| Abstract: | In the first experiment, subjects rated the similarity of a sample of pairs of random dot patterns generated from 3 prototypes consisting of either 4, 6, or 9 dots. The results of the experiment tended to confirm the structure imposed on the patterns by the construction method. In the second experiment, subjects learned to classify random patterns generated from 2 prototypes with either short or long interprototype distance and consisting of either 4, 6, or 9 dots in a traditional concept identification task. After acquisition, memory for old and new distortions and the prototype, which was not presented during learning, was assessed. The tendency to call a pattern “new” increased with the distance between the pattern and its prototype. In a subsequent transfer test, all subjects saw patterns of either 4, 6, or 9 dots. Performance was above chance and the transfer from larger to smaller patterns tended to be greater than the transfer from smaller to larger patterns. This is consistent with a process of schema formation based on features common to most exemplars of the category. The results are discussed in relation to several theories of concept learning and schema abstraction. |
