Well, the premise of mental models comes from the fact that we never perceive reality as is. We are always building models of the world, not actually "seeing" t

Well, the premise of mental models comes from the fact that we never perceive reality as is. We are always building models of the world, not actually "seeing" the world. Our senses are filtering machines (i.e. reality tunnels). We only perceive what is deemed useful, or is available according to our capacities. Thus in essence, we are just creatures of models. Mental models are just a more precise awareness of that phenomenon. It also sounds cool and sticks with people because mental models are focused on actually being seen (mentally). As you say, mental models rise from the insight that map is not territory, and that we have no territories in our minds, only maps.