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Graph properties drive navigational selection between equidistant routes
Luke Chi1, Michael J Starrett1, Yiwen Rao1
1Department of Neurobiology and Behavior, University of California, Irvine, 2205 McGaugh Hall, Irvine, CA 92697-4550, USA.
Neuropsychologia
|November 1, 2025
Summary
Human navigation may rely on cognitive graphs, not precise cognitive maps. Participants preferred routes with fewer turns and larger areas, even when path lengths were identical, suggesting structural, not metric, preferences in spatial representation.
Area of Science:
- Cognitive science
- Spatial cognition
- Human navigation
Background:
- Cognitive maps are traditionally viewed as metrically accurate spatial representations.
- Recent research indicates human navigation may not always align with cognitive map predictions.
- Cognitive graphs, emphasizing structural relationships over precise metric details, offer an alternative model for spatial representation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate whether humans rely on metrically precise cognitive maps or structural cognitive graphs for navigation.
- To determine if route structural features influence navigational choices when metric information is ambiguous or irrelevant.
Main Methods:
- A two-alternative forced-choice navigational task was designed using virtual environments.
- Participants explored routes varying in structural features (e.g., turns, area size) but identical in length.
- Navigation was tested using both immersive virtual reality and desktop interfaces.
Main Results:
- Participants consistently preferred routes with fewer turns and larger open areas, irrespective of identical metric lengths.
- No preference was observed for routes with a shorter initial path segment.
- Findings held true across both virtual reality and desktop interaction methods.
Conclusions:
- Human navigational choices are influenced by structural route properties, not solely by metric accuracy, supporting cognitive graph models.
- Participants demonstrated a bias towards simpler, more structured routes, suggesting reliance on topological or labeled graph representations.
- This study provides evidence for cognitive graph utilization in navigation, even in the absence of route length differences.
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