Myer's Psychology 3rd edition - Module 20: Basic principles and sensation and perception

sensation

the process that sensory receptors and nervous system receive and represent stimulus energies from our environment

perception

process of organizing and interpreting sensory information enabling us to rerconize meaningful objects and events

bottom up processing

analysis that begines with seonsory receptors and receptors and works with brain's interactions with sensory information (starting from nothing)

top down processing

information processing by higher mental processes as when we construct perceptions drawing on our experiences and expectations

selective attention

the focusing of concuous awareness on a particular stimulus

cocktail party effect

the ability to attend to 1 voice even though there are other voices talking

inattentional blindness

failing to see visable objects when our attention is else where

change blindness

falining to notice changes in the environment a form of in attentional blindess

choice blindness

shortterm memory phenonmenon that causes people to be unable to accurately recall choices made

transduction

converting one form of energy into another form that our brain can use

psychophysics

studies the relationships between physical energy that we can detect and the effects on psychological experiences

absolute thresholds

minimum stimulation necessary to detct a paricular stimulus 50% of the time

single detection theory

predicts when we will detect a particular stimulis amid competing backgroung stimuli

subliminal

anything below our absolute threshold, experienceing but unaware

priming

exposure to a stimulus in our context can influence the way people behave in other contexes

difference threshold

minimum differences between 2 stimuli required for detection 50% of the time

weber's law

the concept that a just-noticeable difference in a stimulus is proportional to the magnitude of the original stimulus

sensory adaptation

dimished sensitivity as consequence of constant stimulation

perceptual adapation

ability to adjust to an artificially displaced visual field