Illusion Reversal Rate as a Function of Subjective Depth

Abstract

Undergraduate students (N = 48) served as subjects in a test of Gregory's theory of illusions. Twenty-four students made judgments about the subjective depth of three reversible illusions—Necker cube, Book, and Pyramid—under the conditions of complete versus incomplete illusions and illusions without depth cues versus with depth cues. An additional 24 subjects recorded the three illusion reversal rates under slightly altered conditions. Differences were found among the various illusions with respect to complete versus incomplete illusions, reversal rate, subjective judgments of depth, and certain correlation values. Support for Gregory's theory of illusion as displaced or misleading depth perception is offered by these results.