Chapter 4 Flashcards
What is psychophysics?
The study of how physical stimuli are translated into psychological experience.
What is sensation?
The stimulation of sense organs, involving the absorption of physical energy by sensory organs.
What does sensation do?
Sensation provides the raw input.
What is perception?
The selection, organization, and interpretation of sensory input.
What does perception do?
Organizes and interprets the input to create a coherent experience of the world.
What are thresholds?
The point which a stimulus is detectable or not detectable by sensory organs.
What are the types of thresholds?
Absolute threshold: minimum amount of stimulation.
Difference threshold: smallest difference in stimulus intensity a person can detect.
How do thresholds work?
By defining the minimum level of stimulus required for detection and the smallest detectable difference between two stimuli.
What is the Signal Detection Theory?
About detecting stimuli, involving decision-making processes.
How does one determine the sensitivity of sensory systems?
Hits, Misses, False Alarms, and Correct Rejections.
What is subliminal perception work?
The registration of sensory input with conscious awareness, the stimuli below can can influence behavior.
What are the parts of the eye?
Iris, Pupil. Lens, and Retina.
How does the eye function?
Retina detects light, Iris and Pupil control the light entering, Lens focuses the light.
What is the main visual pathway?
Through the lateral geniculate nucleus into the thalamus. Then to the primary visual cortex in the occipital lobe.
What is the secondary visual pathway?
Through the superior colliculus, thalamus, and the primary visual cortex.
What does the Dorsal Stream do?
Processes motion and depth information, moving to the parietal lobe.
What does the Ventral Stream do?
Processes colours and form information, moving to the temporal lobe.
What is the Trichromatic Theory?
We have three types of receptors associated with red, green, and blue. Any colour can be matched by the additive mixture of the three primary colours.
What is the Opponent Process Theory?
Receptors making responses to three pairs of colours:
- Red vs Green
- Yellow vs Blue
- Black vs White
How do we perceive form, patterns, and objects?
Through several processes: Feature Analysis, Gestalt Principles, Selective Perception, and Perceptual Organization.
What is Feature Analysis?
Detecting specific elements and assembling them into complex forms.
What is the Gestalt Principles?
How scenes are organized into discrete forms through the concepts of: figure and ground, proximity, closure, similarity, simplicity, and continuity.
What does Selective Perception explain?
Form perception is selective, how certain certain visual aspects are focused on while potentially missing others.
What is Perceptual Organization?
How people organize their visual inputs.
What is a visual illusion?
An inexplicable discrepancy between the appearance of a visual stimulus and its physical reality.
