Context effects
Encyclopedia
Cognitive psychology
Cognitive psychology is a subdiscipline of psychology exploring internal mental processes.It is the study of how people perceive, remember, think, speak, and solve problems.Cognitive psychology differs from previous psychological approaches in two key ways....
that describes the influence of environmental factors on one's perception of a stimulus. The concept is supported by the theoretical approach to perception known as constructive perception
Constructive perception
Constructive perception, is the theory of perception in which the perceiver uses sensory information and other sources of information to construct a cognitive understanding of a stimulus...
. This top-down theory indicates cognitive use of sensory information to construct a completed perception and works in opposition to bottom-up approaches.
Context effects can come in several forms, including configural superiority effect which demonstrates varying degrees of spatial recognition depending on if stimuli are present in an organized configuration or present in isolation. For example, one may recognize a fully composed object faster than its individual parts (object-superiority effect).
See also
- Constructive perceptionConstructive perceptionConstructive perception, is the theory of perception in which the perceiver uses sensory information and other sources of information to construct a cognitive understanding of a stimulus...
- Visual perceptionVisual perceptionVisual perception is the ability to interpret information and surroundings from the effects of visible light reaching the eye. The resulting perception is also known as eyesight, sight, or vision...
- Top-down and bottom-up designTop-down and bottom-up designTop–down and bottom–up are strategies of information processing and knowledge ordering, mostly involving software, but also other humanistic and scientific theories . In practice, they can be seen as a style of thinking and teaching...