Which of the following statements about the psychology of color vision is true?

• A. Humans can only perceive colors that are present in the visible spectrum because rods are responsible for color discrimination.
• B. The trichromatic theory suggests that color vision is based on three types of cones sensitive to red, green, and blue light.
• C. Color blindness occurs when all cones in the retina are completely absent.
• D. Opponent-process theory states that each cone responds to all wavelengths of light equally.

Answer: (B)

Verified step by step guidance

1. Understand the role of photoreceptor cells in the retina: rods and cones. Rods are primarily responsible for vision in low light and do not detect color, while cones are responsible for color vision.
2. Recall the trichromatic theory of color vision, which proposes that there are three types of cone cells, each sensitive to different wavelengths corresponding to red, green, and blue light.
3. Recognize that color blindness typically results from the absence or malfunction of one or more types of cones, not the complete absence of all cones.
4. Understand the opponent-process theory, which explains color vision as the interaction of opposing color pairs (red-green, blue-yellow, black-white), rather than each cone responding equally to all wavelengths.
5. Evaluate each statement based on these principles to identify which one accurately reflects established psychological theories of color vision.