GESTALT LAWS AND

PERCEPTUAL
CONSTANCIES

COGNITIVE NEUROSCIENCE I (MCP 605)

SEMESTER I
Submitted by: Jisha. V. Jayaprakash (192199019)
 What is Perception ?

 A process of interpretation of a present stimulus on the basis of past

experience.
 PERCEPT- what is perceived, or the outcome of perceptual processes.

Three steps:

Sensation, Perceptual organization, Identification/Recognition of objects

 Perceptual Organization - Process by which an internal representation of an
object is formed and a percept of the external stimulus is developed.
 Perceptual Constancies
 Perceptual constancy occurs when our perception of an object
remains the same even when our proximal sensation of the distal
object changes.
 The perception remains constant although the proximal
sensation changes.
There are two types of perceptual constancies :

Size constancies and Shape constancies.

 Size Constancy v/s Shape Constancy
Size Constancy-
 The perception that an object maintains the same size despite
changes in the size of the proximal stimulus.
E.g. Muller-Lyer Illusion.
Shape Constancy
 The impression that the shape of an object remains the same
regardless of how it is viewed.

E.g. Observing an open door at different angles.

The Gestalt School of Psychology
 Focus on the distinction between the perceptual whole, and its
parts.
 The whole has unique attributes that are independent from the
nature of its parts.
German psychologists – Karl Koffka, Max Wertheimer, Wolfgang
Kohler.
Principles mostly derived from the study of static two-
dimensional figures.
Used Isomorphism to explain their principles.
 The Gestalt School of Psychology
FORM PERCEPTION-

Segregation of the whole display into objects (figure) and the

background (ground). Also know as the Figure-Ground Law.
E.g, Rubin’s Vase,Salvador Dali’s painting- The Slave Market with the
Disappearing Bust of Voltaire.
 Gestalt Approaches to Perception, or
The Principles of Form­perception
1. Proximity
Tendency to see objects that are close to each other as forming a
group.
 Gestalt Approaches to Perception, or
The Principles of Form­perception

2. Similarity
Tendency to group objects on the basis of their similarity.
 Gestalt Approaches to Perception, or
The Principles of Form­perception

3. Good Continuation
When there is an intersection between two or more objects,
people tend to perceive each object as a single uninterrupted
object.
 Gestalt Approaches to Perception, or
The Principles of Form­perception

4. Closure
Tendency to perceptually close up, or complete, objects that are
not, in fact, complete.
 Gestalt Approaches to Perception, or
The Principles of Form­perception

5. Common Fate
Humans perceive visual elements that move in the same speed
and/or direction as parts of a single stimulus.
 Gestalt Approaches to Perception, or
The Principles of Form­perception

6. Symmetry
Tendency to perceive objects as forming mirror images about their
center.
 Gestalt Approaches to Perception, or
The Principles of Form­perception

7. Parallelism
 Elements that are parallel to each other are seen as more
related than elements not parallel to each other.
 Gestalt Approaches to Perception, or
The Principles of Form­perception

8. Focal Point
 Elements with a point of interest, emphasis or difference will
capture and hold the viewer’s attention.
 Gestalt Approaches to Perception, or
The Principles of Form­perception

9. Past Experiences
 Elements tend to be perceived according to an observer's past
experience.
It is the weakest Gestalt Principle.
 Gestalt Approaches to Perception, or
The Principles of Form­perception

 Rock and Palmer (1990) suggested two new laws of grouping

themselves :
1. The Law of Common Region-
Observers tend to group together elements that are contained
within the same perceived region or area.
2. The Law of Connectedness-
Tendency “to perceive any uniform, connected region—such as a
spot, line or more extended area—as a single unit
Figure- A Figure- B
 The Law of Prägnanz

We tend to perceive any given visual array in a way that most
simply organizes the different elements into a stable and
coherent form.

Each of the Gestalt principles of visual perception supports the

Law of Prägnanz.

Also known as The Law of Good Figure/Law of Simplicity

 Perceptual Groupings in Infants

 Quinn and Bhatt (2006) found in an experiment involving infants,

that, grouping according to lightness is a much stronger cue for
perceptual organization in infants than form.
 Evaluation of the Gestalt Approach

 Led to important discoveries in the fields of perceptual organization.

 Relied heavily on introspective reports.

Explanation using Isomorphism (Iso meaning ‘sameness’ and

Morphism meaning ‘Of Form’).
Assumption about electrical field forces in the brain helping to produce
the experience of a stable perceptual organization was proved wrong

The Gestaltists de-emphasized the complexities involved when laws

of grouping are in conflict.
 Applications of Gestalt Laws of Perception in 
Modern Day

 One of the major uses of the Gestalt Principles is in the area of

Traditional Art, Digital Art, Graphic design or Logo Designing.
 In Presentations and Infographics.
 Advertisements, Posters, Book covers, Magazines etc.
 GPS directions in the phone, Apps and their ‘Unread Badges’ etc.
 Architecture, Sculpting etc.

 Visual training exercises for Military Personnel- to screen out

distractions and stay focused on target.
 Theconcept of Minimalism- The term often colloquially refers to
anything that is spare or stripped to its essentials.
Law of Proximity

Figure-Ground Law of Closure Law of Simplicity/

Law of Prägnanz
 References
 Galotti, K. M. (2008). Cognitive psychology in and out of the
laboratory. Belmont: CA.
 Sternberg, R. J., Sternberg, K., & Mio, J. S. (2012). Cognitive
psychology (6th ed.). Australia: Wadsworth/Cengage Learning.
 Eysenck, M. W., & Keane, M. T. (2004). Cognitive psychology: A
student's handbook (4th ed.). Hove: Psychology Press.
Quinlan, P., & Dyson, B. (2011). Cognitive psychology. México:
Pearson Educación.
Braisby, N., & Gellatly, A. (2005). Cognitive psychology. Oxford:
Oxford University Press.
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