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AP Psychology > Ch. 4 Vocab > Flashcards

Ch. 4 Vocab Flashcards

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1
Q

the process of organizing and interpreting sensory information, enabling us to recognize meaningful objects and events

A

perception

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2
Q

analysis that begins with the sensory receptors and works up to the brain’s integration of sensory information

A

bottom-up processing

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3
Q

information processing guided by higher-level mental processes, as when we construct perceptions drawing on our experience and expectations

A

top-down processing

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4
Q

the focusing of conscious awareness on a particular stimulus

A

selective attention

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5
Q

failing to see visible objects when our attention is directed elsewhere

A

inattentional blindness

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6
Q

failing to notice changes in the environment

A

change blindness

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7
Q

conversion of one form of energy into another; the transforming of stimulus energies, such as sights, sounds, and smells, into neural impulses our brain can interpret

A

transduction

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8
Q

the study of relationships between the physical characteristics of stimuli, such as their intensity, and our psychological experience of them

A

psychophysics

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9
Q

the minimum stimulation needed to detect a particular stimulus 50 percent of the time

A

absolute threshold

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10
Q

a theory predicting how and when we detect the presence of a faint stimulus (signal) amid background stimulation (noise); assumes there is no single absolute threshold and that detection depends partly on a person’s experience, expectations, motivation, and alertness

A

signal detection theory

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11
Q

below one’s absolute threshold for conscious awareness

A

subliminal

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12
Q

the activation, often unconsciously, of certain associations, thus predisposing one’s perception, memory, or response

A

priming

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13
Q

the minimum difference between two stimuli required for detection 50 percent of the time

A

difference threshold

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14
Q

the principle that, to be perceived as different, two stimuli must differ by a constant minimum percentage

A

Weber’s law

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15
Q

diminished sensitivity as a consequence of constant stimulation

A

sensory adaptation

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16
Q

a mental predisposition to perceive one thing and not another

A

perceptual set

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17
Q

the controversial claim that perception can occur apart from sensory input; includes telepathy, clairvoyance, and precognition

A

extrasensory perception

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18
Q

the study of paranormal phenomena, including ESP and psychokinesis

A

parapsychology

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19
Q

the distance from the peak of one light or sound wave to the peak of the next

A

wavelength

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20
Q

the dimension of color that is determined by the wavelength of light; what we know as the color names blue, green, and so forth

A

hue

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21
Q

the amount of energy in a light or sound wave, which we perceive as brightness or loudness, as determined by the wave’s amplitude

A

intensity

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22
Q

the adjustable opening in the center of the eye through which light enters

A

pupil

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23
Q

a ring of muscle tissue that forms the colored portion of the eye around the pupil and controls the size of the pupil opening

A

iris

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24
Q

the transparent structure behind the pupil that changes shape to help focus images on the retina

A

lens

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25
Q

the light-sensitive inner surface of the eye, containing the receptor rods and cones plus layers of neurons that begin the processing of visual information

A

retina

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26
Q

in sensation and perception, the process by which the eye’s lens changes shape to focus near or far objects on the retina; in developmental psychology, adapting our current understandings (schemas) to incorporate new information

A

accommodation

27
Q

retinal receptors that detect black, white, and gray; necessary for peripheral and twilight vision, when cones don’t respond

A

rods

28
Q

retinal receptor cells that are concentrated near the center of the retina and that function in daylight or in well-lit conditions; detect fine detail and give rise to color sensations

A

cones

29
Q

the nerve that carries neural impulses from the eye to the brain

A

optic nerve

30
Q

the point at which the optic nerve leaves the eye, creating a “blind” spot because no receptor cells are located there

A

blind spot

31
Q

the central focal point in the retina, around which the eye’s cones cluster

A

fovea

32
Q

nerve cells in the brain that respond to specific features of the stimulus, such as shape, angle, or movement

A

feature detectors

33
Q

the processing of many aspects of a problem simultaneously; the brain’s natural mode of information processing for many functions, including vision; contrasts with the step-by-step (serial) processing of most computers and of conscious problem solving

A

parallel processing

34
Q

the theory that the retina contains three different color receptors—one most sensitive to red, one to green, one to blue—which, when stimulated in combination, can produce the perception of any color

A

Young-Helmholtz Trichromatic Theory

35
Q

the theory that opposing retinal processes (red-green, yellow-blue, white-black) enable color vision

A

Opponent-processing theory

36
Q

an organized whole; psychologists emphasized our tendency to integrate pieces of information into meaningful wholes

A

gestalt

37
Q

the organization of the visual field into objects (the figures) that stand out from their surroundings (the ground)

A

figure-ground

38
Q

the perceptual tendency to organize stimuli into coherent groups

A

grouping

39
Q

the ability to see objects in three dimensions although the images that strike the retina are two-dimensional; allows us to judge distance

A

depth perception

40
Q

a laboratory device for testing depth perception in infants and young animals

A

visual cliff

41
Q

depth cues, such as retinal disparity, that depend on the use of two eyes

A

binocular cues

42
Q

a binocular cue for perceiving depth; by comparing images from the retinas in the two eyes, the brain computes distance—the greater the disparity (difference) between the two images, the closer the object

A

retinal disparity

43
Q

depth cues, such as interposition and linear perspective, available to either eye alone

A

monocular cues

44
Q

an illusion of movement created when two or more adjacent lights blink on and off in quick succession

A

phi phenomenon

45
Q

perceiving objects as unchanging (having consistent shapes, size, brightness, and color) even as illumination and retinal images change

A

perceptual constancy

46
Q

perceiving familiar objects as having consistent color, even if changing illumination alters the wavelengths reflected by the object

A

color constancy

47
Q

in vision, the ability to adjust to an artificially displaced or even inverted visual field

A

perceptual adaptation

48
Q

the sense or act of hearing

A

audition

49
Q

the number of complete wavelengths that pass a point in a given time (for example, per second)

A

frequency

50
Q

a tone’s experienced highness or lowness; depends on frequency

A

pitch

51
Q

the chamber between the eardrum and cochlea containing three tiny bones (hammer, anvil, and stirrup) that concentrate the vibrations of the eardrum on the cochlea’s oval window

A

middle ear

52
Q

a coiled, bony, fluid-filled tube in the inner ear; sound waves traveling through the cochlear fluid trigger nerve impulse

A

cochlea

53
Q

the innermost part of the ear, containing the cochlea, semicircular canals, and vestibular sacs

A

inner ear

54
Q

hearing loss caused by damage to the cochlea’s receptor cells or to the auditory nerves; also called nerve deafness

A

sensorineural hearing loss

55
Q

hearing loss caused by damage to the mechanical system that conducts sound waves to the cochlea

A

conduction hearing loss

56
Q

a device for converting sounds into electrical signals and stimulating the auditory nerve through electrodes threaded into the cochlea

A

cochlear implant

57
Q

in hearing, the theory that links the pitch we hear with the place where the cochlea’s membrane is stimulated

A

place theory

58
Q

in hearing, the theory that the rate of nerve impulses traveling up the auditory nerve matches the frequency of a tone, thus enabling us to sense its pitch

A

frequency theory

59
Q

the theory that the spinal cord contains a neurological “gate” that blocks pain signals or allows them to pass on to the brain; the “gate” is opened by the activity of pain signals traveling up small nerve fibers and is closed by activity in larger fibers or by information coming from the brain

A

gate-control theory

60
Q

the system for sensing the position and movement of individual body parts

A

kinesthesia

61
Q

the sense of body movement and position, including the sense of balance

A

vestibular sense

62
Q

the principle that one sense may influence another, as when the smell of food influences its taste

A

sensory interaction

63
Q

in psychological science, the influence of bodily sensations, gestures, and other states on cognitive preferences and judgments

A

embodied cognition

64
Q

the process by which our sensory receptors and nervous system receive and represent stimulus energies from our environment

A

sensation

AP Psychology (17 decks)

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