AP Psych 2.1

perception

the process of using our senses to recognize and interpret the world around us. It includes how we respond to stimuli, such as when we hear a dog barking and respond by leaving or staying away.

bottom-up processing (external sensory information)

a way of understanding the world around us that starts with the senses and works its way up to the brain. It's considered a core way of understanding the world because it's data-driven and doesn't require prior knowledge

top-down processing (internal prior expectations)

a way for the brain to make sense of new information by applying prior knowledge, concepts, or expectations to it. This allows people to quickly interpret and understand their environment, and respond when needed.

schema

a mental framework that helps people organize and interpret information, and make sense of the world around them. Schemas are also known as scripts, and they allow people to use their past experiences to anticipate new situations.

perceptual set

a psychological concept that describes how people perceive and interpret sensory information based on their expectations, beliefs, and past experiences. It's also known as expectancy.

external factors that filter perceptions of the world

contexts, experiences, cultural expectations

Gestalt psychology

school of psychology founded in the 20th century that provided the foundation for the modern study of perception. Gestalt theory emphasizes that the whole of anything is greater than its parts.

closure (Gestalt principle)

the brain's tendency to fill in missing information based on past experiences.

figure and ground (Gestalt principle)

refers to the principle that when we perceive a visual image, our brains naturally separate the focal point (the "figure") from its surrounding background (the "ground"), allowing us to distinguish between the object of interest and its context; essentially, it's our ability to identify what stands out in a scene versus what is simply the background.

proximity (Gestalt principle)

the idea that people perceive objects that are close together as more related than objects that are farther apart. This principle applies even if the objects differ in color, shape, size, or other characteristics.

similarity (Gestalt principle)

a psychological concept that states that people perceive items as related if they share visual characteristics, such as color, shape, or size. This principle is based on the idea that the human brain naturally organizes information, and that similar elements are perceived as part of a unified whole.

attention

the state of consciousness where a person focuses on a stimulus, such as an object, event, or task, to the exclusion of other stimuli.

selective attention

the act of focusing on a particular object for a while, simultaneously ignoring distractions and irrelevant information.

cocktail party effect

a psychological phenomenon that describes the ability to focus on a single stimulus, such as a conversation, while filtering out other stimuli, like background noise. It's also known as "selective hearing" or "selective attention".

inattentional "blindness"

a psychological phenomenon that occurs when someone fails to notice an unexpected object or event in their field of vision because they are focused on something else.

change blindness

a psychological phenomenon that occurs when someone fails to notice a change in their visual environment. This could be considered a type of selective attention and inattentional "blindness."

binocular depth cues

ways that both eyes work together to create a three-dimensional image of the world

retinal disparity (as related to binocular depth cues)

the difference in the images projected onto each retina of the eyes when focusing on a single object. It's a binocular cue that allows people to perceive depth and distance, and is essential for stereoscopic depth perception.

convergence (as related to binocular depth cues)

a binocular depth cue that refers to the inward movement of the eyes when focusing on a nearby object

monocular depth cues

visual cues that help people perceive depth with only one eye.

relative clarity (as related to monocular depth cues)

monocular depth cue that helps people judge how far away objects are by perceiving how sharp, clear, and detailed they appear

relative size (as related to monocular depth cues)

a monocular depth cue that allows people to judge how far away an object is by comparing its size to other objects

texture gradient (as related to monocular depth cues)

a monocular depth cue that describes how the texture of an object becomes less apparent as it moves farther away

linear perspective (as related to monocular depth cues)

a monocular depth cue that refers to the visual effect of parallel lines appearing to converge in the distance

interposition (as related to monocular depth cues)

a monocular depth cue that occurs when one object partially covers or blocks another object, making the covered object appear farther away.

visual perceptual constancy

the ability to perceive an object as having a standard shape, size, color, or brightness regardless of changes in perspective, distance, or lighting.

apparent movement (phi phenomenon)

a visual illusion that occurs when two stimuli are presented in rapid succession, causing the perception of movement