Sensation and Perception Vocabulary Flashcards

Vocabulary practice cards covering sensory detection, perceptual processing, thresholds, sensory adaptation, and Gestalt principles from the lecture.

Sensation

The physical detection and experience of a stimulus through sensory receptors in the nervous system.

Perception

How the brain organizes and interprets sensory signals to make sense of information and recognize meaningful things.

Bottom-Up Processing

Data-driven processing that takes small environmental clues and sensory details to build a bigger picture without requiring prior knowledge.

Top-Down Processing

Theory-driven processing where the brain uses prior knowledge, past experiences, and expectations to interpret incoming information.

Absolute Threshold

The minimum level of a stimulus required to detect, recognize, or experience it at least 50% of the time.

Just Noticeable Difference (JND)

The minimum or least amount of change required in a stimulus for a person to notice a difference.

Subliminal Stimuli

Sensory stimuli presented very quickly or faintly under the conscious threshold, such as words or images flashed rapidly on a screen.

Sensory Adaptation

The process in which the nervous system gradually stops paying attention to or noticing constant background stimuli over time.

Gestalt

A German word meaning 'the whole' or 'the sum of the whole,' referring to a psychological approach focused on looking at full pictures rather than individual parts.

Figure-Ground Perception

A Gestalt principle where the brain hones in on a specific focal object (figure) as distinct from its surrounding background (ground).

Proximity

A Gestalt principle where objects positioned near or close to one another are perceived as grouped together.

Similarity

A Gestalt principle where items sharing similar characteristics, such as color or shape, are perceived as belonging to a group.

Continuity

A Gestalt principle stating that the brain prefers smooth, uninterrupted, continuous lines or paths over separate segments.

Closure

A Gestalt principle where the brain automatically fills in gaps or missing details to perceive a complete object.

Connectedness

A Gestalt principle where objects that are visually linked or uniform are perceived as a single unit.

Common Fate

A Gestalt principle where visual elements moving in the same direction at the same speed are perceived as a group.

Law of Simplicity

A Gestalt principle stating that the brain prefers simple visual interpretations over complex ones to reduce processing load.