Gestalt Psychology Principles (Volume 1, Volume 2)

Author: Kurt Koffka
Publisher:
Publish Date: 1999-01-01
Features: Gestalt psychology originated in 1912. It emphasizes the holism of experience and behavior, opposing the then-popular structuralist theory of elementalism and the behaviorist "stimulus-response" formula. It holds that the whole is not equal to the sum of its parts, consciousness is not a collection of sensory elements, and behavior is not a cycle of reflex arcs. The term "Gestalt" originated from research in the visual field, but it is not limited to the visual field, nor even to the entire sensory domain; its scope of application far exceeds the limits of sensory experience. K?hler believed that the "Gestalt" in the sense of shape was no longer the central focus of Gestalt psychologists. According to the functional definition of this concept, it can include processes such as learning, memory, motivation, emotion, thinking, and movement. Broadly speaking, Gestalt psychologists use the term "Gestalt" to study the entire field of psychological geography.