AP Psych Unit 4 Key Terms
sensation - ANSWER the process by which our sensory receptors and nervous system receive
and represent stimulus energies from our environment
perception - ANSWER the process of organizing and interpreting sensory information, enabling
us to recognize meaningful objects and events
bottom-up processing - ANSWER analysis that begins with the sensory receptors and works up
to the brain's integration of sensory information
top-down processing - ANSWER information processing guided by higher-level mental
processes, as when we construct perceptions drawing on our experience and expectations
selective attention - ANSWER the focusing of conscious awareness on a particular stimulus
cocktail party effect - ANSWER the ability to focus one's selective listening attention on a single
talker among a mixture of conversations and background noises
inattentional blindness - ANSWER failing to see visible objects when our attention is directed
elsewhere
change blindness - ANSWER failing to notice changes in the environment
psychophysics - ANSWER the branch of psychology concerned with quantitative relations
between physical stimuli and their psychological effects
, absolute threshold - ANSWER the minimum stimulation needed to detect a particular stimulus
50 percent of the time
signal detection theory - ANSWER a theory predicting how and when we detect the presence of
a faint stimulus ("signal") amid background stimulation ("noise"). Assumes there is no single
absolute threshold and detection depends partly on a person's experience, expectations,
motivation, and level of fatigue.
subliminal - ANSWER below one's absolute threshold for conscious awareness
priming - ANSWER the activation, often unconsciously, of particular associations in memory
difference threshold/just noticeable difference (JND) - ANSWER minimum difference between
any two stimuli that person can detect 50% of the time
Weber's law - ANSWER the principle that, to be perceived as different, two stimuli must differ by
a constant minimum percentage (rather than a constant amount).
sensory adaptation - ANSWER diminished sensitivity as a consequence of constant stimulation
transduction - ANSWER the transforming of stimulus energies, such as sights, sounds and
smells, into neural impulses our brains can interpret
wavelength - ANSWER the distance from the peak of one light or sounds wave to the peak of
the next
What does a long/fat wavelength mean? - ANSWER low frequency/reddish colors
sensation - ANSWER the process by which our sensory receptors and nervous system receive
and represent stimulus energies from our environment
perception - ANSWER the process of organizing and interpreting sensory information, enabling
us to recognize meaningful objects and events
bottom-up processing - ANSWER analysis that begins with the sensory receptors and works up
to the brain's integration of sensory information
top-down processing - ANSWER information processing guided by higher-level mental
processes, as when we construct perceptions drawing on our experience and expectations
selective attention - ANSWER the focusing of conscious awareness on a particular stimulus
cocktail party effect - ANSWER the ability to focus one's selective listening attention on a single
talker among a mixture of conversations and background noises
inattentional blindness - ANSWER failing to see visible objects when our attention is directed
elsewhere
change blindness - ANSWER failing to notice changes in the environment
psychophysics - ANSWER the branch of psychology concerned with quantitative relations
between physical stimuli and their psychological effects
, absolute threshold - ANSWER the minimum stimulation needed to detect a particular stimulus
50 percent of the time
signal detection theory - ANSWER a theory predicting how and when we detect the presence of
a faint stimulus ("signal") amid background stimulation ("noise"). Assumes there is no single
absolute threshold and detection depends partly on a person's experience, expectations,
motivation, and level of fatigue.
subliminal - ANSWER below one's absolute threshold for conscious awareness
priming - ANSWER the activation, often unconsciously, of particular associations in memory
difference threshold/just noticeable difference (JND) - ANSWER minimum difference between
any two stimuli that person can detect 50% of the time
Weber's law - ANSWER the principle that, to be perceived as different, two stimuli must differ by
a constant minimum percentage (rather than a constant amount).
sensory adaptation - ANSWER diminished sensitivity as a consequence of constant stimulation
transduction - ANSWER the transforming of stimulus energies, such as sights, sounds and
smells, into neural impulses our brains can interpret
wavelength - ANSWER the distance from the peak of one light or sounds wave to the peak of
the next
What does a long/fat wavelength mean? - ANSWER low frequency/reddish colors
