Mental representation is a tool used by individuals to explore and interpret their physical environment. It is formed through a process of acquiring, deciphering, memorizing, and using environmental information, thus facilitating spatial decision-making. From a cognitive psychology perspective, these representations are dynamic, varying according to the individual’s experiences. Edward Tolman, often considered a moderate behaviorist and a pioneer in using the term in 1948, emphasizes that when a person encounters new environments, a mental image of the space is unconsciously formed. This image, stored in the hippocampus, is called a cognitive map.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In the field of marketing, the study of cognitive maps provides a better understanding of consumers’ mental perceptions. Mental representations play a crucial role in how consumers associate and conceive of different product categories. In the context of innovation, analyzing consumers’ mental representations helps explain why a product might be rejected at a given time if it doesn’t fit into existing mental frameworks. Damien Chaney emphasizes that mental representations are essential for understanding consumer choices and their perception of products, particularly in a context of evolving and accepting innovation.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"template":"","categories-glossary":[310],"class_list":["post-161061","dictionnaire-dico","type-dictionnaire-dico","status-publish","hentry","categories-glossary-consumer-behavior-marketing-psychology"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/digitionary.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/dictionnaire-dico\/161061","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/digitionary.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/dictionnaire-dico"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/digitionary.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/dictionnaire-dico"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/digitionary.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=161061"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"categories-glossary","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/digitionary.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories-glossary?post=161061"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}