Transcript Notes

Chapter 6
Section 5: Perceptual
Powers: Origins &
Influences
Inborn Abilities
• Infants
–Distinguish between sweet & salty
& discriminate between odors
–Distinguish human voices from
other sounds
• Startle to a loud noise & turn
their head towards a sound
• Discriminate size & color,
contrast, shadows, & complex
patterns
The Visual Cliff
• Devised by Eleanor Gibson and Richard
Walk to test depth perception
• Glass surface, with checkerboard
underneath at different heights
–Visual illusion of a cliff
–Baby can’t fall
• Mom stands across the gap.
• Babies show increased attention over
deep side at age 2 months, but aren’t
afraid until about the age they can crawl.
Critical Periods
• If an infant misses out on certain
experiences during a critical window
of time, perception will be impaired
• Innate abilities will not survive
• When adults who have been blind
from infancy have their vision
restored, may see, but not well
–Poor depth perception
• Perceptual powers are both
“wired in “ & dependent on
experience
Psychological & Cultural Influences on
Perception
• Because we care about what we see,
hear, taste, smell, & feel, psychological
factors can influence what we perceive
& how we perceive it
• Needs- when we need something, have
an interest in it, or want it, we are likely
to perceive it