Module 17: AP Psychology

Tonya's psychology teacher played some backwards music to the class, and they were not able to make out any words or phrases in the selection. When the teacher told them to listen for the words “The rat ate the cat” when she played it again, most of the class now heard the words. Which principle explains this experience?

• A context effect

• Perceptual set

• Extrasensory perception

• Selective attention

A perceptual set is a

• tendency to fill in gaps to perceive a complete, whole object.

• readiness to perceive an object in an unfairly negative fashion.

• tendency to view objects higher in our field of vision as closer.

• mental predisposition that influences what we perceive.

Although Sue Yen sees her chemistry teacher several times a week, she didn't recognize the teacher when she saw her in the grocery store. This best illustrates the importance of

• monocular cues.

• context effects.

• proximity.

• linear perspective.

• perceptual adaptation.

An integrated understanding of perception in terms of our senses, cultural contexts, and Gestalt principles is most clearly provided by

• human factors psychology.

• a biopsychosocial approach.

• Weber's law.

• parapsychology.

Which of the following is true of psychics who have worked with police departments in an effort to solve difficult crimes?

• They have demonstrated the value of clairvoyance.

• They have used telepathy to read the mind of the criminal.

• They have used precognition to forewarn the police of criminal acts.

• They have provided useful predictions using all their powers in 90 percent of the cases.

• They have reported visions that are no more accurate than guesses.

Psychologists are skeptical about ESP claims because

• studies claiming to demonstrate such abilities fail at replication.

• parapsychologists accept fraudulent evidence.

• such abilities cannot be tested scientifically.

• researchers have difficulty finding participants for such research.

• ethical concerns make testing such abilities relatively impossible.

Margo insists that her dreams frequently enable her to perceive and predict future events. Margo is claiming to possess the power of

• telepathy.

• clairvoyance.

• precognition.

• psychokinesis.

• transduction.

The study of phenomena such as clairvoyance and telepathy is called

• study of phenomena such as ESP and psychokinesis.

• study of perceptual illusions.

• study of the phi phenomenon.

• direct transmission of thoughts from one mind to another.

• direct transduction of energy into neural impulses.

To those throwing a very heavy rather than a light object at a target, the target is likely to be perceived as

• softer.

• slower moving.

• larger.

• farther away.

• more difficult.

When hearing "eel is on the wagon", we would likely perceive the first word as "wheel" but when we hear "eel is on the orange" we would perceive it as "peel". What best explains this?

• shape constancy

• context effects

• perceptual set

• difference thresholds