Visual imagery

Depictive Representation

Mental images that have spatial properties similar to actual physical objects.

Mental Walk Task

A task in which a person imagines walking toward an object; it takes longer to 'reach' smaller objects than larger ones.

Unilateral Neglect

A condition where damage to one hemisphere of the brain results in ignoring one side of space, even in mental imagery.

Mental Scanning

The process of visualizing and mentally 'moving' through a scene, with greater distances taking longer to traverse.

Mental Imagery

The ability to visualize information, including senses beyond vision, and even things never actually seen before.

Strand of DNA

A mental representation of the double-helix structure of DNA.

Paired-Associate Learning

A memory technique in which a person learns to associate one item with another.

Tacit Knowledge Explanation

The idea that people unconsciously use real-world knowledge to influence their mental imagery, such as imagining a boat with realistic staged events.

Spatial Representation

A form of mental imagery where objects are arranged in a mental space similar to how they exist in the real world.

Visual Imagery

Seeing in the absence of actual stimuli, such as remembering a classroom or a grandparent's face. Not limited to visual stimuli or exact recreations.

Mental Chronometry

A method of measuring how long it takes to mentally manipulate images, as studied by Shepard and Meltzer.

Imagery Debate

A debate about whether imagery has a perceptual basis (like a visual stimulus) or is purely a verbal/propositional process.

Conceptual Peg Hypothesis

Proposed by Paivio, this suggests that concrete words create mental images that help 'hang on' to related information.

Imagery Neuron

A neuron that responds both when a person sees an object and when they imagine the same object.

Propositional Representation

A way of mentally storing and processing objects/relaton ships using abstract, language-like symbols

Imageless Thought Debate

The debate on whether thought can exist independently of imagery.

Pegword Technique

imagery as associating with concrete words

Method of Loci

A memory technique that involves placing information within a familiar mental location to aid recall.

Epiphenomenon

A secondary effect that occurs alongside a process but does not directly cause it.