Module 17: Basic Concepts of Sensation and Perception

Question 1

sensation

Answer 1

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

Question 2

perception

Answer 2

the process of organizing and interpreting sensory information, enabling us to recognize meaningful objects and events

Question 3

bottom-up processing

Answer 3

analysis that begins with the sensory receptors and works up to the brain’s integration of sensory information (experience to brain)

Question 4

top-down processing

Answer 4

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

Question 5

transduction

Answer 5

conversion of one form of energy into another

Question 6

psychophysics

Answer 6

studies the relationships between the physical energy we can detect and its effects on our psychological experiences.

Question 7

signal detection theory

Answer 7

predicts how and when we will detect a faint stimulus amid background noise

Question 8

individual absolute thresholds

Answer 8

vary depending on the strength of the signal and on our experience, expectations, motivation, and alertness

Question 9

absolute threshold

Answer 9

minimum stimulation needed to detect a particular stimulus 50 percent of the time

Question 10

subliminal

Answer 10

input below the absolute threshold for conscious awareness

Question 11

priming

Answer 11

activating, often unconsciously, associations in our mind, setting us up to perceive, remember, or respond to objects or events in certain ways

Question 12

difference threshold (just noticeable difference)

Answer 12

minimum difference a person can detect between any two stimuli

Question 13

Weber’s law

Answer 13

for an average person to perceive a difference, two stimuli must differ by a constant minimum percentage (not a constant amount); the exact proportion varies, depending on the stimulus.

Question 14

sensory adaptation

Answer 14

diminished sensitivity as a consequence of constant stimulation increases focus by reducing background chatter, influences how the world is perceived in a personally useful way, influences emotions

Question 15

perceptual set

Answer 15

a mental predisposition to perceive one thing and not another

Question 16

what determines our perceptual set?

Answer 16

schemas organize and interpret unfamiliar information through experience.
preexisting schemas influence top-down processing of ambiguous sensation interpretation, including gender stereotypes.

Question 17

context effects

Answer 17

a given stimulus may trigger different perceptions because of the immediate context