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AP Psychology Unit 4 Flashcards

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8024089527sensationour senses detect info from the world that goes to our brain, it is our window to the world, DETECTION0
8024108293perceptionallows us to organize and interpret sensory information allowing us to recognize meaningful events and objects, it is interpreting what comes in our window of sensation, INTERPRETATION1
8024130853bottom-up processinganalysis that begins with the sensory receptors and works up to the brain's higher levels of processing; the integration of sensory information2
8024170576top-down processinginformation processing guided by higher level mental processes, like when we construct perceptions based on our experience and expectations. It is the effect of prior experience and current expectations on perception.3
8024179713selective attentionthe ability to focus conscious awareness on a particular stimulus.4
8024224580cocktail party effectyour ability to listen to one voice among many, demonstrates your ability for selective attention5
8024252355inattentional blindnessfailing to see visible objects when our attention is directed elsewhere, ex: texting and driving and you fail to see the person walk out in front of you6
8024263087change blindnessfailing to notice changes in the environment, form of inattentional blindness7
80243026133 steps all senses follow1. receive sensory info 2. transform stimulation into neural impulses 3. deliver neural into to brain8
8024284237transductionThe sensory process that converts energy, such as light or sound waves, into the form of neural messages. Information goes from the senses to the thalamus, then to the various areas in the brain. Ex: Light energy to vision, Chemical energy to smell and taste, Sound waves to sound.9
8024351115Gustav Fechnerstudied our awareness of faint stimuli (like a bee wing on your cheek or a candle flame 30 miles away) and called them our absolute threshold.10
8024365695*absolute thresholdThe minimum stimulation needed to detect a stimulus 50% of the time, Ex: Hearing test where low level intensity sounds are not detected11
8024420581signal detection theorytheory pedicting how we detect a weak stimulus among other stimuli. Assumes there is no single absolute threshold and that the person's ability to detect a signal depends on their experience, motivation, alertness, and fatigue level.12
8024458583subliminal messagesstimuli you can't detect because it is below your absolute threshold for conscious awareness. Can't control our behavior, can only subtly influence people13
8024471213primingThe activation, often unconsciously, of certain associations, thus predisposing one's perception, memory, or response. Ex: flash good images before slides of people and participants will say the people look nicer than if the participant was flashed bad images.14
8024503068*Difference threshold (just noticeable difference)The minimum difference that a person can detect between two stimuli 50% of the time, Increases as stimulus size increases15
8024520093Weber's LawErnst Weber noted that for people to really perceive a difference, the stimuli must differ by a constant "proportion" not a constant "amount". Ex: when buying a $1000 computer, a $200 add on may seem like too much, but when buying a $300,000 house, a $200 feature may seem like nothing; amount stays the same, but the proportion changes.16
8024586579sensory adaptionthe diminishing sensitivity to an unchanging stimulus, Ex: you don't feel your shoes on all day until you think about it17
8024608808perceptual seta mental predisposition that influences our interpretation of a stimulus. Ex: newspaper claims a photo shows the Loch Ness monster, so that is what its readers see, kids prefer the fries in a McDonalds bag over the same fries in a regular bag.18
8024663473schemasconcepts formed through experiences that organize and allow us to interpret unfamiliar information. Plays a role in memories, thoughts, language, prejudice, and stereotyping.19
8024704538context effectsthe context a stimuli is in can change the way we perceive it, Ex: horizon moon appears to shrink in size if it is viewed through a narrow tube that eliminates the perception of distance cues.20
8024719523parapsychologythe study of paranormal phenomena, including ESP and psychokinesis.21
8024726664extrasensory perception (ESP)claim that perception can occur apart from sensory input, includes: telepathy, clairvoyance, and precognition22
8024750764psychokinesisability to move things with your mind23
8024756086telepathymind-to-mind communication, extrasensory transmission of thoughts from one mind to another.24
8024758923clairvoyanceextrasensory perception of events that occur at places remote to the perceiver25
8024794425critics of ESPargue that there is no proof because researchers have been unable to replicate ESP phenomena under controlled conditions26
8024803369*wavelengthThe distance from the peak of one light or sound wave to the peak of the next. Distance determines the HUE of light waves or the pitch of sound waves, short distance= blue colors and high pitch sounds, long distance= red colors, and low pitch sounds.27
8024841886huecolor of light we perceive, determined by the wavelength of light28
8024854741*amplitudea wave's height from peak to trough, determines the loudness of a sound.29
8024900145intensitythe amount of energy in a light wave, we perceive this as BRIGHTNESS, it is determined by the wave's amplitude.30
8024939466frequencythe number of complete wavelengths that can pass through a point at a given time, determines pitch of a sound31
8024962239large amplitudebright colors, loud sounds32
8024965887small amplitudedull colors, quiet sounds33
8024972486short wavelengthhigh frequency, blue colors, high-pitch sounds34
8024976558long wavelengthlow frequency, red colors, low-pitch sounds35
8024995666corneaprotects the eye, bends light to provide focus,36
8025007252pupilAdjustable opening in the center of the eye through which light enters, size depends on iris37
8025024315irisa ring of muscle tissue that forms the colored portion of the eye around the pupil, controls the size of the pupil by dilating or constricting in response to light intensity or inner emotions38
8025046956lenstransparent structure behind the pupil that changes shape to help focus images on the retina39
8025064394retinalight-sensitive inner surface of the eye that contains receptor rods and cones and layers of neurons that begin the processing of visual info40
8025093452accommodationthe process that the eye's lens changes shape to focus near or far objects on the retina41
8025116494Photoreceptors(rods and cones), Light-sensitive cells (neurons) in the retina that convert light energy into neural energy.42
8025129285rodsPhotoreceptors in the retina that are especially sensitive to dim light, but not sensitive to color or detail. (125 million per eye)43
8025174262conesPhotoreceptors in the retina that are especially sensitive to colors and detail, but not sensitive to dim light. (7 million/eye), cones are the reason we perceive colors, no cones in our peripheral vision so we don't see color with our peripheral vison44
8025215885bipolar cellstransmit signals from the photoreceptors (rods and cones) to the ganglion cells45
8025236205ganglion cellsreceives signals from the bipolar cells, the axons of ganglion cells converge to form the optic nerve.46
8025263564optic nerveformed by the axons of ganglion cells, it is the bundle of neurons that carries the visual information from the retina to the brain. This is where the stimulus, once changed into a neural impulse, gets passed onto the brain.47
8025284326blind spotThe point where the optic nerve exits the eye and where there are no photoreceptors. Any stimulus that falls on this area cannot be seen.48
8025236206foveathe central focal point of the retina that has the highest concentration of rods and cones, it the area of sharpest vision.49
8025340748eye50
8025350411feature detectorsnerve cells in the brain (occipital lobe's Visual Cortex) that respond to specific features of the stimulus, such as shape, angle, or movement.51
8025364870parallel processingthe simultaneous processing of several aspects of a problem, visual cortex breaks images into their motion, form, depth, and color then integrates them into one image52
8025419938Young-Helmholtz trichromatic (three-color) theoryretina contains 3 different color receptors sensitive to red, green, or blue. These 3 receptors can combine to produce the perception of any color, most "colorblind" people simply lack cone receptor cells for one or more of these primary colors.53
8025463432monochromatsvision is one color (total color blindness)54
8025463433dichromatsvision is two color instead of 3, only 2 of the three color receptors work55
8025516356afterimagewhen you stare at a red object, light-sensitive cells at the back of your eyes become less responsive to red light so when you look away you see red's opponent color, green.56
8025508601opponent colorsred and green, yellow and blue, black and white57
8029895174opponent-process theorytheory that opposing systems (red-green, yellow-blue, and white-black) enable color perception, there are some color combinations that we never see, such as reddish-green or yellowish-blue. Some cells are stimulated by green and inhibited by red, this is because red and green messages cannot both travel down their shared "red-green" channel.58
8029932902color processing's two stagesretina's red, green, and blue cones respond to varying stimuli, then their signals are processed by the nervous system's opponent-process cells59
8029960440Gestaltin perception, "the whole may exceed the sum of its parts"60
8029965178Necker Cubehelps us understand the difference between sensation and perception: the only stimuli we sense (see) are the black wedges; the circles, lines, and cube are all products of perception.61
8030004450figure-groundthe organization of the visual field into objects (the figures) that stand out from their surroundings (the ground).62
8030034133groupingthe perceptual tendency to organize stimuli into coherent groups63
8030044847proximitywe group nearby figures together64
8030048430continuitywe perceive smooth, continuous patterns rather than discontinuous ones65
8030103040closurewe fill the gaps to create a complete, whole object66
8030121796depth perceptionthe ability to see objects in three dimensions although the images that strike the retina are two-dimensional; allows us to judge distance.67
8030124237visual cliffa laboratory device for testing depth perception in infants and young animals. Developed by Eleanor Gibson and Richard Walk, they found that because most baby animals knew not to walk off the cliff that depth perception is mostly innate, just needs experience to perfect it.68
8030172195binocular cuesdepth cues, such as retinal disparity, that depend on the use of two eyes. helps judge distance of objects near you69
8030176804retinal disparitybinocular cue for perceiving depth; compares images from each retina and the brain computes distance, greater disparity = closer object70
8030178174monocular cuesDepth cues such as Interposition and Linear perspective, available to either eye alone. This is most helpful in perceiving the distance from objects far away from you.71
8030205079monocular depth cue typesrelative motion, interposition, light and shadow, linear perspective, relative size, and relative height72
8030220159relative motionyou sit on a bus and the objects beyond our fixation point appear to move with you (sky, bridge, buildings) while objects in front of the point appear to move backwards (houses).73
8030250253interpositionif one object partially blocks our view of another, we perceive it as closer (blue circle is closer than red)74
8030262956light and shadowwe assume that light comes from above75
8030274372linear perspectiveparallel lines appear to meet in the distance, sharper angle of convergence = greater perceived distance76
8030281814relative sizeif we assume two objects are similar in size, we perceive the one that casts a smaller retinal image as farther away77
8030295850relative heightwe perceive objects that are higher in our visual field as farther away (house is farther away than the ducks)78
8030311776stroboscopic movementbrain perceives continuous movement in a rapid series of slightly varying images, this rapid succession of varying images is used in motion picture films79
8030324711phi phenomenonan illusion of movement created when two or more adjacent lights blink on and off in succession80
8030351499perceptual constancya top-down process that involves perceiving objects as unchanging (having consistent shapes, size, brightness, and color) even as illumination and retinal images change.81
8030359103color constancyperceiving familiar objects as having consistent color, even if changing illumination alters the wavelengths reflected by the object82
8030374586brightness/ lightness constancywe perceive objects as having constant brightness even as illumination varies83
8030378433relative luminancethe amount of light an object reflects RELATIVE to its surroundings84
8030392473shape constancyperceive the form of familiar objects as constant even when our retinas receive changing images85
8030406556size constancywe perceive objects as having constant size even while our distance from them varies86
8030416462moon illusionmoon looks up to 50% larger when near the horizon than when high in the sky because relationship between perceived distance and perceived size87
8030425814the ames rooma distorted room designed by Adelbert Ames that appears to be rectangular when viewed through a peephole, tricks brain to assume the person in the right corner is the same distance away as the person in the left corner and therefore appears larger88
8030447594perceptual adaptationthe ability to adjust to an artificially displaced or inverted visual field89
8030466271pitcha tone's experienced highness or lowness, depends of frequency90
8030471905auditionthe sense or act of hearing, we best hear sounds in the range of the human voice and we can hear differences among thousands of human voices91
8030489853outer earchannels sound waves through the auditory canal, visible portion of the year92
8030487796eardrumvibrates when the outer ear channels sound waves through the auditory canal93
8030497637middle earchamber between eardrum and cochlea that contains 3 tiny bones (hammer, anvil, stirrup) that transmit vibrations of the eardrum to the cochlea94
8030505837*cochleaa snail-shaped tube filled with fluid in the inner ear, incoming vibrations cause the membrane to vibrate which creates movement of the fluid95
8030513008basilar membranewhen the cochlea's fluid is jostled, the motion causes the hairs of the membrane to move which triggers impulses in nerve cells96
8030525025auditory nerveaxons of nerve cells converge to form the auditory nerve, it sends neural messages (via the thalamus) to the auditory cortex in the temporal lobe97
8030532540inner earthe innermost part of the ear, contains the cochlea, semicircular canals, and vestibular sacs98
8030541351hair cells of basilar membranehow mechanical vibrations triggered by sound waves are transduced into neural impluses99
8030550662sensorineural hearing lossalso called nerve deafness, is hearing loss caused by the inability to transmit impulses from the cochlea to the brain. caused by damage to the cochlea's hair cells (basilar membrane), loud noises can cause this type of hearing loss100
8030576739conduction hearing lossis an inability to hear, resulting from damage to the structures of the middle or inner ear (such as rupture of the eardrum).101
8030590422*process of hearingThe middle ear transmits the vibrations (sound waves) hit the eardrum → anvil → hammer → stirrup →cochlea's membrane (oval window) The incoming vibrations cause the cochlea's membrane (oval window) the to vibrate, moving the fluid that fills the tube. This motion causes ripples in the basilar membrane (hair cells). The movement of cells along the Basilar Membrane initiates transduction and the transmission of neural messages to the Auditory Cortex102
8041763734place theorytheory that different hairs vibrate in the basilar membrane of the cochlea when they hear/ interpret different pitches. The brain determines a sound's pitch by the specific place on the cochlear membrane that is generating the neural signal, explains HIGH PITCHED SOUNDS103
8041823188frequency theoryThe rate of nerve impulses traveling up the auditory nerve matches the frequency of a tone, thus enabling us to sense its pitch, believe that all the hairs vibrate but at different speeds. Explains LOW PITCHED SOUNDS104
8041878384volley principlecombines place theory and frequency theory to explain the pitches in the middle range.105
8041895641semicircular canalswhere vestibular sense is located, looks like a 3D pretzel106
8041915391Vestibular senseTells us where our body is oriented in space, our sense of balance. The receptors for this information are tiny hairs in the semicircular canal of the inner ear.107
8042046940kinesthetic sense (kinesthesia)the system for sensing the position and movement of individual body parts, relative to each other, provides constant sensory feedback about what the muscles in your body are doing. Receptors reside in joints, muscles, and tendons.108
8042109110painyour body's way of telling you when something has gone wrong, it draws your attention to an injury and allows you to change your behavior.109
8042125737nocieptorssensory receptors that detect harmful temperatures, pressure, or chemicals and send that information through your spinal cord.110
8042155119Endorphinsbrain chemical that soothes pain, it is shown that when given a placebo to relieve pain the brain will release endorphins.111
8042172062Phantom Limbpain can be experienced in the absence of sensory input. (in the Sensory Cortex)112
8042193802gate-control theorythe theory that the spinal cord contains a neurological "gate" that blocks pain signals or allows them to pass on to the brain. The "gate" is opened by the activity of pain signals traveling up small nerve fibers and is closed by activity in larger fibers or by information coming from the brain.113
8042217298gustationthe sense of taste114
8042237730taste receptors (types)sweet, sour, bitter, salty, and Umami.115
8042251000how taste helps us survivesweet: energy source salty: sodium needed for physiological processes sour: potentially toxic acid bitter: potential posion Umami: protein116
8042282358olfactionsense of smell117
8042288299anosmiainability to smell118
8042326329sensory interactionthe principle that one sense may influence another. Ex: when the smell of a food influences its taste119
8042347884embodied cognitionin psychological science, the influence of bodily sensations, gestures, and other states on cognitive preferences and judgements120
8042371975synethesiawhen a person's senses are joined so that one sort of sensation (such as hearing a sound) produces another (seeing color).121
8042441497psychophysicsthe study of relationships between the physical characteristics of stimuli, such as their intensity, and our psychological experience of them122
8042567624Ernest WeberErnst Weber noted that for people to really perceive a difference, the stimuli must differ by a constant "proportion" not a constant "amount".123
8042626748acuityrefers to the sharpness, clearness and focus of a person's vision. It is a measure of the eye's spatial resolution, or ability to perceive shapes and figures in a 3-dimensional setting.124
8042633407nearsightednessMYOPIA, The ability to see near objects more clearly than distant objects.125
8042636276farsightednessHYPEROPIA, you can see distant objects clearly, but objects nearby may be blurry126
8042640816*subtractive colorFormation of colors by removing some wavelengths of light127
8042643902*additive colorFormation of colors by superimposing lights128
8042649085movement after affects (MAE's)is a visual illusion experienced after viewing a moving visual stimulus for a time with stationary eyes, and then fixating a stationary stimulus. The stationary stimulus appears to move in the opposite direction to the original129
8042654939homunculus (senses)distorted human figure drawn to reflect the relative sensory space our body parts occupy on the cerebral cortex.130
8042654940visual captureThe tendency for vision to dominate the other senses.131
8042659127similaritywe group similar objects together132
8042659128connectednessis a sensation and perception term that refers to the perception of uniform or linked spots, lines, or areas as a single unit.133
8042663482convergenceA binocular cue for perceiving depth; the extent to which the eyes converge inward when looking at an object. The greater the inward strain, the closer the object.134
8042666392muller-lyer illusionan optical illusion in which a line with inward pointing arrowheads is seen as longer than an equal line with outward pointing arrowheads.135
8042666393motion parallaxmonocular depth cue in which we view objects that are closer to us as moving faster than objects that are further away from us.136
8042670889relative claritya monocular cue; light from distant objects passes through more atmosphere, therefore they are perceived as hazy and farther away than sharp, clear objects.137
8042670945texture gradientobjects appear denser as they move away138
8042675677reversible figuresoptical illusion images that can go from looking like one thing to another139
8042681010Ponzo illusiona geometrical-optical illusion that involves two identical lines placed on a railroad track where the farther line looks longer because we perceive it as farther away140
8057096715noiceptorspain receptor cells, come in three types; cutaneous (skin), somatic (bones and joints) and visceral (body organs) and can process pain that is mechanical, chemical or thermal in nature and transmit the information to the brain.141

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