PSY 12000 Exam 2 Vocabulary (5)

Sensation and Perception

sensory receptors

specialized neurons that respond to specific types of stimuli

sensation

occurs when sensory receptors detect sensory stimuli

sensory systems

vision

absolute threshold

minimum amount of stimulus energy that must be present for the stimulus to be detected 50% of the time

subliminal messages

messages received that are below the threshold of conscious awareness

just noticeable difference (JND)

minimum difference in stimuli required to detect a change/difference between stimuli

perception

way that sensory information is interpreted

bottom-up processing

system in which perceptions are built from sensory input (data-driven) - new

top-down processing

interpretation of sensations is influenced by available knowledge

(affecting perception) sensory adaptation

not perceiving stimuli that remain relatively constant over prolonged periods of time

(affecting perception) inattentional blindness

failure to notice something that is completely visible because of a lack of attention

signal detection theory

change in stimulus detection as a function of current mental state

(affecting perception) motivation

perceiving a stimuli that is not there since we are motivated to perceive it

(affecting perception) beliefs

values

(affecting perception) life/cultural experiences

some people may be more susceptible to certain stimuli because of their environment/culture

muller-lyer illusion

lines appear to be different lengths even though they are identical in length

amplitude

height of a wave

wavelength

length of wave

frequency

number of waves that pass a given point in a given time period

reds

longer wavelengths

greens

intermediate wavelengths

blue/violet

shorter wavelengths

blind spot

a point of no receptors

(photoreceptors) cones

works best in bright light conditions

(photoreceptors) rods

works best in low light conditions

optic chiasm

where the optic nerve of each eye merge

trichromatic theory of color vision

all colors can be combined by combining red

opponent-process theory

color is coded in opponent pairs (black-white

afterimage

continuation of a visual sensation after removal of the stimulus

depth perception

our ability to perceive spatial relationships in 3-D

binocular cues

cue that relies on the use of both eyes

binocular disparity

slightly different view of the world that each eye receives

monocular cues

cue that relies on only one eye

linear perspective

when two parallel lines seem to converge

interposition

the partial overlap of objects

gestalt psychology

field of psychology based on the idea that the whole is different from the sum of its parts

figure

the focus of the visual field

ground

the background

gestalt principle of proximity

the idea that things that are close to one another tend to be grouped together

gestalt principle of similarity

the idea that things that are alike tend to be grouped together

gestalt principle of continuity

the idea that we are more likely to perceive continuous

gestalt principle of closure

the tendency of the human mind to perceive incomplete forms as complete by mentally filling in the gaps

outer ear

pinna and tympanic membrane

middle ear

the three ossicles: malleus

inner ear

cochlea and basilar memebrane

temporal theory

frequency is coded by the activity level of a sensory neuron

place theory

different portions of the basilar membrane are sensitive to sounds of different frequencies (base responds to higher while tip responds to lower)

monaural cues

one ear

binaural cues

two ears

interaural level difference

sound coming from one side of the body is more intense at the closest ear because of the attenuation of the sound wave as it passes through the head

interaural timing difference

small difference in the time at which a given sound wave arrives at each ear

deafness

the partial or complete inability to hear

congenital deafness

deafness from birth

conductive hearing loss

problem delivering sound energy to the cochlea

sensorineural hearing loss

failure to transmit neural signals from the cochlea to the brain

taste buds

groupings of taste receptor cells with hair-like extensions that protrude into the central pore of the taste bud

papillae

bumps on our tongue sorted into 4 types (filiform

taste pore

the opening at the surface of the taste bud where taste cells extend cilia into to expose them to tastants

tastants

found in saliva - each taste cell responds to only one of the basic tastes

gustation (taste transduction)

taste molecules bind to receptors and cause chemical changes within the sensory cell

supertasters

heightened sensitivity to some bitter tastes

olfactory receptor cells

contain small hair-like extensions which serve as the site for odor molecules to interact with chemical receptors located on these extensions

olfaction transduction

1. odor molecules bind to receptors 2. chemical changes cause signals to be sent to the olfactory bulb 3. information is sent to the limbic system and primary olfactory cortex

pheromones

chemical messages sent by another individual

receptor - meisnerr's corpuscles

respond to pressure and lower-frequency vibrations

receptor - pacinian corpuscles

detect transient pressure and higher-frequency vibrations

receptor - merkel's disks

respond to light pressure

receptor - ruffini corpuscles

detect stretch

labeled lines

each type of receptor has a distinct pathway to the brain

thermoception

temperature perception

noinception

sensory signal indicating potential harm and maybe pain

vestibular sense

contributes to our ability to maintain balance and body posture - located in cochlea (inner ear). these organs are fluid-filled and contain hair cells which respond to movement of the head and gravitational forces

maculae

specialized for sensing linear acceleration