Gestalt Principles Of Form Perception

Expanding upon figure-ground perception, Max Wertheimer the founder of Gestalt psychology, proposed a set of additional inborn organising tendencies known as Gestalt laws.

Below you will find a description of each of these Gestalt laws or principles in form perception.

Proximity

The first law of proximity states that depending on how close the individual elements of a Gestalt are, will determine our perception of it.

For example, if four dots are arranged as a square, then our perception of that square can be altered by changing how close the individuals dots are to each other.

In the example below the dots are arranged within close proximity to each other, which gives us a strong impression of a square.

However in the following example, the dots are further apart which gives a weaker impression of a square.

Although it is not practical for me to do so here, if you were  to mentally expand the distance between the dots so they expand further and further apart, you will get an idea of how proximity between the elements of a Gestalt (organised whole) can affect your perception of it.

A similar principle can be found when looking at constellations in the night sky. The nearness of certain stars to each other allows us to see outlines of images within them.

Similarity

Similarity refers to how similar the elements that make up a Gestalt are to each other. Whereby the more similar the elements are, the easier it will be to understand the whole.

For example, the word “EruptingMind” is written with all the individuals letters (elements) in the same colour. As a result, the organised whole (EruptingMind) is easily understood.

However, if I were to now use different colours for the letters such as “EruptingMind” the dissimilarity between the individual letters makes the whole less coherent or recognisable.

So the more similar things are to each other, the more likely we are to see them as a whole. The more dissimilar things are to each other, the more likely we are to see them as being separate from each other.

Another example of the similarity principle can be found in the example below. Note how the similar coloured dots appear to form a line, as though they were one unit.

Closure

Closure refers to the brains tendency to fill in gaps of information, so that something becomes a complete whole.

For example, if you look at the picture below you will see a circle and a triangle.

Although you may see a circle and triangle in the picture above, in reality there is no circle or triangle.

The reason you see these shapes is because the brain has a tendency to fill in the gaps for objects which are familiar to us.

Another example of closure can be seen in the picture below.

Closure also occurs when you watch TV. Even though what you perceive is fluid movement, what you are actually seeing at the level of sensation are a series of still flashing images. It is your perception of those images which makes them appear to move.

Common Fate

Common fate occurs when all the elements of an object move together, which makes them distinguishable from a background.

For example, if you are walking outside in the park and there is a green snake lying still in the grass, you would probably not notice it.

But should that snake begin to move, you would notice it immediately because its movement causes your brain to organise it into a figure against a background.

Another example of common fate can be seen below. Here the dots that move together are seen as a single unit, as a line.

Summary

• Proximity refers to how close the individual elements of a gestalt are. The closer the elements, the stronger the overall impression.

• Similarity between elements causes us to group them together as an organised whole.

• When the brain fills in incomplete information by itself, this is known as closure. It is also another example of how our experience at the level of sensation differs from our experience at the level of perception.

• Common fate occurs when all the elements of an object move together. This results in us organising the object into a figure, thereby allowing us to distinguish it from a background.