This is what you get when you don't write things down when you think about them. There are so many things I have thought about in the last week. Changes in life cause one to look back and reflect on things.
I have a Comm test tomorrow and the majority of it is about perceptions and how it affects our ability to form groups or make new aquaintances. People have even gone so far as to create models and outline the very steps we walk while deciding if we want to know someone or not.
Step One: Observation
Step Two: The Perception Process
a) Selection: Based upon certain stimuli in the observation process, we choose what we notice or pay attention to. Our motives in this process also determine what information we select.
b) Organization: We organize the selected information using a number of perceptual schema (experience to explain the perception), such as appearance, social roles, psychological traits and group membership. This is where stereotyping often comes in.
c) Interpretation: The perceptual schema we use to shape the way we think about and communicate with others. Several factors can affect this, such as:
- Degree of involvement with another person
- Past experience
- Assumptions about human behaviour
- Attitudes
- Expectations
- Knowledge
Step Three: Adopting Attitudes and Behaviors - We do this according to the conclusions we have drawn. Sometimes our interpretation and subsequent reaction may be correct, but often they may be mistaken.
I have caught myself more and more falling into this trap. This new knowledge has made me more aware about how I choose to do things. Is it possible that we are so mechanical in our thinking? What an incredible machine we are!
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