Perception
Communication 130 – Professor
Allen

Perceptions
Our perceptions are influenced by:
1. Physical elements -- what information your eye
or ear can actually take in, how your brain
processes it.
2. Environmental elements -- what information is
out there to receive, its context.
3. Learned elements -- culture, personality, habit:
what filters we use to select what we take in
and how we react to it. (from Marshall Singer's
work)

Perception and Ambiguity
Perception is related
to ambiguity, as in
visual ambiguity,
(camouflage)
British in India dyed
their clothes
(khaki)
In WWI the French
wore red pants,
which made them
highly visible.

Perceptions (Con’t)
For example, color blind people will not
perceive \"red\" the way as other people do.
Those with normal vision may physically
see \"red\" similarly, but will interpret it
culturally:
- red meaning \"stop\" or \"anger\" or
\"excitement\" or \"in debt\" (US)
- red meaning \"good fortune\" (China)
- red meaning your school's passion!

Selective Attention
The world deluges us with sensory information every second. Our mind
produces interpretations and models and perceptions a mile a
minute. To survive, we have to select what information we attend to
and what we remember.
Information that attracts our attention:
- Sends out strong physical stimulus: contrast, blinking, loudness, etc.
- Elicits emotion – i.e. Tear-jerkers, anger, etc.
- Is unexpected
- Conversely, fits a pattern. (Allen notices students missing from class)
- Previous knowledge that gives it context
- Interests you
- Connects to basic needs (belonging, sex, danger, hunger...)
- Is useful.

Cultural Filters
Note how important your cultural filters will
be in determining the answers to these
questions--what hooks your emotions?
What is \"normal\" and what is
\"unexpected\", etc.