Sensation and Perception

Question 1

What is sensation?

Answer 1

The process of detecting physical energy from the environment and converting it into neural signals.

Question 2

What is perception?

Answer 2

The process of organizing and interpreting sensory information

Question 2

What is transduction?

Answer 2

The conversion of physical energy into neural signals

Question 3

What is the absolute threshold?

Answer 3

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

Question 4

What is sensory adaptation?

Answer 4

Reduced sensitivity due to constant stimulation

Question 4

What is the difference threshold (just noticeable difference)?

Answer 4

The smallest difference between two stimuli that can be detected

Question 5

What are rods and cones?

Answer 5

Rods detect dim light and motion; cones detect color and fine detail.

Question 6

What does signal detection theory explain?

Answer 6

How we detect a stimulus amid background noise, factoring in decision-making and uncertainty

Question 7

What are the 4 possible outcomes in signal detection?

Answer 7

Hit, miss, false alarm, correct rejection

Question 8

What is the blind spot?

Answer 8

Area where the optic nerve exits the eye — no receptors

Question 9

What is the fovea?

Answer 9

The central part of the retina with a high concentration of cones — sharpest vision

Question 10

What is the optic nerve?

Answer 10

Carries visual info from the retina to the brain

Question 11

What is the cochlea?

Answer 11

A spiral-shaped organ in the inner ear that contains hair cells for hearing

Question 11

What is place theory?

Answer 11

Different frequencies stimulate different locations on the basilar membrane

Question 11

What is frequency theory?

Answer 11

The rate of nerve impulses matches the frequency of the sound wave

Question 11

What are the chemical senses?

Answer 11

Taste (gustation) and smell (olfaction)

Question 12

What are the 5 basic tastes?

Answer 12

Sweet, sour, salty, bitter, umami

Question 13

What is kinesthesis?

Answer 13

The sense of body part position and movement

Question 13

How does culture influence perception

Answer 13

Experience and cultural background shape what we focus on and how we interpret sensory info

Question 14

What are critical periods in perception?

Answer 14

Developmental windows where sensory input is necessary for proper perception to develop.

Question 14

What is selective attention?

Answer 14

Focusing on a specific stimulus while ignoring others.

Question 14

What are binocular cues?

Answer 14

Depth cues that depend on both eyes — retinal disparity and convergence

Question 14

What is the vestibular sense?

Answer 14

The sense of balance and body orientation — located in the inner ear

Question 14

What are perceptual sets?

Answer 14

A mental predisposition to perceive something in a certain way

Question 14

What is figure-ground perception?

Answer 14

The ability to distinguish an object (figure) from its background (ground)

Question 14

What is inattentional blindness?

Answer 14

Failing to see visible objects when attention is directed elsewhere

Question 14

What are monocular cues?

Answer 14

Depth cues available with one eye — e.g., linear perspective, relative size, texture gradient

Question 14

What are Gestalt principles of perception?

Answer 14

Rules like proximity, similarity, continuity, closure, and figure-ground that organize visual info

Question 14

What causes perceptual illusions

Answer 14

Mismatch between reality and how our brain interprets stimuli — errors in perception, not sensation

Question 14

What is motion parallax?

Answer 14

Nearby objects appear to move faster than distant ones when in motion

Question 15

What is the Trichromatic (Young-Helmholtz) Theory?

Answer 15

Theory that we have three types of cones: red, green, and blue. All colors are perceived by combining these

Question 15

What evidence supports Trichromatic Theory

Answer 15

Colorblindness patterns (red-green or blue-yellow deficiencies) align with specific cone malfunctions

Question 16

What is the Opponent-Process Theory

Answer 16

Theory that color perception is controlled by opposing pairs: red–green, blue–yellow, and black–white

Question 17

What does Opponent-Process Theory explain?

Answer 17

Afterimages and why we don’t see reddish-green or bluish-yellow

Question 17

How do the two color theories work together?

Answer 17

Trichromatic theory explains color detection at the retina level, while opponent-process theory explains processing in the brain (thalamus & visual cortex)

Question 18

Cornea

Answer 18

Protects the eye

Question 19

Pupil

Answer 19

Controls the amount of light that can enter the eye

Question 20

Lens

Answer 20

Focuses light onto the retina

Question 21

Myopia

Answer 21

When the eyeball is too long

Question 22

Dichromats

Answer 22

Individuals with a deficiency in one of the systems of colour vision