Module 23 - Visual Organization and Interpretation Flashcards
Gestalt
An organized whole. Gestalt psychologists emphasized our tendency to integrate pieces of information into meaningful wholes
Figure-ground
The organization of the visual field into objects (the figures) that stand out from their surroundings (the ground)
Grouping
The perceptual tendency to organize stimuli into coherent groups
Proximity
We group nearby figures together
Continuity
We perceive smooth, continuous patterns rather than discontinuous ones
Closure
We fill in gaps to create a complete, whole object
Depth perception
The ability to see objects in 3 dimensions although the images that strike the retina are 2-dimensional; allows us to judge distance
Visual cliff
A laboratory device for testing depth perception in infants and young animals
Binocular cues
A depth cue, such as retinal disparity, that depends on the use of two eyes
Retinal disparity
A binocular clue for perceiving depth. By comparing retinal images from the two eyes, the brain computes distance—the greater the disparity between the two images, the closer the object
Monocular cues
A depth cue, such as interposition or linear perspective, available to either eye alone
Phi phenomenon
An 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 color, brightness, shape, and size) even as illumination and retinal images change
Color constancy
Perceiving familiar objects as having consistent color, even if changing illumination alters the wavelengths reflected by the object
Perceptual adaptation
The ability to adjust to changed sensory input, including an artificially displaced or even inverted visual field
Linear perspective
Parallel lines appear to meet in the distance. The sharper the angle of convergence, the greater the perceived distance
Relative size
If we assume two objects are similar in size, most people perceive the smaller one is farther away
Interposition
If one object partially blocks our view of another, we perceive it as closer
Relative height
We perceive objects higher in our field of vision as farther away
Relative motion
As we move, objects that are stable may appear to move
Light and shadow
Shading produces a sense of depth consisten with our assumption that light comes from above
Brightness constancy
Perceiving an object as having a constant brightness
Relative luminence
The amount of light an object reflects relative to its surroundings
Shape constancy
Perceiving the form of familiar objects as constant even while our retinas receive changing images of them
Size constancy
Perceiving an object as having an unchanging size
