers in identifying the risk indicators, assessing the impact of undesired events and the varied cause and effect relationships along the chain, and thus prioritizing the objectives of the supply chain, hence arriving at the selection of the best supplier from various alternatives. Thus, the objective of this paper is to identify and assess supply chain risk across multiple product categories using cognitive maps and Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) methodology.

CO-OCCURRENCY EVALUATION OF ARCHITECTURAL SIGNS ON SKETCH MAPS FOCUSING ON THEIR SEMANTIC POLYSEMY

The objective of this research is to propose an analysis method of cognitive map that is expressive of interaction between architectural/urban space and human beings, in order to consider a design method of Human-Environment System, a type of system in which all the elements (including human beings) continue to interact with each other. In order to analyze the cognitive map, which is invisible, sketch map is used as externalized drawing of the cognitive map, based on the past researches. In this study, focusing on the meaning aspects of above-mentioned interactions, cognitive mapping process is understood as thinking process through signs based on the concept of Semiosis proposed by C.S.Peirce, who was an American semiotician. Therefore first of all, the cognitive map is modeled as a result from the interpretation of the architectural signs which represent the architectural/urban space using the concept of “architectural sign”, “university area”, and “cognitive map” following Peirce’s concept of “sign”, “object”, and “interpretant”. Then the “co-occurrence” between two co-occurring architectural signs is understood as the relation between the “sign” and “object.” Then, the cooccurrence types of all architectural signs pairs are classified into three categories based on Peirce’s concepts of “icon,” “index,” and “symbol.” Focusing on the relation between “sign” and “object” is the same as focusing on the semantic polysemy of “sign”. Thus, through this classification we focus on the semantic polysemy of architectural signs. On this basis, as preliminary study, “co-occurrency” of architectural signs is analyzed in order to understand semantic polysemy of architectural signs as follows. Sketch map experiments are conducted in 2 campuses in the Université de Franche-Comté following the experiments methodology of the past research. Geographic information database of architectural signs is then created using GIS. Based on the names of architectural signs written on the sketch maps by students, each architectural sign gets each geographic information. As the first step of analysis, main drawn architectural signs which represent their university area are understood classifying the architectural signs based on their size, distance from the university, function, and so on. Then using database, Jaccard indices of the pairs of architectural signs which drawn by at least 4 students are calculated, and co-occurrency networks are structured based on the Jaccard indices. Pearson’s correlation coefficients between Jaccard indices and quantitative valuables which shows architectural signs characteristics (height, size, function, etc.) are also calculated. Based on these evaluations the co-occurrency of architectural signs are assessed and analyzed. Through the analysis result, we found that architectural signs representing their university area differed depending on the characteristics of their university area. For example, in “Center City” campus, various cultural or commercial functions which are closely connected with our daily life represent the campus as “icon” or “symbol” of the campus. On the other hand, in “Bouloie” campus which is located far from the center city, such functions don’t work as architectural signs, but transportation functions represent the campus area. Through the analysis method presented here, we can analyze co-occurrence tendency of drawn elements on sketch maps focusing on their semantic polysemy as architectural sign set, and then architectural signs which represent architectural/urban area can be extracted. Then we show that the same architectural elements are analyzed as different meaning signs depending on from which meaning aspects we analyze, which indicates a way forward for presenting the method of quantitative evaluation of interaction between architectural/urban space and human beings considering the Human-Environment System design.

School travel modes and children’s spatial cognition

This study broadens understanding of how children’s travel modes influence the development of their spatial cognition, specifically the development of their spatial representation of home–school routes. Data were collected using a questionnaire survey and a cognitive mapping process at an elementary school in northern Taiwan. The sample, which comprised 521 Grades 1–6 children aged 7–12 years, was analysed through linear regressions. Empirical results indicate that the use of independent, active or non-motorised transportation modes improved the children’s spatial cognition regarding their home–school routes. This study not only provides new knowledge about the relationships between travel modes and the spatial cognition of children, but also identifies policy directions in relation to school transportation and the development of spatial cognition in children.

A hybrid multiple-criteria decision analysis framework for corporate social responsibility implementation applied to an extractive industry case study

Integration of corporate social responsibility (CSR) into a company’s mainstream strategy is a complex task. Practical implementation of CSR requires analysis of both the external and internal environments to determine the prospects and challenges significantly influencing integration of sustainability into business strategy. In order to overcome limitations of single multiple-criteria decision analysis models, this paper proposes a hybrid integrated framework combining cognitive mapping and analytic networks process (ANP) to determine, prioritise and select CSR programmes for implementation. The strategic cognitive map serves as a foundation to build the ANP network and identify the importance of CSR programmes. A knapsack optimisation method is then used to optimally assign resources to CSR alternatives. We demonstrate the usefulness of the framework through a case study in the extractive sector. The framework was empirically tested with 61 respondents using postal and online surveys, MBA workshops, and conference networking.

Mapping Critical Success Factors for IT Outsourcing

During the last decades, IT Outsourcing gained considerable management attention and is considered a strategic decision used to promote success on its variable dimensions, like: cost reduction, quality improvement, access to new technologies, among others. The existing literature presents many studies on IT Outsourcing. However, there are few studies from the provider's perspective. Therefore, the objective is to focus on providers' critical success factors and their relationships in IT Outsourcing contracts. To analyse this subject a qualitative approach based on cognitive mapping process was applied. Cognitive or causal maps are widely employed in problem-structuring, since they permit a rich representation of ideas, through the modelling of a complex network of actions. This approach is innovative compared to the traditional quantitative methods used. As a result, they were able to map a network of means and ends and in parallel were found new success factors like service standardization, price flexibility, cost management and service catalogue, which allowed obtaining new insights into the structure of today's IT Outsourcing contracts.

Exploring older women's confidence during route planning

In-car route guidance is automatic, requiring a minimum of time and thinking. This paper explores the use of personalised information when providing instructions for navigating a journey. We focus on older women with a lifetime of experience. Ten female participants were interviewed to elicit their comfort zone with respect to navigating in a car from their own home. Two routes were then devised for each participant, which extended beyond this comfort zone, and presented to them in two different formats. Participants then navigated the route of their least preferred format. Questionnaires and interviews were used to explore the effects of the formats on their confidence, cognitive effort and use of cognitive mapping facilities. The questionnaire data showed that the more detailed instructions supported cognitive mapping processes and the interviews suggested that this support was valued prior to executing the route.

Moving Between Addresses

ABSTRACTThis article conceptualizes “home” by using a new method that incorporates address and movement (between addresses) as significant elements in understanding what is home for Jewish migrant and Palestinian indigenous women over seventy living in Israel. Focusing on women's movement between addresses, I aim to explore the multiple meanings of home within the context of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and especially the differences between Jewish immigrants and Palestinian indigenous people that took place in 1948 as reflected in some of the cases analyzed. The article begins with a brief overview of the literature on home as connected to the notions of belonging, memory, migration, movement, and refugeeism. It then introduces the life stories of the Jewish and Palestinian women, followed by a discussion of the home materialities of the homiest and the least homey address as reflected verbally and visually in the cognitive temporal mapping process.

Comparative cognition: An approach whose time has come

AbstractThe functional approach to comparative cognition research is exemplified by Shettleworth's (2010) book Cognition, Evolution, and Behavior. In this book, Shettleworth brings together the evolutionary perspective of behavioral ecology, the relative simplicity of behavior analysis, and the diverse research programs of cognitive psychology. This approach does not avoid the use of cognitive terminology but uses it to generate testable hypotheses that have the potential to provide evidence for or against the cognitive hypothesis. Unlike behavioral ecology and cognitive psychology, this approach postulates contingency learning as the default account of behavior but tests cognitive hypotheses against the default alternative. In this review, I present the results of three lines of research as examples of the kind of research that has been used to test cognitive hypotheses: functional equivalence, cognitive mapping, and rehearsal processes, all of which are covered by Shettleworth. In each case, I would argue that these experiments would not have been conducted had it not been for the hypothesis that a cognitive process might be involved. Whether or not evidence is found for the existence of a cognitive process, the results of such experiments are of interest for what they tell us about behavior as well as for their heuristic value.

A Virtual Map to Support People Who are Blind in Navigation through Real Spaces

Most of the spatial information needed by sighted people to construct cognitive maps of spaces is gathered through the visual channel. Unfortunately, people who are blind lack the ability to collect the required spatial information in advance. The use of virtual reality as a learning and rehabilitation tool for people with disabilities has been on the rise in recent years. This research is based on the hypothesis that the advance supply of appropriate spatial information (perceptual and conceptual) through compensatory sensorial channels within a virtual environment may assist people who are blind in their anticipatory exploration and cognitive mapping of the unknown space. In this long-term research we developed and tested the BlindAid system that combines 3D audio with a Phantom® haptic interface to allow the user to explore a virtual map through a hand held stylus. The main goals of this research were to study the cognitive mapping process of people who are blind when exploring complex virtual maps and how they apply this spatial knowledge later in real space. The findings supply strong evidence that interaction with the BlindAid system by people who are blind provides a robust foundation for the participants' development of comprehensive cognitive maps of unknown real spaces.