Abstract
Determinants of apparent movement direction were systematically combined. The stimulus situation used was one which ordinarily produces a tendency to see movement from two sides to the center. This tendency can be modified to produce movement to the left or right. The determinants used in the study were (1) fixation to one side of the stimulus; (2) movement connotations in the stimulus figures (meaning); and (3) identity (vs dissimilarity) of stimulus figures. Fixation was paired with meaning (a weak determinant) and with identity (a strong determinant). In these pairs, the variables were combined (a) “reinforcing” each other and (b) “opposing” each other. The results did not conform to a simple summation model, but rather showed that each set of determinants acts in unique combination. The effectiveness of any given determinant in the perceptual process depends in part on the other determinants operating in the situation.
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