Crowding

Crowding is a perceptual phenomenon where the recognition of objects (or graphemes) presented away from the fovea is impaired by the presence of other neighbouring objects (sometimes called 'flankers'). It has been suggested that crowding occurs due to mandatory integration of the crowded objects by a texture-processing neural mechanism. It is considered a kind of grouping since it is 'a form of integration over space as target features are spuriously combined with flanker features.' Crowding is a perceptual phenomenon where the recognition of objects (or graphemes) presented away from the fovea is impaired by the presence of other neighbouring objects (sometimes called 'flankers'). It has been suggested that crowding occurs due to mandatory integration of the crowded objects by a texture-processing neural mechanism. It is considered a kind of grouping since it is 'a form of integration over space as target features are spuriously combined with flanker features.' As a bio-social phenomenon, it is described as a mental state wherein the stimuli experienced are inappropriate and stressful. This proposes that brain is critical in the perception or experience of crowding so an individual will feel this phenomenon - in his attempt at cognitive construct - once he finds that he is unable to completely experience his environment or that such experience does not validate his images. Crowding deficits have been specifically found in neuropsychiatric disorders such as schizophrenia and autism and may have profound clinical implications in these disorders. It also suggested that head injuries can cause a crowding effect. If objects remain within your visual field over time, then priming (psychology) begins to occur and the objects become less cluttered.