Investigating the Effects of Complexity and Landmarks on Cognitive Maps Using Virtual Reality

The formation of cognitive maps – our mental representations of the environment – is fundamental to successful navigation. While factors such as environmental complexity and the presence of landmarks are known to influence these maps, their precise interplay, and the way spatial knowledge develops with exploration, remains incompletely understood. Here, we leveraged immersive Virtual Reality (VR) to create an ecologically valid but well controlled environment in which participants (N = 40) physically walked through a set of virtual mazes containing objects whose spatial locations had to be learned. Using a 2x2 within-participants design, we systematically manipulated maze Complexity (simple vs. complex) and Landmark availability (present vs. absent). The fidelity of spatial knowledge was measured via a pointing task in which participants indicated the direction of the learned objects from different vantage points. Pointing responses were more precise when made from objects located in maze corridors than when made from its centre. Additionally, lower complexity and the presence of landmarks improved precision. Critically, there was a significant interaction, such that landmarks provided a greater benefit in complex than simple mazes, suggesting that landmarks help mitigate the cognitive load of navigating more intricate spaces. Pointing precision improved with learning, and individuals who exhibited more precise cognitive maps also navigated the mazes more efficiently. The findings demonstrate that humans flexibly integrate environmental cues to build spatial representations, and underscore the value of immersive VR for investigating the dynamics of spatial memory.