The interpretation of a sensation. Information is received through the 5 senses (taste, smell, hearing, vision, and touch) and organized into a pattern by the brain. Factors such as attitude, mood, and expectations affect the final interpretation. Hallucinations are false perceptions that occur in the absence of sensory stimuli.
n. the process by which information about the world, as received by the senses, is analysed and made meaningful. Abnormalities of perception include *hallucinations, *illusions, and *agnosia.
a *Schneiderian first-rank symptom in which a person believes that a normal percept (product of perception) has a special meaning for him or her. For example, a cloud in the sky may be misinterpreted as meaning that someone has sent that person a message to save the world. While the symptom is particularly indicative of *schizophrenia, it also occurs in other psychoses, including *mania (in which it often has grandiose undertones).... delusional perception
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