TIF Ch03 10e 41912

Chapter 3: Sensation and Perception
Multiple-Choice
1. ________ is often considered the “dispensable” sense, the one we could most easily live
without if necessary.
a. Touch
b. Hearing
c. Smell
d. Vision
Answer: c
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 81
Topic: Introduction
Skill: F
2. ________ is the brain’s process of interpreting sensory information in order to give it

meaning..
a. Perception
b. Consciousness
c. Abstraction
d. Sensation
Answer: a
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 104
Topic: Introduction
Skill: F
The Nature of Sensation
Learning Objectives
 Explain the difference between absolute and difference thresholds and the effect of
adaptation on sensory thresholds. Summarize the evidence for subliminal perception.
3. Sensation is the ________.

a. result of activity in the efferent nervous system
b. presence of sensory cell activity in the absence of external stimulation
c. organization of stimuli to create meaningful patterns
Incorrect: This is a definition of perception, not sensation.
d. basic experience of stimulating the body’s senses
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Copyright © 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved .
Correct: This is an accurate definition of sensation, which can be thought of as the reception of
energy by the body’s sensory systems.
Answer: d
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 81
Topic: The Nature of Sensation
Skill: C
4. Light energy stimulating neurons in the retina is an example of ________.

a. cognition
b. sensation
Correct: The reception of the light energy by our retina, part of our visual sensory system, is
sensation.
c. a reflex
d. perception
Incorrect: Perception is the process of interpreting and making meaning out of sensory input.
Answer: b
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 81
Skill: A
5. A receptor cell ________.

a. will respond to energy of all intensities
b. is specialized to respond to one form of energy
c. can respond only to light energy
d. responds to all forms of energy
Answer: b
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 81
Skill: F
6. A specialized cell that responds to a particular form of energy is a ________.

a. transponder cell
b. glial cell
c. feature detector
d. receptor cell
Answer: d
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 81
2
Skill: F
7. The components in the sense organs that respond to one type of energy are ________.
a. receptor cells
b. effector cells
c. transducers
d. sensor cells
Answer: a
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 81
Skill: F
8. Which of the following statements is true?

a. Receptor cells react to any stimulus, regardless of the intensity.
b. The first step in the sequence of events that produces a sensation is the change of energy into
electrochemical impulses.
c. The nervous system uses different types of energy to code different sensory experiences
d. All receptors have the ability to change the energy they receive into an electrochemical signal.
Answer: d
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 81
Skill: F
9. Which of the following statements is not true?

a. The first step in the sequence of events that produces a sensation is that some form of energy
stimulates a receptor cell.
b. Once a coded signal has been created by a receptor it is transmitted without further coding to
the brain where it is analyzed further.
c. The complex coded signals generated by sensory receptors change with corresponding
changes in the stimulus.
d. All sensory receptors have the ability to change the energy they receive into an
electrochemical impulse.
Answer: b
Difficulty: 3 4 yr.: 77% r = .21; 4 yr.: 72% r = .34
Page Reference: 81-82
Skill: F
10. The conversion of sensory information into coded neural signals is called ________.
a. transduction
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b. refraction
c. transfusion
d. transcendence
Answer: a
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 81
Skill: F
11. The one-to-one relationship between the specific nerve stimulated and the resulting type of
sensory experience is referred to as ________.
a. the doctrine of specific nerve energies
b. the volley principle
c. the opponent-process principle
d. Weber’s Law
Answer: a
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 81
Skill: F
12. A person is hit in the eye and “sees stars” for several seconds. This experience supports
________.
a. Hering’s theory
b. Weber’s Law
Incorrect: Weber’s law deals with difference thresholds. The best answer is the doctrine of
specific nerve energies.
c. the doctrine of specific nerve energies
Correct: This doctrine explains, for example, why you sometimes see “flashers” in your eyes
after a very violent sneeze.
d. the volley principle
Answer: c
Difficulty: 2
Skill: A
13. The intensity at which the presence of a stimulus can be detected 50 percent of the time is
called the ________.
a. difference threshold
b. just noticeable difference
c. absolute threshold
d. psychophysical threshold
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Answer: c
Difficulty: 3 4 yr.: 75% r = .25
Page Reference: 82
Skill: F
14. The minimum intensity of physical stimulation required to produce any sensation at all in a
person is the ________ threshold.
a. minimum
b. difference
c. noticeable
d. absolute
Answer: d
Page Reference: 82
Skill: F
15. When Ann went to her doctor, he gave her a hearing test. During the test, the doctor
presented tones to Ann through earphones. The tones varied only along the loud-soft dimension
(from very loud to very soft). The doctor asked Ann to raise her hand whenever she heard a
sound. The doctor was testing Ann’s ________.
Incorrect: The difference threshold determines how much change in a stimulus must occur to be
perceived at least 50 percent of the time.
b. refractory threshold
c. absolute threshold
Correct: By testing different tones of different volumes, the doctor was testing how much stimulus
was needed to be perceived. This is the absolute threshold.
d. auditory convergence
Answer: c
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 82
Skill: A
16. A psychologist who asked you to make a series of judgments to determine whether or not a
light was present in an unlit room would be trying to assess your ________ for perceiving light.
a. psychometric function
b. absolute threshold
Correct: The psychologist is testing how much light must be present, at a minimum, in order to
be perceived. This is measuring the absolute threshold.
c. response bias
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d. just noticeable difference (jnd)
Incorrect: The just noticeable difference, or difference threshold, determines how much change
in a stimulus must occur to be perceived at least 50 percent of the time.
Answer: b
Difficulty: 2 4 yr.: 90% r = .46; 4 yr.: 90% r = .45; 4 yr.: 91% r = .31
Page Reference: 82
Skill: A
17. According to McBurney and Collings, the average threshold for human hearing is the tick of
a watch from ________ feet in very quiet conditions.
a. 80
b. 60
c. 40
d. 20
Answer: d
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 82
Skill: F
18. According to McBurney and Collings, the average threshold for human vision is a candle
flame seen from ________ mile(s) on a dark, clear night.
a. 30
b. 1
c. 15
d. 7.5
Answer: a
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 82
Skill: F
19. According to McBurney and Collings, the average threshold for human taste is
approximately 1 gram of table salt in ________ liters of water.
a. 500
b. 100
c. 300
d. 700
Answer: a
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 82
6
Skill: F
20. According to McBurney and Collings, the average threshold for human smell is one drop of
perfume diffused through a ________ room apartment.
a. four
b. five
c. two
d. three
Answer: d
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 82
Skill: F
21. The process by which our senses adjust to varying levels of stimulation to allow them to
operate as sensitively as possible without becoming overloaded is called ________.
a. transformation
b. adaptation
c. transduction
d. transmutation
Answer: b
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 82
Skill: F
22. Your threshold for vision is higher on a sunny day than on a dark, moonless night. This is
because of ________.
a. transduction
Incorrect: Transduction is the process by which a physical stimulus is converted into an
electrochemical code or message.
b. adaptation
Correct: Adaptation refers to the ability of our sensory systems to adjust their level of sensitivity
to varying levels of stimulation.
c. perceptual constancy
d. transmutation
Answer: b
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 82
Skill: A
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23. Which of the following is not a measure of threshold?
b. absolute threshold
c. just noticeable difference
d. separation threshold
Answer: d
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 82
Skill: F

a. Both the difference threshold and the absolute threshold are constant for all people at all times.
b. Only the difference threshold varies from person to person.
c. Only the absolute threshold is constant for all people.
d. Both the difference threshold and the absolute threshold vary from person to person over time.
Answer: d
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 82
Skill: F
25. The minimum stimulus intensity required for detection is the ________ whereas the smallest
detectable difference between two stimuli that can be detected is the ________.
a. base value; just noticeable difference (jnd)
b. absolute threshold; difference threshold
Correct: The absolute threshold measures how much stimulus must be present to be sensed. The
difference threshold measures how much change in a stimulus must occur to be sensed.
c. detection standard; beta criterion
Incorrect: These terms do not relate adequate to this question. The best answer is absolute
threshold and difference threshold.
d. response criterion; sensory constant
Answer: b
Page Reference: 82
Skill: C
26. The smallest change in stimulation that can be detected 50 percent of the time is called the
________ threshold.
a. difference
b. response
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c. separation
d. absolute
Answer: a
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 82
Skill: F
27. The difference threshold is defined as the stimulus level at which a change in a sensory signal
is detected ________ percent of the time.
a. 50
b. 100
c. 75
d. 25
Answer: a
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 82
Skill: F
28. The principle that the just noticeable difference of any given sense is a constant fraction or
proportion of the stimulus being judged is called ________.
a. the phi phenomenon
b. the doctrine of specific nerve energies
c. Weber’s law
d. the opponent-process principle
Answer: c
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 82
Skill: F
29. The term “just noticeable difference” is synonymous with ________ threshold.
a. absolute
b. difference
c. separation
d. response
Answer: b
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 82
Skill: F
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30. The smallest amount of a change in taste we can detect is about ________ percent.
a. 5
b. 10
c. 20
d. 15
Answer: c
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 82
Skill: F
31. The smallest amount of a change in something’s weight that we can detect is about ________
percent.
a. 6
b. 4
c. 2
d. 8
Answer: c
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 82
Skill: F
32. When something occurs below our level of awareness, it is said to occur ________.
a. reflexively
b. intuitively
c. inductively
d. subliminally
Answer: d
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 83
Skill: F
33. A technique by which messages can supposedly be sent to consumers, prompting them to
buy a product without their ever being aware of receiving such messages is ________.
a. subliminal perception
Correct: Subliminal perception occurs outside of a person’s awareness, so they may not realize
that they are being influenced by such advertising.
b. cognitive restructuring
c. inductive perception
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d. selective perception
Incorrect: The ability to selectively focus on a particular stimulus is not related to this concept.
The best answer is subliminal perception.
Answer: a
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 83
Skill: C
34. Laverne goes into a movie theater to watch her favorite movie. About halfway through the
movie she becomes aware of an overpowering hunger for popcorn. What she doesn’t realize is
that throughout the first part of the movie, a message saying “Eat Popcorn!” was repeatedly
flashed on the screen at a speed too fast for her to be consciously aware of it. If her desire for
popcorn is due to that message, she is responding to ________.
a. selective perception
Incorrect: The ability to selectively focus on a particular stimulus is not related to this concept.
The best answer is subliminal perception.
b. stroboscopic perception
c. subliminal perception
Correct: Subliminal advertising, which occurs outside of our awareness, can affect us without
our realization of what is going on.
d. cognitive restructuring
Answer: c
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 83
Skill: A
35. A movie theater in New Jersey flashed subliminal messages during a movie to “Drink Coca
Cola” and “Eat popcorn.” After flashing these messages, popcorn and Coke sales ________.
a. did not change
b. actually decreased slightly
c. increased slightly
d. increased dramatically
Answer: a
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 83
Skill: F
36. In a recent study of the effects of subliminal perception, when volunteers were given a tape
labeled “Improve Memory” that really contained a subliminal message intended to boost self-
esteem, ________ of them reported improvements in memory.
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a. about-half
b. about two-thirds
c. about one-third
d. none
Answer: a
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 83
Skill: F
37. In a recent study of the effects of subliminal perception, when volunteers were given a tape
labeled “Improve Memory,” objective tests detected ________.
a. only slight, short-term improvements
b. no measurable change
c. dramatic long-term improvements
d. dramatic, but short-term improvements
Answer: b
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 84
Skill: F
38. Which of the following is not true of subliminal perception?

a. In a laboratory setting, people can perceive stimuli that they cannot consciously describe.
b. Under controlled conditions, individuals can be affected by subliminal stimuli.
c. There is no independent scientific evidence that subliminal advertising has any appreciable
effect.
d. Though in general subliminal advertising is not an effective technique for manipulation of
people’s behavior, many subliminal self-help audiotapes have been shown to be effective.
Answer: d
Difficulty: 1 4 yr: 47% r = .18
Skill: F
39. Independent scientific studies have found that outside the laboratory, subliminal messages
have ________ effects on behavior.
a. no significant
b. significant long-term
c. only sporadic short-term
d. significant short-term
Answer: a
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Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 84
Skill: F
Vision
Learning Objectives
 Describe the role of rods, cones, bipolar cells, ganglion cells, the optic nerve, the optic
chiasm, and feature detectors in the brain in causing a visual experience.
 Explain how dark and light adaptation affect our vision and how they cause afterimages.
 Distinguish between hue, saturation, brightness, and additive and subtractive color
mixing. Explain the two major theories of color perception.
40. For humans, the ability to ________ is probably the most important sense.
a. hear
b. taste
c. smell
d. see
Answer: d
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 85
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
41. Light first enters the eye through the ________.

a. retina
b. pupil
c. lens
d. cornea
Answer: d
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 85
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
42. The transparent protective coating over the front part of the eye is the ________.
a. fovea
b. iris
c. cornea
d. sclera
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Answer: c
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 85
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
43. The amount of light entering the eye is controlled by the ________.
a. lens
b. retina
c. cornea
Incorrect: The cornea cannot control how much light enters the eye.
d. iris
Correct: The iris is the ring of muscles that controls the diameter of the pupil, which allows light
into the eye.
Answer: d
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 85
Topic: Vision
Skill: C
44. The pupil is the ________.

a. lining in the back of the eyeball
b. white of the eye
c. colored part of the eye
d. opening in the center of the iris
Answer: d
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 85
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
45. The colored part of the eye that contains muscles to contract or expand the pupil is the
________.
a. cornea
b. fovea
c. iris
d. lens
Answer: c
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 85
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
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46. Light moves through the eye in the following sequence:
a. pupil, cornea, lens, retina
b. lens, cornea, pupil, retina
c. cornea, pupil, lens, retina
d. cornea, lens, pupil, retina
Answer: c
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 85
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
47. A young man enters a completely darkened room and lights a candle. Which of the following
sequences best represents the path of the candle’s light as it enters his eye?
a. pupil, cornea, lens, retina
b. lens, cornea, pupil, retina
Incorrect: The cornea is the outermost structure. The correct order is cornea, pupil, lens, retina.
c. cornea, pupil, lens, retina
Correct: This is the correct order of eye structures through which light passes.
d. retina, pupil, lens, cornea
Answer: c
Page Reference: 85
Topic: Vision
Skill: A
48. The transparent part of the eye inside the pupil that focuses light onto the retina is the
________.
a. cornea
b. fovea
c. iris
d. lens
Answer: d
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 85
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
49. The inner lining on the back of the eyeball containing receptor cells that are sensitive to light
is called the ________.
a. retina
b. fovea
c. optic nerve
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d. iris
Answer: a
Page Reference: 85
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
50. The depressed spot in the retina that occupies the center of the visual field in which images
are focused most sharply is called the ________.
a. fovea
b. optic nerve
c. iris
d. cornea
Answer: a
Page Reference: 85
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
51. The ________ contains the receptor cells responsible for vision.
a. optic nerve
b. lens
c. retina
d. optic chiasm
Answer: c
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 85
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
52. The rods and cones in the retina are ________.

a. receptor cells
b. effectors
c. bipolar cells
d. ganglion cells
Answer: a
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 86
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
16
53. Rods and cones are found in the ________.
a. retina
b. cornea
c. iris
d. optic nerve
Answer: a
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 86
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
54. There are two kinds of receptors found in the retina. They are ________.
a. rods and ganglion cells
b. bipolar cells and cones
c. rods and cones
d. ganglion and bipolar cells
Answer: c
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 86
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
55. Which of the following cells does your eye contain the most of?
a. parvocellular cells
b. magnocellular cells
c. cones
d. rods
Answer: d
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 86
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
56. Receptor cells in the retina responsible for night vision and the perception of brightness are
________.
a. rods
b. bipolar cells
c. cones
d. ganglion cells
Answer: a
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 86
17
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
57. What cells in the retina are primarily responsible for night vision as opposed to day vision?
a. bipolar cells
b. rods
c. vitreous humor
d. cones
Answer: b
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 86
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
58. Receptor cells in the retina responsible for color vision are ________.
a. bipolar cells
b. ganglion cells
c. cones
d. rods
Answer: c
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 86
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
59. Which of the following is not true about cones?

a. They are less sensitive to light than rods.
b. They operate mainly in daylight.
c. They are responsible for our ability to distinguish fine details.
d. They respond mainly to black and white.
Answer: d
Page Reference: 86
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
60. Vision in good illumination is primarily provided by ________.

a. the cornea
b. the periphery of the retina
c. rods
d. cones
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Answer: d
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 86
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
61. It is difficult to distinguish between colors at night because ________.

a. we are seeing primarily with the rods
Correct: This is correct. Because rods do not sense colors, it is more difficult to sense color
differences in darker situations.
b. we are seeing primarily with the cones
Incorrect: This is incorrect. Cones are primarily responsible for colors, but they are only
effective in bright, or daytime, circumstances. Night vision is the role of rods.
c. rods do not adapt to the dark
d. we are seeing mostly with the fovea
Answer: a
Page Reference: 86
Topic: Vision
Skill: C
62. What structure in the retina is primarily responsible for night vision as opposed to day
vision?
a. rods
b. vitreous humor
c. cones
d. bipolar cells
Answer: a
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 86
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
63. Each retina of the eye has about ________ million rods and cones.
a. 1
b. 128
c. 28
d. 78
Answer: b
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 86
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
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64. The different energies represented in the electromagnetic spectrum are called ________.
a. wavelengths
b. amplitudes
c. harmonics
d. decibels
Answer: a
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 86
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
65. Which of the following phenomena is a function of the distribution of the rods and cones in
the retina?
a. Stars can be seen only with difficulty during the daytime.
b. A dim star may disappear when you look directly at it but reappear when you look to one side
of it.
Correct: Because looking straight at a star (at night) focuses it on the less sensitive cones, it can
be harder to see. Turning your head focuses it on rods, which are more sensitive, and thus the
star will appear.
c. The light from distant stars moving rapidly away from us is shifted toward the red end of the
spectrum.
d. The moon looks much larger near the horizon than it looks when it is higher in the sky.
Incorrect: This is a phenomenon known as the moon illusion, and it is not related to the
distribution of rods and cones in the retina.
Answer: b
Page Reference: 87
Topic: Vision
Skill: A
66. Which of the following is true about cones?

a. They are more sensitive to light than rods.
b. They respond only to black and white.
c. They are found mainly in the fovea.
d. They operate mainly at night.
Answer: c
Page Reference: 86
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
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67. Which of the following is true of rods?
a. They are found mainly in the fovea.
b. They respond to color.
c. They operate mainly in the daytime.
d. They are responsible for night vision.
Answer: d
Page Reference: 86
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
68. The fovea is made up of ________.

a. mostly rods with some cones
b. all rods and no cones
c. all cones and no rods
d. mostly cones with some rods
Answer: c
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 86
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
69. Cones are found ________ the fovea.

a. exclusively in
b. exclusively outside
c. mainly in
d. mainly outside
Answer: c
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 86
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
70. Rods are found ________ the fovea.

a. mostly in
b. exclusively in
c. mostly outside
d. exclusively outside
Answer: d
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 86
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Topic: Vision
Skill: F
71. Neurons in the eye that have only one axon and one dendrite and connect neurons from the
retina to the ganglion cells are ________.
a. rods
b. bipolar cells
c. cones
d. transducers
Answer: b
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 86
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
72. Sally walks into a dark room and notices that she can see specific objects in the room better if
she looks slightly to one side of the object rather than directly at it. This is because by looking
off to the side, the light falls ________.
a. on the fovea, which is loaded with light-sensitive cones
Incorrect: The fovea is in the center of the retina, so looking to the side of an object does not
focus its image on the retina.
b. next to the fovea and onto light-sensitive cones
c. next to the fovea and onto light-sensitive rods
Correct: Looking to the side focuses the light away from the center of the retina (the fovea) and
stimulates rods instead of cones.
d. on the fovea, which is loaded with light-sensitive rods
Answer: c
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 87
Topic: Vision
Skill: A
73. Which of the following is not true of the fovea?

a. It contains a high density of both rods and cones.
b. It is a depressed spot on the retina, directly behind the lens.
c. It is the part of the eye most sensitive to colors.
d. Vision is sharpest when the image falls directly on it.
Answer: a
Page Reference: 86
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
22
74. Rods and cones are connected to ________.
a. optic cells
b. efferent cells
c. interneurons
d. bipolar cells
Answer: d
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 86
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
75. The ability of the eye to distinguish fine details is called ________.
a. visual dilation
b. adaptation
c. visual acuity
d. visual sensitivity
Answer: c
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 87
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
76. Elrod is sitting at home trying to read maps for his upcoming vacation. He has difficulty
making out the details of the map in the light of the 60-watt ceiling lamp. To improve his ability
to see the fine details of the map, he should ________.
a. hold the map farther away than he normally would, as visual acuity in dim light improves as
objects get farther away
b. look slightly off to the side when reading his maps, as visual acuity in dim light improves
when the light falls outside the fovea
Incorrect: Looking to the side will focus images on the rods instead of the cones. This will not
help, because acuity is controlled by the cones, which are centrally located in the fovea.
c. blink a lot, because frequent blinking improves visual acuity
d. turn on a brighter light, because visual acuity tends to improve as the amount of light increases
toward daytime levels
Correct: Adding light to a situation allows the cones in the fovea to do their job more effectively,
thus increasing visual acuity.
Answer: d
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 87
Topic: Vision
Skill: A
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77. Regarding the way rods and cones operate, ________.
a. both cones and rods tend to pool their signals on their way to bipolar cells
b. rods, but not cones, tend to pool their signals on their way to bipolar cells
c. cones, but not rods, tend to pool their signals on their way to bipolar cells
d. neither rods nor cones pool their signals on the way to bipolar cells
Answer: b
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 87
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
78. Outside the fovea, visual acuity drops by as much as ________ percent.
a. 70
b. 90
c. 30
d. 50
Answer: d
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 87
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
79. In the dark, the fovea is ________.

a. much more effective than it is in daylight
b. as effective as it is in daylight
c. almost useless
d. about as effective as retinal cells outside the fovea
Answer: c
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 87
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
80. When John drives his car at night, he finds that he can barely see traffic and street signs if he
looks directly at them. He can increase his visual sensitivity by looking at the signs ________.
a. out of the side of his eye (using more rods) instead of focusing directly on them (using more
cones)
Correct: By focusing the signs on the rods outside of the fovea (which is in the center of his
retina) he will be able to see them better in darker settings.
b. and squinting, which focuses the available light more precisely
c. out of the side of his eye, because doing so focuses the image on the blind spot
d. out of the side of his eye (using more cones) instead of focusing directly on them (using more
rods)
24
Incorrect: If he looks out of the side of his eyes, John will use more of his rods and less of his
cones. This will allow him to see better in the darker environment.
Answer: a
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 87
Topic: Vision
Skill: A
81. Adaptation is the process in which ________.

a. receptor sensitivity changes as a result of continued exposure to a stimulus
b. receptor cells become linked with one another
c. nonspectral colors can be seen
d. visual acuity improves as one centers an object’s light on the fovea
Answer: a
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 87
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
82. Jamie walks from a bright room into a dark room. It will take about ________ minutes for
her rods and cones to fully adjust to the dark.
a. 20
b. 40
c. 10
Incorrect: Jamie might be able to see slightly better after 10 minutes, but it takes about 30
minutes for full dark adaptation to occur.
d. 30
Correct: The process of dark adaptation takes approximately 30 minutes to finish.
Answer: d
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 87
Topic: Vision
Skill: A
83. The process by which rods and cones become more sensitive to light in response to lowered
levels of illumination is called ________.
a. afterimage resolution
b. afterimage adaptation
c. dark adaptation
d. light adaptation
Answer: c
25
Page Reference: 87
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
84. Peter goes from bright sunlight into a dimly lit theater. At first, he can see little or nothing as
he looks for a seat. Over a ten-minute period he is gradually able to see things directly in front of
him more clearly. His ability to see things off to the side steadily improves for another twenty
minutes. This process is called ________.
a. dark adaptation
Correct: Dark adaptation occurs when our eyes adjust to a decrease in light in our environment.
b. dark compensation
c. light compensation
d. light adaptation
Incorrect: Light adaptation occurs when our eyes adjust to an increase in light in our
environment.
Answer: a
Page Reference: 87
Topic: Vision
Skill: A
85. The fovea and blind spot are alike in that they both contain ________.
a. thickly packed cones
b. rods but no cones
c. no rods
Correct: The concentration of cones in the fovea is what makes it the center of higher vision, and
there are no photoreceptors in the blind spot.
d. no receptors
Incorrect: There are no receptors in the blind spot, but there are cones in the fovea.
Answer: c
Page Reference: 86, 88
Topic: Vision
Skill: C
86. The process by which rods and cones become less sensitive to light is called ________.
a. light adaptation
Correct: Light adaptation occurs when our eyes adjust to an increase in light in our environment.
b. squinting
c. optic adaptation
d. dark adaptation
Incorrect: Dark adaptation occurs when our eyes adjust to a decrease in light in our
environment.
Answer: a
26
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 88
Topic: Vision
Skill: C
87. Jamie leaves a darkened movie theater and walks out into a bright light. Normally, it will
take about ________ minute(s) for her rods and cones to adjust to the outside light.
a. 15
b. 1
Correct: Complete light adaptation takes about one minute to occur.
c. 10
d. 30
Incorrect: Complete dark adaptation takes 30 minutes to occur, while complete light adaptation
takes only about one minute to occur.
Answer: b
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 88
Topic: Vision
Skill: A
88. Afterimages are caused by ________.

a. light hitting the blind spot of the retina
b. light and dark adaptation
c. malfunctions of the optic chiasm
d. involuntary eye movements
Answer: b
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 88
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
89. Which of the following sequences correctly indicates the pathway of nerve impulses on their
way from the eye to the brain?
a. receptor cells, bipolar cells, ganglion cells, optic nerve
b. receptor cells, bipolar cells, optic nerve, ganglion cells
c. bipolar cells, receptor cells, ganglion cells, optic nerve
d. ganglion cells, bipolar cells, receptor cells, optic nerve
Answer: a
Page Reference: 88
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
27
90. Neurons that connect bipolar cells in the eye to the brain are ________.
a. glial cells
b. ganglion cells
c. Schwann cells
d. interneurons
Answer: b
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 88
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
91. Bundles of axons of ganglion cells make up the ________.

a. optic nerve
b. rods and cones
c. fovea
d. optic chiasm
Answer: a
Page Reference: 88
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
92. The place in the retina where the axons of all the ganglion cells come together to leave the
eye is called the ________.
a. blind spot
b. fovea
c. optic fiber
d. optic chiasm
Answer: a
Page Reference: 88
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
93. There is a spot on the retina commonly called the “blind spot.” The blind spot exists because
________.
a. you don’t see at the fovea
b. there are no ganglion cells there
c. the cones in the optic disk are very insensitive to light
d. there are no receptors where the optic nerve leaves the eye
Answer: d
28
Page Reference: 88
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
94. Which of the following is not true of the blind spot?

a. Even when light from a small object is focused directly on it, it cannot be seen.
Incorrect: Due to the lack of visual receptors on the blind spot, light focused on this area cannot
be seen no matter what its size.
b. It is the place in the retina where all the ganglion cells come together.
c. It is the part of the retina with the greatest visual acuity.
Correct: The blind spot contains no visual receptors, so it has no visual acuity; in fact, it has no
vision at all!
d. It contains no receptors.
Answer: c
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 88
Topic: Vision
Skill: C
95. When light from a small object is focused directly on the blind spot, the object will
________.
a. not be seen
Correct: Nothing is seen when it is focused on the blind spot, because there are no visual
receptors at that location.
b. appear to have a “hole” in the middle of it
c. have a distinct blue-violet tint to it
Incorrect: The color of the object is not relevant. It will not be seen because there are no visual
receptors at the blind spot.
d. have a distinct red tint to it
Answer: a
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 88
Topic: Vision
Skill: A
96. Nerve fibers from the right half of each eye travel to the right hemisphere of the brain; fibers
from the left half of each eye travel to the left hemisphere of the brain. The place where the
fibers cross over is the ________.
a. optic chiasm
b. optic nerve
c. occipital lobe
d. blind spot
29
Answer: a
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 88
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
97. The optic chiasm is the ________.

a. place on the retina directly behind the lens
b. opening in the center of the iris
c. place on the retina where the axons of all the ganglion cells come together to leave the eye
d. place where the optic nerve fibers cross over on their way to the brain
Answer: d
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 88
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
98. Because of the way in which your eyes are connected to the brain, visual information from
the ________.
a. left visual field is processed by the left hemisphere and visual information from the right
visual field is processed by the right hemisphere
b. left eye is processed by the right hemisphere and visual information from the right eye is
processed by the left hemisphere
Incorrect: It is not the eye that switches over at the optic chiasm, but the visual field of each eye
that changes sides.
c. left visual field is processed by the right hemisphere and visual information from the right
visual field is processed by the left hemisphere
Correct: This phenomenon is caused by the existence of the optic chiasm.
d. left eye is processed by the left hemisphere and visual information from the right eye is
processed by the right hemisphere
Answer: c
Difficulty: 3
Topic: Vision
Skill: C
99. The main destinations for messages from the retina are the ________ of the brain.
a. limbic system
b. parietal lobes
c. motor control areas
d. occipital lobes
Answer: d
Difficulty: 2
30
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
100. Neurons in the brain that are highly specialized to detect particular elements of the visual
field, such as horizontal or vertical lines are known as ________.
a. feature detectors
b. papillae
c. hair cells
d. ganglion cells
Answer: a
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 89
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
101. Hue, saturation, and brightness are three separate aspects of our experience of ________.
a. night vision
b. color
c. acuity
d. sensation
Answer: b
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 89
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
102. The richness or vividness of a hue is known as its ________.

a. brightness
b. additive mix
c. saturation
d. depth
Answer: c
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 89
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
103. The wavelength of the light to reach your eyes determines what ________ you see.
a. brightness
b. saturation
c. fine detail
d. hue
31
Answer: d
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 89
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
104. The aspect of color that corresponds to names such as red, green, and blue is ________.
a. brightness
Incorrect: The brightness of a color is determined by the strength of the light entering the eyes.
b. saturation
c. hue
Correct: The hue of a color is determined by its wavelength.
d. fine detail
Answer: c
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 89
Topic: Vision
Skill: C
105. The brightness of a color depends on the ________.

a. intensity of nonspectral color
b. strength of the light coming into the eye
Correct: The stronger the light, the more “white” or brightness the color will have. The weaker
the light, the more “black” or darkness the color will have.
c. light from other wavelengths that dilutes its purity
Incorrect: There is no indication that the purity of a light (referred to as saturation) is affected by
the presence of other lights.
d. McCullough after-effect
Answer: b
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 89
Topic: Vision
Skill: C
106. Hue is to vision as ________ is to hearing.

a. saturation
Incorrect: The saturation of a color would be most similar to the amplitude of a sound, not its
pitch.
b. volley
c. pitch
Correct: The pitch refers to different notes that we hear, while hue refers to different colors that
we see.
d. amplitude
32
Answer: c
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 89, 93-94
Topic: Vision; Hearing
Skill: C
107. Which of the following is true?

a. Only humans and mammals see in color.
b. Virtually all living creatures with eyes see some colors.
c. Humans are the only animals that see in color.
d. Humans, many mammals, some primates, and even bees see at least some colors
Answer: d
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 92
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
108. Most people can distinguish about ________ hues.

a. 50
b. 100
c. 200
d. 150
Answer: d
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 90
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
109. Saturation and brightness combine with hue to give us about ________ different colors.
a. 2,000
b. 200,000
c. 20,000
d. 2,000,000
Answer: d
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 90
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
110. All the basic hues humans can see can be produced by mixing ________ primary colors.
a. nine
33
b. three
c. five
d. seven
Answer: b
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 90
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
111. Red, green, and blue are ________ colors for light mixtures.
a. complementary
b. secondary
c. primary
Correct: Red, green, and blue are primary colors.
d. additive
Incorrect: Additive color mixing occurs when lights are combined to create any different hue in
the visible spectrum.
Answer: c
Page Reference: 90
Topic: Vision
Skill: C
112. Equally combining the three primary colors in additive color mixing results in ________.
a. black light
b. white light
c. non-spectral color
d. gray light
Answer: b
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 90
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
113. Combining red, green, and blue lights in equal intensities produces ________.
a. gray
b. black
c. brown
d. white
Answer: d
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 90
34
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
114. The process of mixing lights of different wavelengths to create new hues is called
________.
a. trichromatic color mixing
b. subtractive color mixing
c. additive color mixing
d. blending
Answer: c
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 90
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
115. Ashley is doing the lighting for a stage show. One scene requires yellow lighting. She has
no yellow lights but decides to make a yellow lighting effect by combining a red light with a
green light on the stage. This is known as ________ color mixing.
a. subtractive
Incorrect: Combining paints of different colors is known as subtractive color mixing. That is not
what Ashley is doing.
b. additive
Correct: Combining lights of different colors is known as additive color mixing.
c. dichromatic
d. nonspectral
Answer: b
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 90
Topic: Vision
Skill: A
116. The process of mixing various pigments together to create different reflected colors is called
________.
a. additive color mixing
b. blending
c. trichromatic color mixing
d. subtractive color mixing
Answer: d
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 91
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
35
117. Gregory has to paint a room green. He has no green paint but he does have yellow and blue
paint. He mixes the blue and yellow paint together to get green paint so he can paint the room.
He is using ________ color mixing.
a. subtractive
Correct: Combining paints of different colors is known as subtractive color mixing.
b. nonspectral
c. additive
Incorrect: Combining lights of different colors is known as additive color mixing.
d. dichromatic
Answer: a
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 91
Topic: Vision
Skill: A
118. An equal mixture of the three primary pigments produces ________.

a. purple
b. white
c. gray
d. black
Answer: d
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 91
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
119. The idea that the eye contains separate receptors for red, green, and blue is known as the
________ theory.
a. opponent-process
b. additive color mixing
c. reductive color mixing
d. trichromatic
Answer: d
Page Reference: 91
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
120. Helmholtz’s explanation of color vision is called ________.

a. reductive color mixing
b. trichromatic theory
c. additive color mixing
36
d. opponent-process theory
Answer: b
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 91
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
121. According to Helmholtz’s trichromatic theory, which of the following colors does not
correspond to a color receptor in the retina?
a. yellow
b. blue
c. red
d. green
Answer: a
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 91
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
122. In the neural pathways connecting the eye to the brain, there are neurons that respond
primarily to each of the following light patterns except ________.
a. orange-violet
b. black-white
c. yellow-blue
d. red-green
Answer: a
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 91
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
123. The theory that we have three pairs of color receptors and that the members of each pair
oppose each other is known as the ________ theory.
a. trichromatic
b. complimentary color
c. opponent-process
d. color discrepancy
Answer: c
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 91
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
37
124. If you stare long enough at a green object, look to a neutrally colored wall, and see a
negative afterimage, what color will you be seeing?
a. red
Correct: Red is the negative afterimage of green in Hering’s opponent-process theory of color
vision.
b. blue
Incorrect: Blue is the negative afterimage of yellow in Hering’s opponent-process theory of color
vision.
c. green
d. yellow
Answer: a
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 91
Topic: Vision
Skill: A
125. Research indicates that normally there are ________ kinds of cones for color vision.
a. two
b. three
c. four
d. five
Answer: b
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 91
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
126. We now know that the receptor cells in the retina work basically as predicted by the
________ theory.
a. contrast discrepancy
b. trichromatic
c. opponent-process
d. component-process
Answer: b
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 91
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
127. The trichromatic and opponent-process theories of color vision are not in conflict because
each corresponds to ________.
38
a. a different portion of the spectrum
b. the opposite half of perceivable colors
c. a different stage of visual processing
d. one of the types of color blindness
Answer: c
Page Reference: 91
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
128. The existence of afterimages in complementary colors best supports the ________ theory of
color vision.
a. Helmholtz trichromatic
Incorrect: Hermann von Helmholtz’s trichromatic theory of color vision does not account for the
phenomenon of afterimages.
b. Helmholtz opponent-process
c. Hering trichromatic
d. Hering opponent-process
Correct: Afterimages are neatly explained by the opponent-process theory of Ewald Hering.
Answer: d
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 91
Topic: Vision
Skill: C
129. Hering’s explanation for color vision is known as ________.

a. reductive color mixing
b. the trichromatic theory
c. the opponent-process theory
d. additive color mixing
Answer: c
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 91
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
130. The idea that the eye contains three pairs of color receptors (red-green, yellow-blue, and
black-white) is known as the ________ theory.
a. opponent-process
b. additive mixing
c. subtractive mixing
d. trichromatic
39
Answer: a
Page Reference: 91
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
131. If you stare for 30 seconds at a red object and then look at a blank sheet of white paper, you
will see a greenish image of the object. This phenomenon best supports the ________ theory of
color vision.
a. Helmholtz opponent-process
b. Hering trichromatic
c. Hering opponent-process
Correct: Afterimages are neatly explained by the opponent-process theory of Ewald Hering.
d. Helmholtz trichromatic
Incorrect: Hermann von Helmholtz’s trichromatic theory of color vision does not account for the
phenomenon of afterimages.
Answer: c
Page Reference: 91
Topic: Vision
Skill: A
132. Research suggests that ________.

a. only the opponent-process theory of color vision is valid
b. neither the opponent-process nor the trichromatic theory of color vision is valid
c. both the trichromatic and the opponent-process theories of color vision are valid
d. only the trichromatic theory of color vision is valid
Answer: c
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 91
Topic: Vision
Skill: F

a. The messages of opponent-process receptors for color are later translated into trichromatic
form.
b. The messages of trichromatic receptor cells for color are later translated into opponent-process
form.
c. The messages of trichromatic receptor cells for color are carried to the brain in trichromatic
form.
d. The messages of opponent-process receptors for color are carried to the brain in opponent-
process form.
Answer: b
40
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 91
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
134. The neural pathways that connect the eye to the brain appear to process color information
according to the ________ theory.
a. subtractive
b. additive
c. opponent-process
d. trichromatic
Answer: c
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 91
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
135. Bees can see ________.

a. ultra-violet light
b. x-rays
c. infra-red light
d. sound vibrations
Answer: a
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 92
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
Hearing
Learning Objectives
 Explain the characteristics of sound waves and their effect on the sensation we call
sound.
 Describe the path that information about sound travels from the ears to the brain. Explain
place theory, frequency theory, and the volley principle.
 Explain the two major kinds of hearing disorders (deafness and tinnitus).
136. The psychological experience created by the brain in response to changes in air pressure
that are perceived in the auditory system is known as ________.
a. harmonics
b. sound
c. amplitude
41
d. vibration
Answer: b
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 93
Topic: Hearing
Skill: F
137. The physical stimuli for the sense of hearing are called ________ waves.
a. sine
b. sound
c. alpha
d. infrared
Answer: b
Page Reference: 93
Topic: Hearing
Skill: F
138. The number of cycles per second in a sound wave is known as its ________.
a. frequency
b. saturation
c. timbre
d. amplitude
Answer: a
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 93
Topic: Hearing
Skill: F
139. Hertz is a unit of measurement of ________.

a. amplitude
b. frequency
c. loudness
d. overtones
Answer: b
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 93
Topic: Hearing
Skill: F
140. The frequency of a sound wave is measured in a unit called ________.

a. decibels
42
b. audibles
c. hertz
d. timbre
Answer: c
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 93
Topic: Hearing
Skill: F
141. Frequency determines ________.

a. amplitude
b. timbre
c. overtones
d. pitch
Answer: d
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 94
Topic: Hearing
Skill: F
142. Pitch is ________.

a. how high or low a sound is
b. the amplitude of a sound wave
c. the timbre of a sound
d. the overtones of a sound
Answer: a
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 94
Topic: Hearing
Skill: F
143. The human ear responds to frequencies from approximately ________ Hz.
a. 10 to 100,000
b. 2 to 200,000
c. 1 to 10,000
d. 20 to 20,000
Answer: d
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 94
Topic: Hearing
Skill: F
43
144. The height, or magnitude, of a sound wave represents its ________.
a. frequency
b. timbre
c. pitch
d. amplitude
Answer: d
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 94
Topic: Hearing
Skill: F
145. Decibels are used to measure ________.

a. loudness
b. overtones
c. timbre
d. frequency
Answer: a
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 94
Topic: Hearing
Skill: F
146. As we grow older, ________.

a. we lose some of our ability to hear both soft and loud sounds
b. our ability to hear both soft and loud sounds remains stable
c. we lose some of our ability to hear soft sounds
d. we lose some of our ability to hear loud sounds
Answer: c
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 94
Topic: Hearing
Skill: F
147. Accompanying sound waves that are different multiples of the basic tone’s frequency are
called ________.
a. pitch
b. timbre
c. amplitude
d. overtones
Answer: d
Difficulty: 3
44
Topic: Hearing
Skill: F
148. The complex pattern of overtones determines the texture, or ________, of the sound.
a. pitch
b. timbre
c. frequency
d. amplitude
Answer: b
Difficulty: 3
Topic: Hearing
Skill: F
149. The timbre of sound is determined by ________.

a. the amplitude of the sound wave
Incorrect: The amplitude of a sound wave determines the sound’s loudness, or volume.
b. the volley principle
c. perceived loudness
d. overtones
Correct: The complex pattern of overtones is what determines the timbre, or texture, of a sound.
Answer: d
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 94
Topic: Hearing
Skill: C
150. Hearing begins when sound waves stimulate the ________.

a. round window
b. eardrum
c. earlobe
d. oval window
Answer: b
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 95
Topic: Hearing
Skill: F
151. The hammer, anvil, and stirrup are the ________.

a. three components of the basilar membrane in the cochlea
Incorrect: The ossicles – hammer, anvil, and stirrup – are located in the middle ear, not in the
cochlea.
45
b. membranes in the oval window
c. three components of the eardrum
d. three tiny bones in the middle ear
Correct: These tiny bones, located in the middle ear, are known as ossicles.
Answer: d
Page Reference: 95
Topic: Hearing
Skill: F
152. The last of three bones in the middle ear is attached to the ________.
a. earlobe
b. round window
c. oval window
d. organ of Corti
Answer: c
Difficulty: 2
Topic: Hearing
Skill: F
153. The membrane across the opening between the middle ear and the inner ear that conducts
vibrations to the cochlea is called the ________.
a. oval window
b. organ of Corti
c. eardrum
d. round window
Answer: a
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 96
Topic: Hearing
Skill: F
154. The fluid-filled, snail-shaped structure in the inner ear is called the ________.
a. round window
b. cochlea
c. oval window
d. organ of Corti
Answer: b
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 96
Topic: Hearing
46
Skill: F
155. The cochlea is divided lengthwise by the ________.

a. round window
b. oval window
c. basilar membrane
d. organ of Corti
Answer: c
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 96
Topic: Hearing
Skill: F
156. The receptor cells for hearing are located in the ________.
a. organ of Corti
b. vestibular organ
c. auditory nerve
d. basilar membrane
Answer: a
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 96
Topic: Hearing
Skill: F
157. The receptor cells for hearing in the inner ear are the ________.
a. papillae
b. hair cells
c. feature detectors
d. ganglion cells
Answer: b
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 96
Topic: Hearing
Skill: F
158. As hearing takes place, an electrical potential is set up, sending nerve impulses to the brain.
What actually causes the electrical potential to be formed?
a. Bending of the hair cells in the organ of Corti by the basilar membrane.
Correct: The hair cells are auditory receptors, and are responsible for the receipt of auditory
sensations.
b. Contact between the hammer and the anvil.
c. Friction between the basilar and tectorial membranes.
47
Incorrect: The basilar membrane and the organ of Corti are responsible for auditory reception.
d. Passage of the cochlear fluid through the oval window.
Answer: a
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 96
Topic: Hearing
Skill: C
159. The last event that happens just before sound waves are translated into neural impulses is
________.
a. movement of the eardrum
b. movement of the round window
c. movement of the basilar membrane
d. bending of hair cells in the organ of Corti
Answer: d
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 96
Topic: Hearing
Skill: F
160. The bundle of axons that carries signals from each ear to the brain is the ________.
a. eardrum
b. Eustachian tube
c. auditory nerve
d. cochlea
Answer: c
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 96
Topic: Hearing
Skill: F
161. The sense of hearing is ________.

a. bilateral
b. dichromatic
c. trichromatic
d. unilateral
Answer: a
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 96
Topic: Hearing
Skill: F
48
162. The switching center where nerve fibers from the ears cross over to carry messages to the
higher centers of the brain is the ________.
a. thalamus
b. medulla
c. auditory chiasm
d. corpus callosum
Answer: b
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 96
Topic: Hearing
Skill: F
163. The primary destination of sound messages in the brain is the ________ lobe.
a. parietal
b. temporal
c. occipital
d. frontal
Answer: b
Page Reference: 96
Topic: Hearing
Skill: F
164. On their trip to the temporal lobes, auditory messages pass through at least ________ lower
brain centers.
a. eight
b. four
c. six
d. two
Answer: b
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 96
Topic: Hearing
Skill: F
165. The loudness of a sound seems to depend on ________.

a. how rapidly the neurons in the ear fire when they are activated
b. the frequency of the sound wave
Incorrect: The frequency of a sound wave determines the pitch of a sound, not the loudness.
c. the quality of the sound wave
d. how many neurons are activated
Correct: The more neurons that are stimulated, the louder a sound will seem to a person.
49
Answer: d
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 96
Topic: Hearing
Skill: C
166. There are two major theories of pitch discrimination - ________.

a. place theory and frequency theory
b. place theory and amplitude theory
c. frequency theory and amplitude theory
d. transduction theory and volley theory
Answer: a
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 96
Topic: Hearing
Skill: F
167. The place theory and the frequency theory attempt to explain ________.
a. pitch discrimination
b. how we see timbre
c. how we see color
d. timbre discrimination
Answer: a
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 96
Topic: Hearing
Skill: F
168. The belief that pitch is determined by the location on the basilar membrane where the
message is the strongest is called ________ theory.
a. place
Correct: The place theory suggests that different areas of the basilar membrane are associated
with the perception of different (higher or lower) pitched sounds.
b. location
c. frequency
Incorrect: The frequency theory suggests that the movement of the entire basilar membrane
determines the pitch that is heard.
d. transduction
Answer: a
Page Reference: 96
Topic: Hearing
50
Skill: C
169. According to place theory, high frequency sounds ________.

a. cause the greatest vibration at the more flexible end of the basilar membrane
Incorrect: The stimulation of the flexible end of the basilar membrane is thought to stimulate hair
cells that result in the perception of a low pitch, according to the place theory.
b. cause the greatest vibration at the stiff base of the basilar membrane
Correct: The stimulation of the base of the basilar membrane is thought to stimulate hair cells
that result in the perception of a high pitch, according to the place theory.
c. are coded according to the volley principle
d. affect the entire length of the basilar membrane the same way
Answer: b
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 96
Topic: Hearing
Skill: C
170. Frequency theory proposes that ________.

a. the frequency of the vibrations of the basilar membrane is translated into an equivalent
frequency of nerve impulses
Correct: The frequency theory argues that the motion of the whole membrane stimulates different
amounts of nerve impulses that result in different pitch experiences.
b. pitch is determined by the location on the basilar membrane where the message originated
Incorrect: The theory that suggests that the stimulation of different areas of the basilar
membrane would cause us to perceive different pitches is called the place theory.
c. pitch is determined by the quality of the sound wave
d. nerve cells fire in sequence, not individually
Answer: a
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 96
Topic: Hearing
Skill: C
171. The volley principle proposes that ________.

a. nerve cells fire in sequence, not individually
Correct: According to the volley principle, the sequential firing of neurons allows faster recovery
of neurons, which in turn allows for more continuous sensory reception.
b. nerve cells fire individually, not sequentially
c. pitch is determined by the location on the basilar membrane where the message originated
Incorrect: The theory that suggests that the stimulation of different areas of the basilar
membrane would cause us to perceive different pitches is called the place theory.
d. pitch is determined by the quality of a sound wave
Answer: a
51
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 96
Topic: Hearing
Skill: C
172. The volley principle was developed to overcome problems with ________ theory.
a. place
b. trichromatic
c. frequency
d. location
Answer: c
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 96
Topic: Hearing
Skill: F
173. Which of the following statements is not true?

a. Frequency theory alone fully explains neural coding of high frequency sounds, but only place
theory can fully explain neural coding of low frequency sounds.
Correct: Neither frequency nor place theory alone adequately explain the coding of any sound
impulse. It appears to be a combination of the two theories that explains our ability to hear
various pitches.
b. Both frequency theory and the volley principle are necessary to fully explain pitch
discrimination.
Incorrect: Both frequency and place theory are necessary to explain pitch discrimination. The
volley principle is important, but not necessary to explain this concept.
c. Frequency theory must be supplemented by the volley principle in order to fully explain how
we hear sounds up to 4,000 hertz.
d. Frequency theory is insufficient to describe how high frequency tones are heard, because
neurons cannot fire as rapidly as high frequency sound waves vibrate.
Answer: a
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 96
Topic: Hearing
Skill: C
170. Frequency theory appears to account for the ear’s responses to frequencies up to ________
Hz.
a. 12,000
b. 16,000
c. 4,000
d. 8,000
Answer: c
52
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 97
Topic: Hearing
Skill: F
175. About ________ million Americans suffer from hearing loss.

a. 1
b. 28
c. 10
d. 14
Answer: b
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 96
Topic: Hearing
Skill: F
176. About ________ million Americans suffer from hearing loss due to exposure to loud noise.
a. 14
b. 28
c. 10
d. 1
Answer: c
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 96
Topic: Hearing
Skill: F
177. Tinnitus is a disorder in which sufferers ________.

a. hear a steady, high-pitched hum
b. hear only frequencies above 12,000 hertz
c. hear human voices as though people were speaking to them through tin cans
d. are deaf and mute
Answer: a
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 98
Topic: Hearing
Skill: F
178. Problems from tinnitus afflict about 1 out of every ________ persons.
a. two
b. four
c. six
53
d. eight
Answer: d
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 98
Topic: Hearing
Skill: F
179. In most cases, tinnitus is caused by irritation or damage to the ________.

a. hair cells in the inner ear
b. bones of the middle ear
c. auditory nerve
d. oval window
Answer: a
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 98
Topic: Hearing
Skill: F
The Other Senses
Learning Objectives
 Describe how stimuli give rise to smells and tastes.
 Distinguish between the kinesthetic and vestibular senses.
 Explain how sensory messages are sent from the skin to the brain. Summarize the
sources of differences among people in the degree of pain they experience.
180. Humans rely primarily on the senses of ________ to gather information about their
environment.
a. hearing and touch
b. vision and hearing
Correct: Vision and hearing appear to be the most important sensory systems for most human
beings.
c. hearing and smell
d. vision and touch
Incorrect: Vision and touch are both very important to human beings, but hearing is probably
more crucial than touch.
Answer: b
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 98
Topic: The Other Senses
Skill: C
54
181. According to one estimate, the sense of smell is ________ the sense of taste.
a. 100,000 times less sensitive than
b. 10,000 times more sensitive than
c. 10,000 times less sensitive than
d. about equally as sensitive as
Answer: b
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 98
Skill: F
182. The sense of smell in humans is ________.

a. much more sensitive than in most animals
b. much weaker than in most animals
c. slightly more sensitive than in most animals
d. about the same as in most animals
Answer: b
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 98
Skill: F
183. Our sense of smell is activated by ________.

a. mucous in the sinus cavities
b. the thalamus
c. odorant molecules
d. reactions caused by our sense of taste
Answer: c
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 98
Skill: F
184. There are approximately ________ odor-detecting cells located high in each nasal cavity.
a. 1.2 million
b. 12 million
c. 12,000
d. 120 million
Answer: b
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 98
55
Skill: F
185. Harry steps into his kitchen to find his father cooking bacon and eggs for the family’s
breakfast. The unique smells of the bacon and the eggs register in the receptor cells in ________.
a. the nasal cavity
Correct: There are about 12 million receptor cells located high in each nasal cavity.
b. temporal lobe
Incorrect: The temporal lobe is where olfactory information is processed, but receptor cells are
located in the nasal cavity.
c. olfactory bulbs
d. thalamus
Answer: a
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 98
Skill: A
186. Humans can distinguish approximately ________ different smells.

a. 5,000
b. 10,000
c. 1,000
d. 500
Answer: b
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 99
Skill: F
187. Which of the following people is most likely to have the sharpest sense of smell?
a. a 63-year-old woman
Incorrect: Men do not smell things as well as women do, but younger women have a better sense
of smell than do older women.
b. a 25-year-old man
c. a 12-year-old boy
d. a 31-year-old woman
Correct: Younger people and women tend to have better smell reception than older people and
men.
Answer: d
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 99
Skill: A
56
188. Which of the following people is most likely to have the weakest sense of smell?
a. a 62-year-old man
Correct: Men do not have as strong an olfactory system as women, and older individuals do not
smell things as keenly as younger people do.
b. a 28-year-old man
c. a 67-year-old woman
Incorrect: Although this person will lose some of her sense of smell with age, women generally
have a better olfactory system than do men.
d. a 40-year-old woman
Answer: a
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 99
Skill: A
189. The sense of smell is sharpest ________.

a. between the ages of 20 and 40
b. after the age of 60
c. between the ages of 40 and 60
d. before the age of 20
Answer: a
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 99
Skill: F
190. About ________ of those between the ages of 65 and 80 years have experienced a
meaningful loss of smell.
a. one-third
b. one-eighth
c. one-half
d. one-quarter
Answer: c
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 99
Skill: F
191. About ________ of those over age 80 have had a meaningful loss in their ability to smell.
a. 25 percent
b. 33 percent
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c. 50 percent
d. 75 percent
Answer: d
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 99
Skill: F
192. Alfred is unable to enjoy food because, although his taste buds work, he has lost his sense
of smell. Alfred has ________.
a. aphasia
Incorrect: Alfred cannot taste his food because of the loss of smell, which is called anosmia.
b. anosmia
Correct: Anosmia refers to the complete loss of smell.
c. cataplexy
d. Korsakoff’s syndrome
Answer: b
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 99
Skill: A
193. Axons from the nerve cells in the nose receive messages that are eventually routed to the
__________ in the brain.
a. temporal lobes
b. vomeronasal organ
c. stretch receptors
d. olfactory epithelium
Answer: a
Difficulty: 3
Skill: F
194. Humans and most other mammals have ________ sensory system(s) devoted to the sense of
smell.
a. one
b. two
c. three
d. four
Answer: b
Difficulty: 3
58
Page Reference: 99
Skill: F
195. A chemical that communicates information to other organisms through the sense of smell is
called ________.
a. a scent
b. a saccule
c. a pheromone
d. odorant protein binding
Answer: c
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 99
Skill: F
196. Flavor is ________.

a. a combination of taste and smell
b. taste
c. smell
d. a combination of touch and taste
Answer: a
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 100
Skill: F
197. Which of the following is not one of the five primary taste qualities that humans perceive?
a. sour
b. spice
c. bitter
d. salt
Answer: b
Page Reference: 100
Skill: F
198. Structures on the tongue that contain the receptor cells for taste are the ________.
a. saccules
b. hair cells
59
c. golgi tendon organs
d. taste buds
Answer: d
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 100
Skill: F
199. Which of the following is a true statement?

a. There are four kinds of taste receptors, each corresponding to one of the four primary taste
qualities.
b. The middle of the tongue is most sensitive to sourness.
c. The tongue’s papillae contain the taste buds that in turn contain receptor cells for the sense of
taste.
d. All areas of the tongue are equally sensitive to each of the primary tastes.
Answer: c
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 100
Skill: F
200. Taste buds are contained in the tongue’s ________.

a. hair cells
b. underside
c. saccules
d. papillae
Answer: d
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 100Topic: The Other Senses
Skill: F
201. After living all his life in a town that pumps its water from relatively pure underground
wells, John moves to a city that gets its water from a local river and must add chlorine to purify
it. He totally dislikes the taste of the city water. His friends, who are long-time city residents,
cannot understand his problem because they have experienced ________.
a. sensory adaptation
Correct: Sensory adaptation can occur in taste when we become accustomed to one flavor, and
then experience an unpleasant response to other flavors.
b. sensory inhibition
c. sensory illusion
d. a reaction formation
Incorrect: Reaction formation refers to a Freudian defense mechanism, and has nothing to do
with sensation and perception.
60
Answer: a
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 100
Skill: A
202. Our ________ senses provide specific information about muscle movement, changes in
posture, and strain on muscles and joints.
a. kinesthetic
b. vestibular
c. cutaneous
d. olfactory
Answer: a
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 100
Skill: F
203. Information from the kinesthetic senses travels mainly to the ________ lobes.
a. frontal
b. temporal
c. occipital
d. parietal
Answer: d
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 101
Skill: F
204. The senses that monitor our equilibrium and awareness of body position in space are the
________ senses.
a. kinesthetic
b. cutaneous
c. olfactory
d. vestibular
Answer: d
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 101
Skill: F
61
205. The vestibular senses govern our awareness of ________.
a. pain
b. pressure
c. temperature
d. equilibrium
Answer: d
Page Reference: 101
Skill: F
206. Jane jumps out of bed to the sound of her alarm clock. As she reaches her feet, she feels
very dizzy for a few seconds. As her system readjusts to her standing, she begins to regain her
sense of balance. The source of Jane’s dizziness is probably in the ________ senses.
a. olfactory
Incorrect: The olfactory system controls our sense of smell. The best answer is the vestibular
system.
b. vestibular
Correct: The vestibular controls, among other things, our sense of balance and equilibrium.
c. papillary
d. skin
Answer: b
Page Reference: 101
Skill: A
207. Which of the following events would be most likely to produce a temporary upset of the
vestibular senses?
a. Stimulating the basilar membrane.
b. Riding a wild roller coaster.
Correct: The rapid input of sensory information – visual, auditory, tactile – caused by a roller
coaster ride can all throw off our vestibular system for a brief moment or two.
c. Staring at a bright flashing strobe light.
d. Listening to a loud stereo through earphones.
Incorrect: Listening to loud stereo music might disrupt our auditory system, causing tinnitus, but
the best answer is the ride on a wild roller coaster.
Answer: b
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 101
Skill: A
62
208. Motion sickness arises in the ________.
a. kinesthetic senses
b. cerebral cortex
c. cutaneous organs
d. vestibular senses
Answer: d
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 101
Skill: F
209. A tourist at Disney World is suddenly overcome with dizziness while watching a wide-
screen display of a roller coaster ride. The sense organs that contribute most to her feelings of
disequilibrium are the ________.
a. eyes
Correct: Motion sickness is often explained by a discrepancy between visual and vestibular
information. In this case, what the person was seeing is not what their body was experiencing,
thus leading to motion sickness.
b. ears
Incorrect: While the cochlea is often blamed for motion sickness, it is often due to our visual and
vestibular senses and not just the cochlea.
c. vestibular sacs
d. semicircular canals
Answer: a
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 101
Skill: A
210. People of ________ ancestry display the highest frequency of motion sickness.
a. European
b. Asian
c. Indian
d. African
Answer: b
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 101
Skill: F
211. Susceptibility to motion sickness appears to be related to ________.

a. race, but not genetics
b. neither race nor genetics
63
c. both race and genetics
Correct: People of Asian ancestry seem to be most susceptible to motion sickness, and it seems to
be a genetic tendency as well.
d. genetics, but not race
Incorrect: Genetics play a part in motion sickness, but a person’s racial background can also be
a contributing factor.
Answer: c
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 101
Skill: C
212. Our largest sensory organ is our ________.

a. skin
b. nose
c. ear
d. eye
Answer: a
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 101
Skill: F
213. The average six-foot-tall person has about ________ square feet of skin.
a. 28
b. 7
c. 21
d. 14
Answer: c
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 101
Skill: F
214. Research has found that __________ someone for just a few seconds can successfully
convey emotions such as anger, fear, disgust, love, gratitude, sympathy, happiness, and sadness.
a. hearing
b. smelling
c. seeing
d. touching
Answer: d
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 101
64
Skill: F
215. Information from the skin’s nerve receptors goes primarily to the ________ lobes of the
brain.
a. occipital
b. frontal
c. temporal
d. parietal
Answer: d
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 101
Skill: F
216. The phenomenon of paradoxical heat explains why ________.

a. some people are more sensitive than others to changes in temperature
Incorrect: While this may be true – people can varying difference thresholds when it comes to
temperature – it is not explained by paradoxical heat.
b. the hands are more sensitive than the arms
c. we may think we are touching something hot when we are actually touching something warm
and something cool
Correct: The stimulation of more than one kind of temperature receptor might cause a
misinterpretation of a sensory stimulus, resulting in the experience of paradoxical heat.
d. encapsulated end organs vary in structure
Answer: c
Page Reference: 101
Skill: C
217. The area(s) among the most sensitive in the human body is (are) the ________.
a. back
b. legs
c. feet
d. face
Answer: d
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 102
Skill: F
65
218. In Michigan, an outdoor temperature of 45 degrees feels cold in July but warm in January.
This is an example of ________.
a. paradoxical heat
Incorrect: Paradoxical heat explains why our brain can misread temperature input. It does not
explain the relative experience of warm or cold based on our surroundings.
b. adaptation
Correct: Like the other sensory systems, the skin senses can undergo various types of sensory
adaptation, such as in this example.
c. psychophysical scaling
d. Fechner’s Law
Answer: b
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 102
Skill: A
219. “Phantom limb” pain occurs in at least ________ percent of amputees.

a. 90
b. 45
c. 65
d. 25
Answer: a
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 102
Skill: F
220. The idea that fibers in the sensory nerves can prevent impulses from reaching the brain --
and thus prevent the sensation of pain -- is part of the ________ theory of pain.
a. gate-control
Correct: This theory suggests that there is a neurological “gate” in the spinal cord that can
‘close’ and thus block the transmission of pain signals to the brain.
b. free nerve ending
c. volley
Incorrect: The volley principle is involved in our auditory system, not in our system of pain
reception.
d. primary process
Answer: a
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 102
Skill: C
66
221. The idea that certain areas of the brainstem can send out signals to fibers connected to the
spinal cord and effectively block pain is part of the ________ theory of pain.
a. primary receptor
b. cerebral control
Incorrect: The cerebrum is not a part of the brainstem. The best answer is the gate-control
theory.
c. pattern
d. gate-control
Correct: This theory suggests that there is a neurological “gate” in the spinal cord that can
“close” and thus block the transmission of pain signals to the brain. This process can be
controlled by signals coming from the brainstem.
Answer: d
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 102
Skill: C
222. According to gate-control theory, we experience more pain when the gate is ________.
a. active
b. closed
Incorrect: It is the closing of the “pain gate” that blocks pain signals and thus decreases our
experience of pain.
c. passive
d. open
Correct: An open “pain gate” allows pain messages to be sent to the brain, and then be
interpreted as a pain message.
Answer: d
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 102
Skill: C
223. According to gate-control theory, we experience less pain when the gate is ________.
a. open
Incorrect: An open “pain gate” allows pain messages to be sent to the brain, and then be
interpreted as a pain message.
b. passive
c. closed
Correct: It is the closing of the “pain gate” that blocks pain signals and thus decreases our
experience of pain.
d. active
Answer: c
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 102
67
Skill: C
224. In 1972, an eleven-year-old member of a tribe that inhabits the Fiji islands walked on white-
hot coals. He seemed to experience no pain. The gate-control theory of pain would explain this
by maintaining that ________.
a. because of the warm and cold receptors in his feet, he experienced the heat from the coals as
paradoxical heat
Incorrect: This is a description of paradoxical heat, not the gate-control theory of pain.
b. sensory nerves in the spinal cord prevented the impulse from reaching his brain
Correct: The gate-control theory suggests that pain impulses can be blocked in the spinal cord,
thus never being sensed.
c. he was able to “will” the sensory neurons in his feet to shut down while he was walking on the
coals
d. by consciously focusing on other stimuli, his frontal lobes were able to ignore the pain
messages coming up the spinal cord
Answer: b
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 102
Skill: A
225. A woman trained in natural childbirth techniques (deep breathing, muscle relaxation, and
mental images) reported that her labor and delivery were considerably less painful than she had
anticipated. The gate-control theory of pain explains this phenomenon by asserting that
________.
a. sensory nerves in the spinal cord prevented the impulse from reaching her brain
Correct: The gate control theory suggests that pain impulses can be blocked in the spinal cord,
thus never being sensed
b. the intensity of the stimulus caused by her contractions was insufficient
c. excitatory neurons in her spinal cord were particularly active
d. there are no free nerve endings in the birth canal
Incorrect: Ask any woman who has given birth if this is true, and you will find out that it is not!
Answer: a
Page Reference: 102
Skill: A
226. ________ theory holds that the interactions of biological, psychological and cultural factors
influence the intensity and duration of pain.
a. Sociocultural
b. Biopsychosocial
c. Psychoneuroimmunological
68
d. Behavior genetics
Answer: b
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 103
Skill: F
227. Biopsychosocial theory argues that pain sensations involve ________ interrelated
mechanisms.
a. nine
b. five
c. seven
d. three
Answer: d
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 103
Skill: F
228. Pain relief that occurs when a person believes a pill or procedure will reduce pain is known
as ________.
a. the placebo effect
b. the Barnum effect
c. the Stockholm syndrome
d. a perceptual set
Answer: a
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 103
Skill: F
229. Placebo pills and acupuncture have both been effective in reducing pain. The common
element in both of these methods may be their ability to stimulate the ________.
a. production of adrenal hormones
Incorrect: Neither of these pain-reduction methods stimulates the adrenal gland to produce
hormones.
b. arousal of the peripheral nervous system
c. opening of neurological gates in the spine
d. release of endorphins
Correct: Endophins are chemicals that block pain messages from reaching the brain.
Answer: d
Difficulty: 2
69
Page Reference: 103
Skill: C
230. Recent discoveries indicate that the brain produces pain-blocking neurotransmitters
collectively known as ________.
a. endorphins
b. catecholamines
c. parathyroids
d. monoamines
Answer: a
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 103
Skill: F
231. Recent research indicates that endorphin release ________.

a. does not account for all the pain reduction associated with either acupuncture or placebos
Correct: Research suggests that endorphin release is only part of the explanation for why these
treatments for pain are effective.
b. accounts for all the pain reduction associated with acupuncture, but not placebos
c. accounts for all the pain reduction associated with both acupuncture and placebos
Incorrect: Research suggests that while endorphin release is part of the explanation for why
these methods work, it does not the entire story.
d. accounts for all the pain reduction associated with placebos but not acupuncture
Answer: a
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 103
Skill: C
Perception
Learning Objectives
 Distinguish between sensation and perception. Explain the Gestalt principles of
perceptual organization. Describe the several perceptual constancies.
 Identify the major cues to distance and depth, distinguishing between monocular and
binocular cues.
 Explain how we can localize sound and perceive movement, distinguishing between real
movement and apparent movement.
 Explain how visual illusions arise.
 Describe how observer characteristics and culture can influence perception.
70
232. The process of creating meaningful patterns from raw sensory information is ________.
a. sensation
b. the phi phenomenon
c. transduction
d. perception
Answer: d
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 104
Topic: Perception
Skill: F
233. Alice is walking home from school when she notices a change in the weather coming. She
hears thunder in the distance, sees lightning and dark clouds approaching, feels the wet breeze of
an approaching storm, and even smells the difference in the wind from the storm. Alice is able to
organize all of these sensory cues into a meaningful idea due to her powers of ________.
a. intuition
b. sensation
Incorrect: Sensation refers to the stimulation of our sensory organs by energy in our
surroundings.
c. perception
Correct: Perception refers to the way the brain processes and organizes sensory information.
d. sensory acuity
Answer: c
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 104
Topic: Perception
Skill: A
234. The brain’s interpretation of sensory information so as to give it meaning is ________.

a. transduction
b. adaptation
c. perception
d. sensation
Answer: c
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 104
Topic: Perception
Skill: F
235. Perception takes place in the ________.

a. sense organs
71
Incorrect: Sensation takes place in the sense organs.
b. brain
Correct: The brain interprets the information that is received by the sensory organs. This is
called perception.
c. internal organs
d. peripheral nervous system
Answer: b
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 104
Topic: Perception
Skill: C
236. Which of the following does not represent Gestaltist beliefs?

a. Perception occurs in unpredictable ways.
Correct: While it may be true that perception can be unpredictable, this is not a major tenet of
the Gestalt beliefs of perception.
b. Figure-ground distinctions are important in perceptual processes.
Incorrect: The distinction between the figure and the ground is the major foundation of all of the
Gestalt beliefs of perception.
c. The brain creates a coherent perceptual experience.
d. The perceived whole is something more than the sum of available sensory information.
Answer: a
Difficulty: 2 4 yr.: 25% r = -.01
Page Reference: 106
Topic: Perception
Skill: C
237. Which of the following is not true of perception?

a. The contrast between ground and a well-camouflaged figure does not give us enough cues to
distinguish the figure.
b. The figure-ground relationship has been documented only with visual experiences.
Correct: It is possible to distinguish a figure and ground relationship using more than just your
visual system. The “cocktail party” phenomenon, for example, demonstrates this concept with
your sense of hearing.
c. Our past experiences and expectations affect the way we perceive things.
Incorrect: We tend to perceive things based on our expectations, and those expectations are
affected by past experiences.
d. When an object is far away, we tend to perceive its actual size, even though the image it casts
on the retina is smaller than the image cast when the object is close.
Answer: b
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 106
Topic: Perception
Skill: C
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238. Gestalt psychologists believe in the ________.
a. tendency to perceive detached sensory features
b. theory that the whole is the sum of its parts
Incorrect: Gestalt psychologists believe that the whole is more than the sum of its parts.
c. superiority of auditory perception
d. tendency to perceive whole patterns
Correct: Gestalt psychologists believe that the only way to truly perceive things accurately is to
consider the “whole.”
Answer: d
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 106
Topic: Perception
Skill: C
239. While attending a cocktail party, you find you can clearly hear one particular conversation
above all the others, even though that conversation is not very loud. To a Gestalt psychologist,
the conversation represents the ________, and the rest of the party is the ________.
a. figure; ground
Correct: This is an accurate demonstration of the figure-ground relationship using your auditory
system.
b. object; ground
c. object; subject
d. pattern; whole
Incorrect: Gestalt psychologists are concerned with patterns and wholes, but the best answer is
“figure; ground.”
Answer: a
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 106
Topic: Perception
Skill: A
240. Certain animals can change their colors to match their surroundings and thereby escape
predators. This camouflage is effective because it ________.
a. destroys figure-ground contrast
Correct: Creating an ambiguity between the figure and the ground is an effective way to hide
from a predator.
b. masks binocular depth cues
Incorrect: Changing one’s colors does not significantly impact another’s binocular perception of
depth.
c. decreases shape constancy
d. decreases size constancy
Answer: a
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Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 106
Topic: Perception
Skill: A
241. Stimuli with strong, clear contours in which we perceive figure and ground in two different
ways, shifting back and forth, are called ________ figures.
a. flexible
b. camouflaged
c. inversed
d. reversible
Answer: d
Difficulty: 3
Topic: Perception
Skill: F
242. Our tendency to see objects as relatively stable and unchanging despite changing sensory
information is called perceptual ________.
a. reversibility
b. constancy
c. closure
d. coherency
Answer: b
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 108
Topic: Perception
Skill: F
243. Perceptual constancy refers to the ________.

a. awareness that objects do not cease to exist when they are out of sight
b. fact that the “jnd” is constant over a wide range of stimulus intensities
c. tendency to perceive objects as relatively stable and unchanging, despite changing sensory
information
d. tendency to code incoming stimuli always in the same way
Answer: c
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 108
Topic: Perception
Skill: F
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244. When we look at a white house, we can recognize it as a white house by day or night and
from any angle. This is due to perceptual ________.
a. reversibility
Incorrect: Reversibility refers to the fact that some objects have a figure and ground that is
difficult to distinguish, and thus we can perceive that object in two different ways.
b. constancy
Correct: Perceptual constancy refers to the tendency to perceive objects as relatively stable
despite changing sensory information.
c. closure
d. coherency
Answer: b
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 108
Topic: Perception
Skill: A
245. Color, shape, size, and brightness are all types of perceptual ________.
a. coherency
b. reversibility
c. closure
d. constancy
Answer: d
Page Reference: 108
Topic: Perception
Skill: F
246. To rewrite Gertrude Stein’s famous line a bit, a “rose looks like a rose looks like a rose.”
And it does whether you look at it from above or below, from the left or the right. This rather
amazing phenomenon generally goes by the name of ________.
a. perceptual continuity
b. perceptual similarity
c. perceptual consistency
Incorrect: While this may be similar to the correct answer, it is incorrect. The best answer is
perceptual constancy.
d. perceptual constancy
Correct: Perceptual constancy refers to the tendency to perceive objects as relatively stable
despite changing sensory information.
Answer: d
Difficulty: 1 4 yr.: 80% r = .10; 4 yr.: 90% r = .46; 4 yr.: 63% r = .19; 4 yr.: 73% r = .17
Page Reference: 108
Topic: Perception
Skill: A
75
247. Size constancy explains why ________.
a. closer objects are perceived as smaller than far-away objects
Incorrect: In reality, far-away objects tend to be perceived as smaller than closer objects.
b. perception of size is inversely related to distance
c. distance affects perceived size
d. objects are perceived as having constant dimensions regardless of distance
Correct: Our perception of the size and physical properties of an object is not significantly
affected by changes in distance.
Answer: d
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 108
Topic: Perception
Skill: C
248. Whether you are standing right next to it or a mile away from it, you know a tree is the
same height because of ________.
a. size constancy
Correct: Size constancy tells us that we perceive an object as being the same size regardless of
its distance from us.
b. the figure-ground distinction
Incorrect: The figure-ground distinction is a major tenet of Gestalt principles of perception, but
it is not the correct answer to this question.
c. the phi phenomenon
d. retinal disparity
Answer: a
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 108
Topic: Perception
Skill: A
249. An infant watches her father walk down a long hall toward her as he somehow magically
grows from being just three feet tall to six feet tall. The infant has not yet acquired ________
constancy.
a. size
Correct: Size constancy tells us that we perceive an object as being the same size regardless of
its distance from us.
b. orientation
c. object
d. shape
Incorrect: This question deals with changes in the father’s relative size, not in his shape. He may
be perceived as being the same shape even as his size is perceived to change.
Answer: a
Difficulty: 1
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Page Reference: 108
Topic: Perception
Skill: A
250. When you stand to the side of a window frame, it casts a trapezoidal (nonrectangular) image
on your retina. It still seems rectangular to you, though, because of ________.
b. figure-ground constancy
c. shape constancy
Correct: We tend to perceive the shape of objects as being unchanged, even when sensory input
is altered. This is based on our experiences with perception of common objects.
d. size constancy
Incorrect: The size of the window is perceived as being constant when we move farther or nearer
from it, but that is not the concept that this question is exploring.
Answer: c
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 108
Topic: Perception
Skill: A
251. Color constancy explains why ________.

a. the color you perceive in an object depends on the type of light (fluorescent, incandescent,
etc.) shining on that object
Incorrect: The type of light source may certainly impact the colors that we perceive, but this is
not related to the principle of color constancy, which deals with changing levels of brightness.
b. an object is perceived as being the same color whether we see it in bright sunlight or dim
candlelight
Correct: Color constancy says that we generally maintain our perception of an object’s color as
unchanged even in changing levels of brightness.
c. our perception of color is inversely related to the amount of light falling on an object
d. objects seen in bright light are seen as different in color than the same objects seen in dim light
Answer: b
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 109
Topic: Perception
Skill: C
252. Joanne walks into a dimly lit room and sees an unfamiliar object sitting on a table in the
middle of the room. Research on perception indicates she is most likely to make a mistake about
the object’s ________.
a. shape
b. color
Correct: Of the different types of perceptual constancy, color constancy is the least predictable
and consistent.
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c. size
Incorrect: Size constancy is a relatively reliable perceptual phenomenon.
d. brightness
Answer: b
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 109
Topic: Perception
Skill: A
253. When you look into a room illuminated by fluorescent lights, the white walls appear to you
to be white. However, if you take a photograph of that room the walls are likely to have a
greenish tint. This is because ________.
a. your perception of the room is adjusted by color constancy
Correct: The camera is not able to adjust based on its experiences and expectations, but your
brain is! This is why you experience color constancy.
b. the film in the camera is adjusted by color constancy
c. most photographic films show white as having a greenish tint
d. your perception of the room is not affected by fluorescent lighting
Incorrect: Your perception of the room may be affected by fluorescent lighting since color
constancy is not absolute, but you have some ability to adjust based on expectations. The camera
has no ability to adjust in that same way.
Answer: a
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 109
Topic: Perception
Skill: A
254. An object’s reflection of a percentage of light relative to that of all the surrounding objects
is always the same. This fact best explains ________.
a. color constancy
b. reversible figures
c. visual acuity
d. brightness constancy
Answer: d
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 109
Topic: Perception
Skill: F
255. Visual distance and depth cues that require the use of only one eye are called ________
cues.
a. binocular
b. dichromatic
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c. monocular
d. monaural
Answer: c
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 109
Topic: Perception
Skill: F
256. Visual distance and depth cues that require the use of both eyes are called ________ cues.
a. binocular
b. binaural
c. dichromatic
d. monocular
Answer: a
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 109
Topic: Perception
Skill: F
257. When one object partially blocks another, the distance cue is called ________.
a. linear perspective
b. interposition
c. texture gradient
d. shadowing
Answer: b
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 109
Topic: Perception
Skill: F
258. When one object partly blocks another, it provides an important distance cue called
________.
a. interposition
b. aerial perspective
c. elevation
d. motion parallax
Answer: a
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 109
Topic: Perception
Skill: F
79
259. The distance cue in which two parallel lines extend into the distance and seem to come
together at one point is called ________.
a. aerial perspective
b. shadowing
c. motion parallax
d. linear perspective
Answer: d
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 109
Topic: Perception
Skill: F
260. The walls of a very long, narrow corridor appear to come together as they recede from the
viewer. This distance cue is known as ________.
Correct: The linear perspective, a monocular distance cue, suggests that parallel lines appear to
converge on the visual horizon.
Incorrect: The aerial perspective suggests that objects farther away have a hazy or blurry
appearance, while objects nearer to us have a sharper, or clearer appearance.
c. convergence
d. interposition
Answer: a
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 109
Topic: Perception
Skill: A
261. The distance cue in which faraway objects appear to be hazy and have a blurred outline is
called ________.
a. shadowing
c. linear perspective
d. motion parallax
Answer: b
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 109
Topic: Perception
Skill: F
262. An object’s elevation in our visual field is a perspective cue to ________.

a. depth
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b. shape
c. size
d. shadowing
Answer: a
Difficulty: 3
Topic: Perception
Skill: F
263. Texture gradient refers to the fact that texture appears to become ________.
a. less detailed in the distance
b. less detailed as brightness increases
c. more detailed in the distance
d. more detailed as brightness increases
Answer: a
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 110
Topic: Perception
Skill: F
264. Shadowing is a cue to ________.

a. color perception
b. linear perspective
Incorrect: Shadowing and the linear perspective are two different kinds of depth cues.
c. width perspective
d. depth perception
Correct: The relative positions of objects and shadows gives your brain information about the
depth of the object.
Answer: d
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 110
Topic: Perception
Skill: C
265. You are watching a tennis match and your seat is located at the side of the court, in line with
the net. If you keep your eyes on the net but move your head from side to side, the people on the
other side of the court will appear to ________.
a. not move at all
Incorrect: The concept of motion parallax suggests that the spectators on the opposite side of the
court will look like they are moving in the same direction as your head.
b. move toward you
c. move in a direction opposite to your head movement
d. move in the same direction that your head is moving
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Correct: This is an example of the depth cue known as motional parallax.
Answer: d
Difficulty: 3
Topic: Perception
Skill: A
266. You are watching a tennis match and your seat is located at the side of the court, in line with
the net. If you keep your eyes on the net but move your head from side to side, the people a few
rows in front of you will appear to ________.
a. move in the same direction that your head is moving
Incorrect: The concept of motion parallax suggests that the spectators on the opposite side of the
court will look like they are moving in the opposite direction as your head.
b. move farther away from you
c. not move at all
d. move in a direction opposite to your head movement
Correct: This is an example of the depth cue known as motional parallax.
Answer: d
Difficulty: 3
Topic: Perception
Skill: A
267. The monocular distance cue in which objects closer than the point of visual focus seem to
move in the direction opposite to the viewer’s moving head, and objects beyond the viewing
point move in the same direction as the viewer’s head is ________.
a. motion parallax
b. subliminal motion
c. motion differential
Answer: a
Difficulty: 2
Topic: Perception
Skill: F
268. While riding on a train, David notices that the trees and telephone poles close to the tracks
seem to flash by, while the buildings, trees, and mountains off in the distance seem to move by
more slowly. This phenomenon is called ________.
a. motion parallax
Correct: Motion parallax refers to our perception of movement of objects near and far because
of the manner in which visual information is being flashed on our retinas.
82
Incorrect: The aerial perspective suggests that objects farther away have a hazy or blurry
appearance, while objects nearer to us have a sharper, or clearer appearance.
c. subliminal motion
d. motion differential
Answer: a
Topic: Perception
Skill: A
269. Which of the following choices is not a monocular cue that painters can incorporate into
their work to convey information about the relative distances of objects?
a. interposition
Incorrect: Painters can surely use the concept of interposition to provide distance cues in their
works.
d. convergence
Correct: Convergence is a binocular distance cue, not a monocular distance cue.
Answer: d
Topic: Perception
Skill: A
270. A person who is blind in one eye can use each of the visual distance and depth cues except
________.
a. shadowing
Incorrect: The aerial perspective is a monocular distance cue that can be used by a person with
the use of only one eye.
c. convergence
Correct: Convergence is a binocular distance cue which cannot be used by a person who only
has the use of one eye.
d. motion parallax
Answer: c
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 111
Topic: Perception
Skill: A
271. Which of the following animals depends entirely on monocular distance and depth cues?
a. deer
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b. chimpanzees
c. cats
d. humans
Answer: a
Topic: Perception
Skill: F
272. Which of the following has the ability to use binocular distance and depth cues?
a. fish
b. horses
c. deer
d. wolves
Answer: d
Difficulty: 2
Topic: Perception
Skill: F
273. Combining the retinal images from both eyes results in ________.
a. binocular inversion
b. stereoscopic vision
c. retinal disparity
d. convergence
Answer: b
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 111
Topic: Perception
Skill: F
274. The differences between the separate images each eye receives are known as ________.
a. convergence
b. binocular inversion
c. stereoscopic vision
Answer: d
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 111
Topic: Perception
Skill: F
84
275. Old 3D movies were made by shooting two films of the same scene, each film being shot
from a slightly different angle. When you went to the theater, you were given a special pair of
glasses constructed so that your left eye saw only what the left camera filmed, and your right eye
saw only what the right camera filmed. The three-dimensional quality of the movie was due
primarily to ________.
b. the Gestalt principle of proximity
c. convergence
Incorrect: Convergence refers to the activity of the muscles that control your eyes.
Correct: Retinal disparity suggests that we get information about the depth of an object when our
brain analyzes the differences between the images received by the left and right eyes.
Answer: d
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 111
Topic: Perception
Skill: A
276. When Bill looks at his lamp alternately with his left and right eye, the image seems to jump
from one position to another. With both eyes he perceives only one image. This illustrates
________.
a. the Gestalt principle of similarity
b. the Gestalt principle of proximity
c. retinal disparity
Correct: The image that Bill sees appears to jump because each of his eyes receives a slightly
different message about the object he is looking at.
d. interposition
Incorrect: There is nothing in this question that deals with overlapping images, which is what
interposition addresses.
Answer: c
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 111
Topic: Perception
Skill: A
277. When we look at objects fairly close to us, our eyes tend to turn slightly inward toward each
other. This process is called ________.
a. binocular inversion
b. being cross-eyed
c. convergence
Answer: c
Difficulty: 1
85
Page Reference: 111
Topic: Perception
Skill: F
278. When objects are 60 or 70 feet away, ________ is not a major distance cue.
a. convergence
Correct: Convergence deals with the motion of the eyes when objects get very close to us.
b. retinal disparity
Incorrect: Retinal disparity is very salient when objects get farther and farther away from us.
c. texture gradient
d. motion parallax
Answer: a
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 111
Topic: Perception
Skill: C
279. Compared to people with two eyes, those with only one eye lack the ability to use ________
in determining distance.
a. interposition
b. convergence
Correct: Convergence is a binocular distance cue which cannot be used by a person who only
has the use of one eye.
d. texture gradients
Incorrect: Texture gradient is a monocular distance cue that can be used by a person with only
one eye.
Answer: b
Page Reference: 111
Topic: Perception
Skill: A
280. Clues to sound localization that require the use of one ear are called ________ clues.
a. monoclonic
b. monaural
c. dichromatic
d. monocular
Answer: b
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 111
Topic: Perception
Skill: F
86
281. Clues to sound localization that require the use of both ears are called ________ clues.
a. binocular
b. dichromatic
c. binaural
d. biclonic
Answer: c
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 111
Topic: Perception
Skill: F
282. The physical displacement of an object from one position to another is called ________.
a. biological movement
b. apparent movement
c. induced movement
d. real movement
Answer: d
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 111
Topic: Perception
Skill: F
283. The phenomenon in which we perceive movement in objects that are actually standing still
is known as ________.
a. induced movement
b. biological movement
c. apparent movement
d. real movement
Answer: c
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 112
Topic: Perception
Skill: F
284. The autokinetic illusion is exemplified by ________.

b. the apparent drifting of a tiny, constantly shining light
Correct: When there is no frame of reference behind that tiny light, it will appear to move or
“dance” even when it is stationary.
c. the apparent motion of a series of rapidly shown still pictures in motion picture films
Incorrect: The perception of movement in movies is called stroboscopic motion.
87
d. photographic prints
Answer: b
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 112
Topic: Perception
Skill: C
285. If you stare at a pinpoint of light in an otherwise darkened room, after a few seconds the
light will seem to move. This is an example of ________.
Incorrect: The phi phenomenon gives the appearance of fluid, constant movement when a light is
turned on in one area then is turned on in another area. A common application of the phi
phenomenon is the apparent motion in a string of Christmas lights.
b. the autokinetic illusion
Correct: When there is no frame of reference behind that tiny light, it will appear to move or
‘dance’ even when it is stationary. This is called the autokinetic illusion.
c. convergence
d. stroboscopic motion
Answer: b
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 112
Topic: Perception
Skill: A
286. Flashing a series of still pictures in rapid succession causes ________.

a. induced movement
c. stroboscopic motion
d. the phi phenomenon
Answer: c
Page Reference: 112
Topic: Perception
Skill: F
287. Even though a motion picture actually consists of a series of still frames, we perceive it
conveying continuous movement. This is an example of ________.
Incorrect: The phi phenomenon gives the appearance of fluid, constant movement when a light is
c. induced movement
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d. stroboscopic motion
Correct: Flashing a series of still pictures in rapid succession is called stroboscopic motion, and
it is why we perceive movement in motion pictures.
Answer: d
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 112
Topic: Perception
Skill: A
288. As part of an experiment, Billy is sitting in a darkened room. A light is flashed on a certain
point in the room, then flashed off, and a second light is flashed on a split second later at a point
a short distance away. This process is repeated several times. Although Billy is really seeing two
separate lights flashed at different points on the wall, he perceives them as one light moving
from one point to another. This is an example of ________.
Correct: The phi phenomenon gives the appearance of fluid, constant movement when a light is
b. convergence
Incorrect: Convergence refers to the movement of the muscles that control your eyes. It is an
example of a binocular distance cue.
c. stroboscopic motion
d. the autokinetic illusion
Answer: a
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 112
Topic: Perception
Skill: A
289. When you stop at a railroad crossing at night, instead of correctly perceiving two red lights
that flash alternately you may perceive a single red light that moves back and forth from left to
right. This is an example of ________.
a. stroboscopic motion
Incorrect: Flashing a series of still pictures in rapid succession is called stroboscopic motion,
and it is why we perceive movement in motion pictures.
c. the phi phenomenon
Correct: The phi phenomenon gives the appearance of fluid, constant movement when a light is
phenomenon is the apparent motion in a string of Christmas lights
d. the Muller-Lyer illusion
Answer: c
Difficulty: 2 4 yr.: 67% r = .36; 4 yr.: 58% r = .46; 4 yr.: 69% r = .35
Page Reference: 112
89
Topic: Perception
Skill: A
290. If you place a stick in the water, the part of the stick that is under the water appears bent.
This is an example of ________.
a. a perceptual illusion
Incorrect: A perceptual illusion is caused when a stimulus gives information that is impossible
for our brains to reconcile, and thus we are left “seeing” something that we know cannot
possibly exist.
b. a physical illusion
Correct: This is a physical illusion because the distortion in what you see has an explanation in
the physical universe; in this case, it is the difference in refraction of light caused by the water
acting like a prism.
c. induced movement
d. the phi phenomenon
Answer: b
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 112
Topic: Perception
Skill: A
291. An illusion due to distortion of information reaching receptor cells is called a(n) ________.
a. stroboscopic illusion
b. physical illusion
c. perceptual illusion
d. induced illusion
Answer: b
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 112
Topic: Perception
Skill: F
292. An illusion due to misleading cues in stimuli which cause us to create perceptions that are
inaccurate or impossible is called a(n) ________ illusion.
a. physical
b. induced
c. stroboscopic
d. perceptual
Answer: d
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 112
Topic: Perception
Skill: F
90
293. A child is asked to estimate the size of a poker chip. The child is then allowed to exchange
the poker chip for candy. The child is then asked to estimate the size of an identical poker chip.
This time the child’s estimate of the poker chip is substantially larger, because the child has
learned to place value on the poker chip. This shows the effects of ________ on perception.
a. motivation
Correct: Our emotions and desires are likely to affect the way we perceive the world around us
because we are motivated to perceive things in a particular way.
b. cognitive style
c. cultural background
Incorrect: The culture in which we are raised certainly has an effect on the way we perceive
things, but the best answer to this question is motivation.
d. expectation
Answer: a
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 113
Topic: Perception
Skill: A
294. A child is asked to estimate the size of a poker chip. The child is then allowed to exchange
the poker chip for candy. The child is then asked to estimate the size of an identical poker chip.
This time the child’s estimate of the size of the poker chip is most likely to be ________ the first
estimate.
a. much smaller than
b. slightly smaller than
c. identical to
Incorrect: The child’s motivation to get more candy would make the second poker chip “seem”
larger in her perceptual world.
d. larger than
Correct: The child is motivated to see the candy as being larger, so the second poker chip will
probably be perceived as being larger.
Answer: d
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 113
Topic: Perception
Skill: A
295. You are told you are going to be shown some words related to food. The experimenter then
shows you the word “piazo” and you perceive the word as “pizza.” This shows that your
perceptions are affected by your ________.
a. motivations
b. cognitive style
c. cultural background
91
Incorrect: The culture in which we are raised certainly has an effect on the way we perceive
things, but the best answer to this question is motivation.
d. expectations
Correct: We often perceive the world as we expect to perceive it, and thus in this case you saw
pizza because you were expecting to see words about foods.
Answer: d
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 114
Topic: Perception
Skill: A
296. Our general method of dealing with the environment is known as ________.
a. intelligence
b. cognitive style
c. perceptual style
d. personality
Answer: b
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 114
Topic: Perception
Skill: F
297. People who do not clearly differentiate the shape, color, size, or other qualities of individual
items are known as ________.
a. reducers
b. field-independent
c. field-dependent
d. augmenters
Answer: c
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 114
Topic: Perception
Skill: F
298. People who tend to perceive the elements of their environment as separate and distinct from
one another are called ________.
a. field-independent
b. augmenters
c. reducers
d. field-dependent
Answer: a
Difficulty: 3
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Page Reference: 114
Topic: Perception
Skill: F
299. Research indicates that ________ influence(s) perception.

a. personality, but not culture
b. both personality and culture
c. neither personality nor culture
d. culture, but not personality
Answer: b
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 114
Topic: Perception
Skill: F
True/False
1. The stimulation of the senses is known as sensation.
a. True
b. False
Answer: a
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 81
Skill: F
2. Any stimulation below the absolute threshold will not be experienced.

a. True
b. False
Answer: a
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 82
Skill: F
3. The smallest change in difference that you can detect every time is called the difference
threshold.
a. True
b. False
Answer: b
Difficulty: 2
93
Page Reference: 82
Skill: F
4. People can be influenced by information of which they are not consciously aware.
a. True
b. False
Answer: a
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 83
Skill: F
5. Subliminal “memory improvement” tapes can really improve your memory.

a. True
b. False
Answer: b
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 83
Skill: F
6. Light enters the eye through the cornea.

a. True
b. False
Answer: a
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 85
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
7. On the retina, directly behind the lens, is a depressed spot that occupies the center of the visual
field called the blind spot.
a. True
b. False
Answer: b
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 85
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
94
8. Rods respond only to varying degrees of light and dark, not to color.
a. True
b. False
Answer: a
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 86
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
9. Cones work best in bright light.

a. True
b. False
Answer: a
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 86
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
10. The ability of rods and cones to change their sensitivity to the amount of available light is
called visual acuity.
a. True
b. False
Answer: b
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 87
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
11. In light adaptation, the rods and cones become more sensitive to light.
a. True
b. False
Answer: b
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 88
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
12. Light energy is converted into neural impulses at the optic chiasm.
a. True
b. False
95
Answer: b
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 88
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
13. The optic nerve is made up of the dendrites of ganglion cells.

a. True
b. False
Answer: b
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 88
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
14. The place where the nerve fibers from the eye to the brain cross over from right to left and
vice versa is called the optic chiasm.
a. True
b. False
Answer: a
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 88
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
15. The process of mixing lights of different wavelengths is called additive color mixing.
a. True
b. False
Answer: a
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 90
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
16. The process of mixing different colored pigments together to create a new pigment color is
called subtractive color mixing.
a. True
b. False
Answer: a
Difficulty: 2
96
Page Reference: 91
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
17. Helmholtz’s theory of color vision is known as trichromatic theory.

a. True
b. False
Answer: a
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 91
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
18. Hering’s theory of color vision is called trichromatic theory.

a. True
b. False
Answer: b
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 91
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
19. Trichromatic theory best explains color afterimages.

a. True
b. False
Answer: b
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 91
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
20. All animals see in color.

a. True
b. False
Answer: b
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 92
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
21. Sound is a physical event caused by vibration.

97
a. True
b. False
Answer: b
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 93
Topic: Hearing
Skill: F
22. The frequency of a sound is measured in hertz.

a. True
b. False
Answer: a
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 93
Topic: Hearing
Skill: F
23. The height of a sound wave represents its pitch.

a. True
b. False
Answer: b
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 94
Topic: Hearing
Skill: F
24. The hammer is the closest of the three bones in the middle ear to the cochlea.
a. True
b. False
Answer: b
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 95
Topic: Hearing
Skill: F
25. The place where sound waves finally reach the receptor cells in the inner ear is the auditory
nerve.
a. True
b. False
Answer: b
98
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 96
Topic: Hearing
Skill: F
26. The sense of hearing is truly unilateral.

a. True
b. False
Answer: b
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 97
Topic: Hearing
Skill: F
27. The volley principle is necessary to overcome weaknesses in place theory.

a. True
b. False
Answer: b
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 96
Topic: Hearing
Skill: F
28. Our sense of smell is much weaker than our sense of taste.
a. True
b. False
Answer: b
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 98
Skill: F
29. Exactly how we smell is still an open question.

a. True
b. False
Answer: a
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 98
Skill: F
99
30. Men generally have a better sense of smell than women.
a. True
b. False
Answer: b
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 99
Skill: F
31. The flavor of a food is a complex combination of taste and smell.

a. True
b. False
Answer: a
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 100
Skill: F
32. Papillae are contained inside the taste buds.

a. True
b. False
Answer: b
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 100
Skill: F
33. Taste is the only sense that fails to exhibit adaptation.

a. True
b. False
Answer: b
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 100
Skill: F
34. Our skin is our largest sense organ.

a. True
b. False
100
Answer: a
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 101
Skill: F
35. Skin displacement as little as .0000025 inches can result in the sensation of pressure.
a. True
b. False
Answer: a
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 101
Skill: F
36. Our skin senses are influenced by our expectations.

a. True
b. False
Answer: a
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 102
Skill: F
37. The skin senses are the only ones that do not undergo sensory adaptation.
a. True
b. False
Answer: b
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 102
Skill: F
38. People can feel pain even when they have not suffered any physical harm.
a. True
b. False
Answer: a
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 102
Skill: F
101
39. According to gate-control theory, an open gate reduces our sensitivity to pain.
a. True
b. False
Answer: b
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 102
Skill: F
40. The brain creates perceptual experiences that go beyond the raw sensations it receives.
a. True
b. False
Answer: a
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 103
Topic: Perception
Skill: F
41. Memory and experience have not been shown to affect perceptual constancy.
a. True
b. False
Answer: b
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 108
Topic: Perception
Skill: F
42. Motivation and expectation are two types of perceptual constancy.

a. True
b. False
Answer: b
Difficulty: 1
Topic: Perception
Skill: F
43. Interposition, linear perspective, and elevation are all types of binocular cues.
a. True
102
b. False
Answer: b
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 109
Topic: Perception
Skill: F
44. Texture gradients, shadowing, and motion parallax are all types of monaural cues.
a. True
b. False
Answer: b
Difficulty: 1
Topic: Perception
Skill: F
45. Retinal disparity and convergence are both types of binocular cues.
a. True
b. False
Answer: a
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 111
Topic: Perception
Skill: F
46. Our ability to locate sounds is greater when we can use binaural cues.
a. True
b. False
Answer: a
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 111
Topic: Perception
Skill: F
47. The apparent motion created by a rapid series of images of stationary objects is called the
autokinetic illusion.
a. True
b. False
Answer: a
Difficulty: 2
103
Page Reference: 112
Topic: Perception
Skill: F
48. Physical illusions and perceptual illusions are exactly the same. They are, in essence, two
names to represent the same phenomenon.
a. True
b. False
Answer: b
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 112
Topic: Perception
Skill: F
Essay
1. Compare and contrast sensation and perception. Also, describe the sequence of events that
produces a sensation.
Answer:
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 81, 104-105
Topic: The Nature of Sensation; Perception
Skill: C
2. Compare and contrast absolute threshold and difference threshold. How consistent are these
thresholds across people, place, and time?
Answer:
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 82
Skill: C
3. Explain what subliminal perception is. Describe research findings about the effectiveness of
subliminal messages and their effect on people’s behavior.
Answer:
Difficulty: 1
Skill: F
104
4. Describe the process in which light goes into the eye and is converted into nervous energy and
transmitted to the brain. Be sure to mention the specific parts of the eye involved in each step of
the journey.
Answer:
Difficulty: 3
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
5. Explain the processes involved in light and dark adaptation. Also, describe the process by
which an afterimage is created.
Answer:
Difficulty: 3
Topic: Vision
Skill: F
6. Differentiate between hue, brightness, and saturation. Also, compare and contrast additive and
subtractive color mixing.
Answer:
Difficulty: 2
Topic: Vision
Skill: C
7. Name, compare, and contrast Helmholtz’s theory of color vision with Hering’s theory of color
vision. In your discussion, explain which theory best explains color blindness and color
afterimages.
Answer:
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 91
Topic: Vision
Skill: C
8. Define pitch, amplitude, decibels, overtones, and timbre.

Answer:
Difficulty: 3
Topic: Hearing
Skill: F
9. Describe the route a sound wave must take to go from the outer ear to be registered in the
brain. Be sure to name the structures of the ear that are relevant to this journey and what effect
each of these structures has on the sound wave.
105
Answer:
Difficulty: 2
Topic: Hearing
Skill: F
10. Compare and contrast place theory and frequency theory. Include in your discussion the role
played by the volley principle.
Answer:
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 96
Topic: Hearing
Skill: C
11. Discuss the reasons for and effects of hearing disorders such as deafness and tinnitus.
Answer:
Difficulty: 2
Topic: Hearing
Skill: F
12. Name the specific structures involved in our sense of smell and describe their functioning.
Also, describe the role smell plays in our day-to-day living.
Answer:
Difficulty: 2
Skill: F
13. Explain what pheromones are. Describe what role pheromones play in animal and human
behavior.
Answer:
Difficulty: 1
Page Reference: 99
Topic: Box: On the Cutting Edge: Pheromones
Skill: F
14. Compare and contrast flavor and taste. What role do the papillae and the taste buds play in
our sense of taste? What are the four primary taste sensations? Finally, how does taste change as
we grow older and why do the observed changes take place?
Answer:
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 100
106
Skill: C
15. What are the vestibular and kinesthetic senses? What causes motion sickness?
Answer:
Difficulty: 3
Skill: F
16. Describe the sensitivity and functioning of the skin senses. In your discussion, explain how
scientists believe these senses work and explain the phenomenon of paradoxical heat.
Answer:
Difficulty: 2
Skill: F
17. Explain gate-control theory and describe the role played by endorphins in affecting perceived
pain. What are several factors that appear to affect a person’s subjective experience of pain?
Answer:
Difficulty: 3
Skill: F
18. Define the concept of figure/ground and explain its role in the perceptual process. How is
figure/ground affected by factors such as camouflage or reversible figures?
Answer:
Difficulty: 1
Topic: Perception
Skill: C
19. How is perception affected by perceptual constancies? Describe the effects of size, shape,
brightness, and color constancy on perception. What role does memory play in such constancies?
Answer:
Difficulty: 2
Topic: Perception
Skill: F
20. Describe the various monocular cues of vision. Briefly explain how each cue affects visual
perception.
107
Answer:
Difficulty: 2
Topic: Perception
Skill: C
21. Explain how stereoscopic vision is generated from two eyes that are individually incapable of
stereoscopic vision. Also, describe the roles of retinal disparity and convergence on visual
perception.
Answer:
Difficulty: 3
Page Reference: 111
Topic: Perception
Skill: C
22. Describe how people use monaural and binaural cues to locate the source of sounds.
Answer:
Difficulty: 2
Page Reference: 111
Topic: Perception
Skill: C
23. Compare and contrast real movement and apparent movement. Briefly explain the role of
autokinetic illusion, stroboscopic movement, the phi phenomenon, and the illusion of induced
movement in our perception of movement.
Answer:
Difficulty: 3
Topic: Perception
Skill: C
24. List and describe the effects of various observer characteristics that affect perception. Present
at least one example of each characteristic.
Answer:
Difficulty: 2
Topic: Perception
Skill: C
108

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Chapter 3: Sensation and Perception

2. ________ is the brain’s process of interpreting sensory information in order to give it

The Nature of Sensation

3. Sensation is the ________.

4. Light energy stimulating neurons in the retina is an example of ________.

5. A receptor cell ________.

6. A specialized cell that responds to a particular form of energy is a ________.

8. Which of the following statements is true?

9. Which of the following statements is not true?

24. Which of the following statements is true?

38. Which of the following is not true of subliminal perception?

41. Light first enters the eye through the ________.

44. The pupil is the ________.

52. The rods and cones in the retina are ________.

59. Which of the following is not true about cones?

60. Vision in good illumination is primarily provided by ________.

61. It is difficult to distinguish between colors at night because ________.

66. Which of the following is true about cones?

68. The fovea is made up of ________.

69. Cones are found ________ the fovea.

70. Rods are found ________ the fovea.

73. Which of the following is not true of the fovea?

79. In the dark, the fovea is ________.

81. Adaptation is the process in which ________.

88. Afterimages are caused by ________.

91. Bundles of axons of ganglion cells make up the ________.

94. Which of the following is not true of the blind spot?

97. The optic chiasm is the ________.

102. The richness or vividness of a hue is known as its ________.

105. The brightness of a color depends on the ________.

106. Hue is to vision as ________ is to hearing.

107. Which of the following is true?

108. Most people can distinguish about ________ hues.

118. An equal mixture of the three primary pigments produces ________.

120. Helmholtz’s explanation of color vision is called ________.

129. Hering’s explanation for color vision is known as ________.

132. Research suggests that ________.

133. Which of the following statements is true?

135. Bees can see ________.

139. Hertz is a unit of measurement of ________.

140. The frequency of a sound wave is measured in a unit called ________.

141. Frequency determines ________.

142. Pitch is ________.

145. Decibels are used to measure ________.

146. As we grow older, ________.

149. The timbre of sound is determined by ________.

150. Hearing begins when sound waves stimulate the ________.

151. The hammer, anvil, and stirrup are the ________.

155. The cochlea is divided lengthwise by the ________.

161. The sense of hearing is ________.

165. The loudness of a sound seems to depend on ________.

166. There are two major theories of pitch discrimination - ________.

169. According to place theory, high frequency sounds ________.

170. Frequency theory proposes that ________.

171. The volley principle proposes that ________.

173. Which of the following statements is not true?

175. About ________ million Americans suffer from hearing loss.

177. Tinnitus is a disorder in which sufferers ________.

179. In most cases, tinnitus is caused by irritation or damage to the ________.

The Other Senses

182. The sense of smell in humans is ________.

183. Our sense of smell is activated by ________.