PMID: 7335443Jan 1, 1981Paper

The impossible dream of Fechner and Stevens

Perception
D J Weiss

Abstract

The idea that there is a single psychophysical function which describes how the human responds to stimulus intensity is rejected. The form of any empirical function depends upon the buried yet arbitrary assumption about how the stimuli are to be measured. Because psychophysical functions have this arbitrary basis, there can be no universal law, and further, no psychophysical function can reveal a general truth about the nervous system. The power law has been inappropriately reified; the descriptive usefulness of the power function has been incorrectly extended, perhaps because simplicity is appealing.

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Citations

Sep 1, 1992·The Behavioral and Brain Sciences·G R Lockhead
Sep 1, 1992·The Behavioral and Brain Sciences·D Algom
Sep 1, 1992·The Behavioral and Brain Sciences·N H Anderson
Sep 1, 1992·The Behavioral and Brain Sciences·S J Bolanowski
Sep 1, 1992·The Behavioral and Brain Sciences·C Bonnet
Sep 1, 1992·The Behavioral and Brain Sciences·G Borg
Sep 1, 1992·The Behavioral and Brain Sciences·M Brysbaert
Sep 1, 1992·The Behavioral and Brain Sciences·S Coren
Sep 1, 1992·The Behavioral and Brain Sciences·T R Corwin
Sep 1, 1992·The Behavioral and Brain Sciences·E N Dzhafarov
Sep 1, 1992·The Behavioral and Brain Sciences·H Eisler
Sep 1, 1992·The Behavioral and Brain Sciences·G A Gescheider
Sep 1, 1992·The Behavioral and Brain Sciences·R L Gregory
Sep 1, 1992·The Behavioral and Brain Sciences·R A Gregson
Sep 1, 1992·The Behavioral and Brain Sciences·P R Killeen
Sep 1, 1992·The Behavioral and Brain Sciences·L E Krueger
Sep 1, 1992·The Behavioral and Brain Sciences·D Laming
Sep 1, 1992·The Behavioral and Brain Sciences·N A Macmillan
Sep 1, 1992·The Behavioral and Brain Sciences·L E Marks
Sep 1, 1992·The Behavioral and Brain Sciences·S C Masin
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Sep 1, 1992·The Behavioral and Brain Sciences·J S Monahan
Sep 1, 1992·The Behavioral and Brain Sciences·K K Niall
Sep 1, 1992·The Behavioral and Brain Sciences·K H Norwich
Sep 1, 1992·The Behavioral and Brain Sciences·B Schneider
Sep 1, 1992·The Behavioral and Brain Sciences·R Teghtsoonian
Sep 1, 1992·The Behavioral and Brain Sciences·M Treisman
Sep 1, 1992·The Behavioral and Brain Sciences·J van Brakel
Sep 1, 1992·The Behavioral and Brain Sciences·R M Warren
Sep 29, 1999·Neuroreport·F G Zeng, R V Shannon
Aug 1, 1983·Perception & Psychophysics·R L McBride
Feb 1, 1985·Perceptual and Motor Skills·H Krombholz
Jan 30, 2008·Acta Psychologica·Thomas Augustin
Sep 1, 1992·The Behavioral and Brain Sciences·D L King
Feb 16, 2005·Human Factors·Matthew M MarshallMarissa L Ebersole
Apr 2, 2021·Attention, Perception & Psychophysics·Alica MertensVeronika Lerche

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