» The upper absolute threshold of sensations is called. The problem of measuring the lower and upper absolute thresholds of sensations. Perception as a mental process. Its characteristics. Pathology

The upper absolute threshold of sensations is called. The problem of measuring the lower and upper absolute thresholds of sensations. Perception as a mental process. Its characteristics. Pathology
Parameter name Meaning
Article subject: Thresholds of sensation
Rubric (thematic category) Psychology

Using wall maps and atlas maps, give a comparative description of the economic geographical location two regions of Russia according to the following plan˸

1) The size of the territory.

2) Types of geographical location of these regions (central or peripheral, coastal or inland, border or inland).

3) Location of regions on the map of Russia.

4) With which regions and countries and where do they border?

5) What are the relations with these countries? Is the role of border countries in the volume of exports and imports of the region or Russia as a whole significant?

6) The presence of armed conflicts or "hot spots" on the borders of regions.

7) Which seas of which oceans and where are they washed by?

8) Features of the geographical location.

9) The position of the regions in relation to transport routes.

10) conclusion about the economic and geographical position of the regions

Thresholds of sensation

In psychology, there are several concepts of the threshold of sensitivity.

Lower absolute threshold of sensitivity defined as the smallest stimulus force that can cause a sensation.

Human receptors are distinguished by a very high sensitivity to an adequate stimulus. So, for example, the lower visual threshold is only 2-4 quantums of light, and the olfactory one is equal to 6 molecules of an odorous substance.

Stimuli that have a strength less than the threshold do not cause sensations. They're called subthreshold and are not realized, however, they can penetrate into the subconscious, determining human behavior, and also forming the basis of its dreams, intuitions, unconscious desires. Psychological research shows that the human subconscious can respond to very weak or very short stimuli that are not perceived by consciousness.

Upper absolute threshold of sensitivity changes the very nature of sensations (most often - to pain). For example, with a gradual increase in water temperature, a person begins to perceive not heat, but already pain. The same thing happens with a strong sound and or pressure on the skin.

Relative threshold(discrimination threshold) is the minimum change in the intensity of the stimulus that causes changes in sensations. According to the Bouguer-Weber law, the relative threshold of sensations is constant if ᴇᴦο is measured as a percentage of the initial irritation value.

Bouguer-Weber law˸ ʼʼDiscrimination threshold for each analyzer has

constant relative valueʼʼ˸

DI/I = const, where I is the strength of the stimulus

Thresholds of sensations - concept and types. Classification and features of the category "Thresholds of sensations" 2015, 2017-2018.

  • - Thresholds of sensations. Sensitivity. Threshold measurement methods. Indirect measurement of sensations. Fechner's law.

    Fechner was the first in the history of psychology to raise the issue of measuring sensations. Psychophysics is the exact science of the functional relationship between mind and body. Solving, in fact, a methodological problem, the problem of measuring sensations, Fechner came to a certain initial ... .



  • - Thresholds of sensations

    In order for a sensation to arise as a result of the action of a stimulus on the sense organs, it is necessary that the stimulus causing it reach a certain value or threshold of sensitivity. There are two types of sensitivity thresholds: absolute and differential (or threshold ... [read more] .


  • Thresholds of sensation (English thresholds of sensations)- the main characteristics of any analyzer. There are: absolute, differential and operational Threshold of sensations.

    • The absolute lower threshold of sensations is the minimum value of the stimulus that causes a barely noticeable sensation.
    • The absolute upper Threshold of sensations is the maximum allowable value of an external stimulus.
    • differential threshold of sensations - the minimum difference between 2 stimuli or between 2 states of 1 stimulus, causing a barely noticeable difference in sensations.
    • Operational Sensation Threshold - the smallest value of the difference between the signals, at which the accuracy and speed of discrimination reach a maximum.

    Addendum ed.: What grew up in. called the "absolute lower threshold" in the literature, foreign literature it is called more simply - "absolute threshold" (or "Detection threshold"); at the same time, it is more convenient to call the "absolute upper Threshold" the "terminal Threshold" (see Terminal Threshold), however, it should be remembered that the latter is a theoretical fiction that no reasonable psychophysicist will measure by psychophysical methods; it also has nothing to do with any of the existing threshold theories. (B. M.)

    Psychological dictionary. I. Kondakov

    Thresholds of sensation

    • Category - qualitative indicators of the sensitivity of the analyzer.
    • Kinds:
      - absolute threshold (upper and lower),
      - differential threshold,
      - Operational Threshold.

    Encyclopedic Dictionary. Dushkov B.A., Korolev A.V., Smirnov B.A.

    Thresholds of sensation- the main characteristics of any analyzer. Distinguish absolute, differential (or distinctive) and operational P. of the lake.

    1. Absolute Lower Threshold - the minimum value of the stimulus that causes a barely noticeable sensation.
    2. Absolute upper P. about. - the maximum allowable value of the external stimulus. The difference between the upper and lower absolute thresholds determines the operating range of the analyzer. However, its sensitivity within this range is not the same: it is greatest in the middle part of the range and decreases along its edges. This circumstance must be taken into account when determining the length of the code alphabet (see Coding), choosing the parameters of signals of a particular modality addressed to the operator, and in other cases.
    3. Differential P. o. - the minimum difference between two stimuli or between two states of one stimulus, causing a barely noticeable difference in sensations.
    4. Operational P. about. - the smallest value of the difference between the signals, at which the speed and accuracy of the difference reach a maximum.

    Measurement of absolute and differential P. about. have now led to the idea of ​​the existence of a more or less wide "threshold zone" within which the probability of a response varies from 0 to 1. The values ​​of all considered P. o. change in the process of adaptation and are influenced by a large number factors - from spatio-temporal conditions of irritation to individual features functional state of the observer P. o. are inversely proportional to the indicator of the corresponding type of sensitivity.

    The concept of sensation thresholds has a place in relation to various analyzers (visual, auditory, etc.) and various characteristics (energy, spatial, temporal) of the signals perceived by them. Therefore, in particular cases, we can talk about energy, spatial, and temporal P. about. various analyzers. For example, hearing acuity characterizes the lower absolute energy threshold of the auditory analyzer, blinding brightness characterizes the upper absolute threshold of the visual analyzer, the critical flicker frequency is determined by the temporal differential threshold of the visual analyzer, etc.

    Neurology. Full dictionary. Nikiforov A.S.

    Oxford Dictionary of Psychology

    there is no meaning and interpretation of the word

    subject area of ​​the term

    The quantitative measurement of sensations is an important aspect for many areas of science and practice, where success is determined by the quality of human activity. To measure a sensation means to find a numerical relationship between the parameters of the stimulus acting on the receptor and the properties of the sensations that arise in this case. The main quantitatively measured characteristics of sensations are their thresholds and sensitivity.

    A person from his life experience knows that not every external signal causes a conscious sensation. For example, sound waves below 15 Hz (or more than 25,000 Hz) do not produce auditory sensations. At the same time, they say that these sound signals were beyond the thresholds of audibility of human hearing. Here we are talking about the lower and upper thresholds.

    Lower absolute threshold of sensations- This is the minimum amount of stimulus that causes a barely noticeable sensation. Signals whose value is less than the lower threshold are not perceived by a person. Examples of lower absolute threshold values:

    • visual sensations of light from the flame of a candle burning in the dark in clear weather occur in a person at a distance of about 48 m;
    • auditory sensations of sound from the ticking of a mechanical watch in complete silence occur at a distance of 6 m;
    • the sensation of sugar in water appears when one teaspoon of sugar is dissolved in 8 liters of water.

    Upper absolute threshold of sensations- this is the maximum allowable value of the stimulus, at which the sensation is still preserved. When signals exceed the upper threshold, sensations either disappear or pain occurs (for example, at a distance of 100 m from an air liner, the sound of turbines operating at full power is perceived as pain in the ears).

    Relative threshold of sensations(other names: discrimination threshold, difference threshold) is a ham on which you need to change the stimulus that is already acting and causing sensation in order to change the intensity of the sensation it causes. If you increase the room temperature from 18 to 18.5 ° C, then the person in it will not notice this. He will not feel that the temperature has risen by 0.5 °. If you change the temperature by 5% of the original value (in this example, by G), then the feeling that the temperature has changed will appear. Therefore, we can say that the relative temperature perception threshold is 5% of the initial value (for the given observed temperature range).

    Examples of relative sensation thresholds:

    • a change in the sensation of weight occurs at a relative threshold value equal to 0.02 = 1/50 (this means that for the sensation of a change in weight to appear, it is necessary to reduce or increase the initial weight by 1/50 part);
    • the change in pitch perception occurs at a threshold of 0.003.

    The value of the thresholds is determined by the number factors:

    • the nature of human activity (the taster is subject to a much larger range of smells and tastes than other people);
    • motives and interests of a person (interest in an object increases the ability to feel weaker input stimuli);
    • age (mature years impair the capabilities of the taste analyzer);
    • level liberal education and general culture (the eye of an "average" Japanese person distinguishes more shades of color than the eye of an average person in the world).

    The concept of "sensitivity" is closely related to the concept of threshold. If a person, when exposed to a weak stimulus, has a sensation earlier than others, then they say that he has a higher sensitivity to stimuli of this modality. There are absolute and relative (difference) sensitivity.

    Absolute AF sensitivity is introduced as a value inversely proportional to the absolute threshold of AP sensations:

    Relative (difference) SP sensitivity is the sensitivity to a change in the stimulus R acting in this moment on the human senses. In mathematical form, this is expressed as follows: OR = AR/R, where AR is the amount by which the stimulus R must change in order for a person to experience such a change.

    In psychology, there are several concepts of the threshold of sensitivity (Fig. 5.6).

    Rice. 5.6.

    Lower absolute threshold of sensitivitydefined as the smallest stimulus force that can cause a sensation.

    Human receptors are distinguished by a very high sensitivity to an adequate stimulus. So, for example, the lower visual threshold is only 2-4 quantums of light, and the olfactory one is equal to 6 molecules of an odorous substance.

    Stimuli that have a strength less than the threshold do not cause sensations. They're called subthreshold and are not realized, however, they can penetrate into the subconscious, determining human behavior, and also forming the basis of itsdreams, intuitions, unconscious desires.Psychological research shows that the human subconscious can respond to very weak or very short stimuli that are not perceived by consciousness.

    The upper absolute threshold of sensitivity changesthe very nature of the sensations (most often - on pain). For example, with a gradual increase in water temperature, a person begins to perceive not heat, but already pain. The same thing happens with a strong sound or pressure on the skin.

    Relative threshold(discrimination threshold) is the minimum change in the intensity of the stimulus that causes changes in sensations. According to the Bouguer-Weber law, the relative threshold of sensations is constant, if measured as a percentage of the initial value of irritation.

    Weber's constants for different sense organs are: 2% for the visual analyzer, 10% for the auditory (by intensity) and 20% for the taste analyzer. This means that a person can notice a change in illumination of the order of 2%, while a change in auditory sensations requires a change in sound strength of 10%.

    The Weber-Fechner law determines how the intensity of sensations changes with a change in the intensity of stimulation. It shows that this dependence is not linear, but logarithmic.

    Absolute Upper Threshold of Sensations The absolute upper threshold of sensations is the maximum allowable value of an external stimulus, the excess of which leads to the appearance of painful sensations - indicating a violation of the normal activity of the body.

    Psychological Dictionary. 2000 .

    See what the "Absolute Upper Threshold of Sensations" is in other dictionaries:

      absolute upper threshold of sensation- Etymology. Comes from lat. absolutus unlimited. Category. Kind of an absolute threshold of sensations. Specificity. The maximum allowable value of an external stimulus, the excess of which leads to the appearance of painful sensations that ... ...

      absolute upper threshold of perception Great Psychological Encyclopedia

      threshold of perception upper absolute- (absolute upper threshold of perception, absolute upper threshold of sensations) the maximum permissible value of an external stimulus, the excess of which leads to the appearance of painful sensations, indicating a violation of normal activity ... ... Great Psychological Encyclopedia

      terminal threshold- the achievement by the stimulus of such a magnitude that the sensation usually associated with such a stimulus disappears or passes into another modality. For example, at a very high brightness of light, the sensation acquires a painful character. Dictionary of practical ... ... Great Psychological Encyclopedia

      sensation thresholds- Category. Qualitative indicators of the sensitivity of the analyzer. Types: absolute threshold (upper and lower), differential threshold, operational threshold. Psychological dictionary. THEM. Kondakov. 2000... Great Psychological Encyclopedia

      THRESHOLDS OF SENSATIONS- the main characteristics of any analyzer. Distinguish absolute, differential (or distinctive) and operational P. of the lake. The absolute lower threshold is the minimum amount of stimulus that causes a subtle sensation. Absolute upper P. o. ... ...

      The science of psychic reality, of how an individual senses, perceives, feels, thinks and acts. For a deeper understanding of the human psyche, psychologists are exploring the mental regulation of animal behavior and the functioning of such ... ... Collier Encyclopedia

      HEART- HEART. Contents: I. Comparative anatomy........... 162 II. Anatomy and histology ........... 167 III. Comparative physiology .......... 183 IV. Physiology .................. 188 V. Pathophysiology ................. 207 VI. Physiology, pat. ... ... Big Medical Encyclopedia

      This article is about the reflection of sensory signals. On the reflection of emotional processes, see Experience (psychology). Sensation, sensory experience is the simplest mental process, which is a mental reflection ... ... Wikipedia

      HEARING ANALYZER- a set of somatic, receptor and nervous structures, the activity of which ensures the perception of sound vibrations. S. a. consists of the receptor (ear), auditory nerve and complex system nerve connections and centers of the brain. S. a. human... ... Encyclopedic Dictionary of Psychology and Pedagogy