Index: > A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

Home > Picture thinking

In psychology, picture thinking is often confused with dyslexia, and it is true that people who 'think in pictures' often have difficulty with learning to read, but not all picture thinkers suffer from the normal symptoms associated with dyslexia. Some autistics think in pictures.

Symptoms that most picture thinkers do share are:

Problems remembering abstract chains of letters, like names.
Difficulty in explaining concepts they have invented.
Writing in a very convoluted style.
Natural ability to 'quick read' whole sentences instead of word for word, but when asked to read out loud what they have read they often use other words than what is actually written.
Ability to remember exactly the location and relative position of objects they have placed somewhere.
Ability to intuitively come to conclusions that are very hard to reach by using normal linear reasoning.

What a picture thinker is or does is still debated, but some research has been done in the Netherlands where they call picture thinking beelddenken. In particular, the Maria J. Krabbe Stichting is doing research (see link below). Researchers there have developed a method of detecting picture thinking in young children by using the so called "the world game" ( het wereldspel ).

Picture thinkers, as the word says, think in pictures, not in the linear fashion using language that is normally associated with thinking. Of course this is a simplification as a complete picture thinker would not be able to use language.

Picture thinkers can come to conclusions in an intuitive way, without reasoning with language. Instead, they manipulate with logical/graphical symbols in a non linear fashion; they “see” the answers to problems.

Picture thinkers are often inventors, architects or electronic engineers.

You could say picture thinkers are persons with vision.

The book The Gift of Dyslexia by Ronald D. Davis and Eldon M.Braun describes the relationship of picture thinking to dyslexia. Another book, Thinking in Pictures, by Temple Grandin, focuses on the role of picture thinking in autism.

There are many famous people who were probably picture thinkers, here is a short list:

Nikola Tesla - discusses in depth picture thinking ( Asperger's Syndrome) to a great extent in his seminal document The Problem of Increasing Human Energy
Albert Einstein
Walt Disney

External links

Maria J. Krabbe Stichting
Autism and Visual Thought
The Gift of Dyslexia
Search Google for " The problem of Increasing human energy" tesla's essay on the working of his mind, and other subjects.

Thought

Politics	Business	Finance

Topics: Picture Thinking Thinkers Read Pictures Dyslexia Linear...

Picture archiving and communication systemIn medical imaging, picture archiving and communication systems (PACS) are computers or networks dedicated to the storage, retrieval, distribution and presentation of images. Types of PACS Full PACS handle images from various modalities, such as ultrasono	Picture Rocks, ArizonaPicture Rocks is a census-designated place located in Pima County, Arizona. As of the 2000 census, the CDP had a total population of 8,139. Geography Picture Rocks is located at 32°19'51" North, 111°13'47" West (32. 330735, -111. According to the United S	Picture Rocks, PennsylvaniaPicture Rocks is a borough located in Lycoming County, Pennsylvania. As of the 2000 census, the borough had a total population of 693. Geography Picture Rocks is located at 41°16'48" North, 76°42'42" West (41. 280066, -76. According to the United States C
Picture thinkingIn psychology, picture thinking is often confused with dyslexia, and it is true that people who 'think in pictures' often have difficulty with learning to read, but not all picture thinkers suffer from the normal symptoms associated with dyslexia. Some au	Picture bookA picture book is a popular form of illustrated literature—more precisely, a book with pictures in it—popularized in the 20th century Western world.	Pictures at an ExhibitionPictures at an Exhibition is a famous suite of musical pieces, composed originally for piano by Modest Petrovich Mussorgsky and first published in 1874. Mussorgsky wrote the original composition in commemoration of his close friend, the architect and some
Picture This (album)	Pictures at an Exhibition (album)	Picture of Nectar
Picture Frame Seduction	Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore	Picture of the Moon
Picture cover	Picture superiority effect	Picture-in-picture

Non User