iClicker Questions for
Psychology for AP
by David G. Myers
Karla Gingerich, Colorado State University
Unit 4: Sensation and Perception
Premature babies are especially likely to
gain weight if stimulated by:
A.
B.
C.
D.
sound and music.
light and colors.
touch and massage.
movement and acceleration.
Concepts of maleness and femaleness
that influence our perceptions are
called gender:




A.
B.
C.
D.
norms.
schemas.
roles.
complexes.
The expectations that men initiate
dates and that women select wedding
gifts best illustrate aspects of:




A.
B.
C.
D.
sexual orientation.
gender identity.
behavior genetics.
gender roles.
Because he believes that worrying is a
feminine trait, 14-year-old George has
difficulty perceiving his own fears. His
experience best illustrates dynamics
highlighted by:




A.
B.
C.
D.
social learning theory.
behavior genetics.
gender schema theory.
evolutionary psychology.
Racial and ethnic stereotypes can
sometimes bias our perceptions of
others' behaviors. This best illustrates
the impact of:




A.
B.
C.
D.
retinal disparity.
interposition.
top-down processing.
perceptual adaptation.
The fact that perceptions involve more
than the sum of our sensations best
illustrates the importance of:




A.
B.
C.
D.
top-down processing.
interposition.
retinal disparity.
visual capture.
Which of the following is TRUE?




A. Humans cannot sense stimuli below the absolute
threshold.
B. Humans cannot be affected by stimuli below the
absolute threshold at all.
C. Stimuli presented below the absolute threshold can
have a subtle, brief effect on behavior.
D. Stimuli presented below the absolute threshold exert
a strong, powerful effect on behavior.
If you move your watchband up your
wrist an inch or so, you will feel it for
only a few moments. This best
illustrates:




A.
B.
C.
D.
parallel processing.
accommodation.
sensory adaptation.
Weber's law.
As we look at a flower, the intensity of
the color we see is related to the light
wave’s:




A.
B.
C.
D.
amplitude.
hue.
length.
placement on the spectrum.
The eye’s “blind spot” is related to:




A. light rays focusing too far in front of the retina.
B. light rays focusing too far behind the retina.
C. a cluster of cells around the fovea which
contains cones, but no rods.
D. an area without receptor cells where the optic
nerve leaves the eye.
Rather than saying a person is
“colorblind,” it would be more accurate to
say that the person:




A. has a blind spot.
B. lacks red- or green-sensitive cones.
C. is experiencing an overstimulation of the redand green-sensitive cones.
D. has an excess of blue-sensitive cones.
The hammer, anvil, and stirrup are found
in the:




A.
B.
C.
D.
middle ear.
inner ear.
cochlea.
outer ear.
What is umami?




A. a taste sensation for which researchers recently
discovered receptors on the tongue
B. receptors on the tongue that respond only to
bitter tastes
C. receptors on the tongue that allow us to taste
nutrients in food, such as proteins and vitamins
D. a condition in which there is a loss of the
sensation of taste
As you talk with a friend at a party, her
voice is distinct from all the other voices
you hear. This illustrates the perceptual
principle of:




A.
B.
C.
D.
grouping.
proximity.
closure.
figure-ground.
The way in which you quickly group the
individual letters in this test item into
separate words best illustrates the principle
of:




A.
B.
C.
D.
closure.
proximity.
continuity.
convergence.
Makers of 3-D movies rely most heavily
on:




A.
B.
C.
D.
the visual cliff.
the Müller-Lyer illusion.
retinal disparity.
shape constancy.
After hearing that Bryce had served a
prison sentence, Janet began to perceive
his friendly behavior as insincere and
manipulative. This best illustrates the
impact of:




A.
B.
C.
D.
perceptual sets.
visual capture.
bottom-up processing.
sensory adaptation.
Which is easier to recognize?




A.
B.
C.
D.
an actual picture of a face
the caricature of the face
the anticaricature of the face
an upside-down picture of the face
If a person were able to sense that his
friend’s dog was lost and needed help, this
person would be said to have:




A.
B.
C.
D.
psychokinesis.
telepathy.
precognition.
clairvoyance.
Critical Thinking Questions
Which of the following activities
requires you to use the absolute
threshold for sensation?




A. telling the difference between sweet and salty
B. detecting a tiny, faint light on a radar screen
C. deciding if two glasses contain the same amount of
water
D. telling if your guitar is in tune
You are going to design an experiment to determine
whether there are special areas on the tongue to detect the
taste of sweet, or whether the taste can be detected in all
areas of the tongue. Which of these must be done before
you can start the experiment?




A. operationally define sweet.
B. pick out subjects who like sweet tastes.
C. pick out the items that you will use for sweet
tastes.
D. none of these are necessary.
As a professional chef, which of the
following sensations would you rely on
most?




A.
B.
C.
D.
hearing
seeing
balance
smell
Your roommate, who has trouble
understanding Weber’s Law, asks you, “How
different do two stimuli need to be, in order
for a person to notice the difference?” You
explain that:




A. the stimuli must differ by at least ten percent.
B. the difference threshold decreases with the magnitude
of the stimulus.
C. the minimum difference needed for detection
depends on the type of stimulus.
D. Weber’s Law does not address this issue.
Researcher James Hixby (2001) stated, “We can tell
if a person is looking at a shoe, a chair, or a face,
based on the pattern of their brain activity.” This
statement is relevant to:




A.
B.
C.
D.
sensory adaptation.
feature detection.
opponent-process theory.
place theory.
As we perceive the environment, we use Gestalt principles of good
form to help organize things into meaningful groups and forms. In
observing a football game on TV we are immediately able to
recognize the players as members of their respective teams,
regardless of their positions on the field. Which Gestalt principle is
most responsible for this ability?




A.
B.
C.
D.
closure
proximity
similarity
continuity
In the same football game, we watch as a team attempts a field goal.
Since the goal posts are distant and the time to make a decision is
short, the referee must use many perceptual cues to decide whether
the kick is good or not. One important ability is depth perception.
Which of the following cues might be most helpful in deciding
whether the field goal is successful?




A.
B.
C.
D.
linear perspective
motion parallax
convergence
interposition
You are an artist and you are interested in completing a painting
that gives a three-dimensional appearance. You want to show a
beach in the foreground of the painting, people swimming in the
ocean, and sailboats in the distance. Which perceptual principles
will be most helpful as you complete your painting?




A. binocular depth cues
B. monocular depth cues
C. Gestalt principles of proximity and continuity
D. perceptual principles only operate in “real life”
situations
You are most likely to observe the phi
phenomenon while:




A. looking at a string of Christmas tree lights that
blink quickly in succession.
B. staring at a Necker cube.
C. comparing the size of the moon while its in the
sky to its size near the horizon.
D. attempting to catch fly ball that is quickly
coming toward you.