PSYC 1010 Chapter Notes - Chapter 4: Psychophysics

• School: York University
• Department: Psychology
• Course: PSYC 1010
• Professor: Rebecca Jubis

Document Summary

Psychophysics: basic concepts and issues y psychophysics is the study of how physical stimuli are translated into psychological experience. Instead stimulus intensity increases, subject s probability of responding to stimuli gradually increases: absolute threshold is arbitrary defined as the stimulus intensity detected 50% of the time. Jnd a just noticeable difference is the smallest difference in the amount of stimulation that a specific sense can detect. the weber fraction for lifting weights is approximately 1/30, that means that you should be just able to detect the difference between a 300-gram weight and a 310-gram weight. Signal-detection theory y proposes that the detection of stimuli involves decision processes as well as sensory processes, which are both influenced by a variety of factors besides stimulus intensity. Perception without awareness y subliminal perception the registration of sensory input without conscious awareness: subliminal means below threshold. Summary y psychophysicists use a variety of methods to relate sensory inputs to subjective perceptions.