Psych U2

Bottom-Up Processing

Starts with sensory input; brain builds perception from raw data.

Top-Down Processing

Uses expectations, experience, and context to interpret data.

Absolute Threshold

Minimum stimulation needed to detect a stimulus 50% of the time.

Difference Threshold

Smallest change in stimulation that can be detected.

Inattentional Blindness

Missing visible objects when focused elsewhere.

Change Blindness

Failing to notice changes in environment.

Sensory Adaptation

Diminished sensitivity to constant stimuli.

Selective Attention

Focusing on one stimulus while ignoring others.

Habituation

Decreased response to repeated stimuli.

Subliminal Threshold

Stimuli below conscious awareness can still affect behavior.

Perceptual Set

Mental predisposition to perceive one thing and not another.

Rods

Photoreceptors that detect light/dark and are responsible for peripheral vision.

Cones

Photoreceptors that detect color and detail.

Brightness

Perceived intensity of light.

Feature Detectors

Neurons responding to specific shapes, angles, or movements.

Parallel Processing

Brain processes color, motion, form, and depth simultaneously.

Retinal Disparity

Difference between images in both eyes that helps in depth perception.

Figure-Ground

The ability to distinguish an object from its background.

Closure

The perceptual tendency to fill in gaps to create whole images.

Proximity

The tendency to group nearby figures together.

Continuity

The tendency to perceive smooth, continuous patterns.

Convergence

Eyes move inward for close objects to maintain focus.

Vestibular Sense

The sense that contributes to balance and head movement.

Proprioception

Awareness of the body's position in space.

Sensory Interaction

The phenomenon where senses influence each other.

Sense of Taste

The perception of flavors: sweet, sour, salty, bitter, umami.

Sense of Touch

Perception involving pressure, warmth, cold, and pain.

Sense of Pain

The bodily warning system for potential harm.