Perception HOW WE SELECT, ORGANIZE, & INTERPRET OUR SENSATIONS

© E.R. Degginger/Animals Animals

Example of Perception Say the thermostat is set at 72 (the “ideal” temperature) However, some peoples’ perception is that the room temp is “too cold” or “too warm”

Perception  Selective Attention  focus of conscious awareness on a particular stimulus  Basically, it is the ability to focus on some piece of sensory info & ignore others

Cocktail-party phenomenon cocktail party effect – describes the ability to focus one's listening attention on a single talker among a mixture of conversations and background noises, ignoring other conversations. Form of selective attention.

Gestalt German word, meaning: – “form” – “whole” P. 236 How we organize visual info into patterns & forms

Gestalt Psychology Gestalt psychologists focused on how we GROUP objects together. We innately look at things in groups and not as isolated elements. Proximity (group objects that are close together as being part of same group) Similarity (objects similar in appearance are perceived as being part of same group) Continuity (objects that form a continuous form are perceived as same group) Closure (like top-down processing…we fill gaps in if we can recognize it)

Depth Perception Eleanor Gibson and her Visual Cliff Experiment. If you are old enough to crawl, you are old enough to see depth perception. We see depth by using two cues that researchers have put in two categories: Binocular Cues Monocular Cues

Binocular Cues (2 eyes) We need both of our eyes to use these cues. Retinal Disparity (as an object comes closer to us, the differences in images between our eyes becomes greater. 3-D Convergence (as an object comes closer our eyes have to come together to keep focused on the object).

Monocular Cues p. 240 Used to judge distance. You really only need one eye to use these

Size-Distance Relationship p. 244

Constancy Objects change in our eyes constantly as we or they move….but we are able to maintain content perception Shape Constancy Size Constancy Brightness Constancy

Perceptual Adaptation In vision, it’s the ability to adjust to an artificially displaced or even inverted visual field

Perceptual Set A mental predisposition to perceive 1 thing and not another Our first perceptual decision is what is the image in the figure and what is the background

ESP ExtraSensory Perception (ESP) – The controversial claim that perception can occur apart from sensory input Telepathy – mind 2 mind communication Clairvoyance – remote events Precognition – Future events

Why do so many people believe in ESP? Our understanding of nature is incomplete – Still questions about the world around us… Misinterpretations Misperceptions Poor memories Selective recall

Is there Perception w/out Sensation? Is ESP a verifiable phenomenon? Parapsychology: – The study of para-normal events, including ESP & Psychokinesis Conclusion about ESP: No sound evidence for para-psychological phenomena No single individual who can demonstrate psychic powers to independent investigators YA_4dM