This downloadable set of Mental Map Exercises can help you develop your understanding of the different components in the Mental Map and how they can help your critical reading:

1. Tools for thinking: how the authors conceptualize key aspects of their topic (Chapters 8 & 9)
2. Ways of thinking about the social world: what the authors assume about the nature of the social world, how we can know about it, and how it should be (Chapters 8 and 10)
3. Reasons for studying and trying to make an impact: why the authors are doing their research and who they wish to inform about their findings (Chapter 11)
4. Claims to knowledge: what, in summary, the authors claim to have found out from their investigation (Chapter 12)
5. Claim characteristics – degree of certainty and generalization:  how sure the authors are about what they’ve found out and how widely they think it applies beyond the settings they studied (Chapter 13)
6. Reflection exercise: A chance to consolidate your learning from exercises A to E