Perceptual Systems and Visual Perceptual Processes

top-down processing

processing that uses pre-existing knowledge to interpret incoming sensory stimuli

bottom-up processing

processing that interprets stimuli as raw sensory input before connecting it to any pre-existing knowledge

schema

mental frameworks or models that organize known information

perceptual set

the tendency for people to perceive only some stimuli but not others (new information must fit into existing frameworks)

Gestalt psychology

a field of psychology that studies the tendency for people to perceive things in groups

selective attention

the ability to only focus on one task or sensory stimulus at a time

inattentional blindness

the phenomenon of failing to notice otherwise obvious stimuli when attention is directed elsewhere

depth perception

the ability to see the world in three dimensions and perceive the distance between things

retinal disparity

the slight difference in the images that each eye perceives

convergence

the process by which the brain merge simages from each eye into a singular image, requiring the eyes to move inwards when looking at something closer to the viewer

linear perspective

the phenomenon that causes parallel lines to appear to meet at a singular point in the distance

interposition

the partial obstruction of one object by another, making the obstructed object appear further away

relative size

the phenomenon that causes smaller objects to seem further away than large objects

relative clarity

the phenomenon that causes blurry objects to appear further away than objects that are more detailed

texture gradient

the principle that the texture of a surface appears less detailed the further away it is

perceptual constancy

the ability to perceive objects as unchanging despite environmental changes that alter the perceived color, size, shape or lightness of the object

stroboscopic movement

the movement of a series of pictures at a fast enough rate that they are perceived as moving objects rather than individual images