Implication of Gestalt Principles in Consumer behavior. Gestalt Principles are principles/laws of human perception that describe how humans group similar elements, recognize patterns and simplify complex images when we perceive objects. Designers use the principles to organize content on websites and other interfaces so it is aesthetically pleasing and easy to understand.

1. Gestalt Principles
Pranav Kishor Choudhary
180554
MBA (CUH-18-20)

2. Max Wertheimer
• April 15, 1880 – October 12,
1943
• Austro-Hungarian-born
psychologist
• PhD in 1904
• Started teaching career in
Frankfurt
• Worked at Berlin
Psychological Institute
• Professor at New School for
Social Research in New
York

3. Kurt Koffka
• March 18, 1886 – November
22, 1941
• German psychologist
• Born and educated in Berlin
• In WW1 worked for the
Military in a position that
later lead him to a
Professorship in
Experimental psychology
• 1927, Smith College in
Norththamton,
Masschusetts

4. Wolfang kholer
• 22 January 1887 – 11 June
1967
• German Psychologist and
phenomenologist
• In 1935 he left the country
for the United States
• 20 year of professorship
Swarthmore College in
Pennsylvania

5. What is gestalt psychology
• The way things has been put together/placed
• Whole of any thing is greater than sum of it’s part
• The whole is something different than the sum of its parts [Koffka (1935)]
• It emphasized the importance of sensory wholes and dynamic nature of visual
perception
• The term “Gestalt” loosely translates into “form” or “configuration”
• Learners are active not passive
• They do not collect data as it is but actively process and restructure the data in
order to understand it

6. Some General Rules
• Objects will be perceived in their simplest form
• Human Naturally follow lines and curves
• Mind will attempt to fill in the details that isn’t actually there.

7. Gestalt Principles
The way we form our perception are guided by certain
principles or laws. These principles and laws determine
what we see or make of things or situations.

8. Some Common Principles
• Reification
• Multistability
• Invariance
• Figure and ground
• Prägnanz
• Law of Proximity
• Law of Similarity
• Law of Closure
• Law of Symmetry
• Law of Common Fate
• Law of Continuity
• Law of Connectedness
• Law of Past Experience

9. Reification
• Mental process of “bringing
into being”.
• Adding things which are
not in the original stimulus.
• Perceiving the details that
are not really there
A
B

10. Multistability
• Multistability (or
multistable perception) is
the tendency of ambiguous
perceptual experiences to
pop back and forth unstably
between two or more
alternative interpretations
• Gestalt psychology does not
explain how images appear
multistable, only that they
do
Rubin's vase.

13. Invariance
• Invariance is the property of
perception whereby simple
geometrical objects are
recognized independent of
rotation, translation, and
scale; as well as several
other variations such as
elastic deformations,
different lighting, and
different component
features.

14. Figure and
ground
• We tend to pay attention
and perceive things in the
foreground first. A stimulus
will be perceived as
separate from its ground.
• Positive and Negative Space

15. FIAT Girl
Dirty Harry

16. Peter and The Wolf- Phoebe Morris Illustration

20. Blurring lines b/w Positive and Negative Space
M. C. Escher

21. Prägnanz
• Perceptual grouping or
perceptual segregation
• The stimulus will be
organized into as good as
figure as possible.
• Good refers to symmetry,
simplicity, and regularity.

22. Prägnanz

23. Law of
Proximity
• Elements that closer
together will be perceived
as coherent object.

24. Proximity

25. Hyundai eon vs Maruti alto 800

26. Law of
Similarity
• Elements within an
assortment of objects are
perceptually grouped
together if they are similar
to each other.
• Similarities can be colour,
shapes, texture or any other
design elements
• Anomally
• Used to create contrast

27. Similarity

31. Law of Closure
• We tend to fill the gaps or
“close” the figures we
perceive. We enclose a space
by completing a contour
and ignoring gaps in the
figure

32. Closure

33. Alcon Contact lenses

34. Law of
Symmetry
• Mind perceives objects as
being symmetrical and
forming around a center
point
• It is perceptually pleasing to
divide objects into an even
number of symmetrical
parts
• Several symmetries can
occur in one design.
• Symmetry and Asymmetry
can work together.

35. Symmetry

36. Law of Common
Fate
• Objects are grouped
together that moves in the
same direction
• Useful in design when we
want to add patterns or
textures to something,
without losing the
overarching image

38. Law of
Continuity
• Also known as the law of
good continuation
• Eye is compelled to move
through one object and
continue to another object.
• Stimuli remain distinct even
with overlap
• We are less likely to group
elements with sharp abrupt
directional changes as being
one object

39. Continuation

41. Law of
Connectedness
• Humans will follow
connections from one image
to another to link them
• If two elements, visually
linked by third element,
they are perceived as a
single entity

44. Law of Past
Experience
• Also known as the concept
of "mental models
• Under some circumstances
visual stimuli are
categorized according to
past experience
• What works for one person
may not act on the other.
• This law is of secondary
importance and easily
overlaps other sub patterns.

47. Conclusion
Psychology and Design are two separate yet intertwined
worlds.
While each can and does exist without the other, they share
so many elements and traits that it's hard to ignore the
existence of the other.
And, when the Gestalt principles are used in design, it can
please viewers, catch their eye, and sparks interest.
And its definitely rewarding for marketers.

48. References/ Bibliography
• Diamond, N., Sherry, J. F., Muñiz, A. M., McGrath, M. A., Kozinets, R. V., &
Borghini, S. (2009). American Girl and the Brand Gestalt: Closing the Loop on
Sociocultural Branding Research. Journal of Marketing, 73(3), 118–134.
https://doi.org/10.1509/jmkg.73.3.118
• Koffka, K, K. (2013). Principles Of Gestalt Psychology.
https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315009292
• Wertheimer, M. (n.d.). Gestalt theory. In A source book of Gestalt psychology. (pp. 1–
11). https://doi.org/10.1037/11496-001

49. Thank You