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unit IV psych
AP Psychology
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| sensation | process by which our sensory receptors + nervous system receive and represent stimulus energies from our environment |
| perception | the process of organizing and interpreting sensory information, enabling us to recognize meaningful objects and events |
| bottom-up processing | analysis that begins with the sensory receptors and works up to the brain's integration of sensory information |
| top-down processing | information processing guided by higher-level mental processes, as when we construct perceptions drawing on our experiences and expectations |
| selective attention | the focusing of conscious awareness on a particular stimulus |
| absolute threshold | weakest amount of stimulus that can be sensed (50% of the time) |
| signal detection theory | the detection of a stimulus depends on intensity of stimulus and physical / psychological state of individual |
| subliminal | below ones absolute threshold for conscious awareness |
| priming | the (usually unconscious) activation of certain associations, thus predisposing one's perception, memory, or response |
| difference threshold | minimum difference between 2 stimuli required for detection 50% of the time |
| Weber's law | the principle that to be perceived as different, 2 stimuli must differ by constant minimum percentage |
| sensory adaptation | diminished sensitivity as a consequence of constant stimulation |
| perceptual set | mental predisposition to perceive one thing and not another |
| extrasensory perception | controversial claim that perception can occur apart from sensory input; includes telepathy, clairvoyance and precognition |
| parapsychology | the study of paranormal, phenomena, including extrasensory perception and psychokinesis |
| wavelength | distance from the peak of one light or sound wave to the peak of the next |
| hue | dimension of color that is determined by wave length of light (blue, red...) |
| intensity | amount of energy in a light or sound wave that we determine as brightness or loudness (wave's amplitude) - greater amplitude = brighter - smaller amplitude = duller |
| pupil | the adjustive opening in the center of the eye through which light enters |
| iris | ring of muscle tissue that forms the colored portion of the eye around the pupil and controls the size of the pupil opening |
| lens | the transparent structure behind the pupil that changes shape to help focus images on the retina |
| retina | light sensitive inner surface of the eye that contains the receptor rods and cones plus layers of neurons that begin the processing of visual information |
| accomodation | process by which the eye's lens changes shape to focus near or far objects on the retina |
| rods | retinal receptors that detect black, white and gray |
| cones | retinal receptor cells that are concentrated near the center of the retina and that function in daylight - detect fine detail |
| optic nerve | the nerve that carries neural impulses from the eye to the brain |
| blind spot | the point at which the optic nerve leaves the eye, creating a "blind" spot because no receptor cells are located there |
| fovea | the central focal point in the retina, around which the eye's cones cluster |
| feature detectors | nerve cells in the brain that respond to specific features of the stimulus, including shape, angle or movement |
| parallel processing | the processing of many aspects of a problem simultaneously |
| young-helmholtz trichromatc theory | theory that the retina contains three different color receptors that when stimulated in combination, can produce the perception of any color |
| opponent-processing theory | proposes that one member of the color pair suppresses the other color - we never see reddish-green |
| gestalt | an organized whole |
| figure-ground | the organization of the visual fields into objects that stand out from their surroundings |
| grouping | perception tendency to organize stimuli into coherent groups |
| depth perception | the ability to see objects in 3 dimensions although the images that strike the retina are 2 dimensional |
| visual cliff | lab device for testing depth perception in infants |
| binocular cues | depth cues that depend on two eyes |
| retinal disparity | a binocular cue for perceiving depth between two near objects |
| monocular cues | depth cues available to either eye alone |
| phi phenomenon | an illusion of movement created when 2 or more adjacent lights blind on and off in quick succession |
| perceptual constancy | perceiving objects as unchanging even as illuminations and retinal images change |
| color constancy | perceiving familiar objects as having consistent color even if changing illumination alters the wavelengths reflected by an object |
| perceptual adaptation | (vision) the ability to adjust to an artificially displaced or even inverted visual field |
| audition | the sense or act of hearing |
| frequency | number of complete wave lengths that pass a point in a given time |
| pitch | a tones experienced highness or lowness that depends on frequency |
| middle ear | chamber between ear drum and cochlea |
| cochela | sound waves traveling through trigger nerve impulses |
| inner ear | innermost part of the ear |
| sensorineural hearing loss | hearing loss caused by damage to cochlea's receptor cells or to auditory nerves |
| conduction hearing loss | hearing loss caused by damage to the mechanical system that conducts sound waves |
| cochelar implant | a device for converting sounds into electrical signals |
| place theory | (hearing) theory that links the pitch we hear with the place where the cochlea's membrane is stimulated |
| frequency theory | (hearing) rate of nerve impulses traveling up the auditory nerve matches the frequency of tone --> pitch |
| gate-control theory | the spinal cord contains a neurological "gate" that blocks or allows pain signals to pass to brain |
| kinesthesia | feeling the movement of limbs and joints (ex. moving your legs without looking at your feet) |
| vestibular sense | sense of body movement and position, including sense of balance |
| sensory interaction | the principle that one sense influences another |
| embodied cognition | the theory that many features of cognition are shaped by aspects of an organism's entire body |
| inattentional blindness | failing to see unexpected visible objects when our attention is directed elsewhere |
| change blindness | failing to notice changes in environment |
| transduction | conversion of one form of energy into another - how we convert sensory stimulation into neural impulses to brain |
| psychophysics | the study of relationships between the physical characteristics of stimuli and our psychological experience of them |
| interposition | a perceptual cue in which the distances of two separate objects are judged based on the fact that one object partially obscures or overlaps the other object |
| umami | beef (protein) |
| tactile senses | pressure, cold, warmth and pain |
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lahymes
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