CIRCLE SIZE AND DIAMETER TILT - A NEW LOOK AT INTEGRALITY AND SEPARABILITY

In six experiments using the speeded classification paradigm, we provi de evidence that the ostensibly ''separable'' dimensions of size and o rientation can produce patterns of either separability or asymmetric c onfigurality, depending on the spatial arrangement of the stimuli. In all experiments, subjects classified large or small circles containing a single Line in one of two possible orientations. When the line touc hed the circle's perimeter, thereby defining the diameter of the circl e (Experiments 1-4), asymmetric configurality obtained: Variations in size interfered with classification by orientation, but variations in orientation did not interfere with classification by size, and redunda ncy gain was weak or absent. When the lines fell completely within (i. e., did not touch) the circles (Experiments 5 and 6), the results were consistent with separability: There was neither redundancy gain nor i nterference. Taken together, the results add to the growing body of ev idence that classification of specific dimensional pairs as separable or integral may be less feasible than identifying the more general con ditions that increase or decrease the psychological salience of dimens ional structures and facilitate or interfere with selection of optimal processing strategies.