PowerPoint Lecture Notes Presentation

Sensation and Perception

Lecture Overview


Basic Principles of Sensation Visual and Auditory Sensation

Our Other Senses (Gustatory, Olfactory, Somatic, Vestibular, Kinesthetic)


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Sensation: process of receiving, converting, and transmitting raw sensory information from the external and internal environments to the brain Perception: process of selecting, organizing, and interpreting sensory information
John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

Sensation Versus Perception



When you stare at the cube on the left, which area is the top, bottom, or back? In the figure on the right, do you see a young woman looking to the right, or an older woman with her chin buried in her jacket?
John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

Sensation Vs. Perception

John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

Understanding Sensation: Processing

Processing: sensory organs contain receptors that receive sensory information from the environment (stimuli)

John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

Understanding Sensation: Processing

Three Types of Processing:
1.

Transduction: converts sensory stimuli into neural impulses that are sent on to the brain Sensory Reduction: filters and analyzes incoming sensations before sending on to the brain Coding: converts particular sensory input into a specific sensation sent to differing parts of the brain
John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

2.

3.

Understanding Sensation: Processing (Continued)



Transduction, sensory reduction, and coding all occur at the sensory level. Messages are then sent on to the brain.
John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

Understanding Sensation: Thresholds



Psychophysics: testing limits and changes

Absolute Threshold: smallest amount of a stimulus we can detect Difference Threshold: minimal difference needed to detect a a stimulus change; also called the just noticeable difference (JND)
John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

Understanding Sensation: Thresholds



Sensory Adaptation: decreased sensory response to continuous stimulation

John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

Pause and Reflect: Critical Thinking

Smokers often fail to notice that their hair and clothing often smell like smoke. Can you use psychological terms to explain this?
John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

How We See--Vision


Light is a form of electromagnetic energy that moves in waves. Many types of electromagnetic waves form the electromagnetic spectrum.

John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

How We See: Electromagnetic Spectrum

John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

How We See: Electromagnetic Spectrum



The flower on the left is what we normally see. The one on the right is what we think most animals and insects would see. It was photographed under ultraviolet light.

John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

How We See: Light Waves



Light waves vary in: length (wavelength), which determines frequency (hue or color). height (amplitude), which determines brightness or intensity.

John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

How We See: Anatomy of the Eye

The function of the eye is to capture light waves and focus them on receptors on the back of the eyeball.

John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

How We See: Structures of the Retina



Receptors for vision are the rods and cones located in the retina.

John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

Video: How we see

John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

Do You Have a Blind Spot?

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Pause and Reflect: Why Study Psychology?



Vision research helps explain how the shape of your eyeball determines whether you have normal, nearsighted, or farsighted vision.

John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

How We Hear: Audition



Sound results from movement of air molecules in a particular wave pattern. Sound waves vary in: length (wavelength), which determines pitch (highness or lowness). height (amplitude), which determines loudness (intensity of the sound).
John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

How We Hear: Audition



The loudness of a sound is measured in decibels. Constant noise above 90 decibels can cause permanent nerve damage to the ear.

John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

How We Hear: Anatomy of the Ear

Receptors for hearing are hair cells located in the cochlea.

John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

`
Video: How we hear

John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

Our Other Senses



Olfaction: the sense of smell Receptors for smell are embedded in the nasal membrane (the olfactory epithelium).
John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

Our Other Senses: Gustation (Sense of Taste)



Smell and taste are closely related. Receptors for taste (or gustation) are taste buds, located in papillae on the surface of the tongue.
John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

Video: How we smell and taste

John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

Our Other Senses: Three Body Senses



Skin senses involve three skin sensations-touch (or pressure), temperature, and pain. Receptors for these sensations occur in various concentrations and depths in the skin.

John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

Our Other Senses: Three Body Senses

Vestibular sense (or sense of balance) involves the vestibular sacs and semicircular canals located within the inner ear.
John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

Three Body Senses (Continued)



Kinesthesia provides the brain with information about posture and movement. Kinesthetic receptors are located in muscles, joints, and tendons.

John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

Activity : Letting go
Use crosswise. If you were to let go one of your senses, what would it be and why?

John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

Blindwalking activity: A 10-minute living with blindness

Have students try to imagine what it is like to be blind. A standard exercise is to have them blindfolded. Partners can be assigned--one blindfolded and the other "seeing." The two have to spend 10 minutes together. After the time, the partners exchange roles. However, take care for the personal safety of individuals.

John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

Assignment


Bring one WIDE handkerchief for our blind walking activity next meeting.

John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

Using crosswise, individually answer the following. Copy the questions:

* Feeling question: 1. How did it feel to not be able to see? * Thinking questions: 2. Were you able to correctly identify the locations the seeing brought you? 3. What senses did you use to identify the locations? 4. What insights (learnings) could you give for this activity?
John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

Understanding Perception


Illusions:
false or misleading perceptions that help scientists study the processes of perception (e.g., the horizontal-vertical illusion on the right)
John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

Understanding Perception: The Muller-Lyer Illusion

Which vertical line is longer?

John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

Understanding Perception

Do you see the cow?

John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

Understanding Perception

Now can you see the cow?

John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

Understanding Perception (Continued)


1.

Perceptions three basic processes:

Selection 2. Organization 3. Interpretation

John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

Understanding Perception: Selection



Selection (choosing where to direct attention) involves:

Selective Attention (filtering out and attending only to important sensory messages) Feature Detectors (specialized neurons that respond only to certain sensory information) Habituation (brains tendency to ignore environmental factors that remain constant)
John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

Stroop Effect

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Pause and Reflect: Critical Thinking



Kittens reared in a restricted vertical line environment are later unable to detect horizontal lines. Can you explain why?
John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

Is this Illusion explainable by Gestalt Laws?

Illusionary Spiral

Why does this look like a spiral? What is the context? Where do you focus?

What figures can you see in this Kaniza illusion?

Understanding Perception: Organization



Organization: assembling information into patterns that help us understand the world We organize sensory information in terms of: Form Constancy Depth Color
John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

Understanding Perception: Organization (Form Perception)



Gestalt psychologists discovered several laws related to form perception:

Figure and ground Proximity Continuity Closure Similarity
John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

Examples of Form Perception

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Figure-ground

John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

Law of proximity

John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

Law of continuity

John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

Law of Similarity
Visual Entities that are similar belong to the same Object

Law of closure
Visual Entities are tend to be seen as closed figures/groups

Pause and Reflect: Why Study Psychology?

Perception research helps explain these so-called impossible figures.

John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

Understanding Perception: Organization



Perceptual Constancy: perceiving the environment as remaining the same even with changes in sensory input Four best-known constancies: Size Shape Color Brightness
John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

Pause and Reflect: Check & Review

Can you label these size, shape, color, and brightness constancies?
John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

Understanding Perception: Organization-- The Ames Room Illusion

John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

Understanding Perception: Organization



Depth Perception: ability to perceive three dimensional space and accurately judge distance
John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

Understanding Perception: Organization Depth Perception

(Continued)

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Understanding Perception: Organization



Depth perception involves both binocular (two eyes) and monocular (one eye) cues. Two binocular cues for depth: Retinal Disparity (separation of the eyes
causes different images to fall on each retina)

Convergence (the closer the object the

more the eyes turn inward)
John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

Understanding Perception: Organization

Binocular cues retinal disparity (left) convergence (right)

John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

Pause and Reflect: Check & Review



Six monocular depth cues: Can you find them?

1. Linear perspective 2. Interposition 3. Relative size 4. Texture gradient 5. Aerial perspective 6. Light and shadow
John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

Understanding Perception: Organization



Color perception is a combination of two theories: Trichromatic: color perception results from mixing three distinct color systems (red, green, and blue)
John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

1.

Understanding Perception: Organization

2. Opponent-Process: color perception

results from three systems of color opposites (blue-yellow, red-green, and black-white)

John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

Understanding Perception: Organization



Did you know that people who have redgreen color deficiency have trouble perceiving the green colored number in the center of this circle?

John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

Understanding Perception: Organization and Color Perception

John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

Understanding Perception: Four Factors in Interpretation



Interpretation (how the brain explains sensations) involves four major factors: Perceptual Adaptation (brain adapts to changed environments)
John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

1.

Understanding Perception: Four Factors in Interpretation

2. Perceptual Set:

readiness to perceive in a particular manner, based on expectations Some groups are more likely than others to be affected by the center item in this collection. Can you explain why?
John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

Understanding Perception: Four Factors in Interpretation



Do you notice anything wrong with these photos of actress Julia Roberts?
John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

Understanding Perception: Four Factors in Interpretation



Now can you see whats wrong? Your first reaction of not seeing the problem is just another example of perceptual set.

John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

Understanding Perception: Four Factors in Interpretation

3.

Frame of Reference: based on the context of the situation Bottom-Up or Top-Down Processing: information either starts with raw sensory data or with thoughts, expectations, and knowledge
John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

4.

Problems with Believing in Subliminal Perception and ESP

Subliminal perception Below the threshold of conscious perception



John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

Subliminal perception

Inadequate to produce conscious awareness but able to evoke a response There is little or no evidence of subliminal persuasion.

John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

Problems with Believing in Subliminal Perception and ESP



Extrasensory Perception (ESP): The alleged phenomenon of perception or awareness of external events in the absence of any sensory stimulation arising from the events.

John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

Classic forms of ESP include telepathy, clairvoyance, and precognition. No conclusive demonstrations of the existence of ESP in any individual have been given, but popular belief in the phenomenon remains widespread, and people who claim to possess ESP are sometimes employed by investigative teams searching for missing persons or things.
John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

Telepathy - Communication through means other than the senses Clairvoyance - The supposed power to see objects or events that cannot be perceived by the senses. Acute intuitive insight or perceptiveness. Precognition - Knowledge of something in advance of its occurrence
John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

Activity:


1.

2.

Find an art book in the library or find famous works of art online. Make a color copy (the copy center can make color copies), or print a color version of one painting. Write a paragraph that describes the perceptual elements that are used. Elaborate how the artwork reflects reality and the impact, if any, it has on you.
John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

Activity: Web Essay http://www.answers.com/topic/ext ra-sensoryperception#ixzz1TpSzYPMB

1.

2. 3.

Choose an article on ESP. Write a 1paragraph summary Write your personal reaction to the article. Submit first meeting next week.

John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)

Try this:


http://www.michaelbach.de/ot/cog_dalmatian/ index.html http://www.michaelbach.de/ot/cog_hiddenBir d/index.html

John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2007 Huffman: Psychology in Action (8e)