Chapter 13 Flashcards
what do mechanoreceptors sense?
pressure, vibration, movement
what is kinesthetics focused on?
muscles, tendons, joints
what do thermoreceptors sense?
changes in skin temperature
what do nocieptors sense?
pain (heat, pressure)
what do pleasant touch receptors sense?
slow-moving light forces (like petting)
what are the 4 somatosensory fibers?
A-alpha, A-beta, A-delta, C-fibers
what are A-alpha fibers for?
muscles and tendons
what are A-beta fibers for?
pressure and vibration
what are A-delta and C-fibers for?
temperature and pain/itch
what is the spinothalamic pathway?
from spinal cord to brain, carries information about skin temperature and pain
what is the dorsal column-medial lemniscal pathway?
from spinal cord to brain, carries signals from skin, muscles, tendons, joints
what is the somatosensory area 1?
parietal lobe, primary visual cortex
what is the somatosensory area 2?
motor control system
what is the gate control theory?
the transmission of pain acts as a gate that is opened by excitatory pain signals and closed by inhibitory signals
what is neural plasticity?
the ability of neural circuits to change function because of previous activity
what is phantom limb?
perceived sensation from an amputated limb
what are the characteristics of mechanoreceptor SA 1?
small field, slow adaptation
what are the characteristics of mechanoreceptor FA 1?
small field, fast adaptation
what are the characteristics of mechanoreceptor SA 2?
large field, slow adaptation
what are the characteristics of mechanoreceptor FA 2?
large field, fast adaptation
According to the gate control theory, which signals can be blocked?
bottom-up signals from the nociceptors
how do you measure pressure sensitivity?
present amounts of pressure over and over (hair, fishing lines), or ask what the smallest raised element is over a smooth surface
how do you measure vibration sensitivity?
the minimum amount of vibration/ frequency that displaces the skin
what is the two-point touch threshold?
the minimum distance that two stimuli are perceptible as separate
what happens to touch sensitivity with age?
declines with age, except for blind people
What happens to sensitivity with autism spectrum?
it’s heightened
what happens to sensitivity in people with early deafness?
is reduced
what is haptic perception?
knowledge derived from skin, muscles, etc.
what is exploratory procedure?
feeling objects to perceive their properties
what is material perception?
does not depend on the structure of the object; easy to perceive with no physical contact
what is haptic search?
recognizing the presence of material properties
what is tactile agnosia?
inability to identify objects by touch
what causes tactile agnosia?
lesions in the parietal lobe
what is the frame of reference?
system used to define locations in space
what is tactile spatial attention?
anticipation of being touched can lead to voluntary directed attention to that location
what is endogenous spatial attention?
top-down, knowledge-driven
what is exogenous spatial attention?
bottom-up, stimulus-driven
what is social touch?
words descriving interpersonal relationships (warm, cold, soft)
what are examples of social touch in animals?
licking/grooming
