Sensation and Perception

Question 1

Sensation

Answer 1

The process of receiving environmental stimuli and translating those to nerve impulses that are sent to the brain
- The process is called Sensory Transduction

Question 2

Perception

Answer 2

The process of interpreting and understanding sensory information
- Context matters

Question 3

Bottom-up Processing

Answer 3

Stimuli shape the perception of what we see
- Spontaneous

Question 4

Top-down Processing

Answer 4

Use of background knowledge to make sense of stimuli
- What do we see and compare it to previous experiences

Question 5

What are the senses for?

Answer 5

• To get information

Question 6

Focal attention

Answer 6

Directing focus/attention onto something, like visual attention, and disregarding other stimuli. Its responsible for transferring that information short-term memory.

Question 7

Psychophysics

Answer 7

Relations between stimuli and sensory capabilities
- How sensitive are our senses?
- How do our enses convert signals into sensations and how does experiences play a part?

Question 8

What are the two kinds of perceptual sensitivity?

Answer 8

• Absolute Threshold
  Lowest intensity at which a stimulus can be detected by 50% of the times
• Difference Threshold (JND)
  Smallest difference between stimuli that can be detected
  Hear or feel a difference - Lifting weights

Question 9

Decision criterion

Answer 9

A standard of how certain one have to be to say they detected something
- Individual differences

Question 10

Signal Detection Theory

Answer 10

• What are the factors that influence sensory judgements
• Research based on decision during uncertainty
• How do we come up with a decision with “two options”
  Good mail or spam?
• 4 outcomes to it
  Hit
  Miss
  Correct Rejections
  False alarms

Question 11

Signal detection task

Answer 11

• Used in researches
• Is the stimulus present or not - decision
• De composes a mental process into sensory and decision sub-processes
• Assumes all stimuli are detected in the presence of noise

Question 12

Hit rate

Answer 12

Hits - reports when the stimulus was present

Question 13

Proportion false alarms

Answer 13

False alarms - stimulus present when it wasnt

Question 14

What can influnce people for hit rates?

Answer 14

Individual differences
- Standard criterion
- Says it often vs more conservative
- Fatigue, doing it during an extended period of time
Situational differences
- Cost and/or reward for hit rates - diagnosing a patient
- Expectations

Question 15

Sensitivity index d

Answer 15

Reperesents the participants ability to detect the stimulus

Question 16

Likelihood Beta

Answer 16

Represents the participants response criterium
- The participants tendency to report the presence of the stimulus
- Can be affected by cost - reward influences

Question 17

Subliminal stimulus

Answer 17

Weak or brief stimulus, it gets perceived but not consciously

Question 18

Webers Law

Answer 18

The JND is proportional to the magnitude of the stimulus with which the comparison is being made
- Detecting differences
-The smaller the Weber fraction, the greater sensitivity to differences
degree of change/ stimulus intensity

Question 19

Fechners Law *

Answer 19

Addd seubjective experience to Webers law
- Noticing the difference

Question 20

Sensory Adaption

Answer 20

A process of adjusting sensitivity of our sensory systems
- From survival
- Part of our daily life
- Wearing a watch, not noticing it constantly
- The sensory systems
Adapting to a cold/warm room