T — Sensation & Perception Flashcards
What is sensation?
A) The process where our brain interprets sensory information
B) The process where our senses pick up information from the world around us
C) The ability to consciously recognize stimuli
D) The process of responding to environmental changes
b
What is perception?
A) The process of detecting stimuli
B) Processing sensory information to make sense of its significance
C) The unconscious reception of external stimuli
D) The act of responding to sensory input
b
What is a threshold?
A) The smallest amount of something we can sense
B) The maximum amount of a stimulus that we can detect
C) The average amount of sensory input required for awareness
D) The process of recognizing stimuli based on prior experience
A
How many types of thresholds are there?
A) Two: absolute and differential
B) Three: absolute, conscious perception, difference threshold
C) Four: sensory, absolute, conscious perception, and difference threshold
D) Five: absolute, subconscious, sensory, difference, and adaptation
b
What is an absolute threshold?
A) The amount of stimulus needed to detect a difference
B) The level at which we become consciously aware of a stimulus
C) The threshold at which sensory overload occurs
D) The minimum stimulus energy needed to activate a sensory system
d
How bright, loud, or intense stimuli must be before it is sensed
What is the threshold of conscious perception?
A) If something is below this threshold, our senses pick it up, but we are not aware of it
B) The level of a stimulus at which we consciously recognize its presence
C) The smallest difference between two stimuli that can be detected
D) The point at which we become completely insensitive to a stimulus
B
What is the difference threshold?
A) The minimum amount of a stimulus that we can detect
B) The level at which perception becomes conscious
C) The smallest stimulus required for sensory activation
D) The minimum difference in magnitude between two stimuli before one perceives a difference
D
What are proximal stimuli?
A) Stimuli that directly interact with sensory receptors
B) Stimuli that exist outside the body
C) Environmental changes that do not affect perception
D) Stimuli that bypass sensory receptors and go directly to the brain
a
What are distal stimuli?
A) Stimuli that interact directly with sensory organs
B) Stimuli that exist outside the body, such as fire
C) The signals transmitted by the nervous system to sensory organs
D) The physical reaction of sensory organs to external changes
b
What does Weber’s Law state?
A) Our ability to detect changes in a stimulus depends on its initial intensity
B) The brain processes all stimuli at the same rate regardless of intensity
C) The more intense a stimulus, the more difficult it is to detect a difference
D) The perception of intensity grows faster than the actual intensity
a
What does signal detection theory suggest?
A) The perception of a stimulus depends only on its intensity
B) The perception of a stimulus is influenced by experience, expectations, and motives
C) Sensory perception is not affected by external factors
D) The brain detects stimuli through automatic processing only
b
What is a catch trial in signal detection theory?
A) A trial where the signal is not presented
B) A trial where the signal is presented
C) A trial where the subject is distracted
D) A trial where the signal is intentionally weak
b
What is a noise trial in signal detection theory?
A) A trial where no signal is presented
B) A trial where a weak signal is introduced
C) A trial where the signal is manipulated
D) A trial where an error is introduced in perception
a
What is a hit in signal detection theory?
A) Identifying a signal when it is absent
B) Failing to detect a signal when it is present
C) Correctly identifying a signal when it is presented
D) Incorrectly rejecting a signal
c
What is a correct negative in signal detection theory?
A) Missing a signal
B) Identifying a signal that was not present
C) Correctly identifying that no signal was present
D) Detecting a weak signal but not reporting it
c
What is a miss in signal detection theory?
A) Failing to detect a signal when it is present
B) Detecting a signal that is not actually present
C) Recognizing a stimulus too late
D) Overreacting to an absent stimulus
a
What is a false alarm in signal detection theory?
A) Reporting a signal when none was present
B) Detecting a weak signal incorrectly
C) Recognizing a signal too late
D) Failing to notice a present signal
a
What is adaptation?
A) Getting used to a stimulus so much that you stop noticing it
B) Becoming hypersensitive to a stimulus over time
C) Increasing response to a repeated stimulus
D) Forgetting the presence of a stimulus
a
What does psychophysics study?
A) The relationship between physical stimuli and sensory perception
B) The way the brain translates emotional responses
C) The study of sensory organs’ structure
D) The study of psychological disorders related to sensation
a
A patient with severe hearing loss is fitted with a cochlear implant. After the procedure, they report being able to detect sounds but struggle to make sense of spoken words. Which process is most likely impaired?
A) Sensation
B) Perception
C) Signal detection
D) Adaptation
b
A researcher is studying the ability of participants to detect the presence of a faint light in a dark room. Occasionally, the researcher does not present the light but still asks if the participant saw it. What type of trial is this?
A) Hit
B) Catch trial
C) False alarm
D) Noise trial
b
A person is exposed to a continuous background hum from an air conditioning unit. Over time, they stop noticing the noise. Which principle best explains this phenomenon?
A) Signal detection theory
B) Psychophysics
C) Sensory adaptation
D) Difference threshold
c
A scientist tests the minimum level of a scent that participants can detect 50% of the time. Which concept is being measured?
A) Difference threshold
B) Absolute threshold
C) Perception threshold
D) Signal detection
c
According to Weber’s Law, which of the following would be easiest to detect?
A) A 1-pound increase in a 50-pound weight
B) A 1-pound increase in a 5-pound weight
C) A 10-pound increase in a 500-pound weight
D) A 5-pound increase in a 200-pound weight
b
A security guard must monitor multiple surveillance screens. His ability to detect unusual activity is influenced by his experience, fatigue, and expectations. Which theory best explains this?
A) Weber’s Law
B) Signal detection theory
C) Difference threshold
D) Sensory adaptation
b
Two lights of slightly different brightness are presented to a participant. If the participant can correctly identify the brighter light at least 50% of the time, they have reached which threshold?
A) Absolute threshold
B) Difference threshold
C) Perception threshold
D) Adaptation threshold
b
A researcher presents a weak stimulus below the threshold of conscious perception and finds that participants still show slight physiological responses. What does this suggest?
A) The stimulus is above the absolute threshold but below the perception threshold
B) The stimulus is above the difference threshold
C) The participant is experiencing sensory adaptation
D) The stimulus does not activate sensory receptors
a
