Psychology Chapter on Attention Processes

The process of focusing on specific stimuli from a group while ignoring others.

Our maximum awareness is concentrated on a particular object or event.

We have faint awareness of stimulus outside our focus. It's in the periphery of our attention.

The ability to select and process specific information while blocking out distractions.

A theory suggesting we completely block out unrelated information.

A theory suggesting we weaken, rather than block, irrelevant information.

A theory suggesting that attention can 'flex' between early and late stages of processing based on task demands.

Sustaining focus and effort over long periods.

Factors that affect how easily we notice things in our environment, like the size, brightness, or movement of an object.

Internal factors related to our needs and how we think, affecting what we pay attention to.

Our biological and social needs that influence our attention, like hunger or the need for social connection.

Our thoughts, interests, and mindset that affect how we pay attention, such as being interested in a topic or having a specific task in mind.

The type of sensory input (like visual or auditory) that can affect our ability to pay attention.

The clarity or intensity of stimuli that can influence how well we can sustain attention.

The predictability of when stimuli will appear, affecting sustained attention.

The predictability of where stimuli will appear, affecting sustained attention.

The process of perceiving the world in three dimensions, like judging distance or depth.

Visual cues that rely on information from both eyes to judge depth.

Visual cues that can be perceived with only one eye.

An object that appears smaller is perceived as farther away, while a larger object is perceived as closer.

When one object partially hides another, the hidden object is perceived as farther away.

Parallel lines appear to converge in the distance, giving us a sense of depth.

Distant objects appear hazy or blurry due to dust and moisture in the air.

The way light and shadow fall on an object provides clues about its depth.

Objects higher in our field of vision are perceived as farther away.

This approach to recognition starts by analyzing individual parts and uses those to build a perception of the whole image or object.

This approach starts by analyzing the whole image or object and then uses this understanding to identify the individual components or features.

Our personal needs and desires influence how we perceive the world around us. We tend to see what satisfies our wants.

Our expectations about what we'll encounter in a particular situation shape our perception. We might see what we expect to see, even if it's not entirely accurate.

Each person has a unique approach to interacting with the world. This impacts their perception, influencing how they interpret and experience their surroundings.

Cultural background and experiences shape how we perceive the world. Our perceptions reflect the norms, values, and beliefs of our culture.

The process of organizing visual information into meaningful wholes. It is the basis of how we perceive shapes, objects, and patterns in our environment.

Gestalt principles suggest that we perceive stimuli not as isolated elements but as an organized, unified whole. The whole is greater than the sum of its parts.

The most basic form of visual organization, where we separate a figure from its background.

This principle states that objects that are close together in space or time are perceived as belonging together.

The perception that objects maintain their size even when their distance from the observer changes, causing the size of the image on the retina to change.

When our brains perceive familiar objects as having the same shape, even if the angle we see them from changes the shape projected on our retina.

The tendency for our brains to perceive an object's brightness as consistent even when the amount of light illuminating it changes.

A monocular depth cue where objects closer to the observer appear to move faster than distant objects when the observer is moving.

A binocular cue where the slightly different images received by each eye due to their different positions help our brain perceive depth.