Oppel-Kundt deception

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The Oppel-Kundt illusion , a visual illusion of perception , is the apparent extension of a horizontal line when it is divided by regularly arranged elements, for example dots or vertical lines.

history

The description of the deception goes back to the physicists Johann Joseph Oppel (1815–1894) and August Kundt .

observation

The subjectively perceived length of a horizontal distance between two marks depends on the number of dividing elements (vertical lines or dots), with the apparent length first increasing with the number of elements and then decreasing again after a flat maximum.

Experiments

Method of measuring illusion, as used by Spiegel. The segment S1 / S2 (left) divided by short vertical lines appears longer than the undivided S3 / S4.

Extensive experiments were carried out by Spiegel. The picture shows an experimental set-up in the way that he used it. These are interchangeable black cardboard boxes with slots that are backlit. The perceived length of the distance S1 / S2 changes with the number of short vertical lines. By moving the gap S4, the distance S3 / S4 can be adjusted to the apparent length S1 / S2 and this can be measured. Surkys examined the effect of points on a perceived distance. A comparable effect is observed on a square with a constant side length, which is divided into a checkerboard pattern: The perceived side length only increases with an increasing number of fields, but then decreases again when it is divided into even more fields.

interpretation

With regard to the apparent length of a line, Spiegel suspects a kind of force which - in perception - pulls an empty space between two boundaries together, whereby the vertical lines offer a kind of resistance. Another possible interpretation is to relate the perception of size to the information density, i.e. the richness of detail of the stimulus.

Edgar Erdfelder and Faul investigate an older hypothesis according to which the subjective length of a route is the product of the subjective length of a single section and the number of them.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ JJ Oppel: About geometrical-optical illusions. (Second gleanings). In: Annual report of the physical association in Frankfurt am Main. 1854/1855, pp. 37-47.
  2. ↑ A. Kundt: Investigations into a sense of proportion and optical illusions. In: Poggendorff's annals of physics and chemistry. 120, 1863, pp. 118-158.
  3. ↑ H. Spiegel: On the influence of the intermediate field on the distances seen. Dissertation . Faculty of Natural Sciences at the University of Frankfurt am Main. In: Psychological Research. 21, 1937, pp. 327-383.
  4. ↑ T. Surkys, A. Bertulis, A. Bulatov, L. Mickiene: Oppel-Kundt stimulus with three parts to match. In: Perception. 37, ECVP Abstract Supplement, 2008, p. 38.
  5. ^ E. Giora, S. Gori: The perceptual expansion of a filled area depends on textural characteristics. In: Vision Research. 50, 2010, pp. 2466-2475.
  6. ^ WA Kreiner: On the intensity maximum of the Oppel-Kundt illusion. doi: 10.18725 / OPARU-3303 .
  7. ^ WA Kreiner: Size constancy induced by context elements. Size constancy in context. 2012. doi: 10.18725 / OPARU-2595 .
  8. ↑ E. Erdfelder, F. Faul: A class of information integration models for the Oppel-Kundt deception. In: Journal of Psychology. 202, 1994, pp. 133-160.