<p>There are many such illusions. It mostly belongs to pattern-recognition and gestalt psychology. From German it means <em>"shape", "form", "essence"</em>. To answer your question, I think, here there are <em>illusory contours</em> (when you watch and understand an illusion) and <em>lateral inhibition</em> (when you have got new understanding of the picture and compare it with previous form).</p>

<p>Enjoy more pictures ;)</p>

<p><a href="https://i.sstatic.net/5zWO4.gif" rel="nofollow noreferrer"><img src="https://i.sstatic.net/5zWO4.gif" alt="A man and a woman face"></a>
<a href="https://i.sstatic.net/hiDw3.jpg" rel="nofollow noreferrer"><img src="https://i.sstatic.net/hiDw3.jpg" alt="A joke about gestalt-psychologists"></a></p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-01-23T21:13:17.763Z
Nice thought. I wonder if this is a kind of *"lateral inhibition hysteresis"*?
New Alexandria
CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-01-01T15:40:32.807Z
2016-01-01T15:40:32.807Z
AivanF.
<p>I'm looking for a term in the perception / cognition area of research.  </p>

<p>I recently saw <a href="https://i.imgur.com/eXr9rNa.gifv" rel="nofollow noreferrer">this visual illusion</a> that 'flips' what is <em>negative-space</em> and what is <em>positive-space</em>.  This is known in the arts as "<a href="https://www.google.com/search?q=figure-ground%20reversal" rel="nofollow noreferrer">figure-ground reversal</a>"</p>

<p>I am looking for a word / term that addresses when the thing we are observing changes, such that the parts that signify the 'figure' and 'ground' are themselves switched.  Is there a word for this?  Does Ecological Psychology have a way that it organizes such stimuli?</p>

<p><a href="https://i.sstatic.net/18f1A.gif" rel="nofollow noreferrer"><img src="https://i.sstatic.net/18f1A.gif" alt="enter image description here"></a></p>

<p>I would think there may be a term that address when our perception 'flips' the perception of <a href="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/74/Cup_or_faces_paradox.svg/300px-Cup_or_faces_paradox.svg.png" rel="nofollow noreferrer">a static image</a>, and afterward we are biased to perceive the 'ground' differently.  This happens when we see a <em>vase</em> instead of <em>faces</em>.  </p>

<p>But I don't know <em>that word</em>, nor do I know if it applies to the occurrence of when a thing/image/perceptual-field changes, in order to <em>action</em> the figure-ground reversal.</p>

<p><a href="https://i.sstatic.net/cyFsi.png" rel="nofollow noreferrer"><img src="https://i.sstatic.net/cyFsi.png" alt="enter image description here"></a></p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-01-01T19:57:27.920Z
I would call it Perceptual switches. Here's one example where the term is used: http://jov.arvojournals.org/article.aspx?articleid=2288056. Switch rate usually describes the mean time a given percept is dominant.
elisa
<perception><vision><visualization>
Is there terminology for perceptual illusions at the moment that figure-ground reversal occurs?
New Alexandria
# Is there terminology for perceptual illusions at the moment that figure-ground reversal occurs?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2015-12-26)

I'm looking for a term in the perception / cognition area of research.

I recently saw [this visual illusion](https://i.imgur.com/eXr9rNa.gifv) that 'flips' what is *negative-space* and what is *positive-space*. This is known in the arts as "[figure-ground reversal](https://www.google.com/search?q=figure-ground%20reversal)"

I am looking for a word / term that addresses when the thing we are observing changes, such that the parts that signify the 'figure' and 'ground' are themselves switched. Is there a word for this? Does Ecological Psychology have a way that it organizes such stimuli?

[![enter image description here](https://i.sstatic.net/18f1A.gif)](https://i.sstatic.net/18f1A.gif)

I would think there may be a term that address when our perception 'flips' the perception of [a static image](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/74/Cup_or_faces_paradox.svg/300px-Cup_or_faces_paradox.svg.png), and afterward we are biased to perceive the 'ground' differently. This happens when we see a *vase* instead of *faces*.

But I don't know *that word*, nor do I know if it applies to the occurrence of when a thing/image/perceptual-field changes, in order to *action* the figure-ground reversal.

[![enter image description here](https://i.sstatic.net/cyFsi.png)](https://i.sstatic.net/cyFsi.png)

**Tags:** perception, vision, visualization

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: I would call it Perceptual switches. Here's one example where the term is used: http://jov.arvojournals.org/article.aspx?articleid=2288056. Switch rate usually describes the mean time a given percept is dominant.  

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## 1 answers

### Answer by username_2 on 2016-01-01. Score: 2

There are many such illusions. It mostly belongs to pattern-recognition and gestalt psychology. From German it means *"shape", "form", "essence"*. To answer your question, I think, here there are *illusory contours* (when you watch and understand an illusion) and *lateral inhibition* (when you have got new understanding of the picture and compare it with previous form).

Enjoy more pictures ;)

[![A man and a woman face](https://i.sstatic.net/5zWO4.gif)](https://i.sstatic.net/5zWO4.gif)
[![A joke about gestalt-psychologists](https://i.sstatic.net/hiDw3.jpg)](https://i.sstatic.net/hiDw3.jpg)

> **Comments:**
> **username_0**: Nice thought. I wonder if this is a kind of *"lateral inhibition hysteresis"*?  

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