Sensation and Perception

 Sensation
◦ A process of detecting physical energy (a stimulus)
from the environment, converting it into neural
signals and sending these to the brain.
◦ Color, voice, brightness, sweetness, roughness…

 Perception
◦ A process of selecting, organizing, and
interpretation of sensory inputs.
 Bottom-up Processing
Analysis of the stimulus begins with the sense
receptors and works up to the level of the brain
and mind.

Letter “A” is really a black mark broken down

into features by the brain that we perceive as “A”
 Top-Down Processing
Information processing guided by higher-level
mental processes as we construct perceptions,
drawing on our experience and expectations.

THE CHT
Our sensory and perceptual processes work
together to help us sort out complex images.
Sensation
 your window to the world
 The stimulation of sensory receptors and
transmission of sensory information to the central
nervous system
 Includes
◦ Detection
◦ Transformation
◦ Transmission
 The sensory receptors convert/transform the
sensory stimulation into neural impulses –
transduction.
 Sensory Laws
Sensory threshold is the minimum point of detecting a
stimulus from the environment.
To detect signals - Two types of thresholds
◦ Absolute threshold
 The minimum intensity to be detected by a subject
50% of the time.
◦ Difference threshold
 The minimum difference in magnitude of two stimuli
required to tell them apart 50% of the time.
 Also known as Just Noticeable Difference (JND) –
Weber’s law
 Sensory adaptation
◦ Decreased responsiveness to stimuli due to
constant stimulation.
Perception
 Interpreting what comes in your window.
 The process by which sensations are organized
and interpreted to form an inner representation
of the world
 Includes
◦ Selecting,
◦ Organizing, and
◦ Interpreting sensations
Selecting
 Selective attention
◦ Focus /Figure Vs Margin/Ground
◦ Attention shifts constantly
◦ Factors affecting the selective attention
 External factors
 Contrasts in size, intensity, motion
 Repetition
 Internal factors
 Level of expectancy – issues people are
ready/primed for
 Person’s need/motive – attention influenced by
activated need.
 Form Perception
 Refers to perceiving different shapes,
patterns and forms into meaningful pieces.
 People select, organize and make meaning

◦ Grouping - The manner in which stimuli are

arranged, and grouped affects perception.
◦ Gestalt laws
Gestalt principle of perceptual
organization
 Figure-ground relationship
 Closure
 Proximity
 Similarity
 Symmetry
 Continuity
 Simplicity
Figure-Ground relationship
 This principle states
◦ People segment their visual world into figure
and ground.
◦ Figure: the object which is the focus of the
visual field
◦ Ground: the background
Similarity
 Similar objects are grouped together
Symmetry
 Good figure
 Organize things to make a balanced or
symmetrical figure that includes all the
parts.
Continuity
 Objects arranged in either a straight line
or a smooth continuing unit
Closure
 Tendency to fill in any missing parts of a
figure and see the figure as complete.
Proximity
 Objects closer to each other are grouped
together
Simplicity
 when a complex pattern is viewed it is
broken down and perceived as the
simplest form of an object.
Depth Perception
 The ability to perceive depth
 The ability to view the world in three
dimensions and to judge the distance of objects

 To determine the distal and proximal stimulus

◦ Binocular cues
 Two eyes
◦ Monocular cues
 One eye
Binocular Cues
 Retinal Disparity
◦ Each eye has a slightly different perspective &
image than the other
 Convergence
◦ Muscle tension in eyes increases as objects
move closer
◦ Inward turning of the eyes to focus an image on
the retina
Monocular Cues
 Accommodation
◦ The automatic adjustment of the shape of the
lens to focus an object in response to changes
in how far away the object is.
◦ The lens
 bulge to fit close objects on the retina
 elongate (flatten) when looking at objects that are
further away.
 Motion Parallax
◦ Closer objects – seem to move faster in
opposing direction
◦ Objects that are farther away - moving
slower in the same direction.
 Pictorial cues
◦ Artists use these cues to create the illusion of
depth in their paintings
◦ Interposition
 When one object overlaps another object, we view it
as closer.

◦ Linear perspective
 Parallel lines appear to converge at a distance.
 Elevation
◦ Higher in picture perceived as farther away

 Shading patterns
 Areas in shadow tend to recede and those in
light stand out

 Aerial perspective
◦ Closer objects clearer
◦ Both in detail and color
◦ Relative size
 When viewing two congruent objects, the farther
away object appears smaller even though the objects
are the same size.

◦ Texture gradient
 The gradual reduction of detail that occurs in a
surface as it recedes into the distance, compared with
a surface that is close and perceived in fine detail.
Perceptual Constancies
 Perceiving objects as unchanging even as
illumination and retinal images change.
 Includes
◦ Shape constancy
◦ Size constancy
◦ Brightness constancy
 Shape constancy
◦ The shape of an object will appear the same
regardless of the angle from which it is viewed.
 Size constancy
◦ Stable size perception amid changing size of the
stimuli.
 Brightness constancy
◦ Objects perceived as having constant
brightness regardless of the light reflected on
them
Perceptual Illusions

 Muller-Lyer illusion

 Moon illusion
 Is There Extrasensory Perception?

 Perception without sensory input is called

extrasensory perception (ESP).

 A large percentage of scientists do not

believe in ESP.
 Claims of ESP
1. Telepathy: Mind-to-mind communication.
One person sending thoughts and the other
receiving them.

2. Clairvoyance: Perception of remote events,

such as sensing a friend’s house on fire.

3. Precognition: Perceiving future events, such

as a political leader’s death.