perception (paper 1)

• perception


  interpretation of the sensory info by the brain, in order to make sense of the world around us
• sensation


  physical stimulation by sense receptors from the environment (e.g. sound waves processed by our ears)
• binocular depth cues 


  cues only detected when both eyes are used
• convergence


  (binocular depth cue) the closer the object, the harder our eye muscles must work to give our brain info about depth + distance
• retinal disparity


  (binocular depth cue) the way our left and right eye see slightly different images
• monocular depth cues


  perceptual cues that can be detected by one eye
• height in plane


  (monocular depth cue) objects higher up in the visual field appear further away
• occlusion


  (monocular depth cue) objects that obscure/are in front of others appear closer to us
• relative size


  (monocular depth cue) smaller objects in the visual field appear further away
• linear perspective 


  (monocular depth cue) lines that are parallel appear to get closer together in the distance
• visual cues


  visual info from the environment (like movement, distance etc.)
• visual constancies 


  our ability to see an object as the same even if the actual image perceived has changed (e.g. we get closer or move around it)
• ambiguity 


  when some images/stimuli can be perceived in more than one way (e.g. Necker cube)
• fiction


  when a figure is perceived even though it is not part of the image (e.g. kanizsa triangle)
• misinterpreted depth cues


  objects in the distance scaled up by the brain to look normal size (visual illusions)
• size constancy 


  brain's ability to perceive familiar objects as the same size, despite changes in the size of the image on the retina
• visual illusions 


  the unconscious 'mistakes' of perception
• direct theory 


  the argument that info from the visual array is all the brain needs to perceive the world - perception is the same as sensation
• motion parallax 


  (monocular depth cue to do with movement) objects that are far away appear to move more slowly compared to objects closer to us
• nature 


  aspects of behaviour that are inherited
• constructivist theory 


  we make sense of the world around us by building our perceptions based on incoming data and clues from what we already know
• inference 


  taking in info and drawing a conclusion about what it means based on what we already know (e.g. someone smiling = they're happy)
• nurture 


  aspects of behaviour that are acquired through experience
• perceptual set


  tendency to notice certain aspects of the sensory environment whilst ignoring others (effected by culture, mood, motivation, expectation)
• culture 


  our beliefs and expectations that surround us
• optic array 


  everything we can see at any one time
• top-down processing 


  perceiving things based on your prior knowledge and experiences
• ponzo illusion


  converging lines on the image give the impression of distance, we believe the line on top is bigger, but it is just further away

  
• muller-lyer illusion 


  outgoing 'fins' are perceived as longer than the line with ingoing 'fins'

  
• necker cube 


  the cube can be perceived as going upwards, right, left or downwards (it can 'flip' between two interpretations)

  
• kanizsa triangle 


  looks as if there is a second white triangle overlapping, illusory contours give the impression that the white triangle has continuous edges

  
• rubin's vase 


  a black vase and 2 white faces facing each other

  
• the Ames room 


  the shape of the room gives the illusion one person is much taller than the other - look through the hole in the wall, the room is shaped like a trapezoid but looks like a square

  
• Gibson's direct theory of perception 


  NATURE - perception is innate
• Gregory's constructivist theory of perception 


  NURTURE - perception is learned through experience
• factors affecting perception

  1. culture
  2. emotion
  3. motivation
  4. expectation
• perceptual set 


  the tendency of our brains to notice or prefer certain aspects of the sensory environment