AP Psychology Chapter 4 – Flashcards
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sensation
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the process by which stimulation of a sensory receptor produces neural impulses that the brain interprets as a sound, a visual image, an odor, a taste, a pain, or other sensory image
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perception
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a process that makes sensory patterns meaningful
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transduction
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transformation of one form of energy into another
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sensory adaptation
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loss of responsiveness in receptor cells after stimulation has remained unchanged for a while
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absolute threshold
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the amount of stimulation necessary for a stimulus to be detected
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difference threshold (Just Noticeable Difference "JND")
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the smallest amount by which a stimulus can be changed and the difference be detected half the time
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weber's law
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the size of a JND is proportional to the intensity of the stimulus
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fechner's law
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the magnitude of a stimulus can be estimated by the formula S=K log R s-sensation r-stimulus k-constant that differs for senses
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steven's power law
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law of magnitude estimation more accurate that fechner's; S=KL^a s-sensation, k-constant, l-stimulus intensity, a-power exponent depending on sense
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signal detection theory
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sensation is a judgment the sensory system makes about incoming stimulation often occurring outside of consciousness
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retina
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thin, light-sensitive layer at the back of the eyeball; contains photoreceptors
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photoreceptors
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light-sensitive cells in the retina that convert light ienergy to neural impulses
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rods
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photoreceptors in the retina that are especially sensitive to dim light but not color
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cones
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photoreceptors in the retina that are especially sensitive to colors but not dim light
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fovea
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the tiny area of sharpest vision in the retina
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optic nerve
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the bundle of neurons that carries visual information from the retina to the brain
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blind spot
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the point where the optic nerve exits the eye and where there are no photoreceptores
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brightness
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a psychological sensation caused by the intensity of light waves
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color
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also hue; not a property of things in the external world, but a psychological sensation created in the brain from info obtained by the eyes from the wavelengths of visible light
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visible spectrum
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the tiny part of the electromagnetic spectrum to which our eyes are sensitive
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trichromatic theory
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the idea that colors are sensed by three different types of cones sensitive to light in red, blue, and green wavelengths
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opponent-process theory
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the idea that cells in the visual system process colors in complementary pairs, such as red or green or as yellow or blue
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afterimages
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sensations that linger after the stimulus is removed
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color blindness
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typically a genetic disorder that prevents an individual from discriminating certain colors
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frequency
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the number of cycles completed by a wave in a given amount of time, usually a second
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amplitude
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the physical strength of a wave, measured from peak to valley
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tympanic membrane
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the eardrum
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cochlea
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the primary organ of hearing ; a coiled tube in the inner ear, where sound waves are transduced into nerve messages
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basilar membrane
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a thin strip of tissue sensitive to vibrations i the cochlea; contains hair cells connected to neurons that transduce sound waves into nerve activity
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pitch
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a sensory characteristic of sound produced by the frequency of the sound wave
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loudness
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a sensory characteristic of sound produced by the amplitude of the sound wave
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timbre
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the quality of a sound wave that derives from the wave's complexity
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conduction deafness
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and inability to hear resulting from damage to structures of the middle or inner ear
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nerve deafness
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an inability to hear, linked ot a deficit in the body's ability to transmit impulses from the cochlea to the brain
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vestibular sense
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the sense of body orientation with respect to gravity
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kinesthetic sense
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the sense of body position and movement of body parts relative to each other
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olfaction
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the sense of smell
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pheromones
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chemical signals released by organisms to communicate with other members of their species
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gustation
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the sense of taste
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skin senses
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sensory systems for processing touch, warmth cold, texture, and pain
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gate-control theory
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an explanation for pain control that proposes we have a neural gate that can, under some circumstances, block incoming pain signals
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placebo effect
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a response ot a placebo caused by subjects' belief taht tey are taking real drugs
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percept
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the meaningful product of perception-often an image that has been associated with concepts, memories of events, emotions, and motives
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feature detectors
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cells in the cortex that specialize in extracting certain features of a stimulus
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binding problem
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the process used by the brain to combine the results of many sensory operations into a single percept
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bottom-up processing
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perceptual analysis that emphasizes characteristics of the stimulus, rather than our concepts and expectations
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top-down processing
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perceptual analysis that emphasizes the perceiver's expectations, concept memories, and other cognitive factors, rather than being driven by the characteristics of the stimulus
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perceptual constancy
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the ability to recognize the same object as remaining constant under different conditions
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illusion
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an incorrect perception of a stimulus
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ambiguous figures
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images that are capable of more than one interpretation
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gestalt psychology
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much of perception is shaped by innate factors built ino the brain; "whole"
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figure
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the part of a pattern that commands attention
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ground
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the part of a pattern that does not command attention; background
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closure
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gestalt principle that identifies the tendency to fill in gaps in figures and to see incomplete figures as complete
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laws of perceptual grouping
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The Gestalt principles of similarity, proximity, continuity, and common fate; suggest how are brains prefer to group stimulus elements together to form a percept
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law of similarity
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The Gestalt principle that we tend to group similar objects together in our perceptions
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law of proximity
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the Gestalt principle that we tend to group objects together when they are near each other
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law of continuity
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the Gestalt principle that we prefer perceptions of connected and continuous figures to disconnected and disjointed ones
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law of common fate
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the Gestalt principle that we tend to group similar objects together that share a common motion or destination
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law of pragnanz
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The most general Gestalt principle, which states that the simplest organization, requiring the least cognitive effort, will emerge as the figure.
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binocular cues
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Information taken in by both eyes that aids in depth perception, including convergence and retinal disparity.
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monocular cues
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Information about depth that relies on the input of just one eye - includes relative size, light and shadow, interposition, relative motion, and atmospheric perspective.
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learning-based inference
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The view that perception is primarily shaped by learning rather than by innate factors.
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perceptual set
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Readiness to detect a particular stimulus in a given context
