Section: AP Psychology

19) Jenna hears Rob complaining of the heat on a summer day.  She then begins to feel hot herself.  This best illustrates the importance of:

1. sensory adaptation.
2. accommodation.
3. top-down processing.
4. bottom-up processing
5. difference thresholds.

Top-down processing refers to how our brains make use of information that has already been brought into the brain by one or more of the sensory systems. Top-down processing is a cognitive process that initiates with our thoughts, which flow down to lower-level functions, such as the senses.