Chapter 4 Flashcards
Absolute Threshold
The minimum amount of physical energy needed for the observer to notice a stimulus.
Aesthetic Experience
A term used to identify the feeling of pleasure evoked by stimuli that are perceived as beautiful, attractive, and rewarding. The term also refers to displeasure evoked by stimuli that are perceived as ugly, unattractive, and unrewarding.
Altered States of Consciousness (ASC)
The general name for phenomena that are different than normal waking consciousness and include mystic experiences, meditation, hypnosis, trance, and possession.
Behavioral Environment
A mental representation that orients people to dimensions such as time, space, and the interpersonal world.
Consciousness
The subjective awareness of one’s own sensations, perceptions, and other mental events.
Daydreaming
Turning attention away from external stimuli to internal thoughts and imagined scenarios.
Depth Perception
The organization of sensations in three dimensions, even though the image on the eye’s retina is two-dimensional.
Dreams
Story like sequences of images occurring during sleep.
Difference Threshold
The lowest level of stimulation required to sense that a change in the stimulation has occurred.
Meditation
A quiet and relaxed state of tranquility in which a person achieves an integration of emotions, attitudes, and thoughts.
Perception
The process that organizes various sensations into meaningful patterns.
Perceptual Set
Perceptual expectations based on experience.
Sensation
The process by which receptor cells are stimulated and transmit their information to higher brain centers
Sensory Adaptation
The tendency of the sensory system to respond less to stimuli that continues without change.
Sleep
A nonwaking state of consciousness characterized by general unresponsiveness to the environment and general physical immobility.
