Perceptions

Just a few days ago as i learnt about perception and influences on perception, it suddenly struck me on how it applies to our lives. We can even see vividly the use of perception in advertisements. A very good example would be a series of TVC’s by Singapore Prisons.  (Unable to lay my hands on the TVC’s, i have only 2 images that might help you recall the TVC itself.)

The first TVC starts out depicting a man with a fully tattooed arm; slowly, he sharpens the blade on the knife he’s holding. When we see this, we begin to imagine how he’s probably a gangster, preparing his equipment for an up coming duel. Where did we get this information from?

It is not said why he sharpens his knife so we use our what we know , our personal constructs, to try to infer and decipher what he is doing. Based on what we know, which happens to be highly influenced by the media and our surroundings, perceptions can often lead us to make wrong judgements. Just as towards the end of the TVC, the man turns around with his sharpened knife and begins to carve vegetables in a restaurant kitchen. Only then do we find out we were too quick to judge thus making wrong judgements.

The point of the TVC, is to get people to change their perceptions about ex-convincts who have been released. And as part of the yellow ribbon project, help them integrate into society once again. But how then is depicting a man with an arm full of tattoo’s going to change our perception? Doesn’t it further emphasise and give us wrong impressions that men with tattoos are all bad, criminals and probably convicts? The media highlights information that sometimes may not be reality.

The second TVC also starts out in a similar way, with a guy, big and buff, full of tattoos, he slowly walks towards a kindergarden with lots of kids. Its after school and the teacher stands outside with the kids. The scene is set at the school gate where the teacher stands outside with the children waiting for their parents to pick them up. As the tattooed man approaches, the teacher puts on a frightened expression and trys to keep the children behind her protecting them from any unforseen harm that he could pose. Similarly to the first ad, one would think that the tattooed man is of a violent background.

Toward the end of the TVC, a lady approaches the man and they both walk forward to the school gate together. A child then steps forward and calls out “Daddy! Mummy!”. This similary depicts how we humans have the tendancy to make judgments too quickly but at the same time as mentioned earlier, uses a tattooed man to instill fear in the teacher.

Does this message then communicate well its intended message? I believe it does put across the message that we are too quick to judge and that we should change the way we think. This would then help integrate former convicts back into society easily. But on the other hand, it instills the mentality that tattooed men are likely to be bad Is this then sending across right information? It is probably very subjective but i do not agree with them using tattooed men as subjects representing ex-convicts.

Is it true that our world is defined by our communications?

In today’s context, does this social constructivist perspective still apply? With rampant media and ever-changing surroundings, is what we know about ourselves and the world around us all from our communications?

With the internet taking off in recent years, and with communications across borders becoming so convenient, it is easy to learn and find out about anything; with just the click of a button, whatever information you require appears in front of you. In the past, if one wanted to know about the culture of a foreign country for instance, he would have had 3 options. Firstly, he could read from books/publications. Secondly, he could hear from friends and lastly, he could have made a trip there himself.

But with the creation of the internet, these have changed drastically. We can do everything with the internet, from reading up on publications online to find out more or we could even view other people’s posts put up on forums and blogs about how they felt on their trip to a particular country. Becoming highly fashionable too, are online virtual tours. One could even take a virtual tour of a tourist attraction online and still be in the comforts of their home. How times have changed.

 Being exposed at a young age to virtual media, people of the 20th century are well-learned; be it about culture, customs or even general knowledge. But why is this? Is the internet the only media that has accelerated our learning through communications? I believe not.

The invention of the telephone has played a great role as well. Can you imagine a day, in our modern world, without your mobile phone? It has become, from what used to be a priviledge to have, a necessity. But how has that widened our communications? In the past, when technology wasn’t as advanced, people could only communicate through face to face communication and through letters. For people living in different context, the process of communication was even slower. Take for example, placing an order for a shipment of cargo from a foreign country; would it not have taken months for a complete transaction to be processed?

We can see how our communications have shaped our society and culture at large. It is even more apparant when we make comparisons to countries across the world. Don’t people in Africa who lack communications through technology fall way behind us in comparison to our fast-paced society. Because of new technology and the communications we have, we are driven to move rapidly and are unable to live in a laid back, slow-moving society. Therefore our world IS defined by out communications.

Blogging?? Why Blog…

I vowed never to ever start a blog! But one can only be this persistent. When a teacher/lecturer says one has to do it because it’s going to be graded and that it constitutes 20% of your his grades, one doesn’t really have a choice anymore.

Why blogging of all things? I always thought blogging is a waste of time and meant for people who have nothing better else to do. Honestly. Its a complete waste of time writing about events that happened in their daily lives and the number of hours others spend reading your rantings… i witness it first hand as my sister hogs the computer everyday either blogging or reading someone else’s blog.

I don’t understand why blogging is so popular. People get into so much trouble blogging, interfering with the law with provocative posts or even among friends, where they blog about one another, bitching and backstabbing.

I have read so many sources about how reporters were jailed for posting controversial information and even laymen getting into trouble with the law. Why then are blogs still so popular? Blogs for one, do contain honest opinions and views but is it really necessary to make known certain information in a domain open to such a wide audience? No doubt it gains you the popularity you wish for, it might on the other hand, gain you more attention that you want. Even personal blog sites gain too much popularity sometimes that ordinary people like you and me can become sensational stars overnight. But not necessarily in good light. So then if blogging only does one good which is reaching out to the masses which can be done via alternative means of mass media like radio and television broadcast or even publications like newspapers and magazines why do people still blog?

These traditional media forms also achieve mass media coverage but are strictly controlled by media authorities. Though blogging gives one freedom of speech at time of post it does not ensure them that they are safe from the authorities especially if their blogs become popular.

So then why should i be made to blog? i guess i don’t have a choice do i?