<aside> ⭐ Mental model is an explanation of how something works. The phrase “mental model” is an overarching term for any sort of concept, framework, or worldview that you carry around in your mind.

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https://youtu.be/nAgXISssAws

As a UX designer, understanding mental models is critical to creating effective and user-friendly designs. Mental models are the cognitive frameworks that people use to understand the world around them. They shape our perceptions, expectations, and behavior, and they influence how we interact with products and services.

Mental models are how we understand the world. Not only do they shape what we think and how we understand but they shape the connections and opportunities that we see. Mental models are how we simplify complexity, why we consider some things more relevant than others, and how we reason.

A mental model is simply a representation of how something works. We cannot keep all of the details of the world in our brains, so we use models to simplify the complex into understandable and organizable chunks.

Mental models also guide your perception and behavior. They are the thinking tools that you use to understand life, make decisions, and solve problems. Learning a new mental model gives you a new way to see the world—like Richard Feynman learning a new math technique.

Mental models are one of the most important concepts in human–computer interaction.

There are two main types of mental models that UX designers should be aware of: user mental models and designer mental models:

1. User mental models are the mental models that users bring with them when they interact with a product or service.
2. Designer mental models are the mental models that designers have about how users will interact with a product or service. Understanding both types of mental models is essential to creating effective and user-friendly designs.

Mental models influence how users interact with products and services, and they can impact the user's ability to use and understand the product. By understanding the user's mental models, designers can create products that are more intuitive and easier to use.

You can identify mental models through various research methods, such as user interviews, surveys, and observations. These methods help to uncover the user's assumptions and beliefs about how things work, which can then be used to inform the design process.

When designing with mental models in mind, it's important to ensure that the design is consistent with the user's mental model. This means using language, metaphors, and visual cues that align with the user's mental model. Additionally, designers should avoid creating interactions that contradict the user's mental model, as this can lead to confusion and frustration.

Finally, you should test the design with users to validate the mental models used in the design process. Testing can reveal whether the design aligns with the user's mental model and whether the design is effective in meeting the user's needs.

Creating that alignment requires you to design your offering based on the cognitive frameworks customers use to perceive, interpret, and make sense of the world. Customers' mental models represent their beliefs, expectations, and assumptions about how things should work or behave, which influence their interactions with your business and its products.