Motivated by the diverse uses of concept maps in teaching and educational research, we have developed a systematic approach to their structural analysis. The basis for our method is a unique topological normalisation procedure whereby a concept map is first stripped of its content and subsequently geometrically re-arranged into a standardised layout as a maximally balanced tree following set rules. This enables a quantitative analysis of the normalised maps to read off basic structural parameters: numbers of concepts and links, diameter, in- and ex-radius and degree sequence and subsequently calculate higher parameters: cross-linkage, balance and dimension. Using these parameters, we define characteristic global morphologies: ‘Disconnected’, ‘Imbalanced’, ‘Broad’, ‘Deep’ and ‘Interconnected’ in the normalised map structure. Our proposed systematic approach to concept-map analysis combining topological normalisation, determination of structural parameters and global morphological classification is a standardised, easily applicable and reliable framework for making the inherent structure of a concept map tangible. | A standardised, holistic framework for concept-map analysis combining topological attributes and global morphologies
