Internet Archaeol. 16. Whitley. GIS modelling of cognition with spatial proxies

4.0 GIS Modelling of Cognition with Spatial Proxies

Naturally, the foregoing examples are mere simplifications. There are precious few examples where cognitive behaviour (be it communal or individual) can be seen as being affected by only one type of causal referential spatial variable. Instead, an enlightening discussion of specific cognitive behaviours should include several spatial proxies working together to simulate past decision-making. That approach may be formulated assuming agent-based or communal decision-making, or a combination of the two. An example from the Greater Yellowstone Region of the USA (Whitley 2000; 2002a) uses a combination of spatial proxies to assess the individual cognitive factors involved in making a specific communal decision.