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Gestalt psychology, gestaltism, or configurationism is a school of psychology and a theory of perception that emphasises the processing of entire patterns and configurations, and not merely individual components. It emerged in the early twentieth century in Austria and Germany as a rejection of basic principles of Wilhelm Wundt's and Edward Titchener's elementalist and structuralist psychology.[1][2][3]
Gestalt psychology is often associated with the adage, "The whole is greater than the sum of its parts". In Gestalt theory, information is perceived as wholes rather than disparate parts which are then processed summatively. As used in Gestalt psychology, the German word Gestalt (/ɡəˈʃtælt, -ˈʃtɑːlt/ gə-SHTA(H)LT,[4][5] German: [ɡəˈʃtalt] ; meaning "form"[6]) is interpreted as "pattern" or "configuration".[7]
It differs from Gestalt therapy, which is only peripherally linked to Gestalt psychology.
- ^ Mather, George (2006). Foundations of Perception. Psychology Press. p. 32. ISBN 978-0-86377-834-6.
- ^ "Gestalt psychology". Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved 2 January 2023.
- ^ Baker, David B., ed. (13 January 2012). The Oxford Handbook of the History of Psychology: Global Perspectives. Oxford University Press, USA. p. 576. ISBN 978-0-19-536655-6.
- ^ Wells, John (3 April 2008). Longman Pronunciation Dictionary (3rd ed.). Pearson Longman. ISBN 978-1-4058-8118-0.
- ^ "Definition of gestalt | Dictionary.com". www.dictionary.com. Retrieved 2 January 2023.
- ^ "Gestalt". The Columbia Encyclopedia. Columbia University Press. 2018. ISBN 9781786848468. Archived from the original on 22 July 2019. Retrieved 1 August 2019.
- ^ "Gestalt psychology". Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc. 1 May 2008. p. 756. ISBN 9781593394929. Archived from the original on 15 April 2021. Retrieved 2 October 2020.