Culture and Perception

With adaptations from Ronald Fischer

PSYC 338

Overview

Perceptual sets and culture Types of perceptions Visual illusions and pictorial perceptions Perception of music

Two fundamental perspectives

Nativism(Gibson, 1950)

Empiricism(Brunswik, 1956)

Perceptual sets

Environment shapes our perception We create perceptual expectations Increase particular interpretations (speed &

efficiency) Culturally functional and adaptive (mostly)

Culture and Sensory Functions

Conditions in the physical environment Environmental conditions Genetic factors Cultural Differences in the interaction with

the environment

Important Senses

Vision– Colour, depths

Hearing– Pitch, tone, mode, rhythm, etc.

Taste Smell Touch Time

Visual Illusions

Ecological cue validity Illusions occur when previously learned

interpretations of cues are misapplied because of unusual or misleading characteristics of stimuli

The horizontal-vertical illusion

The Sander parallelogram illusion

What about if it was like this?

The perspective drawing illusion

Some early experiments

Optical illusions (Segall, Campbell & Herskovits, 1966)– Three samples from industrialised countries (US, South

Africa)– Five samples from tribes living in dense tropical forests

(Fang, Bete, Ijaw, Dahomea, Hanunoo)– Two samples from tribes living in open land, but in

circular houses (Zulu, Bushmen)– Some of these tribes (Ankole, Toro, Songe, Bete) were not

used to two-dimensional representations of three dimensional objects (e.g., photographs, drawings, murals, paintings)

Some explanations

Hypotheses about cultural differences1. Carpentered World Hypothesis

2. Foreshortening Hypothesis: Front-horizontal foreshortening theory

3. Sophistication Hypothesis: Symbolising three dimensions in two

Carpentered World Theory

New Synergies

New Synergies

The Sander parallelogram illusion

Front-horizontal foreshortening theory

The perspective drawing illusion

Symbolising three dimensions in two

Perception of Depth

The organization of sensations in three dimensions even though the image on the eye’s retina is two dimensional

Challenges to this eco-cultural explanation

Effect of retinal pigmentation (Pollack, 1970)– Some support (e.g., Bornstein, 1973)

Other factors at play:– Sensitivity to different colours (colour naming)

– Exposure to ultraviolet rays

– Dietary differences

– Age

– Education

Implications

Design of instructions, manuals, safety signs, etc.

Education campaigns Use in educational settings

Perception of Colour

Perception of Music

Relatively neglected topic Western societies (incl. Psychologists) –

literate societies; technology (paintings, photography) = emphasis on visual stimuli

Many traditional /non-Western societies = oral traditions, music and rhythm

=> Task!

Musical functions (Merriam, 1964)

Emotional expression Physical response Aesthetic enjoyment and entertainment Communication & Symbolic representation Enforcing conformity to social norms Validating social institutions and religious rituals Enables continuity and stability of culture Integration of society

Summary

Culture influences our perceptions of the environment we are living in through perceptual sets

Cultural, ecological, biological and physiological influences interact

Perception research = example of the influence of culture and Zeitgeist on research agendas