Module 1.6a

Question 1

Sensations

Answer 1

The process by which our sensory receptors & nervous system receive & represent stimulus energies from our environment.

Question 2

Sensory Receptors

Answer 2

Sensory nerve endings that respond to stimuli

Question 3

Perception

Answer 3

The process by which our brain organizes & interprets sensory information, enabling us to recognize objects & events as meaningful.

Question 4

Bottom-up processing

Answer 4

Information processing that begins with the senroy receptors and works up to the brain’s integration of sensory information. (Sensation)
Ex: Bottom-UP=Works UP to the brain

Question 5

Top-down processing

Answer 5

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

Question 6

Transduction

Answer 6

Conversion of one form of energy into another. In sensation, the TRANSforming of physical energy, such as sights, sounds, and smells, into neural impulses the brain can interpret.

Question 7

Psychophysics

Answer 7

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

Question 8

Absolute Threshold

Answer 8

The minimum stimulus energy needed to detect a particular stimulus 50 percent of the time.

Question 9

Signal Detection Theory

Answer 9

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 that detection depends partly on a person’s experience, expectations, motivation, and alertness.

Question 10

Subliminal

Answer 10

Below one’s absolute threshold for conscious awareness

Question 11

Priming

Answer 11

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

Question 12

Sensory Adaptation

Answer 12

Diminished sensitivity as a consequence of constant stimulation