Chapter 6 - Perception Flashcards
inattentional blindness
failing to see visible objects when our attention is directed elsewhere
Visual capture
The tendency for vision to dominate the other senses
gestalt
an organized whole. gestalt psychologists emphasize our tendency to integrate pieces of information into meaningful wholes
figure ground
Organization of the visual field into objects (the figures) the stand out from the surroundings (the ground)
grouping
The perceptual tendency to organize stimuli into coherent groups
depth perception
The ability to see objects in three dimensions although the images that strike the retina are two-dimensional; Allows us to judge distance
Visual cliff
A laboratory device for testing depth perception in infants and young animals
binocular cues
depth cues, such as retinal disparity and convergence, that depend on the use of two eyes
retinal disparity
A binocular cue for perceiving depth; by comparing images from the two eyeballs, the brain computes distance – the greater the disparity (difference) between the two images, the closer the object
convergence
a binocular cue for perceiving depth; the extent to which the eyes converge inward when looking at an object. The greater the inward strain, the closer the object
Monocular cues
depth cues, such as interposition and linear perspective, available to either eye alone
phi phenomenon
illusion of movement created when two or more adjacent lights blink on and off in quick succession
perceptual constancy
perceiving objects as unchanging (having consistent lightness, color, shape, and size) even as illumination and retinal images change
perceptual adaptation
in vision, the ability to adjust to an artificially displaced or even inverted visual field
perceptual set
A mental predisposition to perceive one thing and not another
