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Structuralism:
Perception results from the association
of basic sensory atoms in memory via
repeated, prior joint occurrences.
Derived from philosophy of
British Empiricists (e.g., Locke,
Berkeley, Hume, and Mills).
Proposed by Wilhelm Wundt,
the father of modern Psychology.

Sensation vs. Perception

 More to perception than meets the eye

Perception goes beyond the sensory elements

Elements can be put together in ways other than just

mechanical association; perception is not passive
These elements are only physical data coming to the
sense organs, where the mind codes and interprets
them

The phi phenomenon:

A challenge to Wundtian psychology

Wertheimer's 1910 research

Research idea
Idea came to him while riding a train
Apparent movement:
Why do we see movement when no actual physical
motion occurs?

Stroboscope

The phi phenomenon:

A challenge to Wundtian psychology
Stimulus: two points of light being flashed
sequentially
Wundts prediction:
perception of two successive points of light

Reality:
the perception was of a moving light when in fact the lights were
not moving

Presented a challenge that the associationistic, elementistic

psychology of Wundt could not meet

Illusory contours

Bistable
figures

 Size Constancy
Tendency to view an object as constant in
size despite changes in the size of the
retinal image.

Gestalt psychology or gestaltism (German: Gestalt "shape, form") is a theory of mind of

the Berlin School. The central principle of gestalt psychology is that the mind forms a global
whole with self-organizing tendencies. This principle maintains that the human mind
considers objects in their entirety before, or in parallel with, perception of their individual
parts; suggesting the whole is other than the sum of its parts. Gestalt psychology tries to
understand the laws of our ability to acquire and maintain meaningful perceptions in an
apparently chaotic world.
In the domain of perception, Gestalt psychologists stipulate that perceptions are the
products of complex interactions among various stimuli. Contrary to
the behaviorist approach to understanding the elements of cognitive processes, gestalt
psychologists sought to understand their organization (Carlson and Heth, 2010). The gestalt
effect is the capability of our brain to generate whole forms, particularly with respect to
the visual recognition of global figures instead of just collections of simpler and unrelated
elements (points, lines, curves...).
In psychology, gestaltism is often opposed to structuralism. The phrase The whole is other
than the sum of the parts is often used when explaining gestalt theory, though there is a
common mistranslation of Kurt Koffka's original phrase to "The whole is greater than the
sum of the parts".Gestalt theory allows for the breakup of elements from the whole
situation into what it really is

Gestaltism:
Perception results from the interaction
between the intrinsic structure of the stimulus
and the intrinsic structure of the brain.

Max
Wertheimer

Wolfgang
Khler

Kurt
Koffka

Principles of
Perceptual Organization
We perceive wholes, not clusters of
sensations
Elements interact to create a new whole
The whole is different from the sum of its
parts
Underlying premise:
Perceptual organization occurs instantly and is
inevitable
Organizing principles not dependent on:
higher mental processes
past experience

Gestalt Principles of Visual Perception

Gestalt Movement in experimental psychology which

began prior to WWI.

We perceive objects as well-organized patterns rather

than separate components.
The whole is greater than the sum of its parts.
Based on the concept of grouping.

Gestalt Principles of Visual Perception

Three Main Principles:

Grouping (proximity, similarity,
continuity, closure)
Goodness of figures
Figure/ground relationships

Gestalt Principles of Visual Perception

Grouping:
Law of Proximity

Gestalt Principles of Visual Perception

Grouping:
Law of Similarity

Gestalt Principles of Visual Perception

Grouping:
: Law of Similarity: Shape, Scale, Color

Gestalt Principles of Visual Perception

Law of Good Continuation, or
Continuity
Objects arranged in either a straight line
or a smooth curve tend to be seen as a
unit.

Gestalt Principles of Visual Perception

Law of Closure

http://daphne.palomar.edu

Related to principle of good continuation,

there is a tendency to close simple
figures, independent of continuity or
similarity.
This results in a effect of filling in missing
information or organising information
which is present to make a whole
In the circle at the top its seen easily.
In the other to figures it's a little more
complex. The second figure can be read
as two overlapping rectangles (the
gestalt) whereas it can also be seen as
three shapes touching; a square and two
other irregular shapes.

The final shape can be seen as a curve

joining three squares or as three uneven
shapes touching

Gestalt Principles of Visual Perception

Law of Common Fate

Common fate - things moving in same

direction are grouped together

Gestalt Principles of Visual Perception

Goodness of Figure, or the Law of Pragnanz

(Pragnanz is German for Pregnant, but in the sense of pregnant
with meaning, not with child!)

Gestalt Principles of Visual Perception

Figure/Ground relationships
Figure seen as the foreground
Ground seen as the background
Contours belong to the figure

Gestalt Principles of Visual Perception

Reversible Figure/Ground
relationship

Gestalt Principles of Visual Perception

Reversible Figure/Ground
relationship

Can be affected by the principle

of smallness:
Smaller areas tend to be seen as
figures against a larger
background.

Gestalt Principles of Visual Perception

Reversible Figure/Ground
Relationship:
Tessellation interlocking
figure/ground

M.C. Escher

 Failing to divide
figure from ground

Why

do things looks as they do?

-- Kurt Koffka (1935)

Gestalt Principles of Visual Perception

Gestalt laws of Grouping organize the visual

scene into units

The Law of Pragnanz, or Goodness of Figure

creates the simplest most meaningful pattern
Figure/Ground relationships define important
parts of the scene

Contributions of Gestalt psychology

Permanent imprint on psychology
Influenced work in perception, learning, thinking,
personality, social psychology, and motivation

Retained its identity, not absorbed by the

mainstream as was behaviorism
Broke ground for cognitive movement
Fostered interest in consciousness as a legitimate
problem for psychology