Chakravarthi, Ramakrishna and Nordqvist, Andy and Poncet, Marlene and Adamian, Nika (2023) Fundamental units of numerosity estimation. Cognition, 239. p. 105565. DOI https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cognition.2023.105565
Chakravarthi, Ramakrishna and Nordqvist, Andy and Poncet, Marlene and Adamian, Nika (2023) Fundamental units of numerosity estimation. Cognition, 239. p. 105565. DOI https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cognition.2023.105565
Chakravarthi, Ramakrishna and Nordqvist, Andy and Poncet, Marlene and Adamian, Nika (2023) Fundamental units of numerosity estimation. Cognition, 239. p. 105565. DOI https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cognition.2023.105565
Abstract
Humans can approximately enumerate a large number of objects at a single glance. While several mechanisms have been proposed to account for this ability, the fundamental units over which they operate remain unclear. Previous studies have argued that estimation mechanisms act only on topologically distinct units or on units formed by spatial grouping cues such as proximity and connectivity, but not on units grouped by similarity. Over four experiments, we tested this claim by systematically assessing and demonstrating that similarity grouping leads to underestimation, just as spatial grouping does. Ungrouped objects with the same low-level properties as grouped objects did not cause underestimation. Further, the underestimation caused by spatial and similarity grouping was additive, suggesting that these grouping processes operate independently. These findings argue against the proposal that estimation mechanisms operate solely on topological units. Instead, we conclude that estimation processes act on representations constructed after Gestalt grouping principles, whether similarity based or spatial, have organised incoming visual input.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | Numerosity estimation, Gestalt grouping, Approximate number system, Numerical cognition, Visual perception |
| Divisions: | Faculty of Science and Health Faculty of Science and Health > Psychology, Department of |
| SWORD Depositor: | Unnamed user with email elements@essex.ac.uk |
| Depositing User: | Unnamed user with email elements@essex.ac.uk |
| Date Deposited: | 20 Apr 2026 11:12 |
| Last Modified: | 20 Apr 2026 11:12 |
| URI: | http://repository.essex.ac.uk/id/eprint/37241 |
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Filename: Chakravarthi_2023.pdf
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