PSY 1101 Lecture Notes - Lecture 6: Detection Theory, Absolute Threshold, Master Sergeant

• School: University of Ottawa
• Department: Psychology
• Course: PSY 1101
• Professor: Najwa Haddad

Document Summary

The musts of sensation: in order for sensation to happen. Detection: we have to be able to know it is here. Transduction: the translation of the physical energy into a msg that the brain can understand. Transmission: has to be transmitted to brain for further processing: sensory receptors: highly specialized cells in the nervous system that detect the energy. Connection from the external world to your brain. Prosopagnosia: area in the right temple lobe is damaged. Person with this disease cannot recognize familiar faces. (sensation but no perception) Is different for everyone: difference threshold (jnd): the minimum change in stimulation in order for us to be able to detect it 50% of the time. Webber"s law: jnd is a constant proportion of the initial stimulus: signal detection theory: our ability to detect something is not solely dependent on the amount of stimulus. Depends on your judgment, expectation, motivation, health, levels of alertness, our past experience etc.