Köhler rediscovered: The anti-ringelmann effect

A current focus of research on individual versus group performance is social loafing, the decrease in individual effort that occurs when the individual works within a cooperative group rather than alone. This result is also referred to as the ‘Ringelmann effect’. But what has been ignored until now is the increment in group performance through systematic variation of individual performance rates within the group, although this effect was reported by Moede (1927) in the same article which influenced research on the Ringlemann effect. Within a narrow range of performance rates from 4.5 to 3.5 in dyads Kohler found an increase in group performance to a level above that of the individual performances. Kohler obtained comparable results from 3–person, and 4–person groups using the experimental procedure of weight lifting and winch turning. This phenomenon should be called the ‘Kohler effect’; although it is still to be replicated with modern ergometers.     

The Köhler Group Motivation Gain: How to Motivate the ‘Weak Links’ in a Group

A recurring question of successful group work is how to maintain high task motivation of the individual members. This paper reviews research on one well documented group motivation gain phenomenon, where group members are more highly motivated than comparable individual performers – the Köhler motivation gain effect. The basic effect is attributed to two psychological mechanisms, one involving upward social comparisons and a second involving the indispensability of group members’ efforts. In addition to summarizing research on the discovery and causes of the basic effect, this review identifies probable moderators of each contributing causal mechanism. Moreover, promising topics for future research as well as implications for the application of the Köhler effect in real group work are discussed.     

The Aspect‐Perception Passages: A Critical Investigation of Köhler's Isomorphism Principle1

In this paper I argue that Wittgenstein's aim in the aspect‐perception passages is to critically evaluate a specific hypothesis. The target hypothesis in these passages is the Gestalt psychologist Köhler's “isomorphism principle.” According to this principle, there are neural correlates of conscious perceptual experience, and these neural correlates determine the content of our perceptual experiences. Wittgenstein's argument against the isomorphism principle comprises two steps. First, he diffuses the substantiveness of the principle by undermining an important assumption that underpins this principle, namely, that there is a unitary concept of seeing. Next, Wittgenstein argues that some forms of aspect‐perception involve recognitional capacities, the exercise of which is normatively constrained. The normative nature of aspect‐perceiving plays a pivotal role in Wittgenstein's rejection of the isomorphism principle. Aside from the clear exegetical benefits gained from identifying the target hypothesis in the aspect‐perception passages as the isomorphism principle, construing the remarks in the way suggested here is also philosophically interesting in its own right: it shows Wittgenstein engaging directly in the mind–body problem, construed as the problem of intentionality.     

Inspiration in the Act of Reading: A Discussion of Ulrich H. J. Körtner's Hermeneutics

In German‐language theology, Professor Ulrich H. J. Körtner's theory of inspiration, as it relates to the Bible reader's perspective, is well known. His attempt to gain fruitful insights from contemporary literary hermeneutics while linking them to theological concerns makes his approach a valued yet not uncontroversial example of a reception‐aesthetics twist on the Lutheran sola Scriptura. This article presents Körtner's hermeneutical considerations with special regard to inspiration related to the Bible reader's perspective and shows how this approach may be related to some aspects of the crisis that the Lutheran churches and theology suffer today.     

The interiorizing movement of logical life: reflections on Wolfgang Giegerich

The following article is an account of my discovery of and subsequent immersion in Wolfgang Giegerich's work. A sampling of his voluminous writings on the soul is set out to illustrate how he attempts to penetrate thinkingly into psychological phenomena and his claim that this inevitably brings out their internal dialectic. The article summarizes his critiques of Jung, Hillman, and The Red Book: Liber Novus.