Final answer:
Cognitive/conceptual models significantly influence our environmental perception by shaping how we interpret and understand the environment through complex processes involving both bottom-up and top-down processing. These models are informed by a variety of factors including past experiences, cultural backgrounds, and cognitive biases.
Step-by-step explanation:
Our cognitive/conceptual models significantly influence our environmental perception. These models are frameworks in our minds that shape how we interpret, analyze, and remember information from our surroundings. Cognitive psychology explains that our perceptions are not merely the direct result of sensory inputs but are complex interpretations influenced by our attentiveness, past experiences, and cultural backgrounds. Our brains engage in both bottom-up processing, driven by external stimuli, and top-down processing, which is shaped by knowledge and expectations. Schema and cognitive biases play a critical role in top-down processing, guiding our understanding and interaction with the environment.
Furthermore, cultural, political, and economic institutions shape our worldviews, which in turn influence our perceptions. Perceptions are not static; they evolve as we encounter new experiences and information. Cognitive models do not solely rely on external stimuli; they are shaped and continuously adapting based on an array of internal and external factors, including neural development and cognitive biases.