Sensation & Perception Principles

Alice is eating a piece of fruit. After a while, she notices that the fruit tastes less sweet and tangy than it did when she first bit into it. Alice is experiencing ____.

• habituation
• accommodation
• sensory adaptation
• subliminal perception

The smallest difference between two stimuli that can be detected 50% of the time is called

• absolute threshold
• difference threshold
• sensory adaptation
• subliminal perception

Which of the following processes has begun as soon as special receptor cells for the senses are activated?

• perception
• adaptation
• habituation
• sensation

A researcher presents two lights of varying brightness to a subject who is asked to respond "same" or "different" by comparing their intensities. The researcher is seeking the

• just noticeable difference.
• absolute threshold.
• subliminal threshold.
• minimal threshold.

The point at which a change in sensory stimulation is detected is called the

• absolute threshold
• psychological equation
• just noticeable difference 
• Weber effect

Sensation is to ________ as perception is to ________.

• encoding; detection
• detection; interpretation
• interpretation; organization
• threshold; transduction

Being able to see a candle flame 30 miles away on a clear night is the

• Absolute threshold for human vision

• Difference threshold for human vision

• Perceived threshold for human vision

• Ratio threshold for human vision

If a dog hears a whistle that a person cannot hear, this suggests that dogs and humans have different

• Kinesthesis systems

• Gestalt ratios

• Absolute thresholds

• Vestibular systems

Racial and ethnic stereotypes can sometimes bias our perceptions of others' behaviors. This best illustrates the impact of: 

• retinal disparity
• interposition
• top-down processing
• perceptual adaptation

If you move your watchband up your wrist an inch or so, you will feel it for only a few moments. This best illustrates: 

• parallel processing
• accommodation
• sensory adaption
• Weber's Law