Unit 4-6 Flashcards
the sensory homunculus
a figurine model that represents how the human body would look if equivalent physical areas were dedicated to their sensory processing requirements (a human body with enlarged sensory areas such as hands)
visual sensation
the reception of stimulation from the environment and encoding that stimulation into the nervous system. This is more of a biological process. The senses receive stimuli from a source.
visual perception
the process of interpreting and understanding that sensory information:
1. how the eye gathers information from the environment
2. How our memory system registers that information (visual sensory memory)
3. Pattern recognition
4. Object recognition
The brain receives information about the sensation. Perception is a more psychological process.
bottom-up processing
refers to processing sensory information as it is coming in, stimuli driven.
Top-Down processing
refers to processes that are involved in identifying a stimulus by using the knowledge we already process about the situation. Influenced by expectations, existing knowledge and current goals. It is goal driven. Influenced by our previous knowledge and experiences, and what we expect to see.
Perceptual illusions
occur when sensory stimuli are misinterpreted; demonstrates how we typically interpret sensations
Pareidolia
a psychological phenomenon that causes people to see patterns in a random stimulus. This often leads to people assigning human characteristics to objects, for example seeing faces. It is important in detecting predators, facilitating social interactions.
sense
a system that translates outside information into activity in the nervous system
sensations
raw information from the senses
perception
the process through which people take raw sensations from the environment and give them meaning using knowledge, experience, and understanding of the world
accessory structures
structures such as the outer part of the ear, that modify a stimulus. The lens of the eye is an accessory structure that changes incoming light by focusing it.
ransduction
the process of converting incoming physical energy into neural activity
neural receptors
cells that are specialized to detect certain types of energy and convert it into neural activity
sensory adaptation
decreasing responsiveness to an unchanging stimulus
absolute threshold
the minimum amount of stimulus energy that can be detected 50 percent of the time. ex. a candle flame seen 30 miles on a clear nite is the human absolute vision threshold. The human absolute threshold for taste is one teaspoon of sugar in 2 gallons of water. Basically the smallest amount of energy that can be detected 50 percent of the time.
noise (in sensory perception)
the spontaneous random firing of nerve cells that occurs because the nervous system is always active
response bias (response criterion)
the internal rule a person uses to decide whether or not to report a stimulus
signal detection theory
a mathematical model of what determines a person’s report of a near-threshold stimulus
sensitivity
the ability to detect a stimulus
Weber’s law
a law stating that the smallest detectable difference in stimulus energy (just-noticeable difference) is a constant fraction of the intensity of the stimulus
just-noticeable difference (JND)
The smallest detectable difference in stimulus energy. Also called the difference threshold.
wavelength
the distance between peaks in a wave of light or sound
encoding
The process of putting information into a form that the memory system can accept and use
auditory memory (acoustic memory)
Mental representations of stimuli as pictures
semantic memory
Memory for generalized knowledge about the world
storage (in memory)
the process of maintaining information in the memory system over time
retrieval
the process of finding information stored in memory
recall
Retrieving information stored in memory without much help from retrieval clues
recognition
retrieving information stored in memory with the help of retrieval clues
episodic memory
memory for events in one’s own past
procedural memory (procedural knowledge)
a type of memory containing information about how to do things
explicit memory
the unintentional recollection and influence of prior experiences
levels-of-processing model of memory
a model that suggests that memory depends on the degree or depth to which we mentally process information
maintenance rehearsal
a memorization method that involves repeating information over and over to keep it in memory
elaborative rehearsal
a memorization method that relates new information to information already stored in memory
transfer-appropriate processing model of memory
A model that suggests that memory depends on how the encoding process matches up with what is later retrieved
neural network models of memory
memory models in which new experiences are seen as changing one’s overall knowledge base
multiple memory systems model
a model that suggests the existence of specialized and separated memory systems in the brain
information-processing model of memory
A model that suggests that information must pass through sensory memory, short-term memory, and long-term memory in order to become firmly embedded in memory
sensory memory
a type of memory that is very brief but lasts long enough to connect one impression to the next
sensory registers
memory systems that briefly hold incoming information
iconic memory
the sensory register for visual information
selective attention
the process of focusing mental resources on only part of the stimulus field
