Gestalt

From Wiki.GIS.com

Gestalt is a German word which in English is used to refer to a concept of 'wholeness'.^[1] In GIS it is used as the description of how people view multiple individual components of a graphical image and group those individual components into one 'whole' image.^[2] There are several of these gestalt principles that are used to manipulate the viewers perception into an organized manner which the map designer desires,these principles are outlined below. It is important to understand how this process works in order to more effectively design maps to fulfill their purpose.

There are a number of different Gestalt grouping principles:

• Proximity refers to the fact that objects that are located close together tend to be grouped together by the viewer.

• Similarity implies that objects that are similar in nature tend to be grouped together.

• Common fate only refers to maps that are animated, such as an online map. This is because it defines objects moving together as being a group.

• Pragnanzstufen states ^[3]"perceptual groups are characterized by regions of 'figural stability'."

• Objective set is only applicable for an animated map, since it describes the idea that if a group changes over time an individuals perception still tends to be toward the initial grouping.

• Good continuation describes a group as elements, such as roads or rivers, that follow the same direction.

• Closure is the tendency to see closed areas as a group.

• Simplicity states that groups are formed based on the simplest arrangement.

• Experience or habit identifies a group as objects that are familiar.

Gestalt Theory was originally developed by German psychologists in the 1920s. The principles in the theory help explain how people visually organize elements into groups.^[4] Its origins are found in psychology, but the Gestalt Principles are applied in many fields that involve visual design. The theory seeks to explain the "wholes" of elements. The Gestalt Theory itself is in opposition to scientific theory, which tries to have one break down the whole into individual components to gain understanding. Gestalt doesn't try to understand the whole by the individual elements, but it seeks to understand the individual elements by the value of the whole. Understanding the "wholes" will lead to further discoveries and explanations for the visual representation of elements.^[5]

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