In psychology, the term sensation formally refers to

• a vague feeling of excitement or pleasure.

• the process of detecting a physical stimulus such as light, sound, heat, or pressure.

• the transfer of physical energy into chemical energy.

• the interpretation and organization of sensory stimuli.

In contrast to sensation, the term perception is formally defined as the:

• active mental process of integrating, organizing, and interpreting sensory data.

• the process of detecting a physical stimulus such as light, sound, heat, or pressure.

• active mental process of understanding the meaning of a difficult new concept.

• way in which different areas of the brain interact

In order to Answer this test item, you must read the words on this page. Detecting the black marks on the page relies on the process of _____, and the ability to interpret these black lines and curves as letters and words involves the process of _____.

• sensory adaptation; proprioception

• perception; sensation

• sensation; perception

• proprioception; sensory adaptation

Which of the following statements is TRUE?

• Sensation and perception are two distinct processes with little or no overlap.

• Perception involves the detection of stimulus energies, and sensation involves the process of integrating, organizing, and interpreting sensory data.

• There is no clear boundary between the processes of sensation and perception as we experience them.

• Because sensation and perception involve separate and distinct brain areas, most researchers can focus exclusively on one or the other for research purposes.

What makes sensation possible?

• conceptually driven processes

• absolute thresholds

• Weber's law

• sensory receptors

The process by which physical energy, such as light, is converted into a coded neural signal that can be transmitted to and interpreted by the brain is called:

• transduction

• gate-control theory

• sensation

• the mere exposure effect.

When sensory receptors convert different forms of energy into neural signals, the process is known as:

• proprioception

• transduction.

• sensory accommodation.

• kinesthesis.

You catch the whiff of freshly popped popcorn as you enter the movie theater. The process by which the odor of popcorn is converted into neural signals that your brain can interpret as the smell of popcorn is called:

• sensory adaptation

• proprioception

• transduction

• accommodation

Sensation results when sensory receptor cells are stimulated by:

• some form of physical energy

• substance P

• messages transmitted from the brain.

• monocular cues

The smallest possible stimulus that can be detected half the time, or the minimum level of stimuli that we can detect is called:

• subliminal perception

• the absolute threshold.

• the just noticeable difference, or difference threshold.

• the perceptual threshold