Perceptions

Overview of Perceptions

Perception involves the selection and interpretation of stimuli. For example, if we go to meet someone at the airport or railway station, we are attuned to look for the familiar features of that particular person, ignoring the crowds of others passing by. At that moment, the relevant stimulus is the person we are there to meet, and we perceive everyone else as ambient noise in the background. Perceptions can also be influenced by our mood at a particular time. For example, if we are in a good mood, even what we would normally find irritating might appear pleasant, and if we are in a bad mood, the most normal things could be irritating.

It is helpful to further break down the process of perception into description, interpretation, and evaluation. Consider the example of a coffee mug. If you were to describe it, perhaps you would say that it is a black cylindrical ceramic object with a protrusion on one side and the word “Café Mud” written in white letters on the outside of the cylinder. That is a literal description of the object. However, having seen coffee mugs before and being familiar with their function, you would interpret the meaning of that object as a coffee mug from Café Mud. And being a patron of Café Mud and knowing that you enjoy the experience every time you are at that café, you may evaluate the coffee mug as a token of the fond memories you have of that café. As adults, we are so used to relying on our past experiences to inform our present perceptions that we are usually unaware of the description part of perception. We interpret and evaluate seamlessly for the most part, thus efficiently interacting with the various stimuli in our environment. However, the initial step of description in the perceptual process becomes important when we encounter something that is unfamiliar to us (as we often do in intercultural situations), because it helps us match the new information to familiar patterns from previous experiences in an effort to understand.

A point worth noting is that the only information we have access to is information we receive through our perceptions. In other words, regardless of how someone intends a message, the only message we receive is the one we perceive. And what we perceive is influenced by a number of factors, including our cultural values and beliefs.

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