Sensation and perception

Abstract

One of the oldest and most difficult questions in science is how we are able to develop an awareness of the world around us from our senses. Topics covered under the title of, 'Sensation and perception' address this very question. Sensation encompasses the processes by which our sense organs (e.g. eyes, ears etc.) receive information from our environment, whereas perception refers to the processes through which the brain selects, integrates, organises and interprets those sensations. The sorts of questions dealt with by psychologists interested in this area include: 'how does visual information get processed by the brain?', 'how is it that I am able to recognise one face out of many many thousands?', and 'what causes visual illusions to occur?: Within New Zealand there are a number of researchers studying visual perception specifically and their research interests range from understanding the biological