Michael Wertheimer

SOME PHYSIOGNOMIC ASPECTS OF NAMING, OR MALUMA AND TAKETE REVISITED.

In an effort to understand some of the functional determinants of naming, Koehlers maluma-takete demonstration was examined in two studies, to see whether the matching of the nonsense words and nonsense figures could be accounted for on the basis of physiognomic similarity, as measured by the semantic differential. Matching was found to occur overwhelmingly in the expected direction, and the similarity of semantic differential locations of matched pairs was far greater than that of non-matched pairs. This held strikingly for “literal” scales (such as “Angular-Rounded”) but also held to a lesser extent for clearly “non-literal” scales (such as “Fresh-Stale”), indicating that physiognomic properties over and beyond simple literal description of the stimuli were involved. Study of the semantic differential locations of letters composing the nonsense words, and of ratings of the “fittingness” of the letters as names for the nonsense figures, showed that the physiognomic similarity presumably mediating the naming phenomenon may, at least in the Koehler demonstration, reside in the individual letters rather than in some emergent quality of the whole word. All in all, the study attempted to go beyond just checking whether a “fittingness” phenomenon occurs in naming, by exploring processes hypothesized to underlie the “fittingness.” In at least some cases, physiognomic similarity may be the psychological process mediating naming.

A Gestalt perspective on computer simulations of cognitive processes

Abstract Impressive computer simulations of the thinking processes of novices confronting problems and powerful programs displaying artificial intelligence in the solution of problems in highly limited domains are among the recent achievements in the application of the modern computer to issues in cognitive psychology. Missing in such work is the crucial step of understanding , that is, grasping both what is crucial in any given problem and why it is crucial. Classical Gestalt analyses of productive thought emphasized precisely this phenomenon of insight. This article summarizes some of the Gestalt concepts and principles in the psychology of problem solving and creative thinking. Modern cognitive psychology has largely ignored, or has found intractable, the phenomenon of achieving an appropriate representation (an understanding) of a problem domain, and, until a more adequate theory of insight is developed, computer models of genuine human thinking and problem solving will remain incomplete. It is proposed that re-examination of the classical Gestalt literature on problem solving and productive thinking may help guide psychologists in fruitful directions in their effort to improve the simulation of complex human cognitive processes, particularly in the domain of problem solving.

Achievement Motivation, Academic Aptitude, and College Grades

Two instruments recently devised to measure achievement motivation are the Edwards Personal Preference Schedule (PPS) (3) and the picture-story device developed by McClelland and others (5). The latter instrument is a TAT using &dquo;achievement-oriented&dquo; pictures which are projected onto a screen for group administration. Bendig (1) has reported that he found no correlation between the two (r = +.11, N = 244 p >.05); and Birney (2) obtained the same result (r = -.002, N = 300). Studies of the empirical validity of these measures, using academic grade averages as criteria, report conflicting results. McClelland (5, pp. 237-238) reported a positive correlation between grade-point average and his measure (r = .51, N = 30, p <.01), while Lowell (4), using the same two indices, did not find any relation (r = +.05, N = 40, p >.10). McClelland’s study (5, pp. 237-238) suggests that academic ability (as measured by a combination of verbal and mathematical Scholastic Aptitude Test scores) may account for some of the residual variance in prediction of grades from achievement motivation. Morgan (6), corroborating McClelland, found a significantly higher n Achievement score (obtained by rating the TAT stories for achievement need content) for students with high academic grades than for those with low academic grades when ability (ACE) was held constant. No studies seem to have been published as of the

Satiation and the rate of lapse of verbal meaning.

(1958). Satiation and the Rate of Lapse of Verbal Meaning. The Journal of General Psychology: Vol. 59, No. 1, pp. 79-85.

Gestalt perspectives on cognitive science and on experimental psychology.

At the 1st authors request, the 2nd author was interviewed on Gestalt psychologys origins and utility for modern experimental psychology. Wertheimers connections with Gestalt psychologists Max Wertheimer and Wolfgang Köhler and his study of Gestalt problems and methods, give him a special perspective on these issues. Several points for modern psychology emerge from the Gestalt perspective. Phenomena should be studied within their full context; there is a need to acknowledge the domain specificity of principles in experimental psychology; it is wise to study phenomena that either exist in the real world or have close real-world analogues; psychology must recognize interchanges between organisms and surroundings as determinants of behavior; and a data-driven perspective must complement, and sometimes replace, theory-driven searches for broadly applicable, nondomain-specific principles.

Portraits of Pioneers in Developmental Psychology

W.E. Pickren, Foundations of Human Experience. F. Weizmann, B. Harris, Arnold Gesell: The Maturationist. A. Johnson, Florence L. Goodenough: Developmental Pioneer, Innovator, and Mentor. J. Valsiner, Heinz Werner: A Differentiation Theory of Development. R.H. de Freitas Campos, Helena Antipoff: A Quest for Democracy and Human Rights With the Help of Pscyhological Science. W.R. Woodward, Charlotte Buhler: Scientific Entrepreneur in Developmental, Clinical, and Humanistic Psychology. B.C. Beins, Jean Piaget: Theorist of the Childs Mind. A. Yasnitsky, Lev Vygotsky: Philologist and Defectologist, A Sociointellectual Biography. E. Johnston, Lois Barclay Murphy: A Pioneer of Positivity. M.M. Scott, Roger Barker: A Different Kind of Developmentalist. S.C. Oullette, Robert W. White: A Life in the Study of Lives. W.E. Pickren, Joseph McVicker Hunt: Golden Age Psychologist. E.K. Morris, Sidney W. Bijou: Outstanding (and Out Standing) in His Fields. D.A. Dewsbury, John Paul Scott: The Study of Genetics, Development, and Social Behavior. H.L. Pick, Eleanor J. Gibson: Learning to Perceive, Perceiving to Learn. A. Rutherford, Mamie Phipps Clark: Developmental Psychologist, Starting from Strengths. J.R. Snarey, Lawrence Kohlberg: Moral Biography, Moral Psychology, and Moral Pedagogy. W.E. Pickren, Eyes on the Prize: Psychologists and Human Development.

INDUCED COLORS AND COLORS PRODUCED BY CHROMATIC ILLUMINATION MAY HAVE SIMILAR PHYSIOLOGICAL BASES

Thirteen Os obtained afterimages of each of two targets. The “induced” target was a green ring surrounding an achromatic (but phenomenally magenta) disk; the “neutralized” target was the same as the induced one, except that chromatic green illumination was added to the disk so as to make it phenomenally achromatic. Two findings support the conjecture that the retinal process underlying perception of induced colors is similar to that underlying perception of colors produced by chromatic illumination: (1) an induced magenta can be mixed with a green produced by chromatic illumination so as to yield a phenomenally neutral color, and (2) the green in the afterimage of the disk in the induced target was more saturated than the green in the afterimage of the disk in the neutralized target.

Some determinants of associations to French and English words

The effect of language set and language competence on bilingual word associations was studied. Students at varying levels of competence in French were given preliminary instructions in either French or English, and they then took a wordassociation test, consisting of stimulus words in both languages. More advanced students gave more responses in French. Students instructed in French gave a higher percentage of responses in French, and French stimuli produced more French responses for advanced students. There was a strong tendency to respond with a word from the same form class as the stimulus.

Carl Jung and Max Wertheimer on a priority issue

Carl Jung is often cited as the first to use the word association method for the diagnosis of complexes. But was he really the first to do so? The treatment of this issue is examined in several history of psychology and personality texts and other sources. It turns out that Max Wertheimer also performed early studies of the word association method as a technique for the detection of criminal guilt. Published and archival resources make it possible to resolve the occasionally acrimonious controversy between Carl Jung and Wertheimer concerning priority in this use of the method.

The Boulder model: A history of psychology at the University of Colorado

Psychology has been taught at the University of Colorado since shortly after it opened in the late 1870s. Initially, it was tied closely to education, but by the 1920s the Psychology Department stood on its own. Strong doctoral programs emerged by the middle of the twentieth century, including that in clinical psychology. Federal training and research funds soon further strengthened the department, providing national recognition and the resources to establish prominent affiliated research institutes. The departments orientation has been national rather than regional almost from the start.