Psychology 1000 Lecture Notes - Lecture 5: Detection Theory, Absolute Threshold, Teaspoon

• School: Western University
• Department: Psychology
• Course: Psychology 1000
• Professor: John Campbell

Document Summary

Synaesthesia: people with this condition experience sounds as colours or tastes as touch sensations that have different shapes. It has been proposed that we are all born synaesthetes, because the neural pathways of infants are fairly undifferentiated and lead to cross modal perceptions. Sensation: is the stimulus-detection process by which our sense organs respond to and translate environmental stimuli into nerve impulses that are sent to the brain. Perception: making sense of what our senses tell us- is the active process of organizing this stimulus input and giving it meaning. Psychophysics: studies the relations between the physical characteristics of stimuli and sensory capabilities and is concerned with two kinds of sensitivity. The absolutes of sensitivity, and the smallest detectable differences in sensitivity. The relation between physical stimulus and psychological response. Fechner is the father of psychophysics, and said that you can measure exact intensity but can measure just noticeable difference .