C ognitive mapping was employed as a means toward uncovering the deepest thoughts among school leaders that may have been buried by generations of bureaucratic structures, behavioral control mechanisms, and performance expectations. They can also be used to navigate to the goal.
Maps specify limits and boundaries.
They encourage curiosity and provide generalized information about a region. They invite action, especially by those who draw them. They are useful mirrors where people can see why they've been acting as they have, and stimulate ideas on how to act differently in the future. They are a snapshot, though they are ever changing through direct experience and through discussion, sharing, and comparison with those of others. Their concreteness makes them easily shareable and useful for collaborative efforts.