Why do we see the way we do?
One of the more interesting topics that came up for discussion this semester was the Gestalt principles of design. When I first heard the term 'Gestalt' being used in reference to information design, I was quite surprised as I had always associated it with disciplines such as psychology, metaphysics, and philosophy. However, it was very interesting to learn that the same theories of perception proposed by Gestalt practitioners as to how we see the world around us, can also be applied to the perception of what makes 'good' design.
Gestalt is the German word for 'unified whole' and it emphasizes that the whole of anything is greater than its parts [1]. Gestalt theory is also referred to as the 'Law of Simplicity' as it proposes that all objects and scenes can be observed in their simplest forms [2]. The Gestalt principles used in design are derived from Gestalt theories proposed in the 1920s when a group of psychologists sought to understand how humans typically gain meaningful perceptions from chaotic stimuli around them - how we perceive order out of chaos - and proposed 'laws of grouping' to describe this [3].
In the century since, designers have incorporated Gestalt principles into their work and, without even having the vocabulary to explain it, we immediately 'know' whether or not we think a design is good. Therefore, it was a real eye-opener (no pun intended) for me to learn that there are concrete reasons behind the choices that designers make e.g. the fact that we visually group items into the 'figure' or 'background'; that we expect similar objects to be grouped together, and that the proximity of objects influences how we perceive them [4].
This explains why symmetrical and geometrical patterns are so pleasing to the eye; and why if a line is out of place and disrupts a pattern, it is immediately obvious as it is visually jarring to our perception. This all seems like common sense to us now but the fact that a group of people began to seriously question all of this a century ago and sought to encapsulate 'laws' to describe how we naturally seek order from chaos, intrigues me.
This brief introduction to Gestalt theory was an interesting deviation from our usual coursework on technical communication and instructional design, as it really got me thinking about the metaphysical aspects of what we were learning. I have always had a passing interest in philosophy and one of my minor modules in my Computer Science degree covered the Principles of Logic. It never ceases me to amaze me that how much we 'know' was often investigated further by someone whose quizzical mind required them to actually research and document why we know what we know.
The human mind is indeed a wondrous thing and the fact that we are still questioning how - and why - we think the way we do, is a timeless question that may never be fully answered. However, it is a fascinating fact that a group of psychologists, posing the question of 'Why do we see the way we do?' a hundred years ago led directly to the fields of graphic design and visual information that we are so familiar with today.
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Gestalt is the German word for 'unified whole' and it emphasizes that the whole of anything is greater than its parts [1]. Gestalt theory is also referred to as the 'Law of Simplicity' as it proposes that all objects and scenes can be observed in their simplest forms [2]. The Gestalt principles used in design are derived from Gestalt theories proposed in the 1920s when a group of psychologists sought to understand how humans typically gain meaningful perceptions from chaotic stimuli around them - how we perceive order out of chaos - and proposed 'laws of grouping' to describe this [3].
In the century since, designers have incorporated Gestalt principles into their work and, without even having the vocabulary to explain it, we immediately 'know' whether or not we think a design is good. Therefore, it was a real eye-opener (no pun intended) for me to learn that there are concrete reasons behind the choices that designers make e.g. the fact that we visually group items into the 'figure' or 'background'; that we expect similar objects to be grouped together, and that the proximity of objects influences how we perceive them [4].
This brief introduction to Gestalt theory was an interesting deviation from our usual coursework on technical communication and instructional design, as it really got me thinking about the metaphysical aspects of what we were learning. I have always had a passing interest in philosophy and one of my minor modules in my Computer Science degree covered the Principles of Logic. It never ceases me to amaze me that how much we 'know' was often investigated further by someone whose quizzical mind required them to actually research and document why we know what we know.
The human mind is indeed a wondrous thing and the fact that we are still questioning how - and why - we think the way we do, is a timeless question that may never be fully answered. However, it is a fascinating fact that a group of psychologists, posing the question of 'Why do we see the way we do?' a hundred years ago led directly to the fields of graphic design and visual information that we are so familiar with today.
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"Often in great discovery, the most important thing is that
a certain question is found." ~ Max Wertheimer
[4] Soegaard, M. n.d. Gestalt principles of form perception, Interaction Design, available: online. [accessed 18 March 2020]
a certain question is found." ~ Max Wertheimer
References
[1] Koffka, K. (1935) Principles of Gestalt Psychology, New York: Harcourt, Brace.
[2] Palmer, S. (2003) 'Visual perception of objects', In Healy, A., Proctor, R. and Weiner, I., eds., Handbook of Psychology: Experimental psychology, 4, John Wiley and Sons.
[3] Wolfe, J., Kluender, K., Levi, D., Barthoshuk, L., Herz, R., Klatzky, R. and Lederman, S. (2008) 'Gestalt grouping principles', Sensation and Perception, 2nd ed., Sinauer Associates.
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