Answer the following questions in about 150 words each : (b) Explain how psychological and cultural factors affect perception.

Psychological Factors Affecting Perception

Psychological factors are internal states and processes within an individual that significantly influence how sensory information is selected, organized, and interpreted.

• Motivation and Needs: Our current needs and desires can direct attention and alter perception. For instance, a hungry person is more likely to notice food-related stimuli.
• Emotions: Emotional states can bias perception. Positive emotions might lead to more optimistic interpretations, while negative emotions can cause a more critical or pessimistic view. Research suggests sad music can influence the interpretation of homophonic words towards sadder meanings.
• Past Experiences and Learning: Previous encounters shape our perceptual sets, which are predispositions to perceive things in a particular way. An accountant might be unduly suspicious of a large bill due to past experiences with inflated invoices.
• Expectations (Perceptual Set): What we expect to see or perceive can influence our perception. This is often based on schemas, which are cognitive frameworks that help organize and interpret information. For example, children might believe burgers taste better in a McDonald's bag due to branding expectations.
• Personality and Cognitive Style: Individual differences in personality traits and cognitive styles (e.g., analytical vs. intuitive processing) can affect how people attend to and interpret information.

Cultural Factors Affecting Perception

Cultural factors encompass shared beliefs, values, norms, traditions, and communication styles that influence how individuals within a group perceive the world.

• Values and Beliefs: A culture's core values dictate what is considered important or salient, thereby influencing what individuals notice and how they assign meaning. For example, collectivist cultures might emphasize group harmony, affecting social perception.
• Language: Language provides categories and structures for thought, influencing how people categorize and perceive objects and events. Differences in color terminology across languages can affect color perception.
• Socialization and Upbringing: The way individuals are raised within a culture instills certain perceptual habits and interpretations. Growing up in an urban environment versus a rural one can lead to different visual perception tendencies, as explored in studies like Hudson (1960).
• Stereotypes and Schemas: Cultures often transmit stereotypes and shared schemas about various groups or situations, which can act as filters in social perception, influencing how individuals form impressions of others.
• Cultural Context: The physical and social context embedded within a culture provides cues for interpretation. What is considered appropriate personal space varies significantly across cultures, affecting social interactions.