Perception Flashcards
What is perception?
Perception is how we interpret or make sense of the sensory information that we receive.
What are the two main theories of perception?
- Gibson’s direct theory of perception
- Gregory’s constructivist theory of perception
What is sensation?
Information we receive through the senses is known as a sensation.
What is transduction?
The process by which sensory organs detect information from the environment and convert it into electrical signals.
What is the difference between bottom-up and top-down processes in perception?
- Bottom-up process: Perception based solely on information received by the eyes
- Top-down process: Perception influenced by expectations and prior knowledge
What are monocular depth cues?
Depth cues that can be used with one eye to perceive distance, including height in plane, relative size, occlusion, and linear perspective.
What are binocular depth cues?
Depth cues that require two eyes, including convergence and retinal disparity.
What is height in plane?
A monocular depth cue where objects further away appear higher in the visual field.
What is relative size?
A monocular depth cue where closer objects appear larger than those further away.
What is occlusion?
A monocular depth cue where one object overlaps another, indicating that the overlapping object is closer.
What is linear perspective?
A monocular depth cue involving parallel lines converging at a vanishing point to indicate depth.
What is convergence?
A binocular depth cue that detects differences in eye muscle focus when viewing objects at different distances.
What is retinal disparity?
A binocular depth cue comparing the two slightly different images received by each eye to judge distance.
What is motion parallax?
The effect where objects closer to us appear to move faster than those further away when we are in motion.
What does Gibson’s direct theory of perception propose?
We perceive using the information received through our senses, which is sufficient for understanding the world.
What is an ecological theory of perception?
Gibson’s theory that perception evolved to help organisms interact effectively with their environment.
What is visual perception?
The process of interpreting visual information received by the eyes.
What is a visual illusion?
A phenomenon where visual perception is misled, causing us to see something inaccurately.
What is ambiguity in visual illusions?
When an image can be interpreted in multiple ways, leading to confusion in perception.
What is the Ponzo illusion?
An illusion where two lines appear to be different lengths due to the influence of linear perspective.
What is the Müller-Lyer illusion?
An illusion where two lines of equal length appear different due to the orientation of arrowheads at their ends.
What is the Rubin’s vase illusion?
An example of ambiguity where an image can be seen as either a vase or two profiles.
What is the Necker Cube?
An ambiguous figure that can be perceived from multiple perspectives.
What is the Kanizsa triangle?
An illusion where a triangle is perceived to be present even though it is not explicitly drawn.
What is the Ames Room illusion?
An illusion that plays with size constancy, making objects appear different sizes due to distorted room geometry.
What does Gregory’s constructivist theory of perception emphasize?
The importance of past knowledge and experience in interpreting sensory information.
What is perceptual set?
A tendency to perceive things in a certain way based on expectations and prior experiences.
What factors can affect perception?
- Culture
- Motivation
- Emotion
- Expectation
Fill in the blank: Gibson’s theory suggests that sensation and perception are the _______.
[same processes]
True or False: Gregory’s theory argues that perception is solely based on sensory input without influence from past experiences.
False
What is the perceptual set?
A state of readiness for the information we receive from the environment.
What factors affect perception according to the GCSE specification?
- Culture
- Motivation
- Emotion
- Expectation
How does motivation influence perception?
Motivation can affect how we perceive images and situations, as seen in Gilchrist and Nesberg’s study.
What did Gilchrist and Nesberg’s 1952 study investigate?
How motivation affects a person’s perception.
What was the main finding of Gilchrist and Nesberg’s study on hunger?
Hungry participants perceived images of food as brighter.
What is one limitation of Gilchrist and Nesberg’s 1952 study?
The small sample size makes generalization difficult.
What is the influence of emotion on perception?
Emotions can lead us to perceive things in a way that aligns with how we feel.
How does expectation affect perception?
When we expect something, we are more likely to notice it.
What did Bruner and Minturn’s study on expectation find?
Participants interpreted an ambiguous figure differently based on their expectations.
Fill in the blank: The __________ set helps us anticipate what is coming so we can act effectively.
[perceptual]
What role does culture play in perception according to the text?
Culture influences how children perceive and draw objects, like animals.
How do emotions affect the interpretation of ambiguous pictures?
People in a negative mood are more likely to interpret ambiguous images negatively.
What is the aim of Bruner and Minturn’s 1955 study?
To investigate how expectations can direct perception.
True or False: Participants in Bruner and Minturn’s study saw the test stimulus only once.
False
What is one way that motivation can manifest in behavior?
Physical motives like hunger can drive us to eat.
What did the study find about children from traditional tribal societies compared to those from Western societies?
Children from tribal societies draw animals flat and spread out, while Western children draw them from the side.
Fill in the blank: Our cognitive processes such as memory and decision-making can be affected by the __________ set.
[perceptual]
What did participants in Gilchrist and Nesberg’s study adjust based on their hunger?
The brightness of images of food.
What was the task for participants in Bruner and Minturn’s study?
To draw the letter or number as soon as they could recognize it.
What were the two groups in Gilchrist and Nesberg’s study?
- Experimental group (went without food)
- Control group (had normal meals)
What conclusion can be drawn from Bruner and Minturn’s study?
Expectations directly influence how we interpret ambiguous stimuli.
