psychology chapter 5-6

sensation

what happens when sensory information is detected by a sensory receptor

transduction

conversion from sensory stimulus energy to action potential

absolute threshold

minimum amount of stimulus energy that must be present for the stimulus to be detected 50% of the time

difference threshold (just noticeable difference)

difference in stimuli required to detect a difference between the stimuli

perception

way that sensory information is interpreted and consciously experienced

bottom-up processing

system in which perceptions are built from sensory input

top-down processing

interpretation of sensations is influenced by available knowledge, experiences, and thoughts

sensory adaptation

not perceiving stimuli that remain relatively constant over prolonged periods of time

inattentional blindness

failure to notice something that is completely visible because of a lack of attention

signal detection theory

change in stimulus detection as a function of current mental state

amplitude

height of a wave

wavelength

length of a wave from one peak to the next peak

frequency

number of waves that pass a given point in a given time period

hertz (Hz)

cycles per second (measure of frequency)

electromagnetic spectrum

all the electromagnetic radiation that occurs in our environment

visible spectrum

portion of the electromagnetic spectrum that we can see (Roy G. Biv)

ptich

perception of a sound's frequency

decibels (dB)

logarithmic unit of sound intensity

timbre

purity of a sound

cornea

transparent covering over the eye

lens

curved, transparent structure that provides additional focus for light entering the eye

retina

light-sensitive lining of the eye

photoreceptors

light-detecting cells

cones

specialized photoreceptor that works best in bright light conditions and detects color

rods

specialized photoreceptor that works well in low light conditions

fovea

small indentation in the retina that contains cones

optic nerve

carries visual information from the retina to the brain

blind spot

point where we cannot respond to visual information in that portion of the visual field

optic chiasm

X-shaped structure where the optic nerves cross each other (just below the brain)

trichromatic theory

color vision is mediated by the activity across the three groups of cones

opponent-process theory

color is coded in opponent pairs: black-white, yellow-blue, and red-green

afterimage

continuation of a visual sensation after removal of the stimulus

depth perception

ability to judge distance and three-dimensional relations

binocular cues

cues that rely on the use of both eyes

monocular cues

cues that require only one eye

linear perspective

perceive depth in an image when two parallel lines seem to converge

pinna

visible part of the ear that protrudes from the head

tympanic membrane

eardrum

middle ear ossicles

malleus, incus, and stapes

cochlea

fluid-filled, snail-shaped structure that contains the sensory receptor cells of the auditory system

hair cells

auditory receptor cells of the inner ear

basilar membrane

thin strip of tissue within the cochlea that contains the hair cells which serve as the sensory receptors for the auditory system

temporal theory (of pitch perception)

sound's frequency is coded by the activity level of a sensory neuron

place theory (of pitch perception)

different portions of the basilar membrane are sensitive to sounds of different frequencies

monaural cues

one-eared cues to localize sound

binaural cues

two-eared cues to localize sound

interaural level difference

sound coming from one side of the body is more intense at the closest ear because of the attenuation of the sound wave as it passes through the head

interaural timing difference

small difference in the time at which a given sound wave arrives at each ear

deafness

partial or complete inability to hear

congenital deafness

deafness from birth

conductive hearing loss

failure in the vibration of the eardrum and/or movement of the ossicles

sensorineural hearing loss

failure to transmit neural signals from the cochlea to the brain

Ménière's disease

results in a degeneration of inner ear structures that can lead to hearing loss, tinnitus, vertigo, and an increase in pressure within the inner ear

vertigo

spinning sensation

cochlear implant

electronic device that consists of a microphone, a speech processor, and an electrode array to directly stimulate the auditory nerve to transmit information to the brain

umami

taste for monosodium glutamate

taste buds

groupings of taste receptor cells with hair-like extensions that protrude into the central pore of the taste bud

olfactory receptor

sensory cell for the olfactory system

olfactory bulb

bulb-like structure at the tip of the frontal lobe, where the olfactory nerves begin

pheromones

chemical messages sent by another individual

Meissner's corpuscles

touch receptors that respond to pressure and lower frequency vibrations

Pacinian corpuscles

touch receptors that detect transient pressure and higher frequency vibrations

Merkel's disks

touch receptor that responds to light touch

Ruffini corpuscles

touch receptor that detects stretch

thermoception

temperature perception

nociception

sensory signal indicating potential harm and maybe pain

inflammatory pain

signal that some type of tissue damage has occurred

neuropathic pain

pain from damage to neurons of either the peripheral or central nervous system

congential analgesia

genetic disorder that results in the inability to experience pain

vestibular sense

contributes to our ability to maintain balance and body posture

Proprioception

perception of body position

kinesthesia

perception of the body's movement through space

Gestalt psychology

field of psychology based on the idea that the whole is different from the sum of its parts

figure-ground relationship

segmenting our visual world into figure and ground

proximity

things that are close to one another tend to be grouped together

similarity

things that are alike tend to be grouped together

closure

organizing our perceptions into complete objects rather than as a series of parts

perceptual hypotheses

our expectations influence our perceptions

associative learning

form of learning that involves connecting certain stimuli or events that occur together in the environment (classical and operant conditioning)

classical conditioning

learning in which the stimulus or experience occurs before the behavior and then gets paired or associated with the behavior

unconditioned stimulus (UCS)

stimulus that elicits a reflexive response

unconditioned response (UCR)

natural (unlearned) behavior to a given stimulus

neutral stimulus (NS)

stimulus that does not initially elicit a response

conditioned stimulus (CS)

stimulus that elicits a response due to its being paired with an unconditioned stimulus

conditioned response (CR)

response caused by the conditioned stimulus

higher-order conditioning

using a conditioned stimulus to condition a neutral stimulus

acquisition

period of initial learning in classical conditioning in which a human or an animal begins to connect a neutral stimulus and an unconditioned stimulus so that the neutral stimulus will begin to elicit the conditioned response

extinction

decrease in the conditioned response when the unconditioned stimulus is no longer paired with the conditioned stimulus

spontaneous recovery

return of a previously extinguished conditioned response

stimulus discrimination

ability to respond differently to similar stimuli

stimulus generalization

demonstrating the conditioned response to stimuli that are similar to the conditioned stimulus

operant conditioning

type of learning that occurs by watching others

law of effect

behavior that is followed by consequences satisfying to the organism will be repeated and behaviors that are followed by unpleasant consequences will be discouraged

positive reinforcement

adding a desirable stimulus to increase a behavior

negative reinforcement

taking away an undesirable stimulus to increase a behavior

positive punishment

adding an undesirable stimulus to stop or decrease a behavior

negative punishment

taking away an undesirable stimulus to increase a behavior

shaping

rewarding successive approximations toward a target behavior

primary reinforcer

has innate reinforcing qualities (e.g., food, water, shelter, sex)

secondary reinforcer

has no inherent value unto itself and only has reinforcing qualities when linked with something else (e.g., money, gold stars, poker chips)