1. any action performed by interdependent conspecifics (members of the same species).

2. in humans, an action that is influenced, directly or indirectly, by the actual, imagined, expected, or implied presence of others.

3. any one of a set of behaviors exhibited by gregarious, communal social species, including cooperation, affiliation, altruism, and so on.

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January 13th 2025

discontinuity hypothesis

in Gestalt psychology, the viewpoint that emphasizes the role of sudden insight and perceptual reorganization in successful discrimination learning and problem solving. According to this view, a correct answer is only recognized when its relation to the issue as a whole is discovered. Also called discontinuity theory. Compare continuity hypothesis. See also aha experience; all-or-none learning; eureka task.