Effects of landmark position and design in VGI-based maps on visual attention and cognitive processing

Landmarks play a crucial role in map reading and in the formation of mental spatial models. Especially when following a route to get to a fixed destination, landmarks are crucial orientation aids. Which objects from the multitude of spatial objects in an environment are suitable as landmarks and, for example, can be automatically displayed in navigation systems has hardly been clarified. The analysis of Volunteered Geographic Information (VGI) offers the possibility of no longer having to separate methodologically between active and passive salience of landmarks in order to gain insights into the effect of landmarks on orientation ability or memory performance. Since the users (groups) involved are map producers and map users at the same time, an analysis of the user behavior of user-generated maps provides in-depth insights into cognitive processes and enables the direct derivation of basic methodological principles for map design. The landmarks determined on the basis of the VGI and entered as signs in maps can provide indications of the required choice, number, and position of landmarks that users need in order to orientate themselves in space with the help of maps. The results of several empirical studies show which landmark pictograms from OpenStreetMap (OSM) maps are cognitively processed quickly by users and which spatial position they must have in order to be able to increase memory performance, for example, during route learning.