Map Alignment in Traveling Multisegment Routes

Two hypotheses were based on previous research with simple path maps and you-are-here maps. First, when given a choice, observers prefer to align a map with the environment that it represents; second, performance on way finding tasks is better when the map is aligned than when it is not aligned with the environment. This latter phenomenon is called the map alignment effect. Both hypotheses were strongly supported in two experiments conducted in a relatively structured environment using four-segment paths. A third experiment was conducted in a larger, wooded, hilly environment. The observers carried the map and consulted it at will while finding a route from a starting point to a goal. In this setting, both hypotheses again found support. Observers did not consult the map at every turn, but when they did, they turned the map into map/environment alignment on two thirds of the instances. Errors occurred with greater frequency when the map was not aligned with the environment. The generality of the map alignment effect was thus demonstrated for larger and more complex environments than have previously been studied and with more naturalistic map-use procedures than have been used. Finally, there was clear evidence that observers acquired incidental knowledge about the spatial structure of the environment while using a map to negotiate the environment, despite the fact that there was no explicit requirement to learn. Questions remain about the nature of the learning and retention of information so acquired.