Definition of Perception Theory of Perception

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CHAPTER II THEORETICAL REVIEW

This chapter attempts to contextualize some related theories to address the research problems. It consists of two major sections, namely 1 theoretical description, and 2 theoretical framework.

A. Theoretical Description

There are four major areas discussed; they are theory of perception, theory of learning English, theory of motivation, and theory of Self-Access Language Learning SALL.

1. Theory of Perception

This part presents the theory of perception including the definition of perception and perception in learning.

a. Definition of Perception

According to Foley 2008, perception is a psychological term which can be defined as a process by which organisms interpret and organize sensation to produce a meaningful experience of the world. Sensation usually refers to the immediate, relatively unprocessed result of stimulation of sensory receptors in the eyes, ears, nose, tongue, or skin. Perception, on the other hand, better describes one’s ultimate experience of the world and typically involves further processing of sensory input. In practice, sensation and perception are virtually impossible to separate because they are part of one continuous process. In line with Foley’s PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI 11 definition, according to Sternberg 1988: 8, perception is defined as the way a person gives meaning to the world. Perception, then, is defined as a process of understanding and interpreting sensations and messages that come from the surrounding so that it can be meaningfully interpreted. The forming of perception is influenced by experience and human sensory senses. Even though some people are given the same stimuli, they will see, think and give response to the stimuli differently. It is because the forming of perception is subjective. However, perception does not solely involve sensory processes but also a mental process. Hardy and Heyes as cited in Kurniyati 2006: 9 state that “the basic form of perception is people’s born talent; meanwhile perceptional ability is the result of learning, which is determined by the environment.” Perception on something can affect one’s behavior toward it. When someone understands the stimuli that he receives, he will give response to the stimuli. If someone believes that the stimuli fulfill his needs and expectation, it will make him have positive perception on the stimuli. Every person has different perception based on his needs and expectation. Expectation and previous experience constantly interact with one another to influence our perception of sensory events...Perception is also substantially influenced by our motivation and needs.…Our expectation, past experiences, and psychological states combine, setting us to perceive the world in certain ways. Bootzin, 1983: 119-120 There are three steps in the process of forming perception; those are 1 attention to the stimuli, 2 recognition and interpretation of the stimuli into some messages, 3 action in responding the messages. It can be said that perception is a PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI 12 form of behavior that allows individuals to interact with or adjust to the varying demands of environment.

b. Perception in Learning