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Psychology 111 > Chapter 6- Sensation and Perception > Flashcards

Chapter 6- Sensation and Perception Flashcards

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1
Q

sensation

A

the process by which our sensory receptors and nervous system recieve and represent stimulus energies from our environment

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2
Q

perception

A

the process by which our brain organizes and interprets sensory information

enables us to recognize objects and events as meaningful

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3
Q

bottom up processing

A

information processing that begins with the sensory receptors and works up to the brain’s integration of sensory information

starts at ur sensory receptors + works up to higher levels of processing

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4
Q

top down processing

A

information processing guided by higher-level mental processes, as when we construct perceptions drawing on our experience and expectations

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5
Q

What are the three steps that are basic to all of our senses?

A
  1. recieving sensory stimulation (often using specialized receptor cells)
  2. transform that stimulation into neural impulses
  3. deliver the neural info to our brain
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6
Q

Transduction

A

conversion of one form of energy into another. In sensation, the tranforming of stimulus energies, such as sights, sounds, and smells, into neural impulses our brain can interpret.

like a translation of physical energy into brain’s electroch. language

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7
Q

Pyschophysics

A

the study of relationships between the physical characteristics of stimuli, such as their intensity, and our psychological experience of them

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8
Q

absolute threshold

A

the minimum stimulus energy needed to detect a praticular stimulus 50 percent of the time

the edge of our awareness of faint stimuli

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9
Q

Gustav Fechner

A

studied absolute threshold

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10
Q

signal detection theory

A

a theory predicting how and when we detect the presence of a faint stimulus

predicts when we will detect weak signals

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11
Q

subliminal

A

below one’s absolute threshold for conscious awareness

stimuli you cannot consciously detect 50 percent of the time

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12
Q

difference threshold

A

the minimum difference between two stimuli required for detection 50 percent of the time. We experiece the difference threshold as a just noticeable difference

the detectable difference increases with the size of the stimulus

Ex. music going from 40-45 decibles is detectable, but music changing from 100-105 decibles is most likely not able to be detected

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13
Q

Weber’s Law

A

the principle that, to be percieved as different, two stimuli must differ by a constant minimum percentage (rather than a constant amount)

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14
Q

priming

A

the activation, often unconsciously, of certain associations, thus predisposing one’s perception, memory, or response

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15
Q

sensory adaptation

A

diminished sensitivity as a consequence of constant stimulation

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16
Q

perceptual set

A

a set of mental tendencies and assumptions that affects, top-down, what we hear, taste, feel, and see

a mental predisposition to perceive one thing and not another

Campbell, 1986

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17
Q

wavelength

A

the distance from the peak of one light or sound wave to the peak of the next. electromagnetic wavelengths vary from the short blips of gamma rays to the long pulses of radio transmission

the distance from one wave peak to the next

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18
Q

hue

A

the dimension of color that is determined by the wavelength of the light; what we know as the color names blue, green,and so forth

the color we experience

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19
Q

intensity

A

the amount of energy in a light wave or sound wave, which influences what we percieve as brightness or loudness. Intensity is determined by the wave’s amplitude.

the amount of energy the wave contains, influences brightness

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20
Q

Amplitude

A

height of a wavelength, determine’s their intensity

great amplitude (height)= bright colors; small amplitude= dull colors

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21
Q

frequency

A

the number of complete wavelengths that can pass a point in a given time

shorter wavelength=high frequency= bluish colors… longer wavelength=low frequency=reddish colors

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22
Q

retina

A

the light-sensitive inner surface of the eye, containing the receptor rods and cones plus layers of neurons that begin the processing of visual information

multilayered tissue on the eyeball’s sensitive inner surface

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23
Q

accommodation

A

the process by which the eye’s lens changes shape to focus near or far objects on the retina

process where the lens changes its curvature and thickness

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24
Q

rods

A

retinal receptors that detect black, white, and gray, and are sensitive to movement. Rods are necessary for peripheral and twilight vision, when cones don’t respond

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25
Q

cones

A

retinal receptors that are concentrated near the center of the retina and that function in daylight or in well-lit conditions. Cones detect fine detail and give rise to color sensations

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26
Q

optic nerve

A

the nerve that carries neural impulses from the eye to the brain

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27
Q

blind spot

A

the point at which the optic nerve leaves the eye, creating a “blind” spot because no receptor cells are located there

28
Q

fovea

A

the central focal point in the retina, around which the eye’s cones cluster

29
Q

Young-Helmholtz trichromatic (three-color) theory

A

the theory that the retina contains three different types of color receptors-one most sensitive to red, one to green, one to blue-which, when stimulated in combination, can produce the perception of any color

30
Q

Opponent process theory

A

the theory that opposing retinal process (red-green, blue-yellow, white-black) enable color vision. For example, some cells are stimulated by green and inhibited by red; others are stimulated by red and inhibited by green.

31
Q

Color processing stages

A
  1. The retina’s red-, green-, and blue-sensitive cones respond in varying degrees to different color stimuli, as the Young-Hemholtz trichromatic theory suggested
  2. The cones’ responses are then processed by opponent-process cells, as Hering’s opponent-process theory proposed.
32
Q

feature detectors

A

nerve cells in the brain’s visual cortex that respond to specific features od the stimulus, such as shape, angle, or movement

nerve cells in the occipital lobe’s visual cortex that respond to a scene’s specific features

33
Q

parallel processing

A

processing many aspects of a stimulus or problem simultaneously

doing many things at once

34
Q

gesalt

A

an organized whole. Gesalt psychologists emphasized our tendency to integrate pieces of info into meaningful wholes

in perception, the whole may exceed the sum of its parts

35
Q

figure-ground

A

the organization of the visual field into objects (the figures) that stand out from their surroundings (the ground)

Ex. vase and faces allusion

36
Q

grouping

A

the perceptual tendency to organize stimuli into coherent groups

the percieved whole often differs from the sum of its’ parts

proximity, continuity, closure

37
Q

depth perception

A

the ability to see objects in three dimensions, although the images that strike the retina are two-dimensional; allows us to judge distance

babies and baby animals refuse to lean over a visual cliff

38
Q

binocular cue

A

a depth cue, such as retinal disparity, that depends on the use of two eyes

39
Q

retinal disparity

A

a binocular cue for perceiving depth. by comparing retinal images from the two eyes, the brain computes distance–the greater the disparity (difference) between two images,

40
Q

monocular cue

A

a depth cue, such as interposition or linear perspective, available to either eye alone

ex. relative height, relative size, relative motion, linear perspective, interposition

41
Q

phi phenomenon

A

an illusion of movement created when two or more adjacent lights blink on and off in quick succession (like a moving arrow)

42
Q

perceptual constancy

A

percieving objects as unchanging (having consistent color, brightness, shape, and size) even as illumination and retinal images change

regardless of the viewing angle, distance, and illumination, we can identify people and things in less time than it takes to take a breath

43
Q

perceptual adaptation

A

the ability to adjust to changed sensory input, including an artificially displaced or even inverted visual field

44
Q

audition

A

the sense or act of hearing

45
Q

pitch

A

a tone’s experienced highness or lowness; depends on frequency

short wavelength=high frequency, long wavelength=low frequency, great amplitude=loud sounds, small amplitude=quiet sounds

46
Q

middle ear

A

the chamber betwen the eardrum and cochlea containing three tiny bones–hammer (malleus), anvil (incus), and stirrup (stapes)– that concentrate the vibrations of the eardrum on the cochlea’s oval window

47
Q

cochlea

A

a coiled, bony, fluid filled tube in the inner ear; sound waves traveling through the cochlear fluid trigger nerve impulses

48
Q

inner ear

A

the innermost part of the ear, containing the cochlea, semicircular canals, and vesibular sacs

49
Q

sonsorineural hearing loss

A

the most common form of hearing loss, caused by damage to the cochlea’s receptor cells or to the auditory nerve; also called nerve deafness

50
Q

conduction hearing loss

A

a less common form of hearing loss, caused by damage to the mechanical system that conducts sound waves to the cochlea

51
Q

cochlear implant

A

a device for converting sounds into electrical signals and stimulating the auditory nerve through electrodes threaded into the cochlea

52
Q

cause of loudness

A

number of activated hair cells

53
Q

place theory

A

in hearing, the theory that links the pitch we hear with the place where the cochlea’s membrane is stimulated

54
Q

frequency theory

A

in hearing, the theory that the rate of nerve impulses traveling up the auditory nerve matches the frequency of a tone, thus enabling us to sense its pitch, aka temporal coding

55
Q

gate-control theory

A

the theory that the spinal cord contains a neurological “gate” that blocks pain signals or allows them to pass on to the brain. The “gate” is opened by the activity of pain signals traveling up small nerve fibers and is closed by activity in larger fibers or by information coming from the brain

56
Q

hypnosis

A

a social interaction in which one person (the hypnotist) suggests to another person (the subject) that certain perceptions, feelings, thoughts, or behaviors will spontaneously occur

57
Q

dissociation

A

a split in consciousness, which allows some thoughts and behaviors to occur simultaneously with others

58
Q

posthypnotic suggestion

A

a suggestion, made during a hypnosis session, to be carried out after the subject is no longer hypnotized, used by some clinicians to help control undesired symptoms and behaviors

59
Q

gustation

A

our sense of taste

60
Q

olfaction

A

our sense of smell

61
Q

kinestesia

A

our movement sense- our system for sensing the position and movement of individual body parts

62
Q

vestibular sense

A

our balance sense- our sense of body movement and position that enables our sense of balance

63
Q

sensory interaction

A

the principle that one sense can influence another, as when the smell of food influences its taste

64
Q

embodied cognition

A

the influence of bodily sensations, gestures, and other states on cognitive preferences and judgements

65
Q

extrasensory perception (ESP)

A

the controversial claim that perception can occur appart from sensory input; includes telepathy , clairvoyance, and precognition

Psychology 111 (15 decks)

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