A model is a simplification of reality and as such it makes the complex more understandable.
The big models come from reductionist science in the form of generalized principles, usually expressed as mathematical equations. Einstein’s E=mc2 is perhaps one of the more famous ones, but there are many more, from Newton’s laws of motion and gravity, to Heisenberg’s uncertainty principle. These fundamental models can be combined into more complex models run by computers to try and simulate real-world conditions, like forecasting the weather.
The human brain is not a computer in the sense that we can run multiple calculations against large data sets in real time to understand the world around us. We use a different system, commonly known as mental models.
When I was first introduced the the idea of mental models, I was a little confused. They are variously described as generalized principles, encoded experiences, knowledge structures, images, stories and rules of thumb. I could never pin down exactly what they were; I just knew that they represented “how stuff works” in our minds. When we encounter a situation or problem, we use these mental models to predict what will happen and act accordingly.
There’s a recognition that we can be better thinkers if we consciously expand the mental models we have in our minds. As specialists, we tend to understand the mental models in our specialty and have limited or no understanding of the models used in other specialties. Learning mental models across disciplines can allow us to approach problems in novel ways.
What I’m coming to realize is that at their heart, mental models are collections of patterns. When we have significant experiences, we encode those into patterns in our minds. When we see a similar situation, we find the patterns that best match our past experience and use them to understand what’s going on in the present.
What this means to me is that it aught to be possible to help people learn different mental models and expand their mental toolset for solving problems in a consistent and easy to understand way, using pattern languages.
