CLOSURE IN A VISUAL MOTOR TASK

• Published in: Etc. Vol. 76; no. 3-4; pp. 313 - 324
• Main Author: Agostino, Joseph N
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Concord Institute of General Semantics 01.07.2019; Institute of General Semantics, Inc
• Subjects: Aesthetic Education; Hypotheses; Logical Thinking; Perceptions; Problem solving; Reasoning; Resistance (Psychology); Social Attitudes; Statistical analysis; Stimuli; Visual Stimuli
• ISSN: 0014-164X; 2168-9245

Closure, primarily investigated in perception, was described as the phenomenal completion of visually incomplete stimuli The present study investigated closure in a visual motor task (VMT). The VMT was designed as an inductive reasoning problem to demonstrate the complementary relationship between closure in perception and closure in a problem-solving task. Inductive reasoning required that the individual determine the underlying principle or rule that defined the relationship demanded by the problem. The VMT consisted of a motor component (tapping on a response button), and two visual components: (1) the continuous presentation of stimulus items (ambiguous forms) on a television monitor and (2) the momentary onset of a light signal. Twenty individuals were selected for each of three closure groups. Individuals scoring in the upper, middle, and lower percentile on speed of closure tests were designated as high, moderate, and low speed of closure groups, respectively. In the VMT, individuals in each group were instructed to tap on a response button to determine (1) whether tapping on the response button was directly responsible for the momentary onset of the light signal or (2) whether tapping on the response button in conjunction with the presentation of stimulus items on the television monitor was responsible for the momentary onset of the light signal. Although the momentary onset of the light signal indicated a relationship between the components, it was necessary that individuals verify this relationship by formulating and testing hypotheses. Closure was achieved by the reduction of hypotheses that failed to verify the principle or rule that defined the relationship. The record of tapping responses provided a diagrammatic representation (performance record) of the structural dynamics underlying closure tendencies in the VMT and the data for statistical analysis. In the VMT, the high closure group demonstrated a significant linear trend across stages; however, the response trend for the moderate and low closure group failed to reach significance. The results for the moderate and low closure groups suggested that "other" factors may have interfered with the structural dynamics underlying closure. The VMT served as a useful tool for studying the relationship between closure in perception and closure in a problem-solving task.