Chapter One

Question 1

• Know the seven steps of the perceptual process. (pp. 5-10)

Answer 1

The Perceptual Process

1. Environmental Stimulus - anything in the environment we observe or sense
2. Transformation/ Representation
   - TRANSFORMATION- stimulus CHANGES from environment to perception
3. Receptors/ Transduction- sensory receptors - nerve cells that respond to environmental energy
4. Neural Processing - Sensory receptors send electrical signals to the brain
5. Perception - conscious awareness -what we observe
6. Recognition - provides meaning to what we observe
7. Action - to do something with your sensory experiences

Question 2

The Perceptual Process

1. Environmental Stimulus

Answer 2

The Perceptual Process

1. Environmental Stimulus - anything in the environment we observe or sense
   - i.e. Light, tree

Question 3

The Perceptual Process

2. Transformation/ Representation

Answer 3

The Perceptual Process

2. Transformation/ Representation
   - TRANSFORMATION- stimulus CHANGES from environment to perception
   - i.e. Light reflects tree and enters the eyes
   - into the retinas (nerve cells/visual receptors) to perceive the tree in the brain

• REPRESENTATION - stimulus is formed (represented) based on receptors and the nervous system
  i. e. If the lens of your eyes are bad; images are blurry

Question 4

The Perceptual Process

3. Receptors/ Transduction

Answer 4

The Perceptual Process
3. Receptors/ Transduction- sensory receptors - nerve cells that respond to environmental energy

TRANSDUCTION - (environmental –> electrical) - change from environmental energy to electrical energy in the brain
-i.e. rod and cone receptors change light energy to electrical energy

Question 5

The Perceptual Process

4. Neural Processing

Answer 5

The Perceptual Process
4. Neural Processing - Sensory receptors send electrical signals to the brain

• Neurons = nerve or brain cells
• transmit electrical signals from one neuron to another
• change electrical signals to perceive info in the brain

-Electrical signals arrive at primary receiving areas of the lobes – important to detect perception

Question 6

The Perceptual Process

5. Perception

Answer 6

The Perceptual Process

5. Perception - conscious awareness
   - what we observe
   i. e. seeing the tree

Question 7

The Perceptual Process

6. Recognition

Answer 7

The Perceptual Process

6. Recognition - provides meaning to what we observe
   - i.e. knowing tree = plant

Question 8

The Perceptual Process

7. Action

Answer 8

The Perceptual Process

7. Action - to do something with your sensory experiences
   - necessary for survival
   - i.e. run away if you are close to a bear, not a tree trunk

Question 9

Primary Receiving area

Answer 9

• Occipital lobe = vision
• Temporal lobe (what) = hearing, taste, smell
• Parietal (where/how) = skin senses -touch, temperature, and pain
• Frontal lobe - coordination of sensory info
• receives signals from all of the senses, perception for coordination and info received from two or more senses.

Question 10

Occipital lobe

Answer 10

Occipital lobe = vision

Question 11

Temporal lobe

Answer 11

Temporal lobe (what) = hearing, taste, smell

Question 12

Parietal

Answer 12

Parietal (where/how) = skin senses -touch, temperature, and pain

Question 13

Frontal lobe

Answer 13

Frontal lobe - coordination of sensory info

-receives signals from all of the senses, perception for coordination and info received from two or more senses.

Question 14

Primary Auditory Cortex

Answer 14

Primary Auditory Cortex - hearing

Question 15

Primary Visual Cortex

Answer 15

Primary Visual Cortex - Seeing

Question 16

Primary Motor Cortex

Answer 16

Primary Motor Cortex - Movement

Question 17

Primary Somatosensory

Answer 17

Primary Somatosensory - Touch

“Somato” = body

Question 18

What is the difference between perception and recognition?

Answer 18

Perception - can see object

Recognition - identifying it

Question 19

Dr. P (pp. 8)

Answer 19

Dr. P - brain tumor
VISUAL FORM OF AGNOSIA - inability to recognize object
-Can see object (perception) but cannot identify it (recognition)
i.e. glove

Question 20

Knowledge: know the rat-man demonstration, bottom-up processing, top-down processing

Answer 20

Knowledge - Info we bring to a situation to perceive a stimulus

Rat-Man Demonstration: Our knowledge (patterns) can influence perception

Bottom-up processing: (databased) perceiving based on incoming data WITHOUT prior KNOWLEDGE

Top-down processing: (Knowledge - based) perceive based WITH prior KNOWLEDGE, experience, and expectation

Question 21

Bottom-up processing:

Answer 21

Bottom-up processing: (databased) perceiving based on incoming data WITHOUT prior KNOWLEDGE

Question 22

Top-down processing:

Answer 22

Top-down processing: (Knowledge - based) perceive based WITH prior KNOWLEDGE, experience, and expectation

Question 23

• Understand the relationships of stimuli, physiology, and perception (see Figure 1.8, pp. 10)

Answer 23

Stimuli (steps 1 & 2); Physiology (steps 3 & 4); and perception, which stands for the three behavior responses (steps 5-7)

The three relationships that are usually measured to study the perceptual process are the PSYCHOPHYSICAL RELATIONSHIPS between stimuli and perception

and the PHYSIOLOGICAL RELATIONSHIPS between stimuli and physiology and between physiology and perception

Question 24

• What are the two approaches of studying perception? (pp. 10)

Answer 24

Psychophysics(BEHAVIOR) - measure stimulus based on BEHAVIORAL responses (focus = person showing what he or she perceives)

Physiology (BRAIN) - measures stimulus based on BRAIN activity (focus = brain showing a person’s perception)

Question 25

Oblique Effect

Answer 25

Oblique Effect - better detection of vertical and horizontal lines but not slanted lines

Question 26

Measuring perception:
define absolute thresholds (pp. 12),

difference thresholds (pp. 14)

Answer 26

Threshold

Absolute Threshold - minimum detection of a change
-i.e. do you see it or not?

Difference Threshold - comparing stimuli to see if they differ from each other
-i.e. do you see a difference between two or more stimuli

Question 27

Know Fechner’s three classical psychophysical methods for measuring thresholds (pp. 12-13)

Answer 27

Fechner’s Classical Psychophysical Methods - determining thresholds

1. Methods of limits - experimenter presents stimuli to observer to detect intensity differences
   - experimenter changes bright, brighter, brightest
2. Method of adjustment - observer is in charge of detection
3. Method of constant stimuli - experimenter randomizes intensities of stimuli

Question 28

What is magnitude estimation? (pp. 14-15)

Answer 28

Magnitude = how strong of an intensity

Estimation = a scale (numbering system) to show strength

• assess how intensity affects our awareness
  i. e. detect heaviness of weight

Question 29

• Know other methods of measuring thresholds and magnitudes: phenomenological method, visual search, reaction time, signal detection theory (main idea of this theory). (pp. 16-17)

Answer 29

phenomenological method - ask person to describe perception

visual search - finding a stimulus as fast as possible

reaction time - how long a person responds to a presentation

signal detection theory (main idea of this theory)

Question 30

phenomenological method

Answer 30

phenomenological method - ask person to describe perception

Question 31

visual search

Answer 31

visual search - finding a stimulus as fast as possible

Question 32

reaction time

Answer 32

reaction time - how long a person responds to a presentation

Question 33

signal detection theory (main idea of this theory)

Answer 33

signal detection theory - criteria for responding to changes in a stimulus