Abstract
Magnitude of the Sander illusion was measured as a function of two variables: (1) the orientation of the line normally separating the two smaller parallelograms and (2) the presence or absence of the horizontal lines and of the diagonal test lines. The results showed that, as the angle of the dividing line varied so as to shift the relative sizes of the two parts of the figure toward equality, the illusion effect decreased, approaching zero when the two areas were equal. The illusory effect was enhanced by the removal of the two test lines. Results were discussed in relation to the problem of assimilation vs contrast effects. Woodworth and Schlosberg (1954) describe the confusion theory of geometric illusions as stating that the S's judgment of part of the figure is influenced by the structure of the whole. Supporting this position, Benussi (1904), using the Mueller-Lyer figure, found conditions engendering a whole-perceiving attitude to produce a greater illusion than those favoring a part-isolating attitude. The confusion theory may also account for the Sander illusion where it is difficult for the viewer to separate his impression of the lengths of the test lines from the sizes of the areas surrounding them. The primary purpose of the present experiment was to investigate the effects of manipulating the relative size of the two major areas of the Sander figure on the magnitude of the illusion. It was hypothesized that, as the areas surrounding the diagonal lines to be compared approached equality, the illusion effects
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