PSYCH 240 Lecture Notes - Lecture 2: Prosopagnosia, Agnosia, Subjective Constancy
Psych 240 Lecture 2 Reading Notes
Pages 71-78 and 104-116
Perception: the set of processes by which we recognize, organize, and make sense of
the sensations we receive from environmental stimuli
Perception encompasses many psychological phenomena
Perception doesn’t consist of just seeing what is being projected onto your
retina; the process is much more complex
Your brain processes the visual stimuli giving the stimuli meaning and
interpreting them
Some basic concepts of Perception:
James Gibson provided a useful framework for studying perception in his
influential work; he introduced concepts of distal (external) object,
informational medium, proximal stimulation, and perceptual object
The distal (far) object is the object in the external world
Perception occurs when a perceptual object is created in you that reflects the
properties of the external world
The process of perception varies tremendously across the different senses
Perception occurs when the informational medium carries information about a
distal object to a person- when the person’s sense receptors pick up on the
information, proximal stimulation occurs and the person perceives an object
Perception questions typically relate to identity and form, pattern, and
movement while cognition occurs when this information is used to determine
further goals
Given the nature of our sensory receptors, variation is necessary for
perception
In sensory adaptation, receptor cells adapt to constant stimulation by not firing
until there is a change in stimulation; through sensory adaptation, we may stop
detecting the presence of a stimulus
To study visual perception, scientists devised a way to create stabilized
images; stabilized images don’t move across the retina because they follow the
eye movements- the use of this technique confirmed the hypothesis that
constant stimulation of the cells of the retina gives the impression that the
image disappears
When your eyes are exposed to a uniform field of stimulation, you will stop
perceiving that stimulus after a few minutes and see just a gray field instead-
this is because your eyes have adapted to the stimulus- such a uniform visual
field is called Ganzfeld
Sensory adaptation ensures that sensory info is changing constantly
Because of the dulling effect of sensory adaption in the retina, our eyes
constantly are making tiny rapid movements that create changes in the
location of the projected image inside the eye
Stimulus variation is an essential attribute for perception- it paradoxically
makes the task of explaining perception more difficult
Sensory adaptation also plays a role in other senses
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
Perception: the set of processes by which we recognize, organize, and make sense of the sensations we receive from environmental stimuli. Perception doesn"t consist of just seeing what is being projected onto your retina; the process is much more complex. Your brain processes the visual stimuli giving the stimuli meaning and interpreting them. James gibson provided a useful framework for studying perception in his influential work; he introduced concepts of distal (external) object, informational medium, proximal stimulation, and perceptual object. The distal (far) object is the object in the external world. Perception occurs when a perceptual object is created in you that reflects the properties of the external world. The process of perception varies tremendously across the different senses. Perception occurs when the informational medium carries information about a distal object to a person- when the person"s sense receptors pick up on the information, proximal stimulation occurs and the person perceives an object.
