Cognitive Processes Vocab

Absolute threshold

The smallest amount of stimulation needed for detection by a sense.

Agnosia

Loss of the ability to perceive stimuli.

Anosmia

Loss of the ability to smell.

Audition

Ability to process auditory stimuli. Also called hearing.

Auditory canal

Tube running from the outer ear to the middle ear.

Auditory hair cells

Receptors in the cochlea that transduce sound into electrical potentials.

Binocular disparity

Difference is images processed by the left and right eyes.

Binocular vision

Our ability to perceive 3D and depth because of the difference between the images on each

of our retinas.

Bottom-up processing

Building up to perceptual experience from individual pieces.

Chemical senses

Our ability to process the environmental stimuli of smell and taste.

Cochlea

Spiral bone structure in the inner ear containing auditory hair cells.

Cones

Photoreceptors of the retina sensitive to color. Located primarily in the fovea.

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Dark adaptation

Adjustment of eye to low levels of light.

Differential threshold (or difference threshold)

The smallest difference needed in order to differentiate two stimuli. (See Just Noticeable

Difference (JND))

Dorsal pathway

Pathway of visual processing. The “where” pathway.

Flavor

The combination of smell and taste.

Gustation

Ability to process gustatory stimuli. Also called taste.

Just noticeable difference (JND)

The smallest difference needed in order to differentiate two stimuli. (see Differential

Threshold)

Light adaptation

Adjustment of eye to high levels of light.

Mechanoreceptors

Mechanical sensory receptors in the skin that response to tactile stimulation.

Multimodal perception

The effects that concurrent stimulation in more than one sensory modality has on the

perception of events and objects in the world.

Nociception

Our ability to sense pain.

Odorants

Chemicals transduced by olfactory receptors.

Olfaction

Ability to process olfactory stimuli. Also called smell.

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Olfactory epithelium

Organ containing olfactory receptors.

Opponent-process theory

Theory proposing color vision as influenced by cells responsive to pairs of colors.

Ossicles

A collection of three small bones in the middle ear that vibrate against the tympanic

membrane.

Perception

The psychological process of interpreting sensory information.

Phantom limb

The perception that a missing limb still exists.

Phantom limb pain

Pain in a limb that no longer exists.

Pinna

Outermost portion of the ear.

Primary auditory cortex

Area of the cortex involved in processing auditory stimuli.

Primary somatosensory cortex

Area of the cortex involved in processing somatosensory stimuli.

Primary visual cortex

Area of the cortex involved in processing visual stimuli.

Principle of inverse effectiveness

The finding that, in general, for a multimodal stimulus, if the response to each unimodal

component (on its own) is weak, then the opportunity for multisensory enhancement is very

large. However, if one component—by itself—is sufficient to evoke a strong response, then

the effect on the response gained by simultaneously processing the other components of the

stimulus will be relatively small.

Retina

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Cell layer in the back of the eye containing photoreceptors.

Rods

Photoreceptors of the retina sensitive to low levels of light. Located around the fovea.

Sensation

The physical processing of environmental stimuli by the sense organs.

Sensory adaptation

Decrease in sensitivity of a receptor to a stimulus after constant stimulation.

Shape theory of olfaction

Theory proposing that odorants of different size and shape correspond to different smells.

Signal detection

Method for studying the ability to correctly identify sensory stimuli.

Somatosensation

Ability to sense touch, pain and temperature.

Somatotopic map

Organization of the primary somatosensory cortex maintaining a representation of the

arrangement of the body.

Sound waves

Changes in air pressure. The physical stimulus for audition.

Superadditive effect of multisensory integration

The finding that responses to multimodal stimuli are typically greater than the sum of the

independent responses to each unimodal component if it were presented on its own.

Tastants

Chemicals transduced by taste receptor cells.

Taste receptor cells

Receptors that transduce gustatory information.

Top-down processing

Experience influencing the perception of stimuli.

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Transduction

The conversion of one form of energy into another.

Trichromatic theory

Theory proposing color vision as influenced by three different cones responding preferentially

to red, green and blue.

Tympanic membrane

Thin, stretched membrane in the middle ear that vibrates in response to sound. Also called

the eardrum.

Ventral pathway

Pathway of visual processing. The “what” pathway.

Vestibular system

Parts of the inner ear involved in balance.

Weber’s law

States that just noticeable difference is proportional to the magnitude of the initial stimulus.

Conceptual Replication

A scientific attempt to copy the scientific hypothesis used in an earlier study in an effort to

determine whether the results will generalize to different samples, times, or situations. The

same—or similar—results are an indication that the findings are generalizable.

Confederate

An actor working with the researcher. Most often, this individual is used to deceive

unsuspecting research participants. Also known as a “stooge.”

Exact Replication (also called Direct Replication)

A scientific attempt to exactly copy the scientific methods used in an earlier study in an effort

to determine whether the results are consistent. The same—or similar—results are an

indication that the findings are accurate.

Falsified data (faked data)

Data that are fabricated, or made up, by researchers intentionally trying to pass off research

results that are inaccurate. This is a serious ethical breach and can even be a criminal offense.

Priming

The process by which exposing people to one stimulus makes certain thoughts, feelings or

behaviors more salient.

Sample Size

The number of participants in a study. Sample size is important because it can influence the

confidence scientists have in the accuracy and generalizability of their results.

Confounds

Factors that undermine the ability to draw causal inferences from an experiment.

Correlation

Measures the association between two variables, or how they go together.

Dependent variable

The variable the researcher measures but does not manipulate in an experiment.

Experimenter expectations

When the experimenter’s expectations influence the outcome of a study.

Independent variable

The variable the researcher manipulates and controls in an experiment.

Longitudinal study

A study that follows the same group of individuals over time.

Operational definitions

How researchers specifically measure a concept.

Participant demand

When participants behave in a way that they think the experimenter wants them to behave.

Placebo effect

When receiving special treatment or something new affects human behavior.

Quasi-experimental design

An experiment that does not require random assignment to conditions.

Random assignment

Assigning participants to receive different conditions of an experiment by chance.

Cause-and-effect

Related to whether we say one variable is causing changes in the other variable, versus other

variables that may be related to these two variables.

Confidence interval

An interval of plausible values for a population parameter; the interval of values within the

margin of error of a statistic.

Distribution

The pattern of variation in data.

Generalizability

Related to whether the results from the sample can be generalized to a larger population.

Margin of error

The expected amount of random variation in a statistic; often defined for 95% confidence level.

Parameter

A numerical result summarizing a population (e.g., mean, proportion).

Population

A larger collection of individuals that we would like to generalize our results to.

P-value

The probability of observing a particular outcome in a sample, or more extreme, under a

conjecture about the larger population or process.

Random assignment

Using a probability-based method to divide a sample into treatment groups.

Random sampling

Using a probability-based method to select a subset of individuals for the sample from the

population.

Sample

The collection of individuals on which we collect data.

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Statistic

A numerical result computed from a sample (e.g., mean, proportion).

Statistical significance

A result is statistically significant if it is unlikely to arise by chance alone.