The work reported in this chapter is intended as a small step
toward increasing the precision associated with the notion of a
face as a gestalt. In particular, we focus on the ways in which
the notions of holism, configurality, and gestalts might be
represented as hypotheses about the real-time characteristics of
human information processing. Toward that end, we have four
goals. First, we will specify four general dimensions of human
information processing (discussed briefly in the introductory
chapter) and suggest how specific combinations of these
characteristics might be used to represent the hypothesis of
holistic, configural, or gestalt processing. Second, we will
introduce a new, dynamic approach to modeling cognitive processes
in general, and apply that approach to generating predictions for
gestalt and non-gestalt processing. Third, we will explore the
coherence of this approach with existing theory on cognitive
processes. Finally, we will present an experimental investigation
intended to provide evidence with respect to the hypotheses
derived from the new and the general approach.
To appear in Wenger, M. J., & Townsend, J. T. (Eds.),
Computational, geometric, and
process perspectives on facial cognition: Contexts and
challenges. Mahwah NJ: Erlbaum.
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