Gregory's Theory Flashcards
What is Gregory’s constructivist theory of perception?
It contrasts with Gibson’s theory that sensation and perception are the same things.
It proposes that we use past experience to make sense of the world around us.
The brain uses sensory information and information that we already know, perception is a construction.
The brain uses sensory information that is available and then fills in the gaps.
Past experience means we infer what should be there and draw a conclusion.
When making inference, visual cues give the brain information about depth and distance.
Gregory proposes that perception depends on experience.
The more we interact with the world, the more sophisticated our perception becomes.
What is one strength of Gregory’s theory?
Support from research in different cultures.
What are the weaknesses of Gregory’s theory?
It can’t explain how perception gets started, it uses visual illusion to support the theory.
Why is the fact that there is support from different cultures a strength of Gregory’s theory?
Hudson’s study showed that experience affects how visual cues are interpreted.
This means that their different experiences have affected their perception.
Why is the use of visual illusions to support Gregory’s theory a weakness?
Visual illusions are designed to deceive us.
His theory may not tell us much about how perception works in the real world.
Why can’t Gregory’s theory explain how perception gets started?
Research has shown that babies have some perceptual abilities at birth, Fantz’s study shows that babies prefer human faces to random patterns.
Therefore not all perception is the result of experience
