Nature of Perception – II (Factors Affecting Perception (Perceiver's))

Factors Affecting Perception (Perceiver's)

Perception is affected by two types of factors

1.       Perceiver’s factors (internal) &

2.       Stimulus factors (External)

Perceiver’s factors (Internal)

1.       Motivation – The motives of an individual have significant effect on the perception (Effect of hunger on perception).

2.       Expectations – What an individual ‘expects’ from a particular stimulus or event influences the perception of that event or stimulus. Perceiving things under the influence of expectation is known as perceptual familiarisation or perceptual generalization.

3.       Cognitive Style – It refers to consistent way of dealing with environment (NCERT). The way people think & perceive the sensation. Two type of cognitive style such as Field Dependent and Field Independent are more often used by people.

4.       Cultural Aspects – The individual develops within the framework of culture and social set up. The cultural aspects such as traditions, folklores, mores and regulations influence the perceptual process.

5.       Experiences – Experiences         modify behaviour (learning). The diverse experiences influence the perception of individual (Hudson           studies of African and Eskimos)

Stimulus factors (External)

1.       Intensity of Stimulus – It means the relative strength of the stimulus. Stimulus with higher intensity are perceived easily.

2.       Attractiveness of Stimulus – The quality of being pleasing or appealing to the senses. Attractive stimuli are perceived earlier.

4.     Distance from the Stimulus – The physical distance between the stimulus and perceiver. Stimuli that are nearer are perceived easily and earlier than the stimuli which are farther.

5.       Size – The size of stimulus means its relative dimensions. Larger visual stimuli are perceived earlier and easily.

6.       Frequency – The rate of occurrence of a stimulus. Higher the frequency easily it can be perceived.

7.       Novelty and Familiarity – The novelty means ‘new stimulus’ and familiarity means ‘previous experience with particular stimulus’. The novel and familiar stimuli are perceived easily and earlier.

Reference:

1.       NCERT, XI Psychology Text book.

2.       Ciccarelli, S. K. & Meyer, G. E. (2016). Psychology. Noida: Pearson India.

3.       Baron, R. (1993).  Psychology.

4.  https://www.yumpu.com/en/document/read/45837592/more-than-a-body-mind-perception-and-the-nature-of-objectification.

5.       https://nobaproject.com/modules/multi-modal-perception.