Search research articles

ABOUT JoVE

Overview Leadership Blog JoVE Help Center

AUTHORS

Publishing Process Editorial Board Scope & Policies Peer Review FAQ Submit

LIBRARIANS

Testimonials Subscriptions Access Resources Library Advisory Board FAQ

RESEARCH

JoVE Journal Methods Collections JoVE Encyclopedia of Experiments Archive

EDUCATION

JoVE Core JoVE Business JoVE Science Education JoVE Lab Manual Faculty Resource Center Faculty Site

Terms & Conditions of Use

Related Concept Videos

Purposive Learning

Purposive Learning

E. C. Tolman emphasized the purposiveness of behavior — the idea that much of our behavior is goal-directed. For instance, employees who aim for a promotion work diligently to meet their targets. Tolman argued that when classical conditioning and operant conditioning occur, the organism acquires certain expectations. In classical conditioning, a child might fear a dog because they expect it to bite. In operant conditioning, a person might consistently work overtime because they expect a...

Cognitive Learning

Cognitive Learning

Cognitive learning is based on purposive behavior, incidental learning, and insight learning.
E. C. Tolman's theory of purposive behavior emphasizes that much behavior is goal-directed. He argued that to understand behavior, we must look at the entire sequence of actions leading to a goal. For instance, high school students study hard, not just due to past reinforcement but also to achieve the goal of getting into a good college.
Tolman introduced the idea that behavior is influenced by...

Perception

Perception

Perception is a fundamental psychological process that enables individuals to organize, interpret, and consciously experience sensory information. This process is crucial for understanding and interacting with the world around us. It includes both bottom-up and top-down processing, each playing a distinct role in how we perceive our environment.
Bottom-up processing begins at the sensory level, where receptors detect external environmental stimuli. These could include the tactile sensation of...

Perceptual Constancy

Perceptual Constancy

Perceptual constancy is the ability to recognize that objects remain consistent and unchanged even when their appearance varies due to changes in sensory input. There are four main types of perceptual constancy: size constancy, shape constancy, color constancy, and brightness constancy.
Size constancy is the recognition that an object remains the same size, even when its image on the retina changes. For instance, a bus is perceived to be large enough to carry people, even if it looks tiny from...

Higher Mental Functions of Brain: Learning and Memory

Higher Mental Functions of Brain: Learning and Memory

Memory is one of the most vital higher mental functions of the brain. Memory is closely related to learning because it enables us to retain information and experiences from our past to use them in our present life. It also helps us to remember facts, events, and skills, such as riding a bike or swimming. There are two types of memory — declarative memory, which involves memorizing facts or events, and procedural memory, which enables us to remember how to do something like writing or...

Subliminal Perception

Subliminal Perception

Subliminal perception refers to the processing of sensory information that occurs below the level of conscious awareness. Researchers study subliminal perception by presenting a stimulus, such as a word or image, very quickly, typically around 50 milliseconds. This rapid presentation is often followed by another stimulus, such as a pattern of dots or lines, which blocks further mental processing of the initial stimulus. As a result, if participants cannot identify the initial stimulus better...

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by

Same author

Handgrip strength relates to corticospinal tract microstructure in older adults.

Brain research bulletin·2026

Same author

Portable automated rapid testing for auditory assessment: repeated at-home testing in older adults.

Frontiers in digital health·2026

Same author

Remote Sensory-Cognitive Assessment in Children with Autism: Evaluating Feasibility and Performance Outcomes.

Behavioral sciences (Basel, Switzerland)·2026

Same author

Attraction and repulsion in perception and working memory as complementary outcomes of learning.

Current opinion in neurobiology·2026

Same author

PLFest: A New Platform for Accessible, Reproducible, and Open Perceptual Learning Research.

Journal of cognitive enhancement : towards the integration of theory and practice·2026

Same author

Public Health.

Alzheimer's & dementia : the journal of the Alzheimer's Association·2025

Same journal

Increased rates of hybridization in swordtails are associated with water pollution.

Current biology : CB·2026

Same journal

Visual uncertainty and task demands shape active sensing strategies in mice.

Current biology : CB·2026

Same journal

An adaptable, self-organizing, single-cell morphology circuit optimizes suctorian predatory trap structure.

Current biology : CB·2026

Same journal

Temporal tuning of switch-like virulence expression resolves environmental uncertainty through phenotypic heterogeneity.

Current biology : CB·2026

Same journal

An abstract relational map emerges in the human medial prefrontal cortex with consolidation.

Current biology : CB·2026

Same journal

Phloem evolved gradually and asynchronously to xylem in early vascular plants.

Current biology : CB·2026

See all related articles

Search research articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Feb 26, 2026

Creating Objects and Object Categories for Studying Perception and Perceptual Learning

Creating Objects and Object Categories for Studying Perception and Perceptual Learning

Published on: November 2, 2012

Perceptual learning.

Aaron R Seitz¹

¹UCR Brain Game Center, University of California, Riverside, 900 University Avenue, Riverside, CA 92521, USA.

Current Biology : CB

|July 12, 2017

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

Perceptual learning, driven by experience, refines our senses and impacts perception. Understanding this process offers insights into brain mechanisms and improves training for specialized perceptual skills and rehabilitation.

More Related Videos

Development of a Gaze-Contingent Display Framework Designed for Perceptual and Oculomotor Research with Simulated Central Vision Loss

Development of a Gaze-Contingent Display Framework Designed for Perceptual and Oculomotor Research with Simulated Central Vision Loss

Published on: April 11, 2025

Stereoacuity Improvement using Random-Dot Video Games

Stereoacuity Improvement using Random-Dot Video Games

Published on: January 14, 2020

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Feb 26, 2026

Creating Objects and Object Categories for Studying Perception and Perceptual Learning

Creating Objects and Object Categories for Studying Perception and Perceptual Learning

Published on: November 2, 2012

Development of a Gaze-Contingent Display Framework Designed for Perceptual and Oculomotor Research with Simulated Central Vision Loss

Development of a Gaze-Contingent Display Framework Designed for Perceptual and Oculomotor Research with Simulated Central Vision Loss

Published on: April 11, 2025

Stereoacuity Improvement using Random-Dot Video Games

Stereoacuity Improvement using Random-Dot Video Games

Published on: January 14, 2020

Area of Science:

Neuroscience
Cognitive Psychology
Sensory Science

Background:

Perceptual learning is the process by which experience alters sensory perception.
It is fundamental to acquiring expertise in various domains, from music to radiology.
This phenomenon is often overlooked but profoundly shapes our interaction with the world.

Purpose of the Study:

To explain the transformative role of perceptual learning in guiding perception.
To highlight how perceptual learning research illuminates fundamental learning and brain mechanisms.
To demonstrate the practical utility of perceptual learning in developing effective training and rehabilitation strategies.

Main Methods:

This primer synthesizes existing research and theoretical frameworks on perceptual learning.
It draws examples from diverse fields such as auditory, gustatory, and visual perception.
The explanation focuses on the mechanisms and implications of experience-driven perceptual changes.

Main Results:

Perceptual learning significantly enhances the ability to discern sensory information.
It provides critical insights into the brain's plasticity and learning processes.
Knowledge of perceptual learning is applicable to both expert skill acquisition and perceptual rehabilitation.

Conclusions:

Perceptual learning is a ubiquitous and scientifically significant process.
It has profound practical applications in education, training, and therapy.
Further research into perceptual learning can unlock new avenues for human enhancement and recovery.