Question 1

Quinn has spent the afternoon setting up hundreds of dominoes.When his brother gets home,he comments that Quinn has created an interesting clover-leaf pattern.Though Quinn wasn't aware he was doing this,he is able to see the pattern when his brother points it out.Which Gestalt principle are both boys using?
A) Similarity
B) Figure-ground
C) Proximity
D) Continuity

Accepted Answer

The boys are using the Gestalt principle of Continuity, which describes our tendency to interpret a series of points or lines as having unity and continuity. Quinn unknowingly created a clover-leaf pattern, which his brother was able to recognize because it followed a continuous form.

Question 2

Becky's mother and father load the luggage into the car while Becky gives Grandmother a hug good-bye.As the family drives away,Becky watches Grandmother get smaller and smaller,until she seems to disappear.Becky asks her parents why Grandma always becomes the size of an ant when they leave.Her parents attempt to explain to Becky the principle of
A) proximity.
B) continuity.
C) size constancy.
D) shape constancy.

Accepted Answer

Size constancy refers to the tendency to perceive an object as maintaining a constant size despite changes in its retinal image size, such as when an object appears smaller as it moves away. In this case, Becky perceives her grandmother as becoming smaller and disappearing as the car drives away, but her parents try to explain to her that her grandmother is not actually getting smaller, it's just the distance between them that is increasing.

Question 3

Leonardo da Vinci's painting the 'Mona Lisa' has intrigued people,because it is uncertain as to whether the woman in the picture is smiling or not.According to the research presented in your textbook,the ambiguity of the Mona Lisa 'smile' is due to:
A) binocular disparity
B) a by-product of the human visual system
C) the illusion called the visual cliff
D) the Muller-Lyer illusion

Accepted Answer

The ambiguity of the Mona Lisa's smile is due to a by-product of the human visual system, specifically the perception of emotion in facial expressions. The painting has both subtle positive and negative emotional cues which can create the impression of a smile or a neutral expression depending on the viewer's interpretation.

Question 4

A rock band recently covered (i.e. ,remade)a classic country song.Though the band uses different kinds of instruments and a different tempo,Colby still recognizes it due to
A) the law of continuity.
B) Hering's opponent-process theory.
C) perceptual constancy.
D) transduction.

Accepted Answer

Perceptual constancy allows individuals to recognize objects and stimuli even when they are presented in different contexts. In this case, Colby is still able to recognize the classic country song even though it has been covered by a rock band using different instruments and tempo.

Question 5

Sammy was born and raised in a large city.The first time his parents drive through the countryside,he sees an animal with four legs,a mane,a long tail,and a saddle.Though he has never seen this animal in real life before,he decides that it must be a horse.He is using
A) central processing.
B) bottom-up processing.
C) top-down processing.
D) individual processing.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Sammy was born and raised in a...

Question 6

Niguel is required to give a speech as part of his psychology class.Esme,who is also in the class,opens a note from her boyfriend during Niguel's speech and grows angry at something her boyfriend wrote.Though he hasn't been paying attention to how many people are smiling at him,Niguel immediately notices Esme's angry face.Why do psychologists think we are so much quicker to recognize an angry face than a happy one?
A) We are biologically programmed to want to help people who seem unhappy.
B) Most people are paranoid that someone will be angry with them.
C) Angry faces are assumed to have threat value,and we are biologically programmed to respond to threats quickly.
D) Vigilance like Niguel's is situation-specific;if he weren't anxious about his speech,he would have been no quicker to see Esme's angry face than a happy face.

Accepted Answer

Psychologists believe that we are quicker to recognize angry faces than happy ones because angry faces are assumed to have threat value, and we are biologically programmed to respond to threatening situations quickly. This response has evolved as a survival mechanism to protect ourselves from potential danger. Therefore, we are more vigilant and quicker to notice angry faces because they may indicate a potential threat to our safety.

Question 7

Two advertisements for chewing gum are shown on television.In Ad 1,a woman chews the gum while she jogs in the park.In a voiceover,she says that she always enjoys jogging more when she's chewing this gum.In Ad 2,Ginger asks a man out but is rejected.Later,she learns that he turned her down because she has bad breath.When Ginger goes to the store to buy gum,the brand from Ad 2 is the one she remembers,so that is the one she buys.What about Ad 2 was more compelling than Ad 1?
A) Ad 2 had a higher threat value,and people are more attentive to stimuli that might affect their well-being.
B) Ad 2 involved an interaction between two people;research has shown that interactions in ads always draw more of our attention.
C) Ad 1 featured exercise,and research has shown that only the 30 percent of Americans who exercise regularly will notice ads featuring exercise.
D) We can't tell unless we can see what the women in each ad looked like.

Accepted Answer

Ad 2 had a higher threat value because it involved the fear of rejection due to bad breath. People are more attentive to stimuli that might affect their well-being. Ad 1 only mentioned enjoying jogging more while chewing gum, which does not have as strong of a threat value.

Question 8

When we are reading,the distance of each letter from those around it affects the word which we see.For example,scarcity means something different from scar city,therapist is different from the rapist,and prosecute is different from prose cute.Which Gestalt principle are we using to decide which letters to consider part of full words?
A) Similarity
B) Proximity
C) Closure
D) Continuity

Accepted Answer

We are using the Gestalt principle of proximity to decide which letters to consider as part of full words. This principle states that objects that are close to each other are perceived as belonging together. In the case of reading, letters that are close together in space are perceived as belonging to the same word, while letters that are farther apart are perceived as separate words.

Question 9

Since everyone's penmanship is different,how are we able to read so many different handwriting styles? That is,how do we recognize familiar letters in spite of the differences in the way they are written?
A) Perceptual constancy
B) The law of proximity
C) The law of continuity
D) Monocular depth cues

Accepted Answer

Perceptual constancy refers to the ability of our brain to recognize and interpret familiar stimuli, even when they appear differently due to variations in size, angle, lighting, or in this case, handwriting style. Our brain has learned to differentiate between the essential features of each letter and focuses on these features rather than the minor details that may vary. This is why we can still read text even if it is written in different fonts or by different people with different handwriting styles.

Question 10

The newspapers in Ursula's neighbourhood recently reported that a man saw a lion in the area.Since lions are not native to Ursula's part of the world and none of the lions at the zoo have escaped,many people are skeptical that the lion even exists.However,as Ursula is driving home,an animal runs out in front of her car.It's the lion! She slams on the brakes and calls the police.The police arrive within minutes and search the woods surrounding the road.They find no lion tracks,but they do find dog footprints-and a large golden retriever.Ursula is embarrassed to learn that what she saw was a big dog,not a lion.Because she'd read about the lion,she had expected to see it.Ursula had
A) a vestibular error.
B) a stroboscopic experience.
C) a perceptual set.
D) synesthesia.

Accepted Answer

Ursula's previous knowledge about the reported lion in the area led to a perceptual set or expectation to see a lion. Her brain organized incoming sensory information in a way that it was interpreted as a lion, even though it was just a big dog that ran in front of her car.

Question 11

Jaspar received a ViewMaster for his birthday.When he looks through the lenses,the image inside the ViewMaster appears to be three-dimensional.This is because each of Jaspar's eyes is seeing a slightly different image of the picture.This is called
A) binocular disparity.
B) the law of closure.
C) stroboscopic movement.
D) the law of proximity.

Accepted Answer

Binocular disparity is the difference in the image seen by each eye, which creates the illusion of depth perception and three-dimensionality. This phenomenon is what allows us to see the images in a ViewMaster or any other stereoscopic device. The law of closure, stroboscopic movement, and the law of proximity are not applicable in this scenario.

Question 12

Vittoria has grown up in the digital age.The movies her parents play are all on DVD.In her elementary school's health class,the teacher shows a movie on an old movie projector.When it's over,Vittoria helps the teacher take the reels off the projector and put them in their cases.As she does so,she notices that the video tape is actually thousands of tiny still images.She is bewildered and wonders how still images can create the illusion of movement.The principle behind motion pictures is
A) stroboscopic movement.
B) motion parallax.
C) the law of closure.
D) brightness constancy.

Accepted Answer

Stroboscopic movement is the principle behind motion pictures. This phenomenon occurs when a series of still images are presented in rapid succession, giving the illusion of movement. This is how movies and other motion pictures work.

Question 13

Because it isn't feasible to construct every movie set to scale,models are sometimes used to simulate real environments.Looking through a camera that is focused on the model alone,one can easily believe that a tiny model is actually a real city.However,if a real,to-scale object such as a soda can is placed beside the city,we are able to see that the size of the city is a mere
A) illusion.
B) Gestalt.
C) stroboscope.
D) kinesthesis.

Accepted Answer

The word "mere" suggests that the actual size of the city is smaller than what it appeared to be through the camera, making it an illusion.

Question 14

Colin was involved in an accident that damaged his left eardrum.Though the injury reduced his ear's capacity to transmit vibrations,a hearing aid greatly improves his ability to hear.Colin has ___________________ deafness.
A) conduction
B) nerve
C) vibration
D) pitch

Accepted Answer

Colin's injury has reduced the ability of his ear to transmit vibrations, which is a characteristic of conduction deafness. This type of deafness is caused by a problem in the outer or middle ear, such as damage to the eardrum, which interferes with the conduction of sound vibrations to the inner ear. The fact that a hearing aid greatly improves Colin's ability to hear suggests that the problem is one of conduction rather than nerve deafness, which is caused by damage to the auditory nerve. Vibration and pitch are not types of deafness but rather qualities of sound.

Question 15

The pygmy people live in the dense rain forests of Africa,and few ever see wide open spaces.An anthropologist once took a pygmy out of the rain forest and showed him a wide plain where buffaloes were grazing.The buffaloes were so far away that they looked like insects to the pygmy,and when the anthropologist drove closer to them,the pygmy was convinced that some form of witchcraft was being used to change the insects into buffaloes.Because of his lack of experience with distant objects,the pygmy had not developed
A) a linear perspective.
B) gustation.
C) the law of proximity.
D) size constancy.

Accepted Answer

The pygmy was unable to recognize the buffaloes as being the same size even though they were far away. This lack of ability to perceive distant objects as being the same size as when they are closer is called size constancy. The other options, linear perspective, gustation, and the law of proximity, do not directly relate to the pygmy's inability to perceive the distance and size of the buffaloes.

Question 16

Though we cannot overtly smell them,chemical signals are contained in natural body scents.These chemicals are so powerful that they have been associated with attraction and phenomena like menstrual synchrony.What are these chemical signals?
A) Gustation
B) Pheromones
C) Olfaction
D) Conduction

Accepted Answer

Chemical signals contained in natural body scents are called pheromones.

Question 17

Abe made a little book with pictures of a stick figure.The picture on each page differs slightly from the picture on the page before it.When he flips through the pages as fast as he can,the stick figure appears to be walking.This perceived motion is known as
A) convergence cues.
B) binocular disparity.
C) transduction.
D) stroboscopic movement.

Accepted Answer

The perceived motion described in the scenario is stroboscopic movement, which occurs when a series of still images are presented in rapid succession, creating the illusion of continuous motion.

Question 18

Scientists created a visual cliff by placing a thick sheet of clear glass over a drop-off.They found that by the time children are old enough to crawl,they will not venture over the "edge" of the "cliff." What skill have the children developed that makes them wary?
A) Convergence
B) Perceptual constancy
C) The law of proximity
D) Depth perception

Accepted Answer

The children have developed depth perception, which allows them to perceive distance and depth accurately. This skill helps them avoid potential dangers, such as falling off the "cliff" created by the glass.

Question 19

Anselmo and Quinta are lying in the grass gazing up at puffy white clouds."Look!" Quinta says,pointing to a cloud."That one looks like a lamb." Anselmo sees that the cloud's shape does indeed suggest a lamb.To decide whether the cloud really looked like a lamb,Anselmo had to refer to an internal
A) perceptual schema.
B) depth cue.
C) motion parallax.
D) vestibular apparatus.

Accepted Answer

A perceptual schema is an internal mental representation that helps us interpret sensory information. In this case, Anselmo is using his perceptual schema to interpret the shape of the cloud as resembling a lamb.

Question 20

Christa is interested in fixing up two friends on a blind date.Diane,whose last blind date was a nightmare,is reluctant to agree.Tristan,who met his last serious girlfriend on a blind date,is open to the idea.Throughout the date,Diane is quiet and standoffish,so Tristan decides he is not interested in seeing her again.Where did the problem with the date start?
A) Weber's law says that people have to be outgoing to be perceived as likable.
B) Diane was sending Tristan subliminal messages all evening.
C) Diane's perception of a blind date biased her against the idea before the date ever started.
D) Diane relied too heavily on the Gestalt law of proximity.

Accepted Answer

The problem with the date started with Diane's perception of a blind date being biased against the idea before the date ever started. This caused her to be quiet and standoffish throughout the date, which ultimately led to Tristan losing interest in her. If Diane had been more open-minded and willing to give the blind date a chance, the outcome may have been different.

Quiz 5: Sensation and Perception

Leonardo da Vinci's painting the 'Mona Lisa' has intrigued people,because it is uncertain as to whether the woman in the picture is smiling or not.According to the research presented in your textbook,the ambiguity of the Mona Lisa 'smile' is due to:

A rock band recently covered (i.e. ,remade) a classic country song.Though the band uses different kinds of instruments and a different tempo,Colby still recognizes it due to

Sammy was born and raised in a large city.The first time his parents drive through the countryside,he sees an animal with four legs,a mane,a long tail,and a saddle.Though he has never seen this animal in real life before,he decides that it must be a horse.He is using

Since everyone's penmanship is different,how are we able to read so many different handwriting styles? That is,how do we recognize familiar letters in spite of the differences in the way they are written?

Jaspar received a ViewMaster for his birthday.When he looks through the lenses,the image inside the ViewMaster appears to be three-dimensional.This is because each of Jaspar's eyes is seeing a slightly different image of the picture.This is called

Colin was involved in an accident that damaged his left eardrum.Though the injury reduced his ear's capacity to transmit vibrations,a hearing aid greatly improves his ability to hear.Colin has ___________________ deafness.

Though we cannot overtly smell them,chemical signals are contained in natural body scents.These chemicals are so powerful that they have been associated with attraction and phenomena like menstrual synchrony.What are these chemical signals?

Abe made a little book with pictures of a stick figure.The picture on each page differs slightly from the picture on the page before it.When he flips through the pages as fast as he can,the stick figure appears to be walking.This perceived motion is known as

Scientists created a visual cliff by placing a thick sheet of clear glass over a drop-off.They found that by the time children are old enough to crawl,they will not venture over the "edge" of the "cliff." What skill have the children developed that makes them wary?

Anselmo and Quinta are lying in the grass gazing up at puffy white clouds."Look!" Quinta says,pointing to a cloud."That one looks like a lamb." Anselmo sees that the cloud's shape does indeed suggest a lamb.To decide whether the cloud really looked like a lamb,Anselmo had to refer to an internal