A schema for common cents

Drawings from memory of a penny, nickel, dime, and quarter were obtained from 125 undergraduates. The modal recalls for the heads of all four coins were identical, suggesting that a schema for coins exists. In an attempt to have the schema produced directly, another 75 students designed either a 2-, 7-, or 20-cent piece that would fit into our present currency. The modal drawing for this task was identical to the modal recalls. The schema for the heads derived from these experiments differs from existing coins and is not an average of them.