How mental models work

Mental models are built from the knowledge and experiences that people accumulate over time, guiding how they interact with the world and, by extension, user interfaces. Jakob's Law tells us that users often apply familiar experiences from other websites to new ones, expecting similar functionality and layout. For instance, if someone frequently shops online, they'll likely expect to find a shopping cart icon in the top right corner of any e-commerce site. This expectation is part of their mental model for shopping websites, shaped by prior experiences.

In UX design, the challenge is to either align your interface with these pre-existing mental models or to help users develop new, accurate models through clear and intuitive design. For example, if introducing an innovative feature that deviates from common conventions, it should be introduced in a way that's easy for users to understand and adopt.