gestalt psychology

apparent movement discovery - Wertheimer

in 1910 Wertheimer, on a train, had an idea that our perceptions are different from the sensations that comprise them; he bought a stroboscope and conducted flashing lights experiment in a hotel room

approach-approach conflict

in this case, you have a choice between two options, both of which you find attractive

approach-avoidance conflict

this kind of conflict occurs when you have mixed feelings about both of your options

avoidance-avoidance conflict

this kind of conflict occurs when you have two options, both of which are unpleasant

phi phenomenon

- "phi phenomenon" paper published in 1912 (Max Wertheimer) - formal beginning of the school of gestalt psychology - phi phenomenon = apparent motion - all movement in TV, movies, and computers is illusory

spatial and temporal form meanings

- a wide variety of sensory elements can give rise to the same perception, therefore, some perceptions are independent of any particular cluster of sensory elements - the whole is more than the sum of its parts

Wundt explanation - Wertheimer response

- apparent motion can go in two directions at the same time and eye movements cannot - experiment showing bar that appears to split in two parts fallings to the left and right - 220 years to falsify theory

concept of force fields in physics

- electricity and magnetism expanded on gravitational forces of brain that influence stimulus information sent from sense organs - made to look more scientific than really was (bullshit)

gestalt laws of perceptual organization - law of proximity

- features that are near to one another tend to be grouped together, they tend to be seen as a unit - ex. II II II

gestalt laws of perceptual organization - law of similarity

- features that are similar to one another tend to be grouped together, they tend to be seen as a unit - ex. O O O O X X X X O O O O X X X X

gestalt laws of perceptual organization - law of good continuation

- features that form a line or a curve tend to be grouped together, they tend to be seen as a unit

gestalt laws of perceptual organization - law of common fate

- features that move together, tend to be grouped together, they tend to be seen as a unit

figure-ground relationship

- figure is the object you are paying attention to that is clear and unified - ground is the background and consists of everything that is not being attended to

figure-ground segregation

- figure object and background can be changed by shifting attention - partly under voluntary control - vase/face figure

phi phenomenon - Wundt explanation

- first your eyes fixate on the left position then on the right position; the kinesthetic sensation during the eye movement is similar to movement sensations of real motion - the whole does equal the sum of the parts

gestalt laws of perceptual organization - law of closure

- if a figure has a gap, we tend to close the gap and not notice it

introspection - examination of subjective experiences

- introspection should be supplemented by objective measures (e.g., RT, EEG) - impossible to resolve conflicts when different labs produce contradictory results using introspection alone

gestalt psych definition

- the type of psychology that studies whole, intact segments of behavior and cognitive experience - was intended to be a complete school of psychology, not just a branch specialized for the study of perception

perceptual organization

- the way we respond to objects as if they are the same, even though the actual stimulation our senses receive may vary (objects and background) - the coarsest level of organization divides the perceptual field into two parts, figure and ground

spatial forms (pattern, form, configuration)

a diverse collection of circles would cause completely different patterns of stimulation on the retina and, consequently, completely different sensations - nonetheless, they are all perceived as circles

temporal forms

a melody is recognizable as the same no matter what key or tempo it is played in, this would activate receptor cells of the ear differently and generate different sensations - nonetheless, the same melody would be perceived in each case