PSYC 3350 Cog PSYC Flashcards
What are the two main streams of visual processing?
Dorsal (where) Stream
Ventral (what) Stream
The Dorsal Stream is associated with spatial awareness and motor actions, while the Ventral Stream is involved in identification and memory.
What does the Dorsal Stream primarily process?
Spatial awareness and motor actions
The Dorsal Stream is often referred to as the ‘Where’ pathway.
What is the main function of the Ventral Stream?
Identification and memory
The Ventral Stream is commonly known as the ‘What’ pathway.
What hypothesis explains the dual pathways in visual processing?
Two Stream Hypothesis
This hypothesis suggests that visual information is processed along two distinct pathways in the brain.
What is synaesthesia?
A condition where stimulation of one sensory pathway leads to automatic experiences in a second sensory pathway
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For example, perceiving certain sounds as colors.
Who is James Wannerton?
A person known for experiencing synaesthesia
He perceives train stations and geographic locations as smells or flavors.
Is synaesthesia a learned association?
No, it is a direct perception of the input
Synaesthesia involves automatic sensory experiences rather than learned associations.
Can we induce synaesthesia?
Yes, through purely visual stimulus
Research suggests that certain stimuli can trigger synaesthetic experiences.
Fill in the blank: The Dorsal Stream is often referred to as the _______.
Where pathway
This terminology highlights its role in spatial awareness.
Fill in the blank: The Ventral Stream is commonly known as the _______.
What pathway
This emphasizes its function in object identification.
What feelings can pure visual stimuli evoke in a person?
Feelings of proprioception
Proprioception refers to the sense of body position and movement.
What is synaesthesia?
A condition where stimulation of one sensory pathway leads to automatic experiences in a second sensory pathway.
What is synaptic pruning?
The process that strengthens used connections in the brain.
What is anopia?
Loss of vision.
What does the nasal retina do?
Receives input from the outer visual field and is contralateral.
What does the temporal retina do?
Receives input from the inner visual field and is ipsilateral.
What is the difference between sensation impairment and perception impairment?
Sensation impairment involves visual field loss, while perception impairment involves visual processing deficits without visual field loss.
What is blindsight?
Cortical blindness within the visual field where there is a loss of conscious vision to the affected area.
What causes blindsight?
Lesion to V1 (primary visual cortex).
What is a deficit associated with blindsight?
Loss of conscious vision to affected visual field.
How do individuals with blindsight respond to stimuli?
They can guess movements and grab things in blind areas.
What is unilateral spatial neglect?
Difficulty noticing information from one side of space due to a contralateral brain lesion.
What causes unilateral spatial neglect?
Lesion to parietal/frontal lobes.
What is the deficit associated with unilateral spatial neglect?
Loss of spatial attention to the affected visual field.
How do individuals with unilateral spatial neglect respond to stimuli?
They ignore one side of the visual field.
What does agnosia mean?
Non-knowledge; to not know.
What is visual agnosia?
Difficulty recognizing objects that are seen.
What are the two types of visual agnosia?
- Form agnosia
- Integrative agnosia
What is form agnosia?
Difficulty perceiving form features of objects despite available sensory input.
What is integrative agnosia?
Inability to discriminate objects despite available sensory input
Integrative agnosia involves difficulties in comparing objects against stored representations.
What are the two types of agnosia mentioned?
- Form agnosia
- Integrative agnosia
These types represent different levels of computation in object recognition.
What are the stages of object recognition?
- Input processing
- Image Comparison
- Recognition
This process involves comparing retinal images to stored templates.
What is prosopagnosia?
Inability to recognize faces, including familiar and one’s own
Also known as face blindness.
What are the three causes of prosopagnosia?
- Congenital
- Developmental
- Acquired
Congenital refers to being from birth, developmental emerges from atypical growth, and acquired results from brain lesions.
Where in the brain does atypical development lead to prosopagnosia?
Temporal lobe, particularly in the fusiform face area
This area is crucial for face recognition.
What is the relationship between autism and face processing?
Difficulty in social information processing, including face recognition
Autism affects various aspects of face processing, such as emotion and identity recognition.
What is the N170 ERP?
A neural index of face processing
It is slower in individuals with autism, indicating potential biomarkers.
What is the difference between bottom-up and top-down processing?
Bottom-up processing relies on sensory input; top-down processing relies on prior knowledge
This distinction is crucial in understanding cognitive processes.
What are Gestalt principles?
Rules that describe how humans naturally organize visual elements
These principles are fundamental in psychology and perception.
What is the function of attention?
Attention is a limited resource
It helps prioritize sensory information for processing.
What are exogenous and endogenous attention?
- Exogenous: driven by external stimuli
- Endogenous: driven by internal goals
These types of attention affect how we focus on tasks.
What are visual processing disorders mentioned?
- Blindsight
- Spatial neglect
- Anopia
These disorders affect how visual information is perceived and processed.
What is the difference between form agnosia and integrative agnosia?
Form agnosia involves recognizing shapes; integrative agnosia involves difficulty in relating parts to a whole
Both are types of visual agnosia but affect recognition differently.
What does constructivist theory tell us about perception?
Perception involves active construction based on sensory input and prior knowledge
It contrasts with theories that suggest perception is purely based on sensory data.
What is the McGurk effect?
Integration of sensory information to create a unified percept
This effect demonstrates how visual input can influence auditory perception.
What are the key components of feature integration theory?
Attention helps us recognize objects by binding features together
This theory explains how perception of complex objects is achieved.
