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George Jones, 2003. Kinicki 1992 says that perception is a cognitive process that enables us to interpret and understand our surroundings.
Moreover, Altman, Valenzi, and Hodgetts 1985 describe perception as a person’s view of reality. It is the way stimuli are selected and grouped by a person
so that they can be interpreted meaningfully. The perceptual process starts from stimuli that person has chosen. Then, our individual sensors select data from the
stimuli and allow us to interpret, or give meaning to the sensory message. The message is then sent to the brain. Thus, the brain will process the message into
feeling. Finally, the brain continues to interpret feeling into perception.
b. The Concept Creating Perception
The individual sensors select data from the stimulus and allow a person to interpret or give meaning to the sensory message. The way a person interprets or
perceives this information depends on a person’s clarity and familiarity of the stimuli, physical characteristics, needs and values, knowledge, feelings and past
experience Altman et al., 1985. This theory explains that perception involves organizing and interpreting information and data coming from the environment so
that the information and the data can be meaningfully interpreted. The concept is supposed by Figure 2.1.
Figure 2.1. The Perceptual Process Altman et al., 1985: 86
Stimuli Sensors’
selection of stimuli
Perception, organization,
and interpretation
of stimuli
Behavioral response
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c. Factors Influencing Perception
As described at Altman et al. 1985, there are a number of factors influencing a person’s perception. Four of the most important factors influence a
person’s perceptions are as followed.
1 Selection of Stimuli
A person focuses on only a small number of all stimuli which he or she is surrounded. This process is known as selection. That is why people perceive
things differently. Each person selects specific cues and filters, or screens, out the others Altman et al., 1985.
2 Organization of Stimuli
After information has been selected, it must be arranged in order to become meaningful. The mind tries to bring order out the unarranged sensory data
by selecting certain items and putting them together in a meaningful way based on experience Altman et al., 1985.
3 The Situation
A person’s familiarity and expectations about situation affect what a person perceive. Perceiving accurately is related to how well a person adjusts his
or her behavior to a situation Altman et al., 1985.
4 Self-Concept
Self-concept is the way people feel about and perceive themselves. Peoples’ perceptions of the world around them are affected by the way they see
themselves. The self-concept is important since the mental picture of people determine much of what they perceive and do Altman et al., 1985.
