UC Scout AP Psychology Unit 4

tendency to perceive some parts of sensory data and ignore others

Perceptual Set

originate within the individual and affect how they perceive the word

Internal Factors

Past experiences shape our expectations and influence how we perceive and interpret new stimuli from our environment

Experiences

What we expect to see or experience can influence what we actually perceive

Expectations

How we are feeling and what we are motivated by impact our perception

Motivations/Emotions

originate outside the individual and affect how they perceive sensory

External Factors

The circumstances, setting, or surrounding details impact the perception of stimuli

Context

Our cultural background and social norms affect perception

Cultural Influences

The environment around us impacts how we perceive stimulus in that particular environment

Environmental Cues

emphasize the human tendency to perceive patterns and objects as complete and organized rather than as separate components

Gestalt Principles

states that people automatically separate visual elements into the "figure" (the main object of focus) and the "ground" (the background)

Figure-Ground

Elements that are close to each other tend to be perceived as a group

Proximity

Objects that are similar in appearance are more likely to be perceived as belonging together

Similarity

People tend to perceive continuous lines and patterns, even if they are interrupted

Continuity

The principle of closure suggests that people tend to fill in missing parts of an incomplete shape to see it as a whole

Closure

when we perceive an object as unchanging even if the retinal image changes

Perceptual Constancy

the object as it exists in your retina

Proximal Stimulus

the object as it exists in the world

Distal Stimulus

when the perceived size of the object remains the same even though size/distance changes in your retina

Size Constancy

when shape remains the same as retinal image changes

Shape Constancy

when the brightness/color of the object remains the same, even though the retinal image changes

Brightness Constancy

process of understanding how far away an object is

Depth Perception

the act of our eyes keeping an object in center of retinal field to maintain focus

Convergence

discrepancy between each eye's views

Retinal Disparity

parallel lines converge as they get further away (gives experience of distance)

Linear Perspective

objects that are smaller will appear further away

Relative Size

we perceive higher in our vision field as farther away

Relative Height

objects closer to horizon appear to be more distant

Location in Picture Plane

can give a 2-D picture 3-D characteristics

Light/Shadow

when an object is in front of another, we understand it is closer

Interposition

patterns look denser as they get farther away

Texture Gradient

smog, dust, and haze add to the apparent distance of object

Aerial Perspective

objects that are closer appear to rush by and objects that are further appear to move slower

Relative Motion/Motion Parallax

all the mental activities associated with thinking, knowing, remembering, and communicating (uses thoughts and memories)

Cognition

a mental grouping of similar objects, events, ideas, or people

Concepts

mental image of a best example of a category

Prototype

ability to produce new/valuable ideas (creative people are risk-takers, imaginative, and highly motivated)

Creativity

when we put difficult tasks aside for later and we are able to process it better later on

Incubation

ability to generate different and more solutions

Divergent Thinking

narrowing down from given choices to one option

Convergent Thinking

breaking down large concepts into smaller ones

Analysis

combining separate concepts into one big idea

Synthesis

going from tasks/observations to general principles

Inductive Thought

going from general principles to specific situations

Deductive Thought

set formulas (takes more time but is mostly correct)

Algorithms

mental shortcuts (takes less time but is prone to errors)

Heuristics

sudden realization of a problem's solution (aha moment)

Insight

tendency to search for info that supports our beliefs and to ignore evidence that doesn't support us

Confirmation Bias

the inability to see a problem from a fresh perspective that may help solve it

Fixation

a tendency to view a problem in one set way

Mental Set

the inability to see alternate uses or functions for objects

Functional Fixedness

when we make a choice based on what seems to be the best or most correct answer

Representativeness Heuristic

when we estimate the likelihood of an event or make a selection based on the first instance that comes to mind

Availability Heuristic

overinflated sense of our abilities

Overconfidence

when we hold on to beliefs even after they have been refuted

Belief Perseverance

the way information is presented can alter how people perceive it

Framing

thinking we would have foreseen something after knowing the outcome

Hindsight Bias