Chapter 3 - Perception Flashcards
Sensation
Absorbing raw energy through our sensory organs
Perception
The experience that results from sensation (stimulation of the senses)
Transduction
The process by which raw energy is converted to neutral signals
Distal stimulus
Object in the environment
Proximal stimulus
Pattern of stimulation registered by the senses
Percept
A meaningful interpretation of the proximal stimulus
Perceptual constancy
Perceiving something to be unchanging in the environment despite changes in sensory input
Direct perception
Perception is based solely on information from the environment
Constructivism
Perception involves actively constructing a percept based on sensory information from the environment and prior knowledge and expectations
Bottom-up (data-driven) processing
Using sensory information from the environment
Top-down (theory-driven) processing
Using prior knowledge and expectations
Template matching
Comparing a pattern of stimulation with previously stored patterns (“templates”) in memory
Prototype matching
Comparing a pattern of stimulation with a single idealized representation (a “prototype”) in memory
Feature analysis
Breaking down a stimulus into components (“features”) and finding distinctive features to recognize the stimulus
Recognition-by-components theory
We perceive objects by identifying basic features called geons (“geometrical ions”)
Geon
A three-dimensional volume
Principle of componential recovery
An object is recognized only if we can recover (perceive) it’s geons
Word superiority effect
Better perception for letters in words than in isolation
Interactive activation model
A neural network model in which activation propagates through interconnected nodes
Heuristics
“Rules of thumb” that provide best-guess solutions to problems
Algorithms
Step-by-step procedures guaranteed to solve problems
law of good continuation
Points belong together when they connect to form straight or smoothly curving lines
law of good figure
A stimulus pattern is seen such that the resulting structure is as simple as possible
law of similarity
similar things appear to be grouped together
law of familiarity
Things that form familiar or meaningful patterns are likely to be grouped together
law of proximity
Things that are near each other appear to be grouped together
law of common fate
Things moving in the same direction appear to be grouped together
