Abstract
As previous studies have shown, amodally perceived figures can be completed by using two different rules: smooth continuity and symmetry. Markovich (2002) showed that amodal perception is affected by stimulus orientation. In the present study, we investigated further how amodal perception is affected by stimulus orientation and by the shape of the occluding and occluded patterns. The results demonstrated that: (1) a "symmetrical amodal figure" tends to appear in a vertical axis rather than a horizontal or diagonal axis; (2) depending on the pattern orientation, an amodal figure can be induced by the shape of the occluder. This means that we perceive an amodal figure not only by smooth continuity or symmetry, but also by the contextual condition and frame of reference.
