Cognitive Scaffold

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MENTAL MODEL · M8907

Ogden-Richards Triangle of Meaning

Ogden-Richards Triangle of Meaning
BehaviorHigh supportPsychology
Included
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Version 1.0.0 · Updated 2026-07-30

CORE DEFINITION

Symbol (word) ↔ Thought/Concept (mental image) ↔ Referent (actual thing). There is no direct connection between symbol and referent; it must be mediated by thought.

SCAFFOLDING EFFECT

psychology

Reduce cognitive load

Clarify communication misunderstandings. Remind us that words are not things, and different people may have different concepts for the same word.

anchor

Anchor fast decisions

This is another transliteration of the Ogden-Richards Triangle: symbol, thought/reference, and referent form a triangle, with no direct correspondence between symbol and thing; it must go through mental mediation. The mechanism is that meaning is constructed by the mind.

MINIMUM ACTION

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Source support: Explicit

  • link
    en.wikipedia.orghttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Meaning_of_MeaningZH · Explicit
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