Authoritative Bias of Maps (Updated 2025)
In today’s context it is bit of a challenge writing a post about the authoritative bias of maps. After all, how can maps be both accurate and tendentious. Kuby, Harner, and Gober’s book Human Geography in Action (Amazon Link: http://a.co/2C1hF9s) attributes this authoritative bias to five critical decisions cartographer must make in creating and conveying visual information: maps projections, simplification, map scale, aggregation, and type of map.[1] Below are a couple of ways Google’s Geo tools can be used to demonstrate these choices.
1. Maps Projection
As discussed in a previous post (link), Google Maps, Google’s Maps API, and Google’s My Maps uses a Mercator projection. Projections are chosen for a purpose; in this case probably navigation. The easiest way to demonstrate the impact of this choice simply draw the ring around Greenland in My Maps, or geteach.com, and drag the polygon to the equator.
Student Activity
In class, I give students time to draw and drag polygons on their own. They’re often curious about the size of Russia and enjoy moving the African continent northward toward the pole to see how dramatically it expands. Being from Texas, I like to challenge students to trace Alaska and drag it south over the continental U.S.—a humbling comparison that usually sparks great discussion.
Map Projection geteach.com
Map Projection My Maps
Compare Map Projection: Cool Site
2. Simplification
Kuby et al. like to use subway maps to demonstrate the idea of simplification and its benefit to the user. Below are London’s transit tubes on Google Maps and the other is London’s transit tube map. Explore and follow routes through London by zooming in/out and dragging the two maps below.
Student Activity
Have students explore two maps of the London Underground: one stylized and one geographically accurate. The second map features a slider to compare both versions. I ask students to imagine they’re navigating the city in real life.
Which map would be more useful? Which is more accurate? And why is the distorted version still widely used? This leads to great discussion about simplification and purpose in map design.
(Sorry, Google’s API only shows tube transit lines from this zoom level and closer)
Source: Google Maps API Transit
Use the slider at the bottom of this map to help compare.
Student Activity (Simplification geteach.com)
Students can practice using geteach.com’s tools to explore how map simplification affects interpretation. After interacting with the map, they jot down their thoughts on how simplifying the design can make certain spatial patterns easier to identify.
Student Activity (Simplification Google Earth)
Students could also practice using Google Earth’s tools to explore how map simplification affects interpretation. After interacting with the map, they jot down their thoughts on how simplifying the design can make certain spatial patterns easier to identify.
3. Map Scale
Map scale—or zoom level—directly affects the amount of detail shown. A large-scale map displays a smaller area with greater detail, while a small-scale map shows a larger area with less detail.
An easy way to remember this:
Large Scale = Large Detail
Small Scale = Small Detail
Student Activity (Map Scale geteach.com)
Students use geteach.com to compare a single location at two different map scales. They observe what details become visible at a large scale—such as streets, land use, or elevation—and note what patterns or context are better understood at a small scale, like regional position or spatial relationships. They then reflect on why a geographer might choose one scale over the other depending on the purpose.
Student Activity (Map Scale Google Earth)
Students can also use Google Earth to explore a location at two different map scales. They observe what details become visible at a large scale—such as streets, land use, or elevation—and note what patterns or context are better understood at a small scale, like regional position or spatial relationships. They then reflect on why a geographer might choose one scale over the other depending on the purpose.
4. Levels of Aggregation
Aggregation refers to the size and boundaries of the geographic units used to organize and display data on a map—such as countries, regions, or local districts. This concept is closely tied to scale of analysis, which refers to the spatial extent at which data is grouped and interpreted. Common scales of analysis include global, regional, and local, each offering different insights depending on the level of generalization.
Student Activity (Levels of Aggregation geteach.com)
Using geteach.com, students explore the 2016 Brexit referendum results across multiple scales of analysis. They begin at the national level, where the map shows the United Kingdom as a whole, and then examine data at the sub-national region, including the four nations of Great Britain: England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland. From there, students can further to examine results by UK regions (e.g., Eastern, North West, London), and finally, at the local level.
Student Activity (Levels of Aggregation Google Earth – Link to File)
Students can also use Google Earth (Link to Google Earth File), students explore the 2016 Brexit referendum results across multiple scales of analysis. They begin at the national level, where the map shows the United Kingdom as a whole, and then examine data at the sub-national region, including the four nations of Great Britain: England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland. From there, students can further to examine results by UK regions (e.g., Eastern, North West, London), and finally, at the local level.
5. Types of Map
Be it reference or thematic maps, cartographers still must make decisions on what to show, omit, or emphases.
Reference maps are designed to show general information about places—such as political boundaries, physical features, roads, and place names—without focusing on specific data themes. Google Maps is a widely used example of a reference map. However, what many users don’t realize is that Google Maps adjusts its political boundaries and place names based on the viewer’s regional context.
Student Activity (Reference Maps geteach.com/regions)
Students use the geteach.com/regions comparison tool to explore how Google Maps displays international boundaries differently depending on regional perspectives. They compare areas like:
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The Crimea Peninsula from the perspective of the U.S. vs. Russia
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Northern region of South Asia from the perspectives of India, Pakistan, and other countries
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Additional disputed territories (e.g., South China Sea or Taiwan) as time allows
Students then write down their observations:
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How do borders and place names change based on the selected region?
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What does this tell us about the concept of authoritative bias in maps?
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Why is it important to consider perspective when using reference maps?
While reference maps focus on location and general geographic features, thematic maps are designed to highlight a specific topic or spatial pattern—such as population density, election results, or economic activity. These maps use visual variables like color, shading, or symbols to communicate data tied to geographic areas.
A choropleth map is a type of thematic map that uses varying shades or colors to represent data values aggregated within predefined geographic areas, such as countries, states, or districts.
Student Activity (Thematic Maps geteach.com)
Using geteach.com, students explore the 2016 Brexit vote by comparing thematic maps at multiple scales of analysis—national, regional, and local. At each scale, students compare the simpler two-color map with a more complex choropleth map that uses multiple vote-percentage categories.
As they analyze both maps within each scale of analysis layer, students reflect on the following questions:
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What is the scale of analysis for each map?
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What patterns are easier to see in the simple two-color map?
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What additional insights does the more complex map provide?
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How does scale of analysis influence the spatial story these maps tell?
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What are the strengths and limitations of each mapping approach?
Student Activity (Thematic Maps Google Earth – Link to File)
Student can also use Google Earth – Link to File, students explore the 2016 Brexit vote by comparing thematic maps at multiple scales of analysis—national, regional, and local. At each scale, students compare the simpler two-color map with a more complex choropleth map that uses multiple vote-percentage categories.
As they analyze each scale of analysis layer, students reflect on the following questions:
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What is the scale of analysis for each map?
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What patterns are easier to see in the simple two-color map?
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What additional insights does the more complex map provide?
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How does scale of analysis influence the spatial story these maps tell?
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What are the strengths and limitations of each mapping approach?
Conclusion
Kuby, Harner, and Gober’s book Human Geography in Action (Amazon Link: http://a.co/2C1hF9s) offers far more depth than this brief post. I highly recommend it for anyone—or any class—looking to deepen their understanding of geography.
The goal of this post is to highlight the purposeful inaccuracies in maps and why these inaccuracies matter. While maps, like many forms of information, can be misleading, it is not always intentional or deceptive. Often, the primary purpose of a map is to communicate information more efficiently than text alone. The decisions cartographers make give maps both their strengths and their limitations. As Harm De Blij said, “If a picture is worth a thousand words, a map is worth a million.”
[1] Kuby, Michael, John Harner, and Patricia Gober. Human Geography in Action. 6th ed. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley and Sons, 2013.
