Chapter 3 (Perception) Flashcards

1. Understand the basic structures and processes involved in visual perception 2. Provide an explanation of Gestalt principles of holistic perception 3. Understand how different modalities (e.g., sound, vision) can interact in the formation of perceptions

1
Q

What is perception

A

How sensory information forms conscious experiences of the environment

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
2
Q

2 ways (levels) in which perception works

A
  1. Subliminal (implicit)
  2. Subjective (conscious)
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
3
Q

What is the subjective threshold

A

A continuum, how much we are affected by subliminal subjective …

at first, information is processed subliminally, and when the information is important enough, or gone far enough through the stages of processing, it comes to awareness (aka subjective perception)

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
4
Q

What is functional perception

A

Neurons are chatty

networks communicate back and forth between different modules adding info and meaning

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
5
Q

Steps in the visual system

A
  1. Info in through cornea lens hits the retina in back (whole where optic nerve axons out)
  2. Signals transmitted through optic nerve
  3. Primary visual cortex = retinotopic area

Perfectly mapped from retina to visual cortex (backward inverted)

  1. Depth perception from different views
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
6
Q

The conscious subjective perception of vision is created by a combo of 2 systems

A

1) Dorsal pathways go up “where”
2) Ventral pathways go down “what”

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
7
Q

What is the “where” pathway

A

The dorsal pathways going up through the parietal cortex giving spatial meaning to visual stimuli

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
8
Q

What is the “what” pathway

A

The ventral pathways going down through the temporal lobe through language adding meaning to visual stimuli

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
9
Q

What does damage to the dorsal pathways do

A

Harder to find location of objects

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
10
Q

What does damage to the ventral pathways do

A

Know there is an object there but can’t recognize or name it

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
11
Q

Perception is always wrong

A

True

We fill in gaps

Subliminal systems can work with out subjective system (can even be more accurate)

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
12
Q

What does patient TN show us about brain damage to the pathways (Does not see but can navigate = blind sight)

A

Dorsal pathways intact “spatial location” ok

but damage

to Ventral pathways: no “conscious perception = no vision”

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
13
Q

Blind sight

A

Eyes are fine

So is Dorsal pathways to identify spacial location

but visual cortex (ventral pathway) damaged

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
14
Q

Primming (subliminal perception)

A

Manipulation of the cognitive system

= increase probability of a future conscious perception/choice

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
15
Q

Does primming require subconscious presentation of stimuli?

A

No

Just lack of awareness of stimuli

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
16
Q

Pandemonium is

A

An influential theory of perception (both figurative and literal)

3 levels of higher-order perception processing

  1. Feature
  2. Cognitive
  3. Decision
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
17
Q

Pandemonium was developed by

A

Selfrige (1959)

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
18
Q

The Pandemonium theory is both figurative and literal

A
  1. The basic visual pattern is relayed to the feature demons - who each identify what they’re trained to find
  2. The cognitive demons look for associations in what the feature demons are saying
  3. The cognitive demons shout louder the better the features meet their expectations
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
19
Q

What is the McGurk Effect from

A

From Selfridge’s perspective

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
20
Q

What does the McGurk Effect result from

A

result of a visual cognitive demon overruling an auditory cognitive demon

Does it really matter whether we believe demons are involved

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
21
Q

Gestalt perception stats that

A

The whole (conscious) perception is greater than the sum of its part

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
22
Q

Gestalt: Whole object perception is

A

the overarching goal of perceptual processing

and such structures wholes are the primary unit of the mind

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
23
Q

The principle of experience implies that

A

how we’ve seen something before will influence how we see it now

has only weak support in Gestalt psy

We don’t need to have seen the specific thing, but more precisely the situation before

The higher order visual system processes feed backwards into the primary visual cortex and changes what we perceive

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
24
Q

What is the principle of closure

A

items that are grouped together well are perceived as closed figure

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
25
Q

What is the principle of similarity

A

All else being equal, the most similar parts will group together

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
26
Q

What is the principle of proximity

A

Items that are closer to each other will be grouped together

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
27
Q

What is the principle of common fate

A

Items that are moving in the same way are grouped together

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
28
Q

What are some limitations to Gestalt perception

A

The whole (conscious perception) will not always be greater than just the sum of its parts

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
29
Q

Perception and complexity

A

Gestalt principles might agree with the finding that more complex shapes are easier to recognize than simpler ones

But do we really need the Gestalt view to explain this finding?

We take more neurons that will agree with each other, so the more features we see will activate more neurons

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
30
Q

Is perceptual processing uni or bi-directional

A

Bi-Directional

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
31
Q

Perceptual processing in the brain

A

Sensory input begins simple / Sense-specific

Move forward to higher-order modules (what-where)

The higher order modules also communicate backward to adjust lower-order perceptual processes

32
Q

Interaction between ventral (what) and dorsal (where)

A

what we can do with an object affects its perception

Ex Witt & Profitt showed that the perceived size of a baseball is affected by how easily we can hit it

33
Q

Fovea of the eye

A

Most capable (colour)

Where we direct it (vision) directs attention

34
Q

Anstis (1974) mapped out

A

how much visual acuity is lost as you move from foveal to progressively more peripheral vision

35
Q

What is Achromatopsia

A

A visual deficit = inability to perceive colour

because of damage to the area of the brain that processes colour information.

36
Q

What is Akinetopsia

A

motion blindness, an inability to perceive the motion of objects

37
Q

What is Feedforward sweep

A

propagation of visual information from the primary visual cortex down the ‘what’ and ‘where’ pathways

38
Q

What is the bottom-up influence

A

The feedforward influence of the external environment on the resulting perceptual experience.

39
Q

What are Re-entrant (feedback) connections:

A

Connections between brain areas that allow the propagation of visual information from the endpoints of the “what” and “where” pathways back to the primary visual cortex.

40
Q

What are top-down influences

A

The feedback influence of context and the individual’s knowledge, expectations, and high-level goals on perceptual experience.

41
Q

What is the Höffding function

A

The process whereby an experience makes contact with a memory trace, resulting in recognition.

42
Q

What is a memory trace

A

The trace that an experience leaves behind in memory.

43
Q

What are photoreceptors

A

cells that transduce light energy into neural signal

44
Q

What is the fovea

A

Region of the retina where photoreceptors are most densely packed

45
Q

What is the lens

A

transparent tissue in the eye that refracts light and focuses it on the back of the eye

46
Q

What is the cornea

A

Outer tissue of the eye first layer that light passes through on its way to the back of the eye

47
Q

What does retinotopic mean?

A

principle of organization of the primary visual cortex where information falling on adjacent areas of the retina is processed in adjectiveacent areas of the cortex

48
Q

One of central principles of visual processing in the brain

A

it is highly module

Ex some areas process color others motion etc.

49
Q

Info bi-directional visual pathways: from primary-visual cortex in a “feedforward sweep” - 100ms influence

A

Bottom up influences

50
Q

Feedback influence: high level goals … End of Dorsal and Ventral areas send info back to primary visual cortex: “re-entrant pathways”

A

Top down influences

51
Q

Elements of the ventral pathway for object recognition

A

Faces (fusiform face area inferior templar cortex) propopagnosia

Places (temporal pharahipocampal place area)

Pattern recognition (memory and recognition)

52
Q

What is the Huffing function

A

the process where an emerging perception (experience) makes contact with a memory trace = recognition

53
Q

what is contrast energy

A

the relative ease with which a stimulus can be distinguished for the background against which it is displayed

54
Q

what is pandemonium

A

a model of pattern recognition

3 levels

1.Data
2.Cognitive demons
3.Decision demons

55
Q

What is squelching

A

The tendency of the nervous system to inhibit the processing of unclear features

56
Q

Recognition by components

A

The theory that we recognize objects by breaiking them down into their fundamental geometric shapes.

57
Q

Geons

A

A set of 36 basic 3D shapes from which all real-world objects can be constructed

58
Q

What is template matching theory

A

hypothesis that the process of pattern recognition relies on the use of templates or prototypes

59
Q

Multiple trace memory model (Hintzman)

A

Traces of each individual experience are recorded in memory. No matter how many times it is experienced.

Primary - what we are actively aware of (can generalize from probe - from primary to secondary - eco)
Secondary - can be activated by probe from primary memory

60
Q

context effect is

A

The change in perception of a visual component of a scene based on the surrounding information in the scene and the observer’s prior knowledge

  1. Perception is influenced by its neiboughs
  2. contextual info can influence perception of a visual component through feedback connections eg moon illusion
61
Q

Gestalt - visual principles of organization

A

Principle of experience: we organize components in whole objects depending on our prior experience (inferior temporal cortex)

Principle of similarity

Principle of parallelism

Principle of proximity

Principle of symmetry

62
Q

figure– ground segmentation (segregation)

A

The separation of a scene such that one component of the scene becomes a figural object and the other component(s) become(s)
the backdrop

Small - Figure

Large - Backdrop

63
Q

The jumbled word effect

A

ability to read words in sentences even when some of the letters are mixed up

64
Q

The word superiority effect

A

Letter easier to spot if in a word than alone

65
Q

empirical theory of colour vision

A

The theory that colour perception is influenced by prior experience with the way different illuminations affect colour

  1. prior experience of the way objects look when illuminated
  2. the inferences that the visual system makes as a result
66
Q

Dorsal pathway (where) perception of action

A

Eg visual agnosia can match the orientation but can’t identify objects

67
Q

optic ataxia

A

inability to properly reach for objects,

Especially in periphery vision

Able to identify objects visually

68
Q

JJ Gibson ecological optics, (not completely correct) thinks that the primary role of perception is … and that perception is accomplished by the sensory organs themselves so he is … but still …

A

Action … wrong … influential

69
Q

Gibson’s notions of perception vs visual stimuli

A

Ambient optical array
Transformation
Optic flow field
topological breakage

70
Q

intentional binding effect

A

that “intentional actions elicit perceptual attraction,” which “binds together awareness of the voluntary action with awareness of its sensory consequences, bringing them closer in perceived time.”

71
Q

Multimodal perception (lack of research except last 2decades)

A

Most of the time at least 2 of our senses are actively processing information

72
Q

Modality appropriateness hypothesis

A

The hypothesis that different senses are better at processing different
stimuli, and therefore that different sensory modalities dominate at
different times, depending on circumstances.

73
Q

visual prepotency effect

A

The hypothesis that the visual system dominates the other senses when
it comes to perceptual processing.

74
Q

McGurk effect (vision & audition)

A

Perceptual systems creating an experience of something in between visual and auditory stimuli

Eg. The auditory experience of the syllable “da” when seeing a mouth silently saying “ga” while at the same time hearing a voice say “ba.”3

75
Q

Vision and touch (proprioception)

A

When arms are crossed accuracy goes down (hard to judge the temporal order of the stimuli)

76
Q

Perception and taste

A

Influence = multi-sensory.