PERCEPTIONThe 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/BrightnessLight 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?