Seeing & Perception
A student can barely detect a faint light presented in a dark room. This measurement concerns the minimum intensity needed to detect a stimulus.
Absolute threshold
A sound becomes much louder when the volume on a speaker is increased. Which characteristic of the sound wave is primarily responsible for this change?
Amplitude
A person suddenly wakes up and realizes they cannot move their body even though they are completely aware of what is happening around them. What phenomenon are they experiencing?
Sleep paralysis
A person experiences unpleasant physical symptoms when they stop taking a drug, even though they no longer want to experience those symptoms. What does this indicate?
Physical dependence
A toddler continues searching for a toy after watching an adult hide it underneath a blanket. Which ability does this demonstrate?
Object permanence
Two colors have the same wavelength, but one looks much more vivid and intense than the other. Which property of light best explains this difference?
Purity
A musician's eardrum vibrates after a sound enters the ear. The vibrations are then passed along by three tiny bones. Which part of the ear contains these bones?
Middle ear
A student says, “I know what being nervous feels like from my own perspective, but I can't directly know whether another person experiences nervousness the same way I do.” What problem does this illustrate?
Problem of other minds
A person tries very hard not to think about an embarrassing event. The more they try to push the thought away, the more often it comes back into awareness. What phenomenon is occurring?
Rebound effect of thought suppression
A young child sees another child's toy and assumes the other child wants exactly the same thing they want. What concept best explains this tendency?
Egocentrism
While driving, railroad tracks appear to get closer together as they extend toward the horizon. Which depth cue is being used?
Linear perspective
After damage to a structure in the inner ear, a person has difficulty converting sound vibrations into neural signals. Which structure is most directly involved?
Cochlea
A person's sleep schedule is strongly influenced by a biological cycle that repeats approximately every 24 hours. What is this?
Circadian rhythm
After drinking heavily, Alex becomes intensely focused on an argument happening right now and pays little attention to how the argument could affect the relationship later. What concept best explains this?
Alcohol myopia
An infant becomes distressed when their caregiver leaves but is comforted when the caregiver returns and then goes back to exploring. What attachment style does this pattern indicate?
Secure attachment
A student is looking at a complicated image and automatically organizes objects that have similar characteristics into the same group. Which Gestalt principle explains this?
Similarity
After walking into a bakery, Sam immediately notices the smell of freshly baked bread. Which sensory system is responsible for detecting this information?
Olfaction
A person describes what it feels like to experience a particular emotion from their own conscious perspective. The study of experiences from this first-person perspective is called what?
Phenomenology
A person automatically steps around pedestrians while walking through a crowded area without deliberately thinking through each movement. Which system of thinking is primarily responsible?
System 1
A teenager argues that a law should be changed because it violates basic human rights, even though most people in society accept the law. According to Kohlberg, which level of moral reasoning does this represent?
Postconventional
During a basketball game, Jordan concentrates so intensely on following the ball that Jordan fails to notice a player briefly enter the court. The player was visible, but Jordan never consciously noticed them. What phenomenon is this?
Inattentional blindness
After eating something extremely spicy, a person notices heat, pressure, and pain in their mouth. Which sensory system is responsible for detecting these bodily sensations?
Somatosensation
A student remembers the strange images and events that occurred in a dream but does not know what deeper psychological meaning, if any, those images might represent. In Freud's theory, what aspect of the dream refers to the underlying hidden meaning?
Latent content
A researcher gives participants a drug that prevents a particular neurotransmitter from producing its usual effects. Based on how the drug interacts with neurotransmission, what type of drug is it?
Antagonist
An older adult decides to spend more of their limited free time with close friends and family rather than pursuing activities that might provide benefits far in the future. Which theory best explains this change in priorities?
Socioemotional selectivity theory