Psychology Chapter 4: Sensation and Perception

The smallest difference between two stimuli that a person can detect.

The ability of the senses to adjust to a steady stimulus.

The study of the relationship between physical stimuli and psychological experiences.

Light considered as particles traveling in straight lines.

Light considered as vibrations that travel.

The transparent protective layer at the front of the eye.

The light-sensitive layer at the back of the eye.

Visual receptors for night and achromatic vision.

Objects placed close together are perceived as a group.

Objects with similar features are perceived as a group.

The ability to perceive the 3D world, not just flat 2D.

Larger retinal images mean objects appear closer.

Closer objects block view of more distant objects.

Objects appear constant in size, shape, color, despite changes in retinal image.

Perception of movement from a series of snapshots.

Perception of moving lights from flashing lights.

A vision defect where the eyeball is too short, making distant objects clearer than close ones.

Age-related farsightedness caused by hardening of the lens, making it difficult to focus on near objects.

A vision defect where the eyeball is too long, making close objects clearer than distant ones.

A vision defect caused by an irregular cornea shape, leading to blurry vision at all distances.

A condition where an individual has difficulty distinguishing certain colors.

A condition characterized by a narrowed field of vision.

A vision problem caused by an imbalance of eye muscles, resulting in crossed eyes.

A blind spot in the visual field, possibly caused by substance abuse or light.

The ability to determine the direction a sound is coming from.

Hearing loss caused by problems in the outer or middle ear, preventing sound waves from reaching the inner ear.

Hearing loss caused by damage to the inner ear or auditory nerve, hindering sound signal transmission to the brain.

A specialized tissue lining the nasal cavity containing olfactory receptors, responsible for detecting smells.

Structures in the brain that receive signals from olfactory receptors and relay them to the olfactory cortex.

Brain region where olfactory information is processed and interpreted, along with auditory and visual input.

Specialized sensory receptors located on the tongue, responsible for detecting taste.

Small bumps on the tongue that contain taste buds.

Sound can be described by its frequency (number of vibrations per second) and amplitude (tone measured in decibels).

The eardrum, also called the tympanic membrane, vibrates when sound waves hit it.

The malleus, incus, and stapes (hammer, anvil, and stirrup) transfer vibrations from the eardrum to the oval window, which enters the inner ear.

Transduction, the conversion of sound vibrations into neural impulses, occurs in the Organ of Corti within the cochlea of the inner ear.

The temporal lobe of the cerebral cortex is the primary auditory area, responsible for interpreting sound.

Pitch is the subjective perception of how high or low a sound is, determined by frequency.

Intensity describes the loudness or softness of a sound, determined by the amplitude of vibrations.

Timbre is the unique quality of a sound that distinguishes different instruments or voices even at the same pitch and intensity.

The sense of body movement and position, arising from receptors in muscles, tendons, and joints.

Sensory receptors in muscles that detect muscle stretch.

Sensory receptors in tendons that detect muscle contraction.

Sensory receptors in joint capsules that detect the relative positions of bones in a joint.

A disease that damages nerve tracts responsible for kinesthetic sensation, leading to impaired coordination and movement.

The sense of balance, providing information about body orientation in space.

Fluid-filled tubes in the inner ear that detect changes in head rotation.

Fluid in the inner ear that is displaced by head movement, triggering the equilibrium sense.