Brainscape's Knowledge GenomeTM

Browse over 1 million classes created by top students, professors, publishers, and experts.


See full index

AP Psych > Unit 3: Sensation and Perception > Flashcards

Unit 3: Sensation and Perception Flashcards

1
Q

Sensation

A

The process by which our sensory receptors and nervous system receive and represent stimulus energies from our environment

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
2
Q

Sensory Receptors

A

Sensory nerve endings that respond to stimuli

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
3
Q

Perception

A

The process of organizing and interpreting sensory information, enabling us to recognise meaningful object and events

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
4
Q

Bottom-up Processing

A

Analysis that begins with sensory receptors and works up to the brain’s integration of sensory information

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
5
Q

Top-down Processing

A

Information processing guided by higher-level mental processes, as when we construct perceptions drawing on our experience and expectations

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
6
Q

Selective Attention

A

The focusing of conscious awareness on a particular stimulus

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
7
Q

Inattentional Blindness

A

Failing to see visible objects when our attention is directed elsewhere

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
8
Q

Change Blindness

A

Failing to notice changes in the environment

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
9
Q

Transduction

A

Conversion of one form of energy into another. In sensation, the transforming of stimulus energies, such as sights, sounds, and smells, into neural impulses our brain can interpret

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
10
Q

Psychophysics

A

The study of relationships between the physical characteristics of stimuli, such as their intensity, and our psychological experience of them

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
11
Q

Absolute Threshold

A

The minimum stimulus energy needed to detect a particular stimulus 50 percent of the time

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
12
Q

Signal Detection Theory

A

A theory predicting how and when we detect the presence of a faint stimulus (signal) amid background stimulation (noise). Assumes there is no single absolute threshold and that detection depends party on a person’s experience, expectations, motivation, and alertness.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
13
Q

Subliminal

A

Below the minimum difference between two stimuli required for detection 50 percent of the time. We experience this as a just noticeable difference (or jnd)

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
14
Q

Priming

A

The activation, often unconsciously, of certain associations, thus predisposing one’s perception, memory, or response

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
15
Q

Weber’s Law

A

The principle that, to be perceived as different, two stimuli must differ by a constant minimum percentage, rather than a constant amount

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
16
Q

Sensory Adaptation

A

Diminished sensitivity as a consequence of constant stimulation

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
17
Q

Perceptual Set

A

A mental predisposition to perceive one thing and not another

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
18
Q

Extrasensory Perception

A

The controversial claim that perception can occur apart from sensory input; includes telepathy, clairvoyance, and precognition

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
19
Q

Parapsychology

A

The study of paranormal phenomena, including ESP and psychokinesis

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
20
Q

Wavelength

A

The distance from the peak of one light or sound wave to the peak of the next

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
21
Q

Hue

A

The dimension of colour that is determined by the wavelength of light; what we know as the colour names blue, green, and so forth

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
22
Q

Intensity

A

The amount of energy in a light wave or sound wave, which influences what we perceive ass brightness or loudness

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
23
Q

Cornea

A

The eye’s clear, protective outer layer, covering the pupil and iris

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
24
Q

Pupil

A

The adjustable opening in the centre of the eye through which light enters

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
25
Iris
A ring of muscle tissue that forms the coloured portion of the eye around the pupil and controls the size of the pupil opening
26
Lens
The transparent structure behind the pupil that changes shape to help focus images on the retina
27
Retina
The light-sensitive inner surface of the eye, containing the receptor rods and cones plus layers of neurons that begin the processing of visual information
28
Accommodation
The process by which the eye's lens changes shape to focus near or far objects on the retina
29
Rods
Retinal receptors that detect black, white, and grey, and are sensitive to movement. Necessary for peripheral and twilight vision
30
Cones
Retinal receptors that are concentrated near the centre of the retina and that function in daylight or in well-lit conditions; detect fine detail and give rise to colour sensations
31
Optic Nerve
The nerve that carries neural impulses from the eye to the brain
32
Blind Spot
The point at which the optic nerve leaves the eye, where no receptor cells are located
33
Fovea
The central focal point in the retina, around which the eye's cones cluster
34
Young-Helmholtz Trichromatic Theory
The theory that the retina contains three different types of colour receptors -- one most sensitive to red, one to green, one to blue -- which, when stimulated in combination, can produces the perception of a color
35
Opponent-Process Theory
The theory that opposing retinal processes (red-green, blue-yellow, white-black) enable colour vision
36
Feature Detectors
Nerve cells in the brain's visual cortex that respond to specific features of the stimulus, such as shape, angle, or movement
37
Parallel Processing
Processing many aspects of a problem simultaneously; the brain's natural mode of information processing for many functions
38
Gestalt
And organized whole; emphasized our tendency to integrate pieces of information into meaningful wholes
39
Figure-Ground
The organization of the visual field into objects (the figures) that stand out from their surroundings (the ground)
40
Grouping
The perceptual tendency to organize stimuli into coherent groups
41
Depth Perception
The ability to see objects in three dimensions although the images that strike the retina are two-dimensions; allows up to judge distance
42
Visual Cliff
A laboratory device for testing depth perception in infants and young animals
43
Binocular Cue
A depth cue, such as retinal disparity, that depends on the use of two eyes
44
Retinal Disparity
A binocular cue for perceiving depth. By comparing retinal images from two eyes, the brain computes distance -- the greater the disparity (difference) between the two images, the closer the object
45
Monocular Cue
A depth cue, such as interposition or linear perspective, available to either eye alone
46
Phi Phenomon
An illusion of movement created when two or more adjacent lights blink on and off in quick succession
47
Perceptual Constancy
Perceiving objects as unchanging (having consistent colour, brightness, shape, and size) even as illumination and retinal images change
48
Colour Constancy
Perceiving familiar objects as having consistent colour, even if changing illumination alters the wavelengths reflected by the object
49
Perceptual Adaptation
The ability to adjust to changed sensory input, including an artificially displaced or even inverted visual field
50
Audition
The sense or act of hearing
51
Frequency
The number of complete wavelengths that pass a point in a given time
52
Pitch
A tone's experienced highness or lowness; depends on frequency
53
Middle Ear
The chamber between the eardrum and cochlea containing three tiny bones (hammer, anvil, and stirrup) that concentrate the vibration of the eardrum on the cochlea's oval window
54
Cochlea
A coiled, bony, fluid-filled tube in the inner ear; sound waves travel through this to trigger nerve impulses
55
Inner Ear
The innermost part of the ear, containing the cochlea, semicircular canals, and vestibular sacs
56
Sensorineural Hearing Loss
Hearing loss caused by damage to the cochlea's receptors cells or to the auditory nerves; the most common form of hearing loss, also called nerve deafness
57
Conduction Hearing Loss
A less common form of hearing loss, caused by damage to the mechanical system that conducts sound waves to the cochlea
58
Cochlear Implant
A device for converting sounds into electrical signals and stimulating the auditory nerve through electrodes threaded into the cochlea
59
Place Theory
In hearing, the theory that links the pitch we hear with the place where the cochlea's membrane is stimulated
60
Frequency Theory
In hearing, the theory that the rate of nerve impulses travelling up the auditory nerve matches the frequency of a tone, thus enabling us to sense its pitch
61
Gate-Control Theory
The theory that the spinal cord contains a neurological "gate" that blocks pain signals or allows them to pass onto the brain. The "gate" is opened by the activity of pain signals travelling up small nerve fibres and is closed by activity in larger fibres or by information coming from the brain
62
Olfaction
The sense of smell
63
Kinesthetic Sense
Our movement sense -- our system for sensing the position and movement of individual body parts
64
Vestibular Sense
Our sense of body movement and position that enables our sense of balance
65
Sensory Interaction
The principle that one sense may influence another, as when the smell of food influences its taste
66
Embodied Cognition
The influence of body sensations, gestures, and other states on cognitive preferences and judgements
67
Gustav Fechner
Studied the absolute threshold and our ability to be aware of a faint stimulus
68
David Hubrel
Worked with Torsten Wiesel to identify how feature detectors in the visual cortex of the brain respond to visual cues such as edges, lines, angles, and movement
69
Torsten Wiesel
Worked with David Hubel to identify how feature detectors in the visual cortex of the brain respond to visual cues such as edges, lines, angles, and movement
70
Ernest Weber
Created Weber's law, the idea that for us to notice a difference in a stimulus, it must increase by a consistent percentage, not a consistent amount

AP Psych (9 decks)

Brainscape helps you reach your goals faster, through stronger study habits.
© 2025 Bold Learning Solutions. Terms and Conditions