Key Terms in Sensation and Perception

These flashcards cover key terms and concepts related to sensation and perception, providing fill-in-the-blank questions to aid learning and retention.

The term refers to the minimum stimulation needed to detect a particular stimulus 50% of the time.

absolute threshold

The process by which the eye's lens changes shape to focus on near or far objects is called .

accommodation

Visual clarity or sharpness is referred to as .

acuity

The sense of hearing is known as .

audition

The is a structure in the inner ear that helps with hearing and balance.

basilar membrane

are cues that require both eyes to perceive depth.

binocular depth cues

The area of the retina with no photoreceptor cells is known as the .

blind spot

Processing information from sensory stimuli starting from the smallest pieces is called processing.

bottom-up processing

The spiral-shaped organ in the inner ear responsible for hearing is called the .

cochlea

The inability to see certain colors due to a deficiency in color perception is known as .

color blindness

Light-sensitive cells responsible for color vision are .

cones

The transparent layer forming the front of the eye is the .

cornea

The adjustment of the eye to low light conditions is referred to as adaptation.

dark adaptation

The ability to perceive the distance of objects in the environment is known as perception.

depth perception

Cells in the visual cortex responsive to specific features of visual stimuli are called detector cells.

feature detector cells

The central part of the retina where visual acuity is highest is called the .

fovea

The failure to notice a fully visible but unexpected object is termed blindness.

inattentional blindness

The smallest difference between two stimuli that can be detected is called the difference.

just noticeable

The transparent structure in the eye used to focus light onto the retina is the .

lens

are depth cues that require only one eye to perceive.

monocular depth cues

The sense of smell is known as .

olfaction

The theory that opposing retinal processes enable color vision is known as process theory.

opponent process

The sense responsible for balance and spatial orientation is known as the sense.

vestibular

law states that the just noticeable difference is a constant proportion of the original stimulus.

Weber's

The simultaneous processing of information from different pathways is known as processing.

parallel

The bundle of nerve fibers that carries visual information from the retina to the brain is called the nerve.

optic

The structure in the cochlea that contains hair cells and translates sound vibrations into auditory signals is known as the organ of .

Corti

The perception that objects are constant despite changes in sensory input is referred to as constancy.

perceptual

The sensation of pain that seems to occur without a known physical cause is known as pain.

phantom

The theory that pitch is determined by the location of hair cells along the cochlea is called theory.

place

The sense of the position and movement of body parts is known as .

proprioception

The study of the relationship between physical stimuli and sensory perception is called .

psychophysics

The opening in the eye that regulates the amount of light entering is the .

pupil

The light-sensitive layer at the back of the eye that contains rods and cones is called the .

retina

The photoreceptor cells responsible for vision in low light conditions are called .

rods

The focusing of conscious awareness on a particular stimulus is known as attention.

selective

The three fluid-filled semicircular structures in the inner ear that help maintain balance are called canals.

semicircular

The process of detecting physical energy from the environment and encoding it into neural signals is known as .

sensation

Specialized cells that respond to specific types of environmental stimuli are known as receptors.

sense

The process of becoming less sensitive to a constant stimulus over time is called adaptation.

sensory

A theory that predicts how and when we detect the presence of a faint stimulus amid background noise is called detection theory.

signal

The part of the brain responsible for processing somatic sensation is usually referred to as .

somatosensory

The ability to process stimuli below the level of conscious awareness is known as perception.

subliminal

The sensory organs responsible for taste are known as buds.

taste

The quality of sound that distinguishes different types of sound production is referred to as .

timbre

Processing information by integrating it with existing knowledge and expectations is called processing.

top-down

The conversion of sensory input into neural signals is referred to as .

transduction

The theory of color vision that proposes three types of cones sensitive to red, green, and blue light is known as theory.

trichromatic

The sense is closely associated with balance and spatial orientation.

vestibular