PSYC 1001 Lecture Notes - Lecture 4: Absolute Threshold, Gestalt Psychology, Synesthesia

• School: Carleton University
• Department: Psychology
• Course: PSYC 1001
• Professor: Peter Aubin

Document Summary

Is the detection of physical energy emitted or reflected by physical objects (e. g. light/sound) It occurs when energy in the external environment or the body stimulates receptors in the sense organs. Sensory organs contain receptors that receive, translate raw sensory information from the external. 3 key concepts: transduction: converts physical stimuli into neural impulses aka sensory stimuli, coding: converts particular sensory stimuli into specific sensations, sensory reduction: filters & analyzes incoming sensations before sending a neural impulse to the brain. Neural impulses gained through the senses are sent to various parts of the brain. Synesthesia cross-talk between stimuli/sensations & what you perceive; neurological phenomenon in which the senses are blended (smelling weekdays; hearing colors) Psychophysics where our inner world meets reality: psychophysics: the study of how physical stimuli are translated into psychological experience (fechner, 1860, absolute threshold, difference threshold. Perception: process by which the brain selects, organizes, and interprets sensory data.