PSYCHOLOGY
Module 2: Study Guide
Terms:
*Sensation-Technically, sensation can be defined as the neural synaptic firing of our
receptors and our brain's interpretation of these firings. But how about an example to
make this a little more clear....when you touch something, receptors send impulses that
travel to the spinal cord and then into the brain for interpretation. Without both parts
(the signal being sent or the interpretation), there is no sensation. The signals being sent
and interpreted are what we call sensation. (Note: nothing is done with the
"interpretation" at this stage, but once the interpretation is made use of and taken to the
next stage, you have perception.)
*Stroboscopic motion- The Stroboscopic Effect is a perceptual phenomenon in which
an appearance of motion (or lack of motion) occurs when the stimulus is not viewed
continuously but in distinct separate stages. Film reels work in this way - a film is
comprised of many different separate stills that when viewed a certain way seem to have
the appearance of motion. Another example is when wagon or bike wheels appear to go
backwards when on film. The stroboscopic effect is a visual phenomenon caused by
aliasing that occurs when continuous motion is represented by a series of short or
instantaneous samples.
*Figure- ground problem- The Gestalt Psychologists studied all sorts of perceptual
organization--the ways that humans organize information about what they see, hear, etc.
What they found was that there are two main visual components necessary for a person
to see an object properly; a figure (the object) and the ground (the background or
surroundings in which the object occurs). Thus, when you look at a picture on a wall, the
picture is the figure and you can distinguish it clearly from its surroundings, the wall
(ground).
*Difference Treshold-The difference threshold, also known as the just noticeable
difference (jnd), is the minimum difference in stimulation that a person can detect 50
percent of the time. We experience the difference threshold as a just noticeable
difference. For example, let's say I asked you to put your hand out and in it I placed a pile
of sand. Then, I add tiny amounts of sand to your hand and ask you to tell me when you
notice any change in the overall weight. As soon as you can detect any change in the
weight, that difference between the weight of the sand before I added that last bit of
sand and the amount of sand after I added it, is the difference threshold.
*Clairvoyance-Clairvoyance is the ability to see or know things without actually
perceiving them via the senses. It is a form of extrasensory perception (ESP). For
example, psychic medium Teresa Caputo claims to communicate with the dead, and
magician David Blaine can guess what card you have chosen out of a deck. Other
clairvoyants can supposedly predict the future and find missing persons. However,
scientific studies have been conducted on clairvoyance, and the results have not shown
that it is a real phenomenon.
PSYCHOLOGY
*Perception- Perception is an active process in which sensations are organized and
interpreted to form an inner representation of the world. This is the process by which we
select, organize and interpret the sensations we experience so that we know how to
react to these stimuli.
*Umani- A taste sensation that is meaty or savory and is produced by several amino
acids and nucleotides (as glutamate and aspartate) Our tongues are coated with taste
buds which contain taste receptors cells. These cells react chemically with substances in
our mouths to produce the sensation known as taste. Food molecules along with saliva
interact with the taste receptor cells which tell us information about the substance.
Humans have five recognized taste categories: sweet, bitter, salty, sour, and umani
(savory).
*Telepathy- Telepathy is communication sent or received directly from one mind to
another without using speech, writing, body language, or other signals (in other words,
mind reading). For example, if you are thinking about your mother, and she calls you in
that exact moment, you might wonder if your mother sensed your thoughts and
responded by phoning you. However, existing research does not support the existence of
telepathy.
*Nociceptors-Nociception refers to the ability to process and encode information
relating to noxious (unpleasant, painful or dangerous) stimuli. The nociceptors (pain
receptor cells) come in three types; cutaneous (skin), somatic (bones and joints) and
visceral (body organs) and can process pain that is mechanical, chemical or thermal in
nature and transmit the information to the brain.
*Absolute Threshold- This is a term that many students have a difficult time
understanding, but it's not as complex as it might seem. One formal definition is that
absolute threshold is the smallest intensity of a stimulus that has to be present for the
stimulus to be detected. Let's use an example to clear this up. Think of an electric burner
on a stove. Imagine turning that burner on and then placing your hand directly on it. At
first you won't feel much heat because is takes time for the burner to heat up. But at
some point it will get hot enough for you to detectmeaning, there is some temperature
that is just hot enough for you to notice it. This isn't the point at which you get burned,
but the point at which it is just hot enough for you to detect the presence of the heat.
*Sensory adaptation-One reason we get used to everything is because of sensory
adaptation, which is reduced sensitivity to stimulation that results from repeated
presentations of that stimulation. For example, my car was in for service recently and the
dealer gave me a rental to use while the car was being serviced. As soon as I got into the
car I was overwhelmed by the smell of smoke (even though I asked for a non-smoking
car). It stunk! But after driving the car for 30 minutes or so, I didn't really notice the
smell. I got used to it because I was immersed in it. I experienced sensory adaptation.
PSYCHOLOGY
*Rubins Vase- The Peter/Paul Vase or Rubin Goblet, publicized by Danish psychologist
Edgar Rubin in 1915. The picture can be seen as a vase-like object or as two faces.
Because two different perceptions can result from the same stimulus, the gestalt
psychologists argued, clearly there was something going on inside the head to determine
which figure was seen. Perception involved more than just the stimuli that entered the
eye. Central processes (brain processes) were involved. The gestalt psychologists of the
1930s and 1940s did not have the tools to develop this basic and valid insight. They had
no way to define or discuss brain processes other than by vague reference to fields in the
brain that (they said) were isomorphic (equivalent in form) to the gestalts. So a switching
Rubin's Goblet would correspond in some way to switching energy fields in the brain.
Today we are aware that data inside computing machinery does not physically resemble
the thing being computed, so we would not expect isomorphism of a crude kind, such as
goblet-shaped energy fields in the brain. A modern neuroscientist would expect a
switching perception to be accompanied by switching neural circuits, not switching
isomorphic energy fields.
*Psychokinesis- Psychokinesis (also known as telekinesis) is the ability to move objects
using only mental processes. This is considered a type of parapsychology. Studies have
attempted to see if this phenomenon really exists by asking a subject to 'will' a pair of
dice, to land in a certain way. The results are inconclusive and there is no empirical or
scientific evidence that psychokinesis exists.
*Precognition- Precognition, supernormal knowledge of future events, with emphasis
not upon mentally causing events to occur but upon predicting those the occurrence of
which the subject claims has already been determined. Like telepathy and clairvoyance,
precognition is said to operate without recourse to the normal senses and thus to be a
form of extrasensory perception.
*Difference Threshold - The difference threshold, also known as the just noticeable
difference (jnd), is the minimum difference in stimulation that a person can detect 50
percent of the time. We experience the difference threshold as a just noticeable
difference. For example, let's say I asked you to put your hand out and in it I placed a pile
of sand. Then, I add tiny amounts of sand to your hand and ask you to tell me when you
notice any change in the overall weight. As soon as you can detect any change in the
weight, that difference between the weight of the sand before I added that last bit of
sand and the amount of sand after I added it, is the difference threshold.
1.)
Taste is sensed through taste cells which are receptor
neurons located on taste buds. There are about 10,000
taste buds able to sense the primary tastes of sweet,
sour, salty, and bitter located on different areas of the
tongue. Flavor combines the sense of taste and smell
instead of saying "this tastes good" we should say "this
flavors well."
PSYCHOLOGY
2.) Motion Parallax provides perceptual cues about difference in
distance
and motion, and is associated with depth perception. As an example, if you're riding in a
car, objects that are close to you seem to go by really quickly (for example, a road sign
that you pass), but objects that are further away appear to move much more slowly. It
occurs when objects that are at different distances from us appear to move at rates that
are different while we are moving. We judge an objects distance based on how quickly an
object moves. The further an object is from us, the slower it appears to move. Because
objects that are further away as moving slower and the ones that are close are moving
faster. This creates motion called parallax.
3.) An illusion is a sensory distortion that can fool a person's senses. Illusions can involve
any of the senses, but visual (optical) illusions are the best understood by science. Some
of these false impressions may arise from factors beyond an individuals control (such as
the characteristic behavior of light waves that makes a pencil in a glass of water seem
bent), from inadequate information (as under conditions of poor illumination), or from the
functional and structural characteristics of the sensory apparatus (e.g., distortions in the
shape of the lens in the eye). Such visual illusions are experienced by every sighted
person. Another group of illusions results from misinterpretations one makes of
seemingly adequate sensory cues. In such illusions, sensory impressions seem to
contradict the facts of reality or fail to report their true character. (For more-profound
philosophical considerations, see epistemology.) In these instances the perceiver seems
to be making an error in processing sensory information. The error appears to arise
within the central nervous system (brain and spinal cord); this may result from
competing sensory information, psychologically meaningful distorting influences, or
previous expectations (mental set). Drivers who see their own headlights reflected in the
window of a store, for example, may experience the illusion that another vehicle is
coming toward them even though they know there is no road there.
4.) The Vestibular Sense refers to the body's set of mechanisms that monitor and adjusts
the body's sense of balance and orientation to the world. This sense is what keeps the
body upright while standing, sitting or walking and is primarily located in the inner ear.
This is why inner ear infections can result in problems with balance.
5.) Kinesthesis is the sense of body position and motion which come from feedback
receptors in muscles and joints. This sense is demonstrated in a sporting event. It
involves being able to detect changes in body position and movements without relying
PSYCHOLOGY
on information from the five senses. Kinesthetic receptors are primarily stretch receptors
located in the muscles, joints and tendons.
6.) Cues of depth that can be detected by one eye instead of two. For example, size is a
monocular clue. One doesn't need two eyes to tell how large an object is, and because of
its size, how close it is perceived to be.
Monocular cues: Perceiving depth with only one eye
Relative size: Distant objects look smaller than nearby objects of the same size.
Clearness: We sense more details in nearby objects.
Interposition: Partly covered objects are farther away than objects that obscure them.
Shadowing: Opaque objects block light and produce shadows.
Texture gradient: Closer objects are perceived as having rougher textures.
Motion cues: Distant objects such as mountains appear to move along with you; objects
at an intermediate distance seem to be stationary.
Binocular cues: Cues to depth provided by both eyes working together.
Retinal disparity: Slight difference of images projected into each eye gives three
dimensional perception.
7.) Top-down processing refers to how our brains make use of information that has
already been brought into the brain by one or more of the sensory systems. Top-down
processing is a cognitive process that initiates with our thoughts, which flow down to
lower-level functions, such as the senses. Top-Down Processing is also known as "large
chunk" processing and states that we form perceptions (or focus our attention) by
starting with the larger concept or idea (it can even be the concept or idea of an object)
and then working our way down to the finer details of that concept or idea. If you're the
type of person who learns new ideas and concepts (or forms impressions) by starting
first with the high-level aspects and then working your way down to the fine details, then
you're a top-down processor. According to Theoretical Synthesis, "when a stimulus is
presented short and clarity is uncertain that gives a vague stimulus, perception becomes
a top-down approach." Conversely, Psychology defines bottom-up processing as an
approach wherein there is a progression from the individual elements to the whole.
Bottom-up processing is also known as "small chunk" processing and suggests that we
attend to or perceive elements by starting with the smaller, more fine details of that
element and then building upward until we have a solid representation of it in our minds.
If you're the type of person who understands concepts and ideas by starting with the
details and then working your way up to the main idea of overall concept, then you're a
bottom-up processor. This is the opposite of Top -Down Processing. Bottom-up processing
refers to processing sensory information as it is coming in. In other words, if I flash a
random picture on the screen, your eyes detect the features, your brain pieces it
together, and you perceive a picture of an eagle. What you see is based only on the
sensory information coming in. Bottom-up refers to the way it is built up from the
smallest pieces of sensory information. Top-down processing, on the other hand, refers to
perception that is driven by cognition. Your brain applies what it knows and what it
expects to perceive and fills in the blanks, so to speak.
PSYCHOLOGY
8.) The Gate-Control Theory of pain perception was developed by Melzack and Wall's who
indicated that the spinal cord contains a type of neurological "gate" which opens and
closes to either allow or block pain signals to travel to the brain. This gate does not
actually open and close like the gate on a fence, but simply allows pain signals to pass
onto the brain when they are traveling on the small nerve fibers, and does not allow pain
signals to pass when they are traveling on the larger fibers. In this case, there doesn't
really need to be anything physical to produce pain; you only need to have the small
nerve fibers send signals onto the brain to feel pain. This is why, for example, some
people who are missing a limb often indicate that they can feel the missing limb, have
pain in the missing limb, etc.
9.) Sensorineural Deafness, also called nerve deafness, is a type of hearing loss resulting
from damage to the inner ear, the nerve pathway that connects to the brain, or the
central processing centers of the brain. The most common cause of Sensorineural
deafness is when the hairs in the inner ear are damaged. This could be from prolonged
exposure to loud noises, excessive intake of drugs that may cause deafness such as
aspirin or quinine, infectious illnesses like German measles or mumps, or a congenital
abnormality. The hair cells can also be damaged by excessive noise. As a result of
prolonged exposure to high intensity noise either from the work environment or from
listening to loud music, sensorineural hearing impairment is becoming more common.You
can also suffer from sensorineural hearing loss having been exposed to diseases such as
mumps, meningitis, multiple sclerosis, mnires disease or if you have used certain
drugs, in particular aspirin, cisplatin, quinine or the antibiotics streptomycin and
gentamicin.Sensorineural hearing impairment may also occur if your mother has had
rubella (German measles) during pregnancy, or if your birth weight was
low.Sensorineural hearing loss can be inherited and finally you may lose your hearing
ability due to head/ear injuries.Conduction Deafness is hearing loss due to sound waves
not reaching the sensing mechanism within the ear. This can result from damage to the
ear canal and/or tiny ear bones that conduct sounds, or blockage from earwax, infectious
material, or a tumor. For example, the worried parents of a 3 year old felt that he was
progressively not paying attention when they talked to him. They felt he was ignoring
them or purposely misbehaving, but a complete physical exam revealed the presence of
a benign tumor that almost completely blocked his right ear canal. Conduction Deafness
can be reversed and hearing restored once the blockage is removed or the injury
treated. Possible causes of this are Fluid in the middle ear from colds.
Ear infection (otitis media)
Allergies (serous otitis media)
Poor eustachian tube function.
Perforated eardrum.
Benign tumors.
Impacted earwax (cerumen)
Infection in the ear canal (external otitis)
PSYCHOLOGY
10.)This 'gestalt' or 'whole form' approach sought to define principles of perception
seemingly innate mental laws that determined the way objects were perceived. ... These
laws took several forms, such as the grouping of similar, or proximate, objects together,
within this global process. Gestalt psychologists posit five main laws of perception that
underlie the organization of visual information:
Continuity-Describes our tendency to perceive objects that seem to have a relationship
to each other as being continuous. For example, we perceive the pattern below as two
lines crossing rather than as two angles joined at their apexes. Keeping the law of
continuity in mind means that making sure that you guide the learner's eye.
The sharpened pencils thin green line helps guide
the eye from the top of the composition to the
bottom, creating a christmas tree shape in a very
unexpected way.
Closure-Closure describes our tendency to look for unity in objects and to see lines as a
single unit. Therefore, given the mere suggestion of an object, we will tend to fill in the
details. For exmple, it is likely that you perceive the series of disconnected lines
represened below as a square, and the series of disconnected dots as forming a single
circle. Closure explains why we see the following isntructional image, depicting the parts
of the brain involved in creating long-term memory, as a whole head. The satisfaction of
a pattern encoded, as it were, into the brain, thus triggering recognition of the stimulus.
This can involve the brain's provision of missing details thought to be a part of a
potential pattern, or, once closure is achieved, the elimination of details unnecessary to
establish a pattern match.Closure is the effect of suggesting a visual connection or
continuity between sets of elements which do not actually touch each other in a
composition.The principle of closure applies when we tend to see complete figures even
when part of the information is missing. Closure occurs when elements in a composition
are aligned in such a way that the viewer perceives that "the information could be
connected."
We perceive elements as belonging to the same group
if they are part of a closed figure. A great opportunity
to explore the closure principle is logo design. Fedexs
logo hides a right arrow that not many have been
able to spot throughout the years. By creating that
negative space between the E and the X, and adding
the illusion of closure by kerning the two letters very
PSYCHOLOGY
Proximity-Proximity describes the tendency to perceive objects that are close to one
another as being grouped together in a meaningful way. However, by increasing the
vertical or horizontal distance between some of the squares we can create a perception
of two groups of four squares rather than eight squares. The Gestalt law of proximity
states that "objects or shapes that are close to one another appear to form groups".
Even if the shapes, sizes, and objects are radically different, they will appear as a group
if they are close together.
In the poster below, Coke wanted to convey
happiness (one of its core brand values) by
creating the shape of a smile using bottles. The
fact that they are placed near each other in
such a deliberate fashion helps the viewer
perceive that smile.
Similarity-The principle of similarity states that things which share visual characteristics
such as shape, size, color, texture, value or orientation will be seen as belonging
together. Gestalt theory states that things which share visual characteristics such as
shape, size, color, texture, or value will be seen as belonging together in the viewers
mind.
In the image below, our mind perceives the
similarly colored circles not as individual circles
but as combining to form rectangles, squares
and lines separate from those of another color.
Simplicity- The law of simplicity indicates that our mind perceives everything in its
simplest form. The image below, for example, when studied in depth is made up of
individual components that have no meaning when viewed separately, yet our mind
automatically perceives them in combination to spell out the word logo. Essentially,
simplicity is about helping the eye find comfortable figures used to trigger an
interpretation of what we are trying to show.
PSYCHOLOGY
11.) Smell depends on sensory receptors that respond to airborne chemicals. In humans,
these chemoreceptors are located in the olfactory epithelium a patch of tissue about
the size of a postage stamp located high in the nasal cavity. The olfactory receptors are
located in both the cilia and synapses of the olfactory sensory neurons and in the
epithelium of the human airway. In insects, olfactory receptors are located on the
antennae and other chemosensory organs.
12.) Cochlear implants are designed to help severely to profoundly deaf adults and
children who get little or no benefit from hearing aids. Even individuals with severe or
profound "nerve deafness" may be able to benefit from cochlear implants. People with
hearing problems use this. Sounds are transmitted through the air. In a normal ear,
sound waves cause the eardrum and then the middle ear bones to vibrate. This sends a
wave of vibrations into the inner ear (cochlea). These waves are then converted by the
cochlea into electrical signals, which are sent along the auditory nerve to the brain.A
deaf person does not have a functioning inner ear. A cochlear implant tries to replace the
function of the inner ear by turning sound into electrical energy. This energy can then be
used to stimulate the cochlear nerve (the nerve for hearing), sending "sound" signals to
the brain.
