PERCEPTION The organization and interpretation of our senses

McGurk Effect-another example of sensory interaction (like tasting the jelly bean the other day) if we see one syllable while hearing another we perceive a third different syllable

The famous "Stroop Effect" is named after J. Ridley Stroop who discovered this strange phenomenon in the 1930s. The words themselves have a strong influence over your ability to say the color. The interference between the different information (what the words say and the color of the words) your brain receives causes a problem. There are two theories that may explain the Stroop effect: Speed of Processing Theory: the interference occurs because words are read faster than colors are named. Selective Attention Theory: the interference occurs because naming colors requires more attention than reading words.

Gestalt An organized whole – When we see things, we look at the big picture, rather than all of the small parts

Grouping A gestalt principle of perceptual organization that says we tend to group stimuli into coherent groups

Figure-Ground Some objects seem prominent, while others recede into the background

Continuity Perceiving smooth and continuous forms

Proximity When objects, sounds or people are close together we perceive them as a whole

Similarity Grouping objects based on their sameness

Closure Closing up or completing figures that are not, in fact, complete

Visual Cues Monocular Cues - Depth cues available to either eye alone Binocular Cues – Depth cues that DEPEND on the use of both eyes. Example-Retinal Disparity-the finger sausage Depth perception partially innate. Gibson-The Virtual Cliff

Relative Size If two figures are perceived as equal in size, the one that casts the small image on the retina is perceived as farther away

Interposition If one figure appears to overlap or obscure another figure, it is perceived to be in front

Relative Clarity/Brightness Light and Shadow Brighter objects appear closer than dimmer objects

Aerial Perspective Atmospheric conditions affect perception of distance. Clearer objects seem closer.

Linear Perspective Parallel lines appear to converge as the move farther into the distance

Relative Height Objects higher in our field of vision are seen as being farther away than lower objects

Ambiguous Figures Figures that can be interpreted as two or more different images

Illusions Our left hemispheres attempt to organize the information that we see. – Sometimes it’s difficult Why do we see what we see? – Our expectations and experiences influence perceptions

Perception Allows us to create meaning out of sensations Why aren’t all of our perceptions the same? – They are impacted by our sensory systems, experiences and expectations

Perceptual Set A bias we have regarding perception A readiness to perceive something in a specific way- a mental predisposition to PERCEIVE one thing or another (ex: kindergarten story/Loch Ness monster) Challenge #7 reading the sentences (ex: Paris in the the Spring) you miss it because you don’t expect it!)

Perceptual Adaptation Remember the goggles?? There does seem to be a critical period to certain aspects of vision. Examples: processing whole faces/perceptual constancy

Synaesthesia Mingling of senses Example: Hearing a musical note prompting someone to see in color Tasting spoken words. Ex: hearing the word table produces the taste of apricots

What do you see?