selective attention
the focusing of conscious awareness on a particular stimulus, as in the cocktail effect
cocktail effect party
your ability to attend to only one voice among many
inattentional blindness
failing to see visible objects when our attention is directed elsewhere
visual capture
tendency for vision to dominate the other senses
gestalt
an emphasized "whole" on our tendency to integrate pieces of information into meaningful wholes
figure-ground
our first perceptual task is to perceive any object; figure, as distant from its surroundings; ground
grouping
the perceptual tendency to organize stimuli into coherent groups
proximity
group nearby figures together
similarity
we group together figures that are similar to eachother
continuity
perceive smooth, continuous pattern rather than discontinuous ones
connectedness
that are uniform and linked together
closure
we fill in gaps to complete, whole object
depth perception
the ability to see objects in three dimensions although the images that strike the retina are two-dimensional, allows us to judge distance
visual cliff
a laboratory device for testing depth perception in infants and young animals
binocular cues
depth cues; such as retinal disparity and convergence that depend on the use of two eyes
retinal disparity
binocular cue for perceiving depth; by comparing images from the two eyeballs; the brain computer distance- the greater the disparity(difference) between the two images, the closer the object
convergence
a binocular cue for perceiving depth; the extent to which the eyes converge inward when looking at an object. the greater the inward strain,the closer the object
monocular cues
depth cues; such as interposition and linear perspective, available to either eye alone
relative size
we assume that two object are similar in size, we perceive the one that casts the smaller retinal image as farther away
interposition
if one object partially blocks our view of another, we it as closer
relative clarity
because light from distant objects passes through more atmosphere, we perceive hazy objects as farther away than sharp, clear objects.
texture gradient
a gradual change from a coarse, distinct texture to a fine, indistinct texture signals increasing distance.
relative height
we perceive objects higher in our field of vision as farther away. because we perceive the lower part of a figure-ground as closer, we perceive it as a figure
relative motion
motion parallax; as we move, more objects that are actually stable may appear to move.
linear perspective
parallel lines,such as railroad tracks appear to converge with distance
light and shadow
nearby objects reflect more light to our eyes. given two identical objects, that dimmer one seems farther away
stroboscopic movement
a motion picture creates this illusion by flashing 24 still pictures each second
phi phenomenon
an illusion of movement created when two or more adjacent lights blink on and off in quick succession; the marquee
perceptual constancy
perceiving object as unchanging (having consistent lightness, color, shape, and size) even as illumination and retinal images change
size constancy
we perceive objects as having a constant size
moon illusion
cues to objects distances at the horizon make the moon behind them seem farther away than the Moon high in the night sky
ponzo illusion
a more distant object can create the same-sized images on our retinas. but experience tells us that a more distant object can create the same-sized image as a nearer one only if it is actually larger
Muller-lyer illusion
famous illusion of two "arrowhead" pictures where one inner line looks longer than the other
perceptual adaptation
in vision, the ability to adjust to an artificially displaced or even inverted visual field
perceptual set
a mental predisposition to perceive one thing and not another
schema
the experience formed by concepts that organize and interpret unfamiliar information
human factors psychologists
a branch of psychology that explores how people and machines interact and how machines and physical environments can be made safe and easy to use.
extrasensory perception
(ESP) the controversial claim that perception can occur apart form sensory input. Said to include telepathy, clairvoyance, and precognition
telepathy
one person sending thought to another or perceiving anothers thoughts
clairvoyance
perceiving remote events, such as sensing that a friends house is on fire
precognition
perceiving future events
parapsychology
the study of paranormal phenomena, including ESP and psychokinesis
psychokinesis
mind over matter, such as levitating or moving objects with the mind
reversible figure-head
whether you see two faces or a vase depends on this relationship