PSYC 216-01, Sensation and Perception, Spring 2008

Abstract

This course examines how we experience (sensation) and interpret (perception) our external world. As such, we will explore the anatomical organization and physiological functioning of the various sensory organs as well as the steps involved in the transformation of this disconnected raw sensory information into a greater perceptual whole via higher brain regions. We will use vision as a model system to describe many basic perceptual principles, which will aid us in our examination of other sensory systems (audition, olfaction, taste and the cutaneous senses). The initial portion of this course will emphasize the bottom-up approach to perception, focusing on how information processing occurs hierarchically from the simplistic to the more complex. Latter portions of the course will emphasize a top-down approach whereby higher cognitions influence the perceptual outcome. The format of the course will include lectures, class discussion, independent assignments, and in class presentations.