This theory began in Germany and was one of the first
movements to offer an alternative to behaviorism. Leaders of this movement were Max Wertheimer,
Wolfgang Kohler, Kurt Koffka, and Kurt Lewin.
These men believed that humans react in a total, organized response and that
“central thinking processes account for more behaviors than simple stimulus-response
activities” (56).
Related terms & definitions:
- Cognitive: relating to the mental processes of perception, memory, judgement, and reasoning
- Schema: conceptual framework; organizing patter or structure
- Gestalt: “both shape or form and entity or individual…Gestalt psychology is the study of how people see and understand the relation of the whole to the parts that make it up” (Winn, 2004, p. 82) (56).
- Memory trace: the structural altering of brain cells following learning
Applications to Learning:
Law of Similarity: items with similar features get grouped together in our minds.
Law of Proximity: Elements with close proximity to one another form perceptual groups.
Law of Closure: The act of mentally completing a physically incomplete object.
