Sensation and
Perception
PSYCHOLOGY 1

Objectives
-Understand the definition of sensation and perception;
-Discuss concepts of threshold;
-Explain signal detection theory and sensory adaptation;
-Familiarize with sensory system;
-Explain the movement of perception;
-Determine between perceptual illusion and sound
perception;
-Discuss difference between olfactory and gustatory
perception and
-Understand special type of perception.

Definition
In psychology, Sensation and Perception
are stages of processing of the senses in
human and animal systems, such as
vision, auditory, vestibular, and pain
senses.

Thresholds
• A minimum amount of stimulation needed to
start a neural impulse.
• Divides the line between what energy can be
detected or not.
• Absolute Threshold and Difference Threshold

Absolute threshold for our Senses
Senses Absolute Threshold Equivalent
Vision Candle thirty miles away on a clear, dark night
Hearing Tick of a watch twenty feet away in a quiet room
Taste Teaspoons of sugar dissolved in two gallons of water
Smell One drop of perfume in a three-room apartment
Touch A bee’s wing falling on the cheek from a height of one centimeter
Warmth or
Cold
A one to two degree celcius change in skin temperature

Signal-Detection Theory
• Signal detection theory (SDT) is used when
psychologists want to measure the way we
make decisions under conditions of
uncertainty, such as how we would perceive
distances in foggy conditions.

Sensory
Adaptation

Visual Sensation
Sense of Sight

Auditory Sensation
Sense of Hearing

Olfactory Sensation
Sense of Smell

Gustatory Sensation
Sense of Taste

Cutaneous or
Skin Sensation
Sense of Touch

Sense Organ Various Senses Receptor Cells
Eyes Sight Rods and cones in
the retina
Ears Hearing Hair cells in the
Organ of Corti
Tongue Gustatory Taste cells in the
taste buds
Nose Olfactory Olfactory Epithelium
cells
Skin Pressure, pain,
warmth, and cold
Subcutaneous
adipose tissues

The End