The physiological basis of perception in psychology

Perception is a synonym for the Latin term "perception". It literally means sensory cognition of the objects of the surrounding world and their subsequent reflection. It is often identified with the term "sensation". And they are really interconnected. But there are differences. However, the physiological basis of perception is much more interesting. That's about it and I would like to talk.

Sensations as a structural component

So, the physiological basis of perception is the joint activity of the system of analyzers functioning in a single complex.

How it works? First, signals appear in the endings of the nerves entering the CNS. The reason for this is just an external stimulus, which can be any factor of internal and external environment, causing increased sensitivity or excitement.

So, this signal enters the cerebral cortex. "Transport" for it is the conductive neural pathways. After that, the signal enters the sensory areas of the cortex. This, you can say, is the central projection of nerve endings. And subsequently, sensory information is formed. And its "content" depends on the organ of feelings associated with that zone.

The process ends by the transfer of excitation to the integrative zones. There, images of the real world are being formed. After that we get ready information and sensations. And all this happens in some billions of a second.

Physical activity

With it, the physiological basis of perception is directly related. Accordingly, the information processing process becomes more complicated. Since the nervous excitations, the occurrence of which provoked the action of an external stimulus, pass to the centers in which they cover several zones of the cerebral cortex at once. As a consequence, the beginning of interaction with other impulses.

Here, for example, the eyes. It is through vision that we get about 90% of all information! But eyes are an organ. And in it there are muscles that are almost constantly involved. Even if a person himself analyzes how his eyes work, he will understand that this organ "feels" the object. Especially if he is of some interest. Without natural eye movements, the image will not normally be lined up, and this has already been proved by numerous experiments. There are very interesting experiments on this topic, and some of the most entertaining were conducted by N. Yu. Vergilez and V. P. Zinchenko, and AN Leontiev.

Reflex component

It also contains the physiological basis of perception. Everyone knows that the reflex is a stable, unconscious reaction to the stimulus that occurs with the involvement of the central nervous system. If a person accidentally touches a battery that is too hot, he will immediately turn his hand away. This is the reflex.

So, with this aspect, the physiological basis of perception in psychology is connected. For the first time Ivan Petrovich Pavlov came to this. He proved that perception is a reflex process. According to the scientist, it is based on temporary neural connections, which are formed when exposed to the nerve receptors, provided by some phenomenon or object. They are of two kinds. Those that relate to the first are formed within one analyzer. That is, when the body is affected by a single complex stimulus. A musical track is a complex combination of hotel sounds and melodies. However, the auditory analyzer perceives it as a single stimulus.

Often the physiological basis of perception is the inter-analyzer reflex. This is the second type of temporary neural connection. It means connections that occur within several analyzers. For example, when a person watches a film, he pays attention to the picture, the actors' play and the musical accompaniment. This is the inter-institutional connection.

Thinking

The concept of perception and its physiological basis also include this aspect in a mandatory manner. Thinking is the most important mental process. And also a rather complex philosophical and medical concept. It is a process that involves memory, emotions, sensations. In the course of thinking, there is an active display of reality by a person. And it is objective only if it is integral. To make it look like this, everything should be taken into account - taste, weight, shape, color, sound, etc. Take, for example, people who have deafness since birth. They see a bird, and it seems to them beautiful. But they, unfortunately, do not have the opportunity to fully realize how beautiful and wonderful she is, since they can not hear her singing. In this case, and in all the others similar to him, the image is incomplete.

Memory

Considering the physiological basis and types of perception, we can not fail to note this topic. Memory is a complex of higher mental functions and abilities to accumulate, preserve and further reproduce certain information and skills.

Previous knowledge of this or that subject is very important. If an object is familiar to a person, then it is automatically "transferred" to a certain category. It's easy to speak. In fact, the complete perception of familiar objects is the result of a very complex analytical and synthetic work. Few people think about this until the moment until they learn about amnesia. Or do not run into it. A person simply forgets what happened to him at the same time (not without reason, of course), and he can never remember it again, do not know the people with whom he was bound for a whole life.

Also worth noting is the desire to perceive a certain object. A student can read a summary of an uninteresting subject from cover to cover, but not a word to remember. Because at that moment he lacked attention and direction.

Apperception

Another process that includes the physiological basis of perception. Briefly, apperception is that, as a result of which the elements of consciousness become distinct and clear. The fundamental property of the human psyche. Man, perceiving objects and phenomena, aware of them - passes through himself. And the way he "deciphers" for himself this or that information, depends on his mental life, personal constitution.

This includes the mental abilities of a person, his beliefs, values and views on life, the world outlook and, of course, the character. And all of the above is different for each of us. Therefore, all people have like-minded people, and absolute opposites. Because that for some is the norm, others do not accept.

Smell

Above, much attention was paid to information in its traditional sense. But aromas and smells are also her. Only this information is somewhat different. However, it should be noted with attention, talking about the physiological basis of perception in psychology.

Briefly speaking, the sense of smell is the ability of a person to determine the odor scattered in the air. For this, we all have a special epithelium located in the nasal cavity. On the olfactory nerves impulses come to the subcortical centers. Not at once, of course. And through the olfactory bulbs. Their "ultimate" is the cortical center of the sense of the brain. That is, the temporal department, where the olfactory information is processed. And everyone has different ways. The preferences of aromas are associated with psychology.

Some say, for example, that introverts feel smells more, unlike extroverts. Others believe that lovers of bright colors prefer fruit flavors. Those who like saturated, dark colors, like oriental, "warm" smells. However, this is another topic.

The result

Finally - a few words as a conclusion. Proceeding from all that was said above, we can conclude: the perception is based on complex mental and physiological processes. And, in particular, the system of analyzer connections, due to which all information is assimilated in the best way.