Related Experiment Video
Updated: Sep 3, 2026

Methods to Explore the Influence of Top-down Visual Processes on Motor Behavior
Published on: April 16, 2014
Effects of figure context on the apparent length of a line
1Department of Psychology, Wesleyan University, Middletown, CT 06459, USA. Cluo@wesleyan.edu
Abstract:
This study investigated the effects of figure context on the apparent length of a line. In Exp. 1, ten participants were asked to adjust the length of a comparison line to match a standard line enclosed within a rectangle. The participants consistently overestimated the length of the standard line, demonstrating the stretching effect of figure context on the apparent length of a line. In Exp. 2 (12 participants), the size of the context figure was varied and it had no significant influence on the magnitude of the context effect. In Exp. 3 (nine participants), the context effect was shown not only for squares and rectangles but also for other shapes of figures such as circles and 5-pointed stars. We discuss the possible mechanism of the figure-context effect within Gregory's (1970, 1978) misapplied constancy theory of visual illusions.
Related Concept Videos
Electric Field Lines
The solution to this problem is to use electric field lines, which are not vectors but...
Gestalt Principles of Perception
Factors Affecting Perception
An illustrative example of a perceptual set is the scenario where an airline pilot told...
Influence of Earth's Curvature and Atmospheric Refraction on Leveling
Arc Length Function
Lines in Space

