A cognitive map is a mental description of an environment. The construction of a cognitive map by an individual is necessary as a means of managing behavior in an environment to produce maximum benefit and avoid pain. While work in the field of cognitive mapping is still rudimentary, it offers great appeal in allowing research on crime to be conducted in a positive and predictive fashion, instead of inferring backwards from the data to suggest what might have occurred. A cognitive mapping approach also allows a researcher to consider the actors in criminal events as individuals rather than as automatons in a simplistic theoretical model of human behavior. Each of the actors in n actual or potential crime (citizens, criminals, and law enforcement officers) must develop appropriate skills at acquiring the following four types of knowledge involved in cognitive mapping: (1) recognition, which involves knowing where you are and being able to identify the common objects in the environment; (2) prediction, which requires knowing what might happen next and how to make associations between environmental events and objects; (3) evaluation, which involves using the information gathered during the recognition and prediction stages so as to identify options and evaluate the consequences of various alternative actions; and (4) action, which involves the selection and implementation of a course of action. The uses of cognitive maps in research activities and in some case studies of crimes are discussed. Tables, 19 notes, and graphic data are provided. For related papers, see NCJ 74011.