Abstract
Two experiments are reported that require Ss to judge whether or not the second of two sequentially presented patterns is a part of the first pattern. The results suggest that Ss code the pattern as a structural description and find it difficult to recognize a part of the pattern which does not match the description. It is proposed that a structural description is a combination of visual and verbal codes and that visual images lack detail when not supported by verbal concepts.
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This research was supported by NIMH Grant MH-21115. Preliminary work was begun while the author was a NIMH postdoctoral fellow at the University of Sussex.
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Reed, S.K. Structural descriptions and the limitations of visual images*. Memory & Cognition 2, 329–336 (1974). https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03209004
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03209004