Verified Document

Sensory Perceptions Can Trust Senses Interpretation Sensory Essay

¶ … Sensory Perceptions" Can trust senses interpretation sensory data give accurate view Sensory data is a valuable means of obtaining knowledge and information about one's surroundings. However, sensory data is extremely prone to bias due to an assortment of different factors. These factors include the unreliability of memory, the degree to which senses can be influenced by other cognitive and emotional responses, and the fact that sense are essentially subjective, and not objective in nature. Furthermore, the way that people are nurtured drastically affects their opinions of their surroundings, and "colors" the way those opinions receive sensory data and how people interpret them.

Sensory data is prone to inaccuracy due to the very nature of these senses. Essentially, the five human senses (that of sight, smell, touch, taste, and hearing) record impressions of data that may very well be fleeting (Berger, 1990, p. 9). Sensory data is generally accurate at the time that this data is recorded -- few people will dispute the fact that an apple is an apple while looking at it. Yet there are a host of objective facets of the senses that rear themselves once the...

The branch of epistemology that is related to evidence provided by the physical senses is widely attacked due to this characteristic of sensory data (Steup, 2012). Lingering questions, such as whether or not an apple was sumptuous or not, and how much so, are prone to biases and unstable recollections of the senses -- which is how the unreliability of memory can affect the accuracy of data provided by the five senses.
Moreover, it is extremely difficult for any person to attain a complete objective view of what information his or her senses are providing. People are essentially conditioned to pass judgments, not necessarily overbearing or burdensome ones, but simple ones such whether or not they like something. A person's emotional and cognitive responses are largely influenced by the sensory data that such a person takes in. These responses -- whether someone is attracted to a particular object, indifferent, or disdains it, inevitably shape their perception of such an object through the use of sensory data -- therefore rendering them prone to biases and inaccuracies in what is perceived.

Finally, sensory data…

Sources used in this document:
References

Berger, J. (1990). Ways of Seeing. New York: Penguin.

Fradella, H.F. (2006). "Why judges should admit expert testimony on the unreliability of eyewitness testimony." Federal Courts Law Review. Retrieved from http://fclr.org/fclr/articles/html/2006/fedctslrev3.pdf

Steup, M. (2012). "Epistemology." The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Retrieved from http://plato.stanford.edu/archives/fall2012/entries/epistemology
Cite this Document:
Copy Bibliography Citation

Sign Up for Unlimited Study Help

Our semester plans gives you unlimited, unrestricted access to our entire library of resources —writing tools, guides, example essays, tutorials, class notes, and more.

Get Started Now