ecotelapsychology.weebly.comecotelapsychology.weebly.com/.../chapter_15_answers.docx · Web viewGestalt psychology developed early in the twentieth century and is based on the principle

Student book answersGestalt principles of perceptual organisationPages 345–346

Review 15.11 What is figure–ground organisation? Why is a contour important to this principle?

Figure-ground organisation is when the part of the visual stimulus being attended to and focused on becomes the figure, and its surroundings become the ground. The real or imagined contour line is an important aspect of figure-ground organisation because it separates the figure from the ground.

2 Why do we find it difficult to see animals camouflaged in their environment?

It is difficult to see animals camouflaged in their environment because the figure (animal) is similar in features to the ground (environment). It is therefore difficult to assign a contour line around the animal and separate it from the environment.

3 Explain how closure works.

Closure works because of our tendency to close up, fill in or ignore small gaps in a visual stimulus and we therefore see incomplete visual objects as a whole meaningful object.

4 Give an example of similarity and explain why the example is seen as a single unit.Examples from students will vary, but this is a sample response. Similarity is when we group together certain aspects or individual parts of a visual stimulus that have similar features (such as size, shape and colour) and view the groups as a meaningful whole. For example, we group the individual letters

together to view them as whole meaningful objects – three capital letter Es:

5 Describe how the brain uses certain principles to organise visual information.

The brain selects and organises visual information according to a number of visual perceptual principles in order to perceive and interpret that information

6 What theory underlies all of the Gestalt principles?

Gestalt psychology developed early in the twentieth century and is based on the principle that ‘the whole is greater than the sum of its parts’. In terms of sight, it deals with the tendency for our visual system to perceive what we see as a meaningful whole

Investigate 15.1© Oxford University Press 2017 1Oxford Psychology Units 1 & 2 Teacher obook/assess ISBN 9780190304119Permission has been granted for this page to be photocopied within the purchasing institution only.

Look online, through magazines or newspapers. How many company logos can you find where one or more of the Gestalt principles are used in a clever way in the design? Make a table like the one below to illustrate your findings.

Company Logo Gestalt principle used

Student responses will vary.

© Oxford University Press 2017 2Oxford Psychology Units 1 & 2 Teacher obook/assess ISBN 9780190304119Permission has been granted for this page to be photocopied within the purchasing institution only.

Student book answersDepth perceptionPages 347–350

Investigate 15.21 Retinal disparity can be demonstrated with a simple test. Try this yourself:

a Hold a pen at arm’s length and look past it at the other side of the room.

b Close one eye and then the other and watch how far the pen ‘jumps’ from side to side.

c Now bring the pen closer – about 40 cm from your eyes – and repeat the process.

What do you notice?


2 Search online for magic eye pictures and have a go at trying to see the hidden images. Search for easy, intermediate and difficult versions to test your skills.

Hint: Magic eye pictures are easier to solve on paper than computer screens; if possible, print them out. This website is a good starting point: http://www.magiceye.com/faq_example.htm

Investigate 15.3How many different depth cues can you see in this picture?

FIGURE 15.7 Rhyll boardwalk


NAME OF DEPTH CUE DESCRIPTION FROM PICTURE


Investigate 15.4

You be the artist

1 Draw a picture using the following pictorial depth cues. (Alternatively, find a picture online and use that instead). Label your picture with the pictorial cues, making sure that you explain each one to illustrate your understanding:

a linear perspective

b interposition (overlap)

c texture gradient

d relative size

e height in the visual field.

Student drawings will vary, but each should include explanations of the depth cues listed above in relation to their picture.

2 What is the key difference between binocular and monocular depth cues?

Binocular cues are used with two eyes and monocular cues can be used with one eye.

3 Why do we receive a slightly different image on each retina?

Because our eyes are set apart several centimetres they receive two different images.

4 Create a poem or a song using binocular and monocular depth cues. Make sure that each term is either defined or explained in some way, and that your poem or song makes sense. You could come up with a tune of your own, or use one of the following suggestions:


your school song

‘Mary had a Little Lamb’

‘Incy Wincy Spider’

Present your creation to the class!



Student book answersThe effect of psychological factors on perceptual setPages 350–352

Review 15.21 Why are depth cues so important to us?

Depth cues are important to us because they allow us to judge depth and distance in a 3D world, even though we only receive 2D images on our retina.

2 What is retinal disparity and why is it important to depth perception?

Retinal disparity is the difference between the images on the retinas of the left and right eye that occurs because our eyes are 6–7cm apart, which means that each eye has a different angle of view of the object being observed. The brain fuses the two images and uses any difference or ‘disparity’ between the two retina images to judge the depth and distance of the object from the viewer. The greater the disparity between the images, the closer the object is to the viewer.

3 Convergence is a binocular depth cue. Explain how this works.

In order for our eyes to keep an object centred on the retina, it is necessary for our eyes to turn inwards as the object gets closer. This increases the tension in the muscles responsible for turning the eyes. The brain uses the amount of turning to make judgements of distance. The more turning, the closer the object is to the viewer.

4 What techniques have been developed by artists to give visual representations of three dimensions on a 2D surface? Do these visual clues apply to all humans? If not, why not?

Artists use pictorial depth cues to create three-dimensional visual representations on two-dimensional surfaces. Pictorial depth cues used include: linear perspective, interposition, texture gradient, relative size and height in the visual field.

No. The use of pictorial depth cues is dependent on a person’s individual and cultural experiences.

5 List the groups of psychological factors that influence our visual perception.

Our perception of a visual stimulus is influenced by the perceptual set we have formed for that visual stimulus. The factors that influence perceptual set include: previous experience, context, motivation and emotion.


Investigate 15.5Try the rat-man experiment

1 Trace the drawings below onto pieces of card or paper.

2 Show either the ‘faces’ group of cards or the ‘animals’ group of cards, one at a time, to volunteer participants.

3 Show the ambiguous rat-man stimulus (Figure 15.10) to each volunteer and record their response.

4 Compare the responses of the two groups. Did the ‘faces’ group identify an old man more than the ‘animals’ group?


5 Repeat the experiment with other volunteers, but this time show them a mixture of three ‘faces’ and three ‘animals’ before the rat-man stimulus.

Step 5 is an important step in the research. Why should this be done?



Student book answersThe principles of gustatory perceptionPages 352–356

Review 15.31 Which are the ‘chemical’ senses?

Taste and smell

2 List the senses that are involved in the perception of flavour.

Sight, texture, smell and taste

3 Newborn babies are ‘programmed’ to prefer sweet tastes. List two changes to our taste perception that take place as we become older.

As we age we prefer more bitter tastes and require more seasoning.

4 Do you buy ‘home brand’ items from the supermarket? Why – or why not?

Responses will vary. Students who answer no to this question might include in their answers the idea of brand names being often associated with quality, or the way we prejudge the quality of items based on our expectations of brand or interpretation of the packaging.

Students who answer yes to this question might identify that packaging and branding may have no bearing on the flavour of something, but should still identify that perception of a brand is a psychological factor with the capacity to impact flavour.


Investigate 15.61 In class, taste a fresh leaf of coriander, record each participant’s response in a table such as the one

below:

Participant ID Gender ‘Soapy’ Taste Unpleasant taste

(other than ‘soapy’)

Pleasant taste

2 Calculate the proportion of responses in each column.


3 Does your class reflect the proportions indicated in this chapter?


4 Repeat this investigation with other participants. Do other personal characteristics make a difference? Age? Ethnicity?



Student book answersTest your understandingPages 358–359

Multiple choice1 C; 2 B; 3 B; 4 A; 5 D; 6 D; 7 A; 8 B; 9 C; 10 D; 11 A

Short answer12 Explain the Gestalt principle of similarity using a visual example.

The Gestalt principle of similarity involves grouping together certain aspects or individual parts of a visual stimulus that have similar features (such as size, shape or colour) and viewing each group as a meaningful whole. For example, in his collection of letters, we group the individual Os together to view them in a whole, meaningful way – as a triangle.

xxxxxxxxxxxOxxxxxxxx

xxxxxxxxxxOOxxxxxxxx

xxxxxxxxxOOOxxxxxxxx

xxxxxxxxOOOOxxxxxxx

xxxxxxxOOOOOxxxxxxx

xxxxxxOOOOOOxxxxxx

xxxxxOOOOOOOxxxxx

xxxxOOOOOOOOxxxxx

13 Explain what is meant by the term perceptual set.

A perceptual set is a predisposition to perceive stimuli in a specific way. We interpret stimuli according to certain preconceptions that we might have about those stimuli.


a Give an example, for the sense of vision, that shows your understanding of this principle.

An example of perceptual set affecting vision might be: a friend that I was meeting for lunch said she would be wearing a red jumper and a blue hat. A person walked towards me wearing a red jumper and blue hat. I called out to them, but then realised that it was not my friend at all, but someone else who was also wearing a red jumper and a blue hat.

b Give an example, for the perception of flavour, that shows your understanding of this principle.

Student responses will vary. An example might be: lemons look sour and taste sour, perhaps because we associate the colour yellow with bitter things.

14 Explain how senses other than taste influence our perception of flavour.

Sight: what it looks like

Texture: what it feels like

Smell and taste: make up the flavour


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ecotelapsychology.weebly.comecotelapsychology.weebly.com/.../chapter_15_answers.docx · Web viewGestalt psychology developed early in the twentieth century and is based on the principle