Chapter 4 - research methods Flashcards
What is the order of the following:
perception, sensation, transduction
sensation »_space; transduction »_space; perception
The only thing that is unique: perception.
define sensation:
simple stimulation of sense organs!
info. when dendrites are stimulated by light.
define transduction:
transformation of energy into electrochemical signals!
define perception:
when a person has organized, identified, and interpreted the sensory input as signaling a particular object or event.
define psychophysics:
study of the relation between physical events and the corresponding experience of those events.
define threshold:
when physical stimulation becomes strong enough to be noticed.
define absolute threshold:
smallest amount of stimulus energy needed to stimulate that sensory organ, half the time a person is exposed to it.
define just-noticeable difference (JND):
smallest detectable difference between two stimuli.
what is signal detection?
seeks to explain why people detect signals in some situations but miss them in others.
define sensitivity:
threshold level for distinguishing between a stimulus and noise.
define noise:
which refers to all of the other stimuli coming from the internal and external environment.
what is bias here?
willingness to report noticing a stimulus.
Difference between sensitivity and bias?
sensitivity: around you.
bias: mindset.
Know what hit, miss, false alarm, correct rejection is.
hit = yes, yes miss = yes, no false = no, yes correct = no, no
What is sensory adaptation?
adaptation to current conditions over time.
ex. getting used to pool temperature.
What is bottom-up processing?
meticulously analyzing something slowly.
ex. usually when encountering something for first time.
What is top-down processing?
guided by knowledge, expectation, or belief.
ex. jumping to conclusions based on prior knowledge/experiences.
What is the difference between bottom-up & top-down processing?
bottom-up: bias, error, illusion free. but slower.
top-down: more prone to bias, error, illusion. faster!
define perceptual set:
sum of a person’s assumptions and beliefs that lead him or her to expect to perceive certain objects or characteristics in particular contexts.
