Mental model

A mental model is an internal representation of external reality: that is, a way of representing reality within the mind. Such models are hypothesized to play a major role in cognition, reasoning and decision-making. The term for this concept was coined in 1943 by Kenneth Craik, who suggested that the mind constructs "small-scale models" of reality that it uses to anticipate events.

Mental models can help shape behaviour, including approaches to solving problems and performing tasks.

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Source: Wikipedia · Image: Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0

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