Developmental chapter 6 (Sensation, Perception, and Action) Flashcards
Perspectives on Perception: Constructivists
- They side with nurture (poeple learn and grow by interacting with the world around them)
- perceptions of the world are constructed over time through learning
Perspectives on Perception: Nativists
- they side with nature (people are born with certain abilities and knowledge)
- the brain automatically understands the
meanings of different retinal images - perception doesn’t require an interpretation based on prior experience
Main methods used to study infants
(1) Habituation:
- We present them a stimuli repetedly until they habituate (get used to) or get bored
(2) Preferential looking:
- Present 2 visual stimuli side by side and measure looking time for each stimulus, if the infant looks longer at one stimulus, it means they can differentiate between them
(3) Evoked potentials:
- record electrical brain activity in different areas of the brain while the infant is exposed to stimuli
(4) operant conditioning:
- The infant is conditioned to react a certain way to a stimulus through reinforcement
- change stimulus and if they react the same, they DON’T perceive a difference
Gibson’s ecological model
- information essential for perception is readily and directly available in the environment, we learn to see and understand the world by interacting with our environment
Visual acuity
How clearly you can see things, especially details, when looking at objects
Vision of infants
- It is 40 times worse than an adults but improves in the first month of life
- At 4 months, infants can differentiate colors and categorize similar colors
Form perception (process)
The process whereby the brain interprets the shapes, patterns, and designs of visual stimuli to create a meaningful perceptual experience
Infant vision development (by month)
(1 month-old)
→ focus on contours (boundaries) of objects
→ tendency for gaze to remain ‘stuck’ on the object
(2 months-old)
→ explore interiors of objects thoroughly
→ get better at shifting attention from one object to another
(4 months-old)
→ expect all parts of an object to move in the same direction at the same time
→ use common motion to determine what’s part of an object
Patterns in which infants show prefrense
- High contrast contours (differences in color)
- Dynamic or containing movement
- Moderately complex
Face perception of newborns
- They can distinguish a human face from a monkey but don’t show preference for humans
- Can recognize their mother (at least in simplified displays)
- Preference for patterns with more information in the upper visual field
Developemnt of newborns depth perception
(2 months-old):
- They perceive depth but haven’t learned to fear drop-offs yet
(4 months-old):
- understanding of “size consistency” (object is same size despite changes in distance from the eyes)
(7 months-old and +):
- clearly perceive depth and fear drop-offs
Intuitive theories
Innate knowledge about the world THAt shape perception and learning
Hearing of newborns
- newborns can hear well and localize sounds
- prenatal auditory experiences can shape the neural architecture of the brain
Speech perception of newborns
- young infants are especially responsive and show preference for speech sounds
- newborns begin life, ready to learn any language
- fetuses can differentiate their mother’s voice from a stranger’s (due to hearing it during the prenental stage)
Taste and Smell of newborns
- can distinguish: sweet, bitter, and sour
- show preference for sweet tastes
- basic tastes are innate (inborn) but more complex flavor perception is learned
- olfaction (smell) works good at birth
Sensitive period of newborns
The first 4-6 months of age where exposure to certain tastes can influence later acceptance of it
Somaesthetic Senses and notes
touch, temperature, pressure, kinesthetic sense
- tactile stimulation (sensing touch through our skin) develops in the cephalocaudal direction
- pain is responsive to learning
Early Perceptual Development
the visual system requires stimulation early in life to develop normally. the first 3 months are critical for later sensitivity to detail and holistic face processing (how our brains recognize and understand faces by looking at them as a whole)
↳ same principle applies to hearing
Locomotion and notes
It’s all about how we use our bodies to get around, like walking, running, crawling, or even swimming.
- the young child must learn to integrate perception with action in order to move effectively
- Early motor development follows the cephalocaudal and proximodistal principles of growth
Vision for the Child
Visual acuity improves to adult levels between 4 and 6 years
Gross motor skills (developed during childhood)
Ability to use large muscle groups to perform movements and action
Acquired before: Fine motor skills
Fine motor skills (developed during childhood)
Ability to use small muscle groups for precise movements and actions
Acquired after: Fine motor skills
Dynamic (action) systems theory
The idea that complex motor behaviors emerge over time through a SELF-OGRANIZING process. This is beacuse children adapt their motor behavior based on their environment
(babies) Rhythmic stereotypies
repetitive movements that some babies and young children make, usually as a way to explore their bodies or their environment
- young toddlers can adjust their walking to changes in their body dimensions (ex: weight) and the slope of a walkway
- falling while walking, helps children learn which surfaces are safe and which are problematic
- can walk and run in a straight line but can’t easily stop or turn while running
The child: orienting system
helps an individual react to the environment
The child: focusing system
Helps maintain focus on a particular task (selective attention)
The 3 things that change as Children get order
(1) longer attention span (Between 5 - 10 years)
(2) more selective attention (Between 3½ - 4 years)
(3) more systematic attention / plan and carry systematic investigations (Between 6+ years)
Adolescent: Attention
- improved ability to sustain attention due to increased myelination in brain areas involved in attention
- Better able to switch attention from one task to another and:
↳ Ignore irrelevant information
↳ Divide attention more systematically - Many adolescents engage in multitasking which decreases academic performance
Adolescent: Hearing
Visual acuity can become compromised when listening to music on high volumes
Tinnitus
Condition. Most common outcome of 𝐧𝐨𝐢𝐬𝐞 𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐮𝐫𝐞 , that results into constant ringing sound
Adolescent: Taste
- slight decline in preference for sweets and increase for sour tastes
- Begins experimenting with foods
Adolescent: Smell (men and women)
- women have greater sensitivity to smell
- Both men and women say that odor is important for selecting a partner
The Adult: Sensory thresholds
The minimum levels of stimulus (like light, sound, touch, taste, or smell) that our senses need to detect something. It raise with age and stimulation below the threshold can’t be detected
Type of vision problems for adults
Pupil → less responsive to changes in lighting conditions and to dim light
lens → cataract and presbyopia
retina → age-related macular , degeneration (AMD), retinitis pigmentosa (RP)
eyeball → glaucoma
Adults: Hearing
- hearing reduction (3 times as prevalent as visual impairment)
- Hair cells and sensory neurons degenerate gradually. This leads to loss of sensitivity to high-pitched sounds (presbycusis)
- Older adults have more difficulty understanding conversation than young adults but they are able to use contextual cues to interpret what they hear
Chemical Senses of Adults
- general decline in sensitivity to taste
- produce less saliva
- the ability to perceive odors also decreases with age
↳ serious loss of smell impairs quality of life and enjoyment of food
Adults: Somaesthetic Senses
- touch detection threshold increases and sensitivity is gradually lost
- sensitivity to temperature changes decreases
- sensitivity to pain is not lost
(the senses that help us feel and understand what’s happening to our bodies)
cross-modal perception
the ability to integrate and coordinate information from multiple. Sensory systems (ex: vision, sound) to form a coherent perception of the world
