gestalt

n. an entire perceptual configuration (from German: “shape,” “configuration,” “totality,” “form”), made up of elements that are integrated and interactive in such a way as to confer properties on the whole configuration that are not possessed by the individual elements. See perceptual organization. See also gestalt principles of organization; Gestalt psychology.

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Psychology term of the day

March 16th 2025

adultomorphism

1. the attribution of adult traits or motives to children. Compare pedomorphism.

2. more specifically, the tendency to reconstruct developmental phases by extrapolating from adult psychopathology. —adultomorphic adj.