Summary
Highlights
This lesson, the third on perception, will cover its definition, influential factors, the process of forming perception, misperception, social perception, stereotyping, perception theories, perceptual errors, and ways to improve perception. The speaker introduces a picture and notes how different people might perceive it uniquely, highlighting the subjective nature of perception.
Perception is based on opinion, observation, experience, and thinking. Academically, it's defined as the process by which individuals organize and interpret sensory impressions to give meaning to their environment. Key terms include process, organization, sensory impressions, meaning, and environment.
Perception is influenced by three main categories: factors in the perceiver (attitude, motives, interests, experience, expectations), factors in the target (characteristics of the person or object being perceived), and factors in the situation (time, work setting, social setting). Examples are provided for each category, like perceiving coworkers talking in a corner or observing a formal meeting versus a casual lunch.
The perceptual process involves environmental stimuli (information received through our senses), selective attention, and emotional marker responses. Using the example of the Movement Control Order (MCO) during a pandemic, the speaker explains how initial information about lockdowns becomes an environmental stimulus. Selective attention then filters this vast information, influenced by self-concept and the three factors mentioned earlier, leading to confirmation bias.
Confirmation bias occurs when we screen out information contrary to our values and readily accept confirming information. The MCO example shows how Malaysians, feeling their movements restricted, formed a negative attitude because it challenged their freedom. This selective attention also leads to an emotional marker response, a quick, non-cognitive reaction to perceived danger, like anger or frustration towards the MCO as it challenged the value of free movement.
The selected information is then organized into a perception, which involves perceptual grouping processes like categorical thinking and mental models. This ultimately leads to attitude formation and behavioral action. The video concludes by noting that many Malaysians' negative attitude towards the MCO, stemming from their perception of it as a restriction, leads to non-compliance, suggesting that changing this perception could help end the MCO sooner.