Psychology Module 16 Study Guide

In one experiment, most of the participants who viewed a videotape of men tossing a basketball remained unaware of an umbrella-toting woman sauntering across the screen. This illustrated

inattentional blindness

Why is transduction important to sensation?

It converts physical stimuli, such as light, into neural messages

In experiments, an image is quickly flashed and then replaced by a masking stimulus that inhibits conscious perception of the original image. In these experiments, the researchers are studying the effects of

priming

Photographs of people were rated more positively if the photos immediately followed a briefly flashed image of kittens. This best illustrates the impact of

priming

The pop-out phenomenon illustrates that some stimuli almost inevitably trigger

selective inattention

As you look at an apple, its reflected light travels to the eye. The rods and cones absorb the light and help transmit the information to the brain. This process best illustrates

sensation

The detection and encoding of stimulus energies by the nervous system is called

sensation

The process of receiving and representing stimulus energies through the nervous system is called

sensation

Diminished sensitivity to an unchanging stimulus is known as

sensory adaptation

An exhausted forest ranger may notice the faintest scent of a forest fire, whereas much stronger but less important odors fail to catch her attention. This fact would be of greatest relevance to

signal detection theory

The fact that fear may increase your sensitivity to an almost imperceptible pain stimulus is of most relevance to

signal detection theory

When you are expecting an incoming text message, you are much more likely to notice it the second it arrives. This best illustrates

signal detection theory

Which theory can best explain why people respond differently to the same stimuli?

signal detection theory

Which theory emphasizes that personal expectations and motivations influence the level of absolute thresholds?

signal detection theory

Audiotapes of soothing ocean sounds accompanied by faint and imperceptible verbal messages designed to increase a desire to lose weight best illustrate

subliminal stimulation

News about the supposed effects of briefly presented messages on people's feelings of being thirsty involved false claims regarding

subliminal stimulation

Sensory adaptation helps us to focus our attention on what kind of stimuli?

novel

As the brain receives information about the lines, angles, and edges of objects in the environment, higher-level cells process and interpret the information to consciously recognize objects. This process best illustrates

perception

The process by which we select, organize, and interpret sensory information in order to recognize meaningful objects and events is called

perception

Sensory adaptation refers to

diminishing sensitivity to an unchanging stimulus

If the just-noticeable difference for a 10-ounce weight is 1 ounce, the just noticeable difference for an 80-ounce weight would be ________ ounce(s).

8

Giulio's bag of marbles is twice as heavy as Jim's. If it takes 5 extra marbles to make Jim's bag feel heavier, it will take 10 extra marbles to make Giulio's bag feel heavier. This best illustrates

Weber's law

The principle that two stimuli must differ by a constant proportion for their difference to be perceived is known as

Weber's law

Although Manuel was sitting right next to his parents, he smelled a skunk minutes before they did. Apparently, Manuel has a lower ________ for skunk odor than his parents have.

absolute threshold

During a hearing test, many sounds were presented at such a low level of intensity that Mr. Antall could hardly detect them. These sounds were below Mr. Antall's

absolute threshold

Standing atop a mountain on an utterly dark, clear night, most of us would see a candle flame atop another mountain 30 miles away. This best illustrates

absolute threshold

The minimum amount of stimulation a person needs to detect a stimulus 50 percent of the time is called the

absolute threshold

A subliminal message is one that is presented

below one's absolute threshold for awareness

When Jason briefly turned to summon the waiter, his wife quickly switched her glass of red wine with his glass of white wine. Jason's failure to notice that his chosen wine had been replaced best illustrates

change blindness

While a man provided directions to a construction worker, two experimenters rudely interrupted by passing between them carrying a door. The student's failure to notice that the construction worker was replaced by a different person during this interruption illustrates

change blindness

Research participants picked one of two photographed faces as more attractive. When researchers cleverly switched the photos, participants readily explained why they preferred the face they had actually rejected. Their behavior illustrated

choice blindness

Sensation is to ________ as perception is to ________.

detection; interpretation

Some people are better than others at detecting slight variations in the tastes of various blends of coffee. This best illustrates the importance of

difference thresholds

Weber's law is relevant to an understanding of

difference thresholds

Standing in the checkout line at the grocery store, Jerry kept looking at his watch to see the time. As a result, he failed to see that a store employee was being robbed by a person just in front of him. Jerry most clearly suffered

inattentional blindness

Our experiences, assumptions, and expectations may give us a perceptual set that influences what we perceive. This is an example of

top-down processing

The effect of prior experience and current expectations on perception best illustrates the importance of

top-down processing

The local fire department sounds the 12 o'clock whistle. The process by which your ears convert the sound waves from the siren into neural impulses is an example of

transduction

The process by which our sensory systems convert stimulus energies into neural messages is called

transduction

Those who believe in the value of subliminal audiotapes would be wrong to claim that

unconsciously processed information is unusually persuasive