Mapping

The relationship between controls and their effects. Natural mapping uses spatial or physical analogy so the correspondence is grasped immediately, like stove burners laid out in the same arrangement as their knobs.

Why it Matters

Good mapping lets people operate something correctly on the first try, with no labels or memorization. Poor mapping forces trial and error or constant reference to a guide. Nudge generalizes the idea to choice: "understanding mappings" means making the link between an option and its eventual welfare consequence easy to grasp, so people can tell which choice actually serves them.

Signals

• Users guess which control does what and get it wrong.
• Controls need labels to be usable at all; the control-to-effect relationship is arbitrary.

Benefits

Immediate, error-free operation with no memory burden.

Risks

Arbitrary or inconsistent mappings; mappings that follow the implementation's layout rather than the user's spatial model.

Tensions

Physical layout constraints can fight the natural mapping, and cultural conventions for "up means more" or direction of increase vary between groups.

Examples

Seat-adjustment controls shaped like the seat; light switches arranged like the lights in the room; a volume slider where up is louder.