A topic in research methodology
A concept map is a form of representation of someone's knowledge about some topic. (Read about the use of concept mapping in teaching, learning and assessment).
Concept mapping may be used as one research technique for eliciting a person's knowledge. Concept mapping can also be used in studying and teaching. One can use a concept map to summarise a text being studied, or as a way of revising notes. Concepts maps can be used by teachers to introduce or summarise topics.
Read about concept mapping as a teaching/study technique
There are many different possible formats of concept maps, but generally there is a central concept that is linked by propositions to other concepts. The focal concept could be anything.
"Concept maps as we have have developed them are a representation of meaning or ideational frameworks specific to a domain of knowledge, for a given context of meaning. We define concept as a perceived regularity in events or objects, or records of events or objects, designated by a label. Most of the labels we use are words, but signs such as +, -, E and so forth may also be used.
Two or more concepts can be linked together with words to form propositions and we see propositions as the units of psychological meaning. The meaning of any concept for a person would be represented by all of the propositional linkages the person could construct that include that concept.
Since individuals have unique sequences of experiences leading to unique total sets of propositions, all concept meanings are to some extent idiosyncratic. However, in a given culture, there is sufficient commonality in experience that persons in that culture share sufficient common meanings for their concepts that they can communicate ideas to one another using language or other symbols."
Novak, 1990: .29-30
Here a concept map was used to analyse a topic (ionisation energy) as part of a research project (From Tan et al., 2005)
Source cited:
- Novak, J. D. (1990). Concept maps and Vee diagrams: two metacognitive tools to facilitate meaningful learning. Instructional Science, 19(1), 29-52. doi:10.1007/bf00377984
- Tan, D., Goh N. K. & Chia L. S. & Taber, K. S. (2005) Development of a Two-Tier Multiple Choice Diagnostic Instrument to Determine A-Level Students' Understanding of Ionisation Energy, Singapore: National Institute of Education, Nanyang Technological University.
My introduction to educational research:
Taber, K. S. (2013). Classroom-based Research and Evidence-based Practice: An introduction (2nd ed.). London: Sage.
