GESTALT THEORY

GESTALT PSYCHOLOGY

 Gestalt psychology is a school of thought

that looks at the human mind and behavior
as a whole. Originating in the work of Max
Wertheimer, Gestalt psychology formed
partially as a response to the structuralism
of Wilhelm Wundt. 
DEVELOPMENT

 The development of this area of psychology

was influenced by a number of thinkers,
including Immanuel Kant, Ernst Mach and
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
The fundamental "formula “

 of Gestalt theory might be expressed in this

way,” Max Wertheimer wrote. “There are
wholes, the behaviour of which is not
determined by that of their individual
elements, but where the part-processes are
themselves determined by the intrinsic
nature of the whole. It is the hope of Gestalt
theory to determine the nature of such
wholes” (1924).
Major Gestalt Psychologists

 Max Wertheimer
 Kurt Koffka
 Wolfgang Kohler
Gestalt Laws of Perceptual
Organization

 Have you ever noticed how a series of flashing lights

often appears to be moving, such as neon signs or
strands of Christmas lights? According to Gestalt
psychology, this apparent movement happens
because our minds fill in missing information. This
belief that the whole is greater than the sum of the
individual parts led to the discovery of several
different phenomena that occur during perception.
LAWS

 The Law of Similarity

 The Law of Pragnanz
 The Law of Proximity
 The Law of Continuity
 The Law of Closure
The Law of Similarity
 The law of similarity suggests that things
similar things tend to appear grouped
together. Grouping can occur in both visual
and auditory stimuli.
The Law of Pragnanz
 The word pragnanz is a German term
meaning "good figure." The law of Pragnanz
is sometimes referred to as the law of good
figure or the law of simplicity. This law holds
that objects in the environment are seen in a
way that makes them appear as simple as
possible.
The Law of Proximity
 According to the law of proximity, things that
are near each other seem to be grouped
together.
The Law of Continuity
 The law of continuity holds that points that
are connected by straight or curving lines are
seen in a way that follows the smoothest
path. Rather than seeing separate lines and
angles, lines are seen as belonging together.
The Law of Closure
 According to the law of closure, things are
grouped together if they seem to complete
some entity. Our brains often ignore
contradictory information and fill in gaps in
information.