When We Look Head-On at a Rectangular Picture Frame Hanging

question 22

Multiple Choice

When we look head-on at a rectangular picture frame hanging on the wall, it appears as a rectangle. If we walk off to one side and look at the frame from an angle we still recognize that it is a rectangle, but from that perspective the image processed on our retina is a trapezoid. Our brain compensates for the distortion of the shape by taking into account visual cues about distance and depth to keep our perception of the picture frame constant. How do we recognize the shape even when our senses are giving us other information?

• A) Perceptual constancy
• B) The law of proximity
• C) The law of continuity
• D) Monocular depth cues

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Definitions:

Context

The circumstances, background, or settings that form the environment within which an event, statement, or idea is understood and interpreted.

Nonverbal Cues

Subtle gestures, expressions, and other physical actions that communicate messages without the use of words.

Selective Perception

The tendency to select information that supports our individual viewpoints while discounting information that threatens our viewpoints.

Social Perception

The process by which individuals form impressions of others and interpret information about them.