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Topic: Phantasia

Aristotle coins the term phantasia in De Amina (On the Soul), Part III, to describe a distinct capacity between perception and thought — a sort of ‘sixth sense.’ Phantasia is commonly translated to imagination and is often explained in the context of visualizing and dreaming.

  • 4 Articles
  • 7 Discussions
  • 3 Videos
  • 2 Research
visualiser's fallacy
Science
The Visualiser’s Fallacy
Understanding the hidden assumptions that lead to biases against aphantasics’ cognitive abilities.
Christian Scholz
on September 25, 2023
visualizing the invisible
Strategies
Visualizing the Invisible
What do typical visualizers experience? How vivid is the hyperphantasic experience? Designer Melanie Scheer introduces a new way to visualize the visual imagination spectrum.
Melanie Scheer
on June 15, 2022
Science
Shocking Insights: What Electrical Stimulation Tells Us About How We Visualize
Why might your mind's eye be blind while your friend can picture crystal-clear images? Shocking insights into the known neurodifferences in imagery vividness.
Mike Perrotta
on February 10, 2021
phantasia
Science
History of Phantasia
Knowledge of our invisible differences dates back to 340 BC. Aristotle stands at the beginning of this history when imagination was not an established topic of discussion yet.
Jennifer McDougall and Tom Ebeyer
on March 1, 2020
Leanne Arnow
February 7, 2023
What do typical visualizers experience?
Hi, I’m new to this group. I recently discovered that I may have aphantasia, but it’s hard to tell because I don’t know what other people m...
Dianne McCarthy
May 13, 2022
Is phantasia, the ability to visualize at will, similar to experiencing hypnogogic imagery?
I can’t experience or perceive an image at will but I can access details of previous visual memories.  I can also experience and perceive hypnogogic im...
Kara Smith
February 28, 2022
When I “picture” something I’m recalling a real life image
Does anyone else find that this happens with them… Someone will say, “picture a field” so I think of the field at my Grandma’s house. Then they say, in the m...
Nicolas Borches
October 23, 2021
Do people actually project an image over their mind when their eyes are closed?
Hi everyone, So, I’ve been strugling a lot these past few months about the idea of Aphantasia. I’ve done a bunch of tests and read articles about...
Deniz Kaptan
September 14, 2021
What if we redefined “vivid” and “clear as real” on the spectrum?
I am gonna start this post by saying that I am probably phantasiac. That is what my results said exactly “probably phantasiac”, yes, I agree! As a “probably”...
Willow Meadow
August 14, 2021
How to visualize things
Hello, my name is Willow, I’m in my thirties and just yesterday I stumbled across an article about aphantasia, I have never heard of it before. Since e...
Edward Rybicki
June 9, 2021
Use of visualisation
I have been aware for some time about this phenomenon, in a peripheral way – and then was drawn here by the very excellent article by Carl Zimmer (http...
Q&A with Christian Scholz
Q&A With Christian Scholz [Member Exclusive]
Researcher Christian Scholz answers the community’s questions about 'Meta-Imagination and The Language Game of Visualising' in this live Q&A. Hosted by Tom Ebeyer.
June 28, 2023
Meta-Imagination and the Language Game of Visualising
Discover how individuals with aphantasia engage in imaginative processes using language and how this experience differs from visualizers.
June 28, 2023
Visual imagination spectrum
The Spectrum of Visual Imagination and its Relevance to Design
What do typical visualizers experience? How do hyperphantasics experience visual imagery? Melanie Scheer presents a new way to depict the visual imagination spectrum.
May 25, 2022
Phantasia – the psychological significance of lifelong visual imagery vividness extremes
Zeman, A., Milton, F., Della Sala, S., Dewar, M., Frayling, T., Gaddum, J., … Winlove, C. (2020). Phantasia-The psychological significance of lifelong visual imagery vividness extremes. Cortex; a Journal Devoted to the Study of the Nervous System and Behavior, 130, 426–440. doi:10.1016/j.cortex.2020.04.003
Visual imagery typically enables us to see absent items in the mind's eye. It plays a role in memory, day-dreaming and creativity. Since coining the terms aphantasia and hyperphantasia to describe the absence and abundance of visual imagery, Adam Zeman and his team have been contacted by many thousands of people with extreme imagery abilities. Through data collected from questionnaires filled by 2000 participants with aphantasia and 200 with hyperphantasia, the researchers have found some interesting patterns. Participants with aphantasia tend to work in scientific and mathematical fields and have difficulty with face recognition and autobiographical memory. On the other hand, those with hyperphantasia tend to work in creative fields and have a higher rate of synaesthesia. The study found that around half of the participants with aphantasia reported the absence of wakeful imagery in all sense modalities, but most of them dream visually. The researchers have also noted that aphantasia runs in families more frequently than expected. This study highlights the widespread but neglected features of human experience with informative psychological associations.
The human imagination: the cognitive neuroscience of visual mental imagery
Pearson, J. (2019). The human imagination: the cognitive neuroscience of visual mental imagery. Nature Reviews. Neuroscience, 20(10), 624–634. doi:10.1038/s41583-019-0202-9
This research discusses the study of the brain mechanisms involved in visual mental imagery. It examines the recent findings and insights into the role of mental imagery in cognitive processes and its effects on general cognition. The review highlights the range of imagery vividness and strength, from absence to photo-like, and how this can be linked to the anatomy and function of the primary visual cortex. The study also discusses the use of mental imagery as a tool in various cognitive processes, including memory recall, and its role in neurological and mental disorders and treatments. The research concludes by emphasizing the importance of understanding the neural mechanisms behind mental imagery and its impact on cognition.