alleryStart learning →Sensory adaptation shows that a stimulus can be:
APerceived without being sensed
BNeither sensed nor perceived
CBoth, but only in daylight
DSensed without being perceived
Answer & Solution
Correct answer: D. Sensed without being perceived
1. The flashing light case separates the two processes cleanly.
2. That you no longer perceive the flashing light demonstrates sensory adaptation.
3. It shows that while closely associated, sensation and perception are different.
4. The receptors still respond, so sensation continues while perception fades.
5. The reverse, perceiving with no sensation at all, would be a hallucination rather than adaptation.
_Source: OpenStax Psychology 2e (CC BY 4.0), Ch 5 'Sensation and Perception', sections 5.1-5.6_
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