AP Psych unit 3

Question 1

Sensation

Answer 1

the process by which our sensory receptors and nervous system receive and represent stimulus energies from our environment

Question 2

Perception

Answer 2

the process of organizing and interpreting sensory information, enabling us to recognize more meaningful objects and events

Question 3

bottom-up processing

Answer 3

analysis that begins with sensory receptors and work up to the brain’s integration of sensory information

Question 4

top-down processing

Answer 4

information processing guided by higher level mental processes, as when we construct perceptions drawing on our experience and expectations

Question 5

selective attention

Answer 5

the focusing of conscious awareness on a particular stimulus

Question 6

inattention blindness

Answer 6

failing to see visual objects when our attention is directed elsewhere

Question 7

change blindness

Answer 7

failing to notice changes in the environment

Question 8

psychophysics

Answer 8

the study of relationships between the physical characteristics of stimuli, such as their intensity and our psychological experience of them

Question 9

absolute threshold

Answer 9

the minimum stimulation needed to detect a particular stimulus 50% of the time

Question 10

signal detection theory

Answer 10

A theory predicting how and when we detect the presence of a faint stimulus (“Signal”) amid background stimulation (“Noise”). Assumes there is no single absolute threshold and detection depends partly on a person’s experience, expectations, motivation, and level of fatigue

Question 11

subliminal

Answer 11

below one’s absolute threshold for conscious awareness

Question 12

priming

Answer 12

The activation, often unconsciously, of certain associations, thus predisposing one’s perception, memory, or response

Question 13

difference threshold

Answer 13

the minimum difference between two stimuli required for detection 50 percent of the time. We experience the difference threshold as a just noticeable
difference

Question 14

Weber’s Law

Answer 14

The principle that, to be perceived as different,

two stimuli must differ by a constant minimum percentage

Question 15

sensory adaptation

Answer 15

diminished sensitivity as a consequence of the constant stimulation

Question 16

transduction

Answer 16

conversion of one form of energy into another. In sensation, the transforming of stimulus energies, such as sights, sounds, and smells, into neural impulses

Question 17

wavelength

Answer 17

the distance from the peak of one light or sound wave to the peak of the next.

Question 18

hue

Answer 18

the dimension of color that is determined by the wavelength of light

Question 19

intensity

Answer 19

the amount of energy in a light or sound wave, which we perceive as brightness or loudness, as determined by the wave’s amplitude

Question 20

pupil

Answer 20

the adjustable opening in the enter of the eye which lets light through

Question 21

iris

Answer 21

a ring of muscles that form the colored portion of the eye around the pupil that controls the size of the pupil opening

Question 22

lens

Answer 22

the transparent structure behind the pupil that changes shape to help focus images on the retina

Question 23

retina

Answer 23

the light sensitive inner surface of the eye containing the receptors rods and cones plus layers of neurons that begin the processing of visual information

Question 24

accommodation

Answer 24

the process by which the eye’s lens changes shape to focus on near and far away objects

Question 25

rods

Answer 25

retinal receptors that detect black, white, and grey; necessary for peripheral and twilight vision, when cones don’t respond

Question 26

cones

Answer 26

Retinal receptor cells that are concentrated near the
center of the retina and that function in daylight or in well-lit conditions. The cones detect fine detail and give rise to color sensations

Question 27

optic nerve

Answer 27

the nerve that carries neural impulses from the eye

to the brain

Question 28

blind spot

Answer 28

the point at which the optic nerve leaves the eye,

creating a blind spot because no receptor cells are located there

Question 29

fovea

Answer 29

the central focal point in the retina, around which the

eye’s cones cluster

Question 30

parallel processing

Answer 30

The processing of several aspects of a problem simultaneously; the brain’s natural mode of information processing for many functions, including vision. Contrasts with the step-by-step (serial) processing of most computers and of conscious problem solving