Deck 4: Sensation and Perception.

Question 1

The science of measuring changes in physical stimuli and relating them to changes in psychological sensations is called

A) physiological psychology.
B) neurological psychology.
C) psychophysics.
D) sensory deprivation.

Answer 1

C

Question 2

The primary function of the senses is to act as devices that convert one kind of energy into another, which are referred to as

A) visual adapters.
B) biological assimilators.
C) phosphenes.
D) biological transducers.

Answer 2

D

Question 3

When listening to your professor's lecture, hearing the various sounds of the professor's words would involve the process of

A) perception.
B) sensation.
C) assimilation.
D) accommodation.

Answer 3

B

Question 4

Armand is engaging in the process by which the brain organizes sensations into meaningful patterns.This process is known as

A) reception.
B) adaptation.
C) perception.
D) cognition.

Question 5

When Fatima detects the physical energies in her environment with her eyes, ears, and other sensory organs, she is engaging in the process known as

A) sensation.
B) perception.
C) adaptation.
D) cognition

Question 6

Much, if not all, of the two-step process of sensation and perception is

A) ​unconscious.
B) ​learned.
C) ​best explained through introspection.
D) ​best explained through the subjective methodology used by the parapsychologists.

Question 7

Sense receptors are biological transducers, which means that they

A) select from a broad range of stimulation.
B) analyze the environment into important features.
C) convert one form of energy to another.
D) detect only a limited range of energies.

Question 8

Regarding the two-step process of perception, which of the following statements is FALSE?​

A) ​Much, if not all, of this two-step process is unconscious so that we are usually aware only of the result, the percept.
B) ​Each sense translates a specific type of physical energy into patterns of activity in the neurons.
C) ​Scientists use introspection to study how messages are streamed back to your brain to form your percept.
D) ​The senses act as data reduction systems, sending only the most important information to the brain.

Question 9

When listening to your professor's lecture, interpreting the meaning of the professor's words is an example of

A) perception.
B) sensation.
C) assimilation.
D) accommodation.

Question 10

In order to take your psychology quiz, you must read and process the information.The ability to organize the black marks on the paper into meaningful patterns involves the process of

A) perception.
B) sensation.
C) sensory adaptation.
D) sensory accommodation.

Question 11

The process of detecting physical energies with the sensory organs is called

A) sensation.
B) perception.
C) adaptation.
D) cognition.

Question 12

You are reading the Chapter on sensation and perception.You look away from this book, casting your gaze somewhere else in the room.Seemingly in an instant, your eyes come to rest upon some other aspect of your room, such as a lamp or your bed.Which of the following would best allow us to understand how this unconscious process occurs?​

A) introspection
B) psychoanalysis
C) ​parapsychology
D) psychophysics

Question 13

In order to take your psychology quiz, you must read and process the information.The initial step of your eyes detecting the black marks on the page depends on the process of

A) perception.
B) sensation.
C) sensory adaptation.
D) sensory accommodation.

Question 14

Which of the following would allow us to understand how sensation and perception work?​

A) ​introspection
B) ​subjective methods
C) ​objective methods
D) ​parapsychology methods

Question 15

Dr.Azure measures sound waves and electromagnetic radiation and relates them to the sensations people experience as loudness and brightness, respectively.Dr.Azure is conducting research in the area of

A) physiological psychology.
B) neurological psychology.
C) psychophysics.
D) sensory deprivation.

Question 16

Regarding sensation and perception, which of the following statements is FALSE?

A) We are constantly surrounded by electromagnetic radiation, heat, pressure, vibrations, molecules, and mechanical forces.
B) The senses are enough to give people a completely accurate "picture" of reality.
C) During the process of perception, our brain assembles sensations into a meaningful "picture" of events.
D) Unless your senses translate information into a form your brain can understand, you will experience only a void of silence and darkness.

Question 17

The sensory receptors of your eyes are able to convert light energy into neural energy, which can then be utilized by the brain.Thus, the sensory receptors in your eyes act as

A) visual adapters.
B) biological assimilators.
C) phosphenes.
D) biological transducers.

Question 18

Objective scientific methods used in which field enable us to better understand the how of both sensation and perception​?

A) kinesics
B) ​parapsychology
C) ​psychoanalysis
D) psychophysics

Question 19

The process by which the brain organizes sensations into meaningful patterns is known as

A) reception.
B) adaptation.
C) perception.
D) cognition.

Question 20

You are reading the Chapter on sensation and perception.You look away from this book, casting your gaze somewhere else in the room.Seemingly in an instant, your eyes come to rest upon some other aspect of your room, such as a lamp or your bed.Introspecting on this experience does not explain how your eyes did the sensing, how the messages streamed back to your brain, or how your brain constructed your percept.This illustrates that the two-step process of sensation and perception is a(n)__________ process.

A) ​learned
B) ​unconscious
C) ​conscious
D) conditioned

Question 21

The decrease in sensory response to an unchanging stimulus is known as

A) sensory conflict.
B) sensory gating.
C) sensory adaptation.
D) selective attention.

Question 22

Which of the following involves the process of extracting perceptual features from stimulus patterns?

A) sensory analysis.
B) sensory adaptation.
C) perceptual gating.
D) perceptual localization.

Question 23

Regarding the sensation of various species, which of the following statements is FALSE?

A) The eyes of honeybees transduce parts of the electromagnetic spectrum that are invisible to humans.
B) Bats' ears transduce sound waves that humans cannot hear.
C) Research has shown that the human eye transduces all of the electromagnetic spectrum to the brain, but the brain is unable to perceive it.
D) Many fish have special organs that can sense the bioelectric fields of other living things.

Question 24

Sensory adaptation refers to a decrease in sensory response that accompanies

A) perceptual defense.
B) threshold shifts.
C) an unchanging stimulus.
D) selective attention.

Question 25

Sensory adaptation is normally most rapid for the sense of

A) vision.
B) olfaction.
C) taste.
D) kinesthesis.

Question 26

Our sensory systems act as data reduction systems.This means that they

A) can change one form of energy to another.
B) transmit information to the brain in the form of codes.
C) select and analyze information and send only the most important data to the brain.
D) are only sensitive to a small range of sensations that will require additional interpretation by the brain.

Question 27

Because our senses select, analyze, and filter information until only the most important information remains, our senses are considered __________ systems.

A) convergent
B) data reduction
C) somesthetic
D) replicating

Question 28

Your eyes transduce only a tiny fraction of the entire range of electromagnetic energies, which we call the

A) perceptual limit.
B) visible spectrum.
C) biological transduction range.
D) spectral analysis limitation.

Question 29

Owls, who hunt at night, can hear sounds that cannot be heard by humans, which illustrates that, compared to humans, they have a much

A) higher absolute threshold for sounds.
B) lower absolute threshold for sounds.
C) higher sensory adaptation level for sounds.
D) lower sensory adaptation level for sounds.

Question 30

Which of the following explains why you are not constantly aware of the pressure of your wristwatch on your arm or your shoes on your feet?

A) sensory adaptation
B) sensory gating
C) sensory conflict
D) perceptual localization.

Question 31

You go into your son's room, only to be met with a combination of smells, including day-old pizza, wet towels, and gym shoes.Your son seems unconcerned with the putrid odors.When you ask how he can stand the stench of his "pig sty," he replies that he does not smell anything because of __________.(Well, at least he's listening in psychology class.)

A) sensory adaptation
B) sensory gating
C) sensory conflict
D) selective attention

Question 32

Regarding the sensory abilities of humans, which of the following statements is FALSE?

A) Our sensory receptors do not transduce all of the energies they encounter.
B) Many types of stimuli cannot be sensed directly because we lack sensory receptors to transduce the energy.
C) Some sense receptors transduce only part of their target energy range.
D) Because our sense organs are able to convert one kind of energy into another, they are known as feature detectors.

Question 33

The ears of bats can transduce and hear sound waves that humans cannot.This allows them to fly in complete darkness by using

A) feature detectors.
B) depth cues.
C) hyperopia.
D) echolocation.

Question 34

The minimum amount of energy needed for a sensation to occur is called

A) the absolute threshold.
B) a transducer level.
C) data reduction threshold.
D) perceptual limit.

Question 35

The separation of sensory information into its important elements is known as

A) sensory analysis.
B) sensory adaptation.
C) perceptual gating.
D) perceptual localization.

Question 36

A dog whistle can be heard by dogs but not by humans.This whistle takes advantage of a characteristic of sensory systems known as

A) the absolute threshold.
B) the difference threshold.
C) perceptual defense.
D) a just noticeable difference.

Question 37

When you first get into the swimming pool, the water feels rather cool, but after swimming for a while, the water feels fine.A friend asks you how the water is, and you tell her the "water's great." She jumps in and then accuses you of lying because the water is freezing.You really were not lying.It is just that you experienced

A) sensory gating.
B) sensory adaptation.
C) sensory conflict.
D) selective attention.

Question 38

Which of the following animals have special organs that can sense the bioelectric fields of other living creatures?

A) owls
B) honey bees
C) bats
D) fish

Question 39

Sensory receptors respond best to

A) changes in stimulation.
B) changes in threshold.
C) subliminal images.
D) repetitive stimuli.

Question 40

As the senses process information, they divide the world into basic stimulus patterns known as

A) phosphenes.
B) perceptual features.
C) perceptual sets.
D) sensory adaptations.

Question 41

Matt has been studying for several hours and begins to rub his eyes.He immediately "sees" stars, checkerboards, and flashes of color.These visual sensations caused by Matt rubbing his eyes are called

A) visual pop-outs.
B) phosphenes.
C) visual spectrals.
D) artificial vision.

Question 42

Visual "pop-out," or the eye-catching effect, of such visual stimuli as lines, shapes, edges, spots, and colors occurs because your visual system is highly sensitive to perceptual

A) amplitudes.
B) transducers.
C) features.
D) thresholds.

Question 43

A researcher presents a blindfolded subject with a sweet liquid and then adds a drop of sweetener to the liquid and has the subject taste it.This process continues until the subject tells the researcher that the liquid tastes "sweeter." Regarding the sense of taste, this researcher is seeking the __________ threshold.

A) absolute
B) subliminal
C) phosphene
D) difference

Question 44

Regarding sensory analysis, which of the following statements is FALSE?

A) As they process information, the senses divide the world into important perceptual features.
B) Our sensitivity to perceptual features is an innate characteristic of our nervous system.
C) Our sensitivity to perceptual features is influenced by our experiences early in life.
D) Our sensitivity to perceptual features prevents our visual system from being vulnerable to the effect known as visual pop-out.

Question 45

Converting important features of the world into neural messages understood by the brain is called

A) sensory coding.
B) sensory accommodation.
C) sensory adaptation.
D) sensory gating.

Question 46

The difference between stimuli must be sufficiently large in order for your sensory systems to __________ it.

A) accommodate
B) assimilate
C) code
D) decelerate

Question 47

In their experiments on the brain and perceptual features, Blakemore, Cooper, Grobstein, and Chow found that the kittens raised in the horizontally-striped rooms

A) bumped into chair legs.
B) missed when they tried to jump to horizontal surfaces.
C) had difficulty walking in a straight line.
D) experienced no difficulty in any visual task since the eyes easily adapt.

Question 48

In their experiments on the brain and perceptual features, Blakemore, Cooper, Grobstein, and Chow found that the kittens raised in the vertically-striped rooms

A) bumped into chair legs.
B) missed when they tried to jump to horizontal surfaces.
C) had difficulty walking in a straight line.
D) experienced no difficulty in any visual task since the eyes easily adapt.

Question 49

Creating phosphenes illustrates how which of the following processes occurs in the eye?

A) sensory gating
B) accommodation
C) absolute threshold
D) sensory coding

Question 50

In order for a frog's visual bug-detector to work, the bug must be

A) a dark color.
B) coming closer to the frog.
C) stationary.
D) moving.

Question 51

A frog's eyes are highly sensitive to small, dark, moving spots.Since the frog's eyes are attuned to this specific stimuli, the frog's eyes act as

A) feature detectors.
B) sensory amplifiers.
C) perceptual transducers.
D) phosphenes.

Question 52

The visual system is able to analyze incoming sensory information into lines, angles, shading, and movement because it has a set of

A) sight cells.
B) second stage sensors.
C) feature detectors.
D) neurological transducers.

Question 53

Regarding difference thresholds, which of the following statements is TRUE?

A) Difference thresholds occur when we can first detect some stimulus.
B) Difference thresholds occur when we can first detect the change in the intensity of a stimulus.
C) Difference thresholds involve the decrease in sensory response to an unchanging stimulus.
D) Difference thresholds involve the mental process of organizing sensations into meaningful patterns.

Question 54

Important elements of a stimulus pattern, such as lines, shapes, edges, spots, and colors, are referred to as

A) perceptual features.
B) sensory amplifiers.
C) perceptual transducers.
D) phosphenes.

Question 55

In a drawing, a single vertical line is placed among a group of slanted lines.This effect, which is so basic that babies as young as three months respond to it, is called

A) the somesthetic effect.
B) visual pop-out.
C) the gate-control effect.
D) stereoscopic vision.

Question 56

Light sensations caused by pressure applied to the eye are referred to as

A) pheromones.
B) phosphenes.
C) visual features.
D) artificial vision.

Question 57

In their experiments on the brain and perceptual features, Blakemore, Cooper, Grobstein, and Chow found that

A) the kittens raised in the vertically-striped rooms ran into chair legs in the normal environment.
B) the kittens raised in the horizontally-striped rooms had difficulty jumping onto a chair in the normal environment.
C) there was an actual decrease in brain cells tuned to the missing features.
D) all of these findings were true.

Question 58

Experiments with cats raised in environments which emphasized one feature over another showed that

A) even though cats did not have experience with some features, they could easily learn about them.
B) there was an actual decrease in brain cells tuned to the missing feature.
C) when returned to a normal environment, the cats became frightened and refused to move around.
D) there was an actual increase in brain cells tuned to the missing feature.

Question 59

A researcher presents two lights of varying brightness to a subject who is asked to respond same or different as he or she compares the intensities.The researcher is seeking the __________ threshold.

A) difference
B) absolute
C) subliminal
D) phosphene

Question 60

A minimum change in sensory intensity that is noticeable to an observer and can be coded into neural messages is known as the

A) absolute threshold.
B) psychophysical equation.
C) difference threshold.
D) transduction limit.

Question 61

Some brain areas receive visual information, others receive auditory information, and still others receive taste or touch.Knowing which brain areas are active tells us, in general, what kinds of sensations you are feeling.This illustrates

A) transduction.
B) sensory localization.
C) sensory adaptation.
D) cerebralization.

Question 62

When you are in a group of people, surrounded by voices, you can choose to focus on the voice of the person you are facing or even choose to eavesdrop on conversations around the room.This is known as

A) the "cocktail party effect."
B) the multisensory approach.
C) "mindblindness."
D) the sound threshold barrier.

Question 63

Being able to focus on the traffic signals among all the neon signs and lights illustrates

A) sensory gating.
B) selective attention.
C) control biasing.
D) physiological nystagmus.

Question 64

The "seat of your pants phenomenon" and the "cocktail party effect" refer to

A) sensory conflict and the involuntary focusing on a specific sensory input.
B) mixed attention and the voluntary focusing on many inputs.
C) selective attention and the voluntary focusing on a specific sensory input.
D) subliminal perception and the involuntary focusing on many inputs.

Question 65

Phosphenes occur because the

A) eyes are able to transduce only a tiny fraction of electromagnetic energies.
B) eyes are sensitive to the effect known as visual pop-out.
C) eyes are only prepared to code stimulation as visual features.
D) sensitivity of the eyes to perceptual features in influenced by experiences early in life.

Question 66

Which of the following processes can be consciously controlled?

A) sensory coding
B) selective attention
C) sensory adaptation
D) sensory analysis

Question 67

In order to artificially restore sight, researchers have used a miniature television camera to send electrical signals directly to the brain, bypassing damaged eyes and optic nerves.This system involved the use of sensory

A) adaptation.
B) localization.
C) gating.
D) assimilation.

Question 68

Which of the following appears to be based on the ability of brain structures to choose and divert incoming sensory messages?

A) sensory deceleration
B) sensory adaptation
C) selective attention
D) selective accommodation.

Question 69

Which of the following is NOT one of the general functions of the sensory system?

A) sensory coding
B) sensory localization
C) sensory analysis
D) sensory assimilation

Question 70

When you are in a group of people, surrounded by voices, you can choose to focus on the voice of the person you are facing or even choose to eavesdrop on conversations around the room.This is a good example of

A) selective adaptation.
B) selective attention.
C) sensory overload.
D) sensory deceleration.

Question 71

You are undergoing a PET scan.The doctor finds that when he asks you questions, the temporal lobe of the brain shows activation, while areas on the somatosensory area of the parietal lobe are activated when your hand is stroked.This association of brain area activation and sensation experienced illustrates

A) sensory gating.
B) sensory assimilation.
C) sensory localization.
D) cerebralization.

Question 72

You are about to take your psychology test when in the next room a nature video is being shown to another class.You focus intensely on reading and answering the test questions.When you look up a few minutes later, you realize that the video has stopped, and you hadn't even noticed.This situation illustrates your

A) sensory adaptation.
B) selective attention.
C) sensory gating.
D) selective accommodation.

Question 73

As you sit reading this page, receptors for touch and pressure in the seat of your pants are sending nerve impulses to your brain.Although these sensations have been present all along, you were probably not aware of them until just now.This "seat-of-the-pants phenomenon" is an example of

A) selective attention.
B) selective accommodation.
C) sensory deceleration.
D) sensory gating.

Question 74

Sensory localization means that the sensation experienced depends on the

A) area of the brain activated.
B) rate of firing of the nerve impulse.
C) type of receptor stimulated.
D) neural stimulation pattern.

Question 75

The ability to selectively attend to incoming sensory information is believed to result from

A) the inability of the brain to handle more than one message at a time.
B) faulty transmission of neural impulses.
C) the brain's ability to give some messages priority while putting others on hold.
D) a mismatch between the sensory systems.

Question 76

The type of sensation you experience depends on which area of the brain is activated.This is known as

A) transduction.
B) sensory localization.
C) sensory adaptation.
D) cerebralization.

Question 77

Although the senses reduce a mixture of sights, sounds, odors, tastes, and touch sensations to more manageable amounts, they are still too much for the brain to handle.That's why the brain further filters sensory information through

A) selective accommodation.
B) sensory deceleration.
C) selective attention.
D) control biasing.

Question 78

Assume that a scientist is working on a device to route sounds directly to the brain to provide a type of hearing for people who are completely deaf.Which principle of sensory functioning would be most useful to the scientist in achieving her goal?

A) selective attention
B) data reduction
C) sensory adaptation
D) sensory localization

Question 79

Voluntarily placing priorities on sensory messages refers to the process of

A) selective attention.
B) divided perception.
C) repetitious stimulation.
D) subliminal attention.

Question 80

After a musical concert that you enjoyed without distraction, a companion complains that she heard little of the music due to frequent shuffling and throat-clearing in the audience.The difference in your experience and hers is related to

A) just noticeable differences.
B) subliminal thresholds.
C) sensory adaptation.
D) selective attention.