Sensation and Perception

Flashcards about Sensation and Perception

Perception

The organism's process of interpreting life experiences and making sense of the senses

Sensation

Simple recognition of the external and internal stimuli

Perception

Interpretation, comparison, separation, and integration of sensations

Sensory Receptors

Structures specialized for stimuli; stimulating these receptors causes depolarization, leading to sensation and perception in the brain

Mechanoreceptors

Receptors sensitive to movement, including touch, compression, vibration, stress, and itching

Thermoreceptors

Receptors sensitive to temperature changes

Photoreceptors

Receptors sensitive to light energy

Chemoreceptors

Receptors sensitive to chemicals

Nociceptors

Receptors sensitive to pain

Exteroceptor

Located close to the surface and sensitive to external physical stimuli, usually in specialized sensory organs

Transduction

The conversion of a physicochemical stimulus into an action potential in a sensory nerve fiber

Phasic

A sensory receptor that adapts rapidly

Tonic

A sensory receptor that adapts slowly

Adequate stimulus

The lowest stimulus that a receptor responds to, among different types of stimuli

Lateral Inhibition

Increases sharpness in sensory perception

Just Noticeable Difference (JND)

The minimum amount by which stimulus intensity must be changed to produce a noticeable variation in sensory experience

Differential Threshold

noticeable variation in sensory experience.

Lateral inhibition

increases sharpness.

If the amount of central convergence is excessive,

it decreases.

Sharpness increases if

innervation density is high

As the receptive area grows,

the sharpness decreases