Psychology of Sensation and Perception Flashcards

The process by which we receive, transform, and process stimuli, from the outside world to create sensory experiences of vision, touch, hearing, taste, smell and so on.

Specialized cells that detect sensory stimuli and convert them into neural impulses.

Study of the relationship between features of physical stimuli, such as the intensity of light and sound. and the sensation we experience in response to these stimuli.

The smallest amount of a given stimulus a person can sense.

Minimal difference in the magnitude of energy needed for people to detect a difference between two stimuli.

Principle that the amount of change in a stimulus needed to detect a difference is given by a constant ratio or fraction, called a constant, of the original stimulus.

The belief that the detection of a stimulus is determined by many factors, including the intensity of the the stimulus, the level of background stimulation, and the biological and psychological characteristics of the perceiver.

The process by which sensory receptors adapt to constant stimuli by becoming less sensitive to them.

A transparent covering on the eye's surface through which light enters.

The pigmented, circular muscle in the eye that regulates the size of the pupil to adjust to changes in the level of illumination.

The black opening inside the iris that allows light to enter the eye.

The structure in the eye that focuses light rays on the retina.

The process by which the lens changes its shape to focus images more clearly on the retina.

The light-sensitive layer of the inner surface of the eye that contains photoreceptor cells.

Light-sensitive cells (rods and cones) in the eye upon which light registers.