Sensation & Perception

Front

What is sensation?

Back

Sensation is the stimulation of sensory receptors and the transmission of sensory information to the central nervous system.

Front

What is perception?

Back

Perception is an active process in which sensations are organized and interpreted to form an inner representation of the world.

Front

What are the five senses?

Back

The five senses are vision, hearing, smell, taste, and touch.

Front

What is the absolute threshold?

Back

The absolute threshold is the weakest level of a stimulus necessary to produce a sensation.

Front

What is subliminal stimulation?

Back

Subliminal stimulation refers to sensory stimulation that is below a person’s absolute threshold for conscious perception.

Front

What is the difference threshold?

Back

The difference threshold is the minimum difference in magnitude of two stimuli required to tell them apart.

Front

What is the just noticeable difference (jnd)?

Back

The just noticeable difference (jnd) is the minimum difference in stimuli that a person can detect.

Front

What is signal-detection theory?

Back

Signal-detection theory explains how people's ability to detect stimuli depends on intensity, training, motivation, and psychological states.

Front

What are feature detectors?

Back

Feature detectors are brain cells that respond to specific features of visual input.

Front

What is sensory adaptation?

Back

Sensory adaptation is the process by which we become more sensitive to stimuli of low magnitude and less sensitive to constant stimuli.