Psychology Chapter 3

Front 1

Sensation

Back 1

- process by which we receive, transform, and process stimuli from the outside world to create sensory experiences of vision, touch, hearing, taste, smell, and so on

Front 2

Sensory Receptors

Back 2

- specialized cells that detect sensory stimuli (light, sound, odors) and convert them into neural impulses (vision, hearing, smell)

Front 3

Psychophysics

Back 3

- the study of the relationship between features of physical stimuli, such as the intensity of light and sound, and the sensation we experience in response to these stimuli

Front 4

Absolute Threshold

Back 4

- the smallest amount of a given stimulus a person can sense

Front 5

Difference Threshold

Back 5

- the minimal difference in the magnitude of energy needed for people to detect a differenceyuy between 2 stimuli

Front 6

Weber's Law

Back 6

- the principle that the amount of change in a stimulus needed to detect a difference is given by a constant ration or fraction, called a constant, of the original stimulus

Front 7

Signal-Detection Theory

Back 7

- the belief that the detection of a stimulus depends on factors involving the intensity of the stimulus, the level of background stimulation, and the biological and psychological characteristics of the perceiver

Front 8

Sensory Adaption

Back 8

- the process by which sensory receptors adapt to constant stimuli by becoming less sensitive to them

Front 9

Cornea

Back 9

- transparent covering on the eyes surface through which light enters

Front 10

Iris

Back 10

- the pigmented circular muscle in the eye that regulates the size of the pupil to adjust to changes in the level of illumination

Front 11

Pupil

Back 11

- the black opening inside the iris that allows light to enter the eye

- the brighter the light, the smaller the iris

Front 12

Lens

Back 12

- the structure in the eye that focuses light rays on the retina

Front 13

Accommodation

Back 13

- the process by which the lens changes its shape to focus images more clearly on the retina

Front 14

Retina

Back 14

- the light-sensitive layer of the inner surface of the eye that contains photoreceptor cells

- convert light energy into neural signals the brain uses to create visual sensations

Front 15

Rods

Back 15

- photoreceptors that are sensitive only to the intensity of light (light and dark)

Front 16

Cones

Back 16

- photoreceptors that are sensitive to color

Front 17

Bipolar Cells

Back 17

- a layer of interconnecting cells in the eye that connect photoreceptors to ganglion cells

Front 18

Ganglion Cells

Back 18

- nerve cells in the back of the eye that transmit neural impulses in response to light stimulation, the axons of which make the optic nerve

Front 19

Optic Nerve

Back 19

- the nerve that carries neural impulses generated by light stimulation from the eye to the brain

Front 20

Blind Spot

Back 20

- the area in the retina where the optic nerve leaves the eye and that contains no photoreceptor cells

Front 21

Fovea

Back 21

- the area near the center of the retina that contains only cones and that is the center of focus for clearest vision

Front 22

Feature Detectors

Back 22

- specialized neurons in the visual cortex that respond only to particular features of visual stimuli, such as horizontal or vertical lines

Front 23

Trichomatic Theory

Back 23

- a theory of color vision that posits that the ability to see different colors depends on the relative activity of 3 types of color receptors in the eye: red, green, and blue-violet

Front 24

Afterimage

Back 24

- the visual image of a stimulus that remains after the stimulus is removed

- what you see if you gaze at a visual stimulus for a while and then look at a neutral surface, like a white sheet of paper

Front 25

Opponent-Process Theory

Back 25

- a theory of color vision that hold that the experience of color results from opposing processes involving 2 sets of color receptors (red-green & blue-yellow), and that another set of opposing receptors (black-white) is responsible for detecting differences in brightness

Front 26

Trichromats

Back 26

- people with normal color vision who can discern all the colors of the visual spectrum

Front 27

Monochromats

Back 27

- people who have no color vision and can only see in black and white

Front 28

Dichromats

Back 28

- people who can see some colors but not others (colorblindness)

- most common kind of colorblindness is red-green

Front 29

Audition

Back 29

- the sense of hearing

Front 30

Pitch

Back 30

- the highness or lowness of a sound that corresponds to the frequency of the sound wave

Front 31

Eardrum

Back 31

- sheet of connective tissue separating the outer ear from the middle ear that vibrates in response to auditory stimuli and transmits sound waves to the middle ear

Front 32

Ossicles

Back 32

- 3 tiny bones in the middle ear (the hammer, anvil, & stirrup) that vibrate in response to vibrations of the eardrum

Front 33

Path of sound and Ossicles

Back 33

- the hammer (malleus), which is connected to the eardrum, strikes the anvil (incus), which in turn strikes the stirrup (stapes) causing it to vibrate

Front 34

Oval Window

Back 34

- the membrane covered opening that separates the middle ear from the inner ear

Front 35

Cochlea

Back 35

- the snail-shaped organ in the inner ear that contains sensory receptors for hearing

- vibrations of the oval window cause waves of motion in fluid within the cochlea

Front 36

Basilar Membrane

Back 36

- the membrane in the cochlea that is attached to the organ of Corti

- vibrates when the fluid in the cochlea moves

Front 37

Organ of Corti

Back 37

- a gelatinous structure in the cochlea containing the hair cells that serve as auditory receptors

Front 38

Hair cells

Back 38

- the auditory receptors that transform vibrations caused by sound waves into neural impulses that are then transmitted to the brain via the auditory nerve

Front 39

Auditory Nerve

Back 39

- the nerve that carries neural impulses from the ear to the brain, which gives rise to the experience of hearing

Front 40

Place Theory

Back 40

- the belief that pitch depends on the place along the basilar membrane that vibrates the most in response to a particular auditory stimulus

- neurons line up along the basilar membrane, standing ready to respond by producing sounds of different pitch when they are "struck"

Front 41

Frequency Theory

Back 41

- the belief that pitch depends on the frequency of vibration of the basilar membrane and the volley of neural impulses transmitted to the brain via the auditory nerve

- a sound wave with a frequency of 200 cycles/sec would cause the basilar membrane to vibrate at that rate and generate 200 neural responses the the brain/sec

Front 42

Volley Principle

Back 42

- principle that relates the experience of pitch to the alternating firing of groups of neurons along the basilar membrane

Front 43

Conduction Deafness

Back 43

- usually caused by damage to the middle ear

- there is a loss of conduction of sound vibrations through the ear

Front 44

Nerve Deafness

Back 44

- associated with nerve damage

- usually involving damage to the hair cells of the inner ear or to the auditory nerve itself

Front 45

Olfaction

Back 45

- the sense of smell

Front 46

Olfactory Nerve

Back 46

- the nerve that carries impulses from olfactory receptors in the nose to the brain

Front 47

Olfactory Bulb

Back 47

- the area in the front of the brain above the nostrils that recieves sensory input from olfactory receptors in the nose

Front 48

Pheromones

Back 48

- chemical substances that are emitted by many species

- play important roles in many behaviors, like attracting mates, marking territory, establishing dominance, behaving aggressively, gathering food, and bonding with young

Front 49

Taste Cells

Back 49

- nerve cells that are sensitive to tastes

Front 50

Taste Buds

Back 50

- pores or openings on the tongue containing taste cells

Front 51

Skin Senses

Back 51

- the senses of touch, pressure, warmth, cold, and pain that involve stimulation of sensory receptors in the skin

Front 52

Gate-Control Theory of Pain

Back 52

- the belief that a neural gate in the spinal cord opens to allow pain messages to reach the brain and closes to shut them out

Front 53

Acupuncture

Back 53

- ancient Chinese practice of inserting and rotating thin needles in various parts of the body in order to release natural healing energy

Front 54

Kinesthesia

Back 54

- the sense that keeps us informed about movement of the parts of the body and their position in relation to each other

- allows you to ride bike without looking at legs or type without looking at the keyboard

Front 55

Vestibular Sense

Back 55

- the sense that keeps us informed about balance and the position of our body in space

- allows you to know whether you are moving fast/slow and changes in the position of your head

Front 56

Semicircular Canals

Back 56

- 3 curved tube-like canals in the inner ear that are involved in sensing changes in the direction and movement of the head

Front 57

Vestibular Sacs

Back 57

- organs in the inner ear that connect semicircular canals

Front 58

Perception

Back 58

- the process by which the brain interprets sensory information, turning it into meaningful representations of the external world

Front 59

Selective Attention

Back 59

- the process by which we attend to meaningful stimuli and filter out irrelevant or extraneous stimuli

Front 60

Perceptual Set

Back 60

- the tendency for perceptions to be influenced by expectations or preconceptions

Front 61

Bottom-Up Processing

Back 61

- the brain assembles specific features of shapes, such as angles and lines, to form patterns that we can compare with stored images we have seen before

Front 62

Top-Down Processing

Back 62

- involves perceiving patterns as meaningful wholes-- such as recognizing faces of people we know without needing to piece together their component parts

Front 63

Laws of Perceptional Organization

Back 63

- the principles identified by Gestalt psychologists that describe the ways in which the brain groups bits of sensory stimulation into meaningful wholes or patterns

Front 64

Proximity

Back 64

- the principle that objects that are near each other will be perceived as belonging to a common set

Front 65

Similarity

Back 65

- principle that objects that are similar will be perceived as belonging to the same group

Front 66

Continuity

Back 66

- principle that a series of stimuli will be perceived as representing a unified form

Front 67

Closure

Back 67

- the perceptual principle that people tend to piece together disconnected bits of information to perceive whole forms

Front 68

Perceptual Constancy

Back 68

- the tendency to perceive the size, shape, color, and brightness of an object as remaining the same even when the image it casts on the retina changes

Front 69

Connectedness

Back 69

- the principle that objects positioned together or moving together will be perceived as belonging to the same group

Front 70

Shape Constancy

Back 70

- the tendency to perceive an object as having the same size despite changes in the images it casts on the retina as the viewing distance changes

Front 71

Color Constancy

Back 71

- the tendency to perceive an object as having the same color despite changes in lighting conditions

Front 72

Brightness Constancy

Back 72

- the tendency to perceive objects as retaining their brightness even when they are viewed in dim light

Front 73

Binocular Cues

Back 73

- cues for depth that involve both eyes, such as retinal disparity and convergence

Front 74

Retinal Disparity

Back 74

- a binocular cue for distance based on the slight differences in the visual impressions formed in both eyes

- the closer the object, the greater the retinal disparity

Front 75

Convergence

Back 75

- binocular cue for distance based on the degree of tension required to focus 2 eyes on the same object

Front 76

Monocular Cues

Back 76

- cues for depth that can be perceived by each eye alone, such as relative size and interposition

Front 77

Relative Size

Back 77

- When 2 objects are believed to be the same size, the one that appears larger is perceived to be closer

Front 78

Interposition

Back 78

- when objects block or otherwise obscure our view of other objects, we perceive obscured objects to be further away

Front 79

Relative Clarity

Back 79

- smog, dust, smoke, and water droplets in the atmosphere create a haze that makes distant objects appear blurrier than nearer objects

Front 80

Texture Gradient

Back 80

- the relative coarseness or smoothness of an object is used as a cue for distance

- closer objects appear to have a coarser or more detailed texture than more distant objects

Front 81

Linear Perspective

Back 81

- the perception of parallel lines converging as they recede into the distance

Front 82

Shadowing

Back 82

- patterns of light and dark create the appearance of 3D objects or curving surfaces

- can make an object appear to be concave or convex

Front 83

Visual Illusions

Back 83

- misperceptions of visual stimuli

Front 84

Stroboscopic Movement

Back 84

- a type of apparent movement based on the rapid succession of still images, as in motion pictures

Front 85

Carpentered-World Hypothesis

Back 85

- an attempt to explain the Muller-Lyer illusion in terms of the cultural experience of living in a carpentered, right-angled world like our own

Front 86

Subliminal Perception

Back 86

- perception of stimuli that are presented below the threshold of conscious awareness

- can affect attitudes and behavior

Front 87

Extrasensory Perception (ESP)

Back 87

- perception that occurs without benefit of the known senses

Front 88

Parapsychology

Back 88

- the study of paranormal phenomena

Front 89

Telepathy

Back 89

- communication of thought from one mind to another that occurs without using the known senses

Front 90

Clairvoyance

Back 90

- the ability to perceive objects and events without using the known senses

Front 91

Precognition

Back 91

- the ability to foretell the future

Front 92

Psychokinesis

Back 92

- the ability to move objects by mental effort alone