Attention & Perception Flashcards
2a - Perception
Key concepts:
Sensation and perception (just basic definitions)
Bottom-up and top-down processing (what they mean)
Different types of attention (couple of examples)
What factors are known to influence perception and attention
Factors affecting perception of physical symptoms (examples)
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Define sensation
Sensation: The stimulus detection system by which our sense organs respond to and translate environmental stimuli into nerve impulses that are then sent to the brain
Define perception
The active process of organising the stimulus output and giving it meaning
What is bottom up processing
Bottom-up
Individual elements are combined to make a unified perception
What is top down processing
Top-down
Processing in light of existing knowledge
motives, expectations, experiences, culture
E.g. ‘backmasking’
( sensory info comes into brain –> used by top down processes to make sense of it - using existing knowledge) )
What factors are known to influence perception (top down)
Attention Past experiences Current drive state (e.g. arousal state) Emotions Individual values & expectations Environment Cultural background --> different perceptions depending on culture
Factors affecting perception of physical symptoms (examples)
- Focus of attention contributes to the perception of our bodily symptoms
What is meant by figure ground relations?
tendency to organise stimuli into central or foreground and a background.
Describe Gestalt laws
a) continuity =
b) similarity
c) Proximity =
d) Closure =
a) continuity = When the eye is compelled to move through one object and continue to another object
b) Similarity: Similar things are perceived as being grouped together
c) Proximity: Object near each other are grouped together
d) Closure: Things are grouped together if they seem to complete some entity.
What is appreciative agnosia?
Apperceptive Agnosia: A failure to integrate the perceptual elements of the stimulus.
what is associative agnosia?
Associative Agnosia: A failure of retrieval of semantic information
describe the hierarchal model of visual perception
???
define attention
the process of focusing conscious awareness, providing heightened sensitivity to a limited range of experience requiring more intensive processing.
What are the 2 components involved in attention ?
- Focused attention
- Divided attention
What are the 5 stimulus factors affecting attention?
- intensity
- novelty
- movement
- contrast
- repetition
What are the 5 personal factors affecting attention?
motives
- interests
- threats
- mood
- arousal
describe the cocktail party effect
- there are lots of people around you in a party, but we can focus on the person we are talking to
- and if someone calls out our name from the other side of the room , we immediately divert our attention to the other person
What is medical student syndrome
increase in hypervigilance
– Psychological condition where medical trainees experience symptoms of the diseases that they are studying.
How does perception of bodily symptoms differ in response to various interventions
Perception of Bodily Symptoms
- Focus of attention contributes to the perception of our own bodily symptoms.
- Example – two groups on treadmills, one with amplified sounds of their own breathing and one with sounds of the street. Group with amplified breathing reported more symptoms as they were more aware.
–> Distraction can play a big part in not perceiving own bodily symptoms.
what is chronic pain ?
pain has been present for greater than 3 months and although initial damage is healed, pain persists
explain the gate theory of pain
concept :
- Pain signals compete to get through “gates”.
- The gate can be opened or closed by physical AND psychological factors.
–> E.G. Pain relief by “rubbing it better”.
(rubbing acts as a competing stimulus.)
describe the fear avoidance model of chronic pain
- moon / thoughts/ stress levels —> affects pain
- pain –> affects day to day functioning (less likely to go out etc.) –> perpetuates stress / low mood / anxiety
(kind of a vicious cycle really)
