AP Psychology Unit 3: Depth Cues and Gestalt Principles

depth perception

the ability to perceive relative distance of an object in one’s visual field

monocular depth cues

things that only need one eye to see the distance it is from the observer

binocular depth cues

things that need both eyes to see the distance it is from the observer

relative size

images farther away project a smaller image on the retina than ones closer

texture gradient

textures appear more detailed when the object is closer and less detailed when farther

interposition

when a nearer object partially blocks the view of an object behind it

linear perspective

the perception that parallel lines draw closer as they recede into the distance

vanishing point

the point in which 2 parallel lines become indistinguishable from a single line 

relative height

objects that are higher appear to be further away

relative clarity (shading and contour)

objects that are closer have more detail and objects that are farther have less detail

motion parallax

when an object that is closer will be appear to be moving quicker whereas a farther object appears to be moving slower

aerial perspective

when atmospheric pressure and dust obscures objects in the distance (ex. fog)

stereopsis

the three dimensional image of the world resulting from binocular depth perception 

retinal convergence

the phenomenon that the eyes turn inward to look at closer objects

binocular disparity

the closer the object is, the less similar the information arriving at each eye will be

gestalt approach

based on top-down theory, believed that most perceptual stimuli can be broken down into figure-ground relationships

gestalt psychology

the belief that the whole is greater than the sum of its parts

figure and ground

tendency of our visual system to place some objects into focus and other objects in the background

proximity

tendency to see objects near each other as forming groups

similarity

tendency to group similar objects together

symmetry

tendency to group similar objects together 

continuity

the tendency to mentally form a closed object from an incomplete one