Review Guide for Exam 2

Exam Overview

• 50 multiple-choice questions

• Question complexity: Simple recall to application/analysis

• May include diagrams of concepts covered in the unit

• Familiarity with anatomical diagrams is necessary

• Questions sourced from text, lecture notes, PowerPoints, and videos

• Study tips: Review early, in small chunks, engage in discussions, review learning curves and chapter reviews often

Sensation (76% of Test Questions)

Basic Principles of Sensation

• Sensation vs. Perception: Sensation refers to the process of detecting physical stimuli, while perception is the interpretation of those stimuli.

• Transduction: The conversion of sensory stimuli into neural signals.

  • General process: Stimulus -> Receptor -> Neural signal

  • Specifics for each sense discussed in Chapter 3.

• Thresholds:

  • Absolute Threshold: Minimum stimulus needed for detection 50% of the time.

  • Difference Threshold: Minimum difference required to notice a change in stimulus.

  • Weber’s Law: The principle that a just noticeable difference is a constant proportion of the original stimulus.

• Signal Detection Theory: The ability to detect a stimulus amidst background noise.

• Sensory Adaptation: Reduced sensitivity to a stimulus after prolonged exposure.

Vision

• Excludes wavelengths or visible spectrum topics for the test.

• Anatomy and Physiology: Parts of the eye and how vision is processed between eye and brain.

• Color Vision Theories:

  • Trichromatic Theory: Color perception based on three primary colors.

  • Opponent-Process Theory: Color perception based on opposing colors.

Hearing

• Concepts of Sound: Loudness, pitch, and timbre.

• Anatomy and Physiology: Parts of the ear.

• Theories of Sound Processing:

  • Frequency Theory: Pitch is perceived based on the rate of neural firing.

  • Place Theory: Different frequencies stimulate different parts of the cochlea.

  • Volley Theory: Groups of neurons fire in succession to create the perception of frequency.

• Sound Localization: Ability to determine the origin of a sound.

Chemical Senses

• Excludes pheromones.

• Anatomy and Physiology: Parts of the nose and tongue.

• Chemical Perception Steps: Details on how chemical compounds are detected and processed by the brain.

• Olfaction: Differences between orthonasal and retronasal olfaction and anosmia.

• Taste Perception:

  • Receptors not just on the tongue; specific tastes explained.

  • Innate preferences and aversions to certain tastes.

Body Senses

• Touch Sensations: Includes types of receptors and their functions:

  • Main receptor types: Mechanoreceptors, thermoreceptors, and nociceptors.

• Two-Track Pain System:

  • Differences between A-delta fibers and C fibers, and the role of Substance P.

• Gate-Control Theory: Mechanism for regulating pain sensation.

• Phantom Limb Pain: Experience of pain from a limb that has been amputated.

• Vestibular and Kinesthetic Senses: Anatomy and physiology involved.

Perception (24% of Test Questions)

Basic Principles of Perception

• Bottom-Up Processing: Perception starts with sensory input.

• Top-Down Processing: Perception is influenced by prior knowledge and expectations.

• Gestalt Psychology: Principles explaining how we organize visual information.

Perception of Shape

• Figure-Ground Relationships: Distinguishing an object from its background.

• Gestalt Principles of Grouping: Laws of Pragnanz applied to visual perception.

Depth Perception

• Monocular Cues vs Binocular Cues: Differences and examples.

Perception of Motion

• Induced Motion: Perception of motion due to surrounding movement.

• Stroboscopic Motion: Apparent motion resulting from a series of static images.

Perceptual Constancies

• Size Constancy: Perception that an object’s size remains constant despite differences in distance.

• Shape Constancy: Recognition that an object’s shape does not change despite changes in orientation.

Perceptual Illusions

• Muller-Lyer Illusion: Understanding cultural influences on perception.

• Moon Illusion: Reasons behind distorted perceptions of the moon’s size.

Sensation/Perception Disorders

• Examples: (Videos available on Canvas)

  • Akinetopsia: Movement perception disorder.

  • Capgras Delusion: Belief that loved ones are impostors.

  • Prosopagnosia: Inability to recognize faces.

  • Synesthesia: Blending of sensory modalities.

  • Visual Capture: The tendency for vision to dominate other senses.

• McGurk Effect: A phenomenon demonstrating the interaction between hearing and vision.

• Additional Examples: Ventriloquist effect, home theater illusions, and experiences at stop lights.