Gestalt Psychology

Arose as a reaction to the ‘elementalism’ of Wudnt’s Voluntarism and Titchener’s Structuralism. Both were
molecular approaches (as was Behaviorism, but in a different way) which sought to reduce conscious
experience to fundamental elements. Gestalters argued that reduction is destruction. Only a molar or
phenomenological approach can preserve the conscious experience as it is actually experienced.
Roots of Gestalt movement:
Immanuel Kant: argued that sensory inputs are meaningfully organized by innate faculties of the mind that
impose time, space, causality and other meaningful categories onto the inputs.
Ernst Mach: Physicist who argued that we impose time form (which creates a melody from disconnect notes)
and space form (which recognizes circularity in a variety of varied inputs) on incoming sensory signals. This
was related to ‘field theory’ in physics where interacting energies create emergent patterns.
Christian von Ehrenfels: famous paper written in 1890 “On Gestalt Qualities.” Argued that meaningful
perceptual patterns (such as melodies or face form) are emergent in the mind, not present in the sensory
inputs themselves. While not considered the beginning of Gestalt movement, did inspire Wertheimer.
William James: Provided compelling philosophical arguments (discussed earlier) for why the ‘stream’ of
consciousness could not be reduced.
 Max Wertheimer (1880-1943)
• Considered the founder of Gestalt Psychology. Student of Kulpe at Wurzburg School, also influenced by Ehrenfels and
Stumpf. Held numerous academic positions, most famous for his work at the University of Freiberg in Germany.
• The Phi Phenomenon and the birth of Gestalt Psychology. Phi is an instance where meaning (movement) is present in
perception, but not in the elements that make up the sensory signal. Sum is greater than parts, the idea behind Gestalt.

His 1912 paper “Experimental

studies of the perception of
movement” is considered to
mark the beginning of the
Gestalt Psychology movement.
He was hardly the first to
discuss the Phi or apparent
motion phenomenon, so why
did this have such impact?

Both Wundt and Helmholtz argued that the Phi phenomenon was the result of learning processes. Wundt
contended that it had to do with eye movements being associated with following the pattern of lights similar to
how the eyes followed an actual moving signal. Helmholtz argued similarly saying that experience with moving
signals produced ‘unconscious inferences’ of movement for a range of similar signals. But Wertheimer showed that
movement would be perceived under highly novel conditions, such as a single light seeming to move simultaneously
in two different directions. Eye movements, past experience, and learning seem not to be able to explain this.
Instead, Wertheimer argued it was the result of innate brain processes that sought ‘Pragnanz’ or simple, stable,
symmetrical form.

Gestalt isomorphism or
psychophysical
isomorphism: idea is that
the pattern of energy in
the sensory signal will
generate a similar pattern
of energy in the brain.
However, there will not be
a perfect one-to-one
correspondence. Instead,
brain will take sensory
inputs and using Pragnanz,
will create an energy
pattern that is the most
stable, meaningful,
simplest interpretation of
the sensory signal. This
was contrary to constancy
hypothesis of structuralist
and other elementalist
theories.
Pragnanz and brain field theory
• Pragnanz is the central Gestalt law of
perception. It states that the brain has a natural
tendency to construct meaning that (given
nature of the sensory inputs) represents the
simplest, most stable, most regular and
symmetrical understanding of the world. This is
a physical property of the brain, similar to how
magnetic energy fields naturally create stable,
organized patterns in the physical world.
Field theory in physics deals with the how
interacting elements and their physical
properties combine to create an overall
pattern or force. In contrast the
reductionism of Newtonian Physics, force
fields are emergent from elements. Parts
create a whole that has unique properties
not predicable based on simple addition of
elements. Gestalt Psychology was an
attempt to apply field theory to the mind.
 Gestalt Laws of Organization
• Brain’s natural tendency toward Pragnanz interacts with organization present in sensory signals to create
ultimate perception. This interaction can be described by various laws of organization.

Figure/ground: another example

of Pragnanz at work. Also
lightness constancy, not due to
learning but constant ratios of
light to dark even though
absolute levels of illumination
vary across figure.

Kohler argued that organizational laws do not depend on

learning or experience. Laws of good contin or prox operating
below create meaningless forms while masking a familiar
word with which we are more familiar
 Wolfgang Kohler (1887-1967)
• Studied under Stumpf and later joined Wertheimer and Koffka at University of Frankfurt. Well-known for his insight
learning studies at at the Tenerife anthropoid research station on the Canary Islands (off of the West coast of Africa)
where apparently he also did a little spying for German military during WWI.
In one famous study, Kohler A problem creates an To study insight learning
punished chickens for eating unnatural state of Kohler would set up
grain off of a white sheet but disequilibrium. Animal situations where a problem
rewarded them for eating off searches environment existed but the solution to
a grey sheet. Later when in cognitive trial and the problem was also
presented with grey vs. black, error to try to create a present, only it required re-
most chickens chose to eat off new pattern that organizing recognizing
the black. Why? Kohler restores equilibrium patterns, such as the
argued (contra the (solves problem). famous Sultan stacking
behaviorists) that the chickens Motivation remains crates to get access to a
learned a relational pattern, until new pattern is out-of-reach banana.
not a simple s-r bond. achieved.
Transpositional learning, the Contrary to work by Thorndike, Kohler’s studies
learning of problem solving showed no evidence of incremental learning.
principles or relations. Insight learning: (1) onset of solution is This was true, he argued, because his studies
sudden and complete, (2) error-free were more ecologically valid. Puzzle box and
performance, (3) long-lasting memory, (4) other lab learning studies presented the animal
with a highly impoverished environment where
widely applicable principles or patterns.
insight was impossible.
 Kurt Koffka (1886-1941)
In 1921, Koffka published an important
book on child development The Growth of
the Mind. Book demonstrated how Gestalt
Psychology was applicable to a wide range
of issues including developmental
psychology. Gestalt Psychology tackled
other aspects of psychology as well
including learning, cognition, memory, and
physiological.
Made important distinction between
geographical environment and behavioral
environment. Geo is the actual physical
environment, behavioral is our subjective
interpretation based on organized
perceptual patterns established in the
brain. Behavioral determines the kinds of
actions we can engage in, problems we can
solve or risks we might encounter. We live
in the behavioral environment, not geo
environment.
• Studied under Stumpt, then
moved to University of
Frankfurt where he worked
with Wertheimer and Kohler.
• In 1922 published
“Perception: an introduction
to Gestalt theorie.” Two
Koffka on memory: brain has effects: made Gestalt ideas
natural tendency to more widespread among
regularize or stabilize American Psychologists, but
memory patterns. Initial also gave erroneous
sensory activity = memory impression that Gestalt
process. Retained memory theory was primarily about
process = memory trace. perception.
Future processes will be
affected by traces such that
they will, over time, tend
toward patterns similar to
traces, creating a trace
system (a prototype or
template used to interpret
later signals.
 Kurt Lewin (1890-1947)
• Same educational route as others, studied under Stumpf, then to Frankfurt to work with Wertheimer, Kohler, and Koffka. Represents the
Gestalt approach in social psychology.
• Argued that Psychology was too Aristotelian, that is, concerned with identifying ‘essences’ in human nature, internal forces (personality
traits, genetic dispositions, instincts, etc) that were responsible for behavior. Instead, argued that Psychology needed to be more Galilean,
that is, it ought to identify external forces (social/environmental factors) responsible for behavior at any given moment in time. Thus, the
acting person can be thought of as an element in the larger social pattern and as part of that pattern is affected by it.
Bluma Zeigarnik student of Lewin. Found that
For Lewin, the individual was always operating
incomplete tasks remembered better than completed
within a Life Space that represented the totality tasks, presumably because of continued motivation.
of the psychological facts (PF) affecting him/her. Zeigarnik effect
PF are internal (desires, states, needs, hunger,
pain, etc), external (social and environmental
signals, objects) and past relevant memories (he’s
angry, that tastes good, etc,). Only PF in
awareness can affect behavior: Principle of
contemporaneity.

Extending from Kohler’s work on problem solving, Lewin argues

that internal needs (desires, goals, unpleasant feelings, etc) create
tension and disequilibrium which we are motivated to reduce
using environmental resources.