Conceptual theory (I)

I came upon the study of conceptual models (also known as conceptual schemes or mental models) awhile ago. It stems from their presence all around us. From definitions of entities to the meanings of signs to the route you take to work. As creatures of habit, our minds are wired to sense patterns. They enable us leapfrog, certain processes preventing mental and sensory overload. In a sense the conceptual model is our recognition and interpretation of a pattern.

For example, the definition of a chair is “a seat for one person with support for the back”. Therefore where it’s long or short, made of wood or metal, ancient or contemporary in design, one is still able to recognize it so long as it fits this definition. Here we attempt to recognize a pattern (in this case, the definition) and assess every material accordingly before admitting it to this class of furniture.

When you really get to the basics, a conceptual model is our perspective on how the world really is. It belies of our need to classify, to name, to bring within the sphere of what we know, what we do not know.

In other words, it alludes to a universal truth which is abstracted in different forms. It is our attempt at simplification or discovery of the simplicity of the world we live in.

In the theory of branding, similar transference of meaning occurs. Although in this case, it is the reverse, the brand on its own being, for the sake of our discussion, a fundamental truth (a pattern) which expresses itself through images and representations. It is in these images that the core of this brand or pattern may be recognized. This means that just as the experience of the brand begins from the representation to the pattern, brand strategy works from pattern to representation.