Visual Perception

• Visual Reception System: the network of structures involved in vision including the eye, neural pathways and the brain
• Biological factors affecting visual perception are based on the physiology (functioning of the body) and so, are similar for most people
• Depth cues: Sources of information from the environment (external cues) or from within our body (internal cues) that help us to perceive distance and depth
• Accommodation: allows us to judge depth and distance by measuring the amount that the lens bulges and flattens to focus on a nearby object
• Binocular depth cues require the use of both eyes working together in order to provide information to the brain about depth and distance
• Convergence: involves the brain detecting increases in muscle tension in muscles surrounding the eye as the eyes turn inwards to focus on objects that are closer
• Retinal disparity - When the two retinal images are combined in the brain, the images received from each eye are compared
• Perceptual set is the predisposition, or 'readiness' to perceive something in accordance with our expectations     
•  Context: the setting or environment in which a perception is made
• Past experience: personal experiences throughout our lives. This includes everything we have learned both intentionally and unintentionally
• Motivation: Perception can be influenced by our desires, whereby people see what they want to see rather than what is really there     
• Motivation: Perception can be influenced by our desires, whereby people see what they want to see rather than what is really there     
• perceptual constancy refers to the tendency to perceive an object as remaining stable and unchanging despite any changes that may occur to the image cast on the retina
• Size constancy involves recognising that an object's actual size remains the same, even though the size of the image it casts on each retina changes
• • Shape constancy is the tendency to perceive an object as maintaining its shape despite any change in shape of the image of the object on the retina
• Culture refers to the way of life a particular community/group that sets it apart from others
•  Visual illusions: a perceptual distortion involves an inconsistency or 'mismatch', between a perceptual experience and physical reality
• The Aimes Room illusion is reinforced by top-down processing where the observer has been raised in a culture in which rooms tend to be rectangular - this is what they expect to see