Effect of graphic simplification and graphic metaphor on the memory and identification of travel map signs running head Chih-Yung Tsai Department of Education, University of Taipei, No.1, Aiguo West Road, Taipei 10048, Taiwan article info Article history: Received 5 January 2016 Received in revised form 23 April 2017 Accepted 24 May 2017 Keywords: Travel map Graphic simplification Graphic metaphor Memory Identification abstract With the rapid development of the tourism industry, the design of tourist guide signs has become a crucial concern. This study investigated the effects of 3 graphic simplification techniques and 3 graphic metaphor techniques on graphic memory and identification. The results indicated that simplification and the interaction between simplification and metaphor influence graphic memory; moreover, simplifica- tion and metaphor were found to significantly affect identification. These findings suggest that iconic simplification with appearance-resembling metaphors, and metaphor techniques with text simplifica- tion result in superior memory. Simplification techniques with appearance-resembling metaphors and metaphor techniques with text simplification also yielded superior identification. This paper thus pro- vides a reference model for map designers who are producing digital and travel maps. © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. 1. Introduction A tourist guide is an indispensable tool for travelers that iden- tifies popular tourist attractions and provides relevant information on service facilities. Therefore, well-designed tourist guides are essential. An effective guide does not contain redundant informa- tion, but highlights landmarks and other points of interest, thereby helping travelers to locate desired places. The main content of a tourist guide comprises signs and interpretive text. The graphic design of signs on a guide is a critical point of discussion among cartographers, and clear feature identification is a key factor in guide design (MacEachren, 2004). For the aforementioned reasons, the focus of our study on tourist guide graphic design was feature identification designs. Sign designs can convey subject-related environmental infor- mation (Salaheddine and Khalid, 2010), and their features can in- fluence readers' comprehension of tourist attractions. Graphic design is developed not only by designers but also users; as re- searchers have pointed out, users’ psychological cognitions should be considered because the process of understanding a graph is a type of transformation of psychological cognition (Lin et al., 2010; Lohse, 1993). In general, memory presents more challenges than identification during the cognitive process because of the limitations of short-term memory. Consequently, an effective tourist guide with appropriate graphic design can provide tourists clear instructions and save them time. Although graphic recognition is determined by personal expe- rience and cultural background, simple and figurative signs tend to elicit similar representative meanings among most people. In addition, the cognitive load of users may be reduced by simple graphic signs. Therefore, graphic producers and designers have adopted several common approaches to improving the design of tourist guide signs, among which include graphic simplification and graphic metaphor. According to various psychological studies, a simple graphic is more likely to attract attention than is a complex graphic. Simple shapes that attract attention include circles, triangles, and squares; these shapes are typically accompanied by words and graphics that convey a message to readers for interpretation (Ou and Liu, 2012). As Bailey and Charles (2005) indicated, people also make percep- tual corrections when attempting to interpret the meaning of shapes. Signs are designed to convey a specific message, and the process of transmitting information determines their success or failure. Consequently, ensuring that signs effectively convey their intended meaning has necessitated debate in the fields of art and design. Dreyfuss (1984) proposed the authoritative guideline for symbols in the information design domain. Rogers (1989) catego- rized and conceptualized five types of iconic representation: resemblance, exemplar, symbolic, arbitrary, and analogy. E-mail address: cytsai@utaipei.edu.tw. Contents lists available at ScienceDirect International Journal of Industrial Ergonomics journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/ergon http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ergon.2017.05.016 0169-8141/© 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. International Journal of Industrial Ergonomics 61 (2017) 29e36