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Consumer Behaviour And Marketing Communication
PERCEPTION
We interpret the world around us through perception. Sound, light, odours, tastes and pressures from
the environment are received by our sensory receptors. Such as ears, eyes, nose, tongue and skin. These
sensation or stimuli are perceived, shaped by previous learning, beliefs, values, attitudes – and organized
into meaningful concepts. These perceptions, beliefs, values, attitudes and integrated to compose our
COGNITIVE STRUCTURE.
PERCEPTION is defined as the reception of stimuli through the senses and the attachment of meaning to
various stimuli received.
PERCEPTUAL FIELD consists of the individual’s unique and personal field of awareness and this
includes his total awareness – his physical and psychological self, his environment, his values, family,
culture, social class, and everything that has affected the individual through learning or experience.
The portion of the perceptual field that is in focus at any time is referred to be in FIGURE, while those
portions that are not in figure are said to be in GROUND. Various meanings attached to perceived
objects, product or events is always the relationship of what is in figure to what is in ground of the
individual’s perceptual field. For instance, a young child may not be afraid of a snake as dangerous, if
he has not seen and be taught the concept that snakes are dangerous – that is, the concept of snake is in
ground of the child’s perceptual field. An individual perceives only those things that make sense within
the context of his cognitive structure.
SELECTIVE PERCEPTION – Perception is very selective, we see what we want to see, hear what we
want to hear, smell what we want to smell or taste what we want to taste. We often modify or distort
what we do not like to perceive to suit ourselves. Similarly, advertisement can be wrongfully perceived.
SELECTIVE DISTORTION – The consumer’s perceptual process may also result in information
alteration. This process frequently occurs when an individual receives information that is inconsistent
with the person’s beliefs, cultural values and attitudes.
SELECTIVE RETENTION – This process can also influence the consumer’s perception. In this aspect,
an individual may remember only information that supports their attitudes and beliefs; the person will
deliberately allow unwanted information to decay away from the memory, thus perception of such stimuli
may be distorted or completely forgotten.