APPARENT SIZE AS A DETERMINER OF FIGURAL AFTER-EFFECTS. III

K olehmainen , K. Apparent size as a determiner of figural after-effects. 111. Scand. J. Psychol ., 1969, 10 , 71–73.—Two rectangles were presented as an inspection figure in a gradient drawing, one appearing to be behind the fixation point and the other in front of it, because of the gradient effect. Test figures (circles) appeared to differ in size after inspection of this pattern. It is argued that this result supports the explanation suggested for the results of the earlier experiments in the present series (1968) that size-changes of the test figures in this kind of situation are connected with an after-effect in the third dimension.     

APPARENT SIZE AS A DETERMINER OF FIGURAL AFTER-EFFECTS. I

K olehmainen , K. Apparent size as a determiner of figural after-effects. I. Scand. J. Psychol ., 1968, 9, 230–236.—Apparent size as a determiner of figural after-effects (FAE) was studied by presenting the inspection figures in drawings which appeared three-dimensional because of gradient-effects. Significant FAEs were found. It is argued that apparent size does not determine FAE directly but an apparent decrement in the size of the test figure is connected to an after-effect in third-dimension.     

APPARENT PROPERTIES OF INSPECTION FIGURES AS DETERMINERS OF FIGURAL AFTER-EFFECTS

Figural after-effects (FAE) were studied using the Hering, the Ehrenstein, and the Orbisson illusion, patterns in two ways. In one condition, the total pattern was used as inspection figure (IF), and that part of the pattern in which the illusion normally appears, as test figure (TF). The resulting FAE was in a direction opposite to that of the illusion. In the second condition, the illusion producing part of the total pattern served as IF, and the illusion suffering part as TF. This produced an after-effect, the direction of which was the same as that of the illusion.     

APPARENT WEIGHT DIFFERENCES AS A SOURCE OF AFTER-EFFECTS

Two experiments are reported. In the first, the influence of stimulus size on apparent weight, i.e., the size-weight illusion, was scaled. The relationship between heaviness and size could be described by a simple power function. In the second experiment it was demonstrated that the illusory weight differences give rise to aftereffects. The size of the after-effect increased monotonically with the amount of apparent weight difference.     

FACTORS INFLUENCING THE APPARENT VELOCITY OF VISUAL MOVEMENT AFTER-EFFECTS

D ureman , I. Factors influencing the apparent velocity of visual movement after-effects. Scand. J. Psychol ., 1962, 3 , 132–136.—Estimates of speed of apparent visual movement after-effects (VMAE) were undertaken with induction speed varied in five logarithmic steps from 9° to 144° per second. Two alternative test intervals 0.5 and 1.0 sec were used for intermittent inspection of a stationary target. At both inspection intervals VMAE-velocity estimates were found to vary in a systematic way with induction speed. Comparing values from the two test intervals, the 0.5 sec interval was found to yield significantly higher speed of VMAE than the 1.0 sec interval.     

ECOLOGY AND SOCIALIZATION AS FACTORS IN FIGURAL ASSIMILATION AND THE RESOLUTION OF BINOCULAR RIVALRY1

L'étude des facteurs culturels en matière de perception et L'étude des facteurs culturels en matière de personnalité ont été, jusqu' à présent, relativement séparées. L'A. propose un modèle qui permet d'intégrer les deux domaines en faisant L'hypothèse d'une relation indirecte entre L'ecologie et les réponses perceptives et d'une relation directe qui correspondrait à celle mise en évidence par les études de laboratoires classiques entre fréquence de L'expérience passée et réponse perceptive. Pour valider le modèle, L'A. utilise les données de deux expériences qui ont été réalisées avec des sujets Temne et Esquimaux et qui portent L'une sur la reproduction de figures ambiguës présentées au tachistoscope et L'autre sur la résolution de rivalités binoculaires.     

MEASUREMENT OF THE INTENSITY OF AN UNDERLYING FIGURAL PROCESS: A methodological study

K ünnapas , T. M. Measurement of the intensity of an underlying figural process. A methodological study. Scand. J. Psychol ., 1961, 2 , 174–184.—A method is proposed for studying the intensity of the figural process underlying the well-known phenomenon of figural fluctuations. A metric model is presented according to which a measure of the intensity of the underlying process is obtained in units of dispersion. The model is illustrated by an experimental example. An equation is given which is analogous to that of the damped harmonic vibration. Four parameters are involved in this equation. A technique for determining the parameters is developed. Very good agreement between theoretical and empirical scale values demonstrates the applicability of the proposed method.     

CONVERGENCE AS A CUE T O PERCEIVED SIZE AND DISTANCE

A wire mesh was used as stimulus object in the old 'wall-paper experiment'. Fixating a small object on the near side of the wire mesh, the mesh appears of course double. By adjusting the fixation object back and forth a position can be reached at which fusion of the double image is obtained. At this moment the wire mesh appears to shift location. A nearly perfect one-to-one correspondence obtained between the perceived distance of the 'fused.' wire mesh and the actual convergence distance. It is concluded that the convergence mechanism may provide perfectly specific information to the visual system concerning the spatial location of objects.     

PREDICTIVE EFFICIENCY AS A FUNCTION OF AMOUNT OF INFORMATION

The effect of changing the amount of information on judges' predictive efficiency in a clinical prediction task was studied. Thirty judges predicted 30 students' average achievement scores on the basis of different amount of test data. One group of judges had information about the intercorrelations among the tests and the ecologkal validity of the tests. Another group of judges had only informahion about which tests were used. The predictive efficiency was not a monotonically increasing function of amount of test data. The most marked result was that the relative predictive efficiency decreased from four to six tests in both groups.     

A COGNITIVE THEORY OF PSYCHOPHYSICS. II

The fundamental premise of this paper is that subjects code information in such a way that a variety of psychophysical functions can be obtained with the same stimulus attributes. Four terms must be defined in order to understand psychophysical equations. These terms are: (1) The subject's perceptual channel capacity, (2) the subject's cognitive channel capacity, (3) the experimenter's measure of stimulus information, and (4) the context variables associated with the psychophysical procedure.     

EVOLUTION AS A RELIGION: A COMPARISON OF PROPHECIES

Abstract. The idea of evolution functions today as a myth as well as a scientific theory. This use distorts it in some surprising ways. In particular, predictions of the predestined future development of superhumans (Omega Man) are sometimes treated by scientists as if they were an established part of the theory of evolution. Since they rest on the endless–escalator model of evolution, incompatible with Darwinian methods and not separately argued for, they have no standing at all. This phenomenon, and others like it, seem to indicate spiritual needs which are being ignored and thus finding illicit satisfaction. The position is dangerous and needs more attention.     

PERCEIVED INTENSITY OF ODOR AS A FUNCTION OF TIME OF ADAPTATION

The perceived intensity of odor under conditions of constant stimulation with hydrogen sulphide was investigated in two experiments. A two-step scaling method, involving cross-modality matching and numerical scaling of the matching continuum, was used for measuring intensity of odor. Perceptual intensity was found to decrease exponentially with increase of time of stimulation. Preliminary data concerning the subsequent recovery phase were also obtained.