An Introduction to the perception of reality through bottom-up and top-down processes

In this article, I want to touch down on such a simple topic that we might not even see the relevance of at first. But it could be argued to be the only important thing in human psychology. How we see and perceive the world around us.

Did you know that everything around you is a construction of your brain?

Our external world gives so many cues and stimuli that our brains learn what to expect to reduce the cognitive load. Otherwise, we would not be able to function as anticipatory organisms – a crucial aspect for survival! But I am jumping ahead; let’s start with our perception.

We have five predominant senses to understand and perceive the world around us: touch, vision, hearing, smell, and taste. Through these, signals enter our brain. This is called bottom-up information in psychology. But to simply rely on these mechanisms would be too much for a functioning organism, which is why we also have a top-down process. The top-down process interprets and constructs the world around us based on previous knowledge and experiences. Both processes together then feed into how we perceive the world around us right now. Of course, it is not a one-time process, both systems work together in feedback loops to update information all the time.

Have you ever run into a person that you did not usually see there? Like your dad when you are sitting in a café, or a friend in a different city? Chances are, you took longer than usual to recognize the person. Or you might even look at them and still walk straight past without noticing! This comes back to your top-down process, which constructs your favourite café around you from experience and is not used to imagining your dad there. In this unexpected case, your brain might need more feedback loops to incorporate this new information and use the right classification to recognize the person in front of you as your dad!

Having come this far, take a moment and answer the following question for yourself:

Can you imagine now how Mindset shifts can change your environment?

Your reality is a product of what is out there and what your brain believes to be out there. Therefore, your mindset and expectations literally form the way you perceive the world. But the good part? Top-down processes aren’t fixed — you can change them with conscious effort.

If you believe little in yourself, think people dislike you, or see the world as dull and bleak, your brain will apply that filter to your experiences. You might misinterpret a friend’s tired expression as disapproval, reinforcing negative beliefs – without even noticing it actively.

Now, imagine going through life only expecting the best from everyone and everything around you. Of course, that wouldn’t be sustainable either. While constant positivity isn’t realistic, choosing to see the good in each moment is. That is why our brains update their expectations based on previous experiences to present the most accurate picture of reality. While we cannot change the world itself, we can change how we respond to it. That is why shifting your mindset to focus on the positive instead of the negative can actually change if you see positive or negative things around you. This is often referred to as mindfulness. Meaning: to be mindful of your actions and surroundings, to choose them deliberately (Bonus: That’s where this websites name comes from).

The discussion of the classification of mindfulness as a top-down or bottom-up process has been discussed in a prominent study, which concluded it to depend on the level of mindfulness practice (Chiesa et al., 2013). The study aimed to assess mindfulness practices (one example of this would be gratitude journaling) as they have been increasingly reported to actually work, and the authors wanted to examine the neural mechanisms underlying these benefits. The study concluded that mindfulness practices in short-term practitioners were associated with a top-down process, while it was associated with bottom-up processes in long-term practitioners. This proves that with enough practice, even your bottom-up brain processes, which provide the raw information for your brain to interpret, can already code this information in a more mindful, more positive way!  

Additionally, the relationship between mindfulness and a disbalance in bottom-up/ top-down processes in addiction has been examined. While substances, gambling, or other addictions might not apply to everyone, I bet you will see yourself in one of the following: extensive use of Social media, cravings after sugar, or alcohol cravings on a night out. Depending on the severity, these can nowadays also be classified as addictions (Grant & Chamberlain, 2017)! So how can mindfulness and the mentioned processes help us here? It has been shown that mindfulness practices can remediate addictions by regulating frontostriatal circuits, which restores a balance between the top-down cognitive control and bottom-up reward processing. In other words, controlling your own behaviour gets easier.

Conclusion

Knowing that your brain actively shapes how you see the world gives you an amazing tool: the power to change your experience of life. By practicing mindfulness and intentionally shifting your mindset, you can gradually change the way your brain interprets what happens around you — and even go as far as influencing the automatic processes that shape your first impressions! With time and practice, you can train your brain to notice more of the positive, handle challenges with more clarity, and feel more in control of your reactions. So, when life feels tough, remember: your brain isn’t just passively observing the world — it’s actively creating your reality. And that means you have the ability to shape a life that feels brighter, calmer, and more balanced.

Inspired by the information but unsure how to take action? Here is the worksheet designed by a psychologist fitting this exact article.

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Further Reading

Chiesa, A., Serretti, A., & Jakobsen, J. C. (2012). Mindfulness: Top–down or bottom–up emotion regulation strategy? Clinical Psychology Review, 33(1), 82–96. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cpr.2012.10.006

Bar, M. (2021). From objects to unified minds. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 30(2), 129–137. https://doi.org/10.1177/0963721420984403

Garland, E., Howard, M., Priddy, S., McConnell, P., Riquino, M., & Froeliger, B. (2016). Mindfulness training applied to addiction therapy: insights into the neural mechanisms of positive behavioral change. Neuroscience and Neuroeconomics, Volume 5, 55–63. https://doi.org/10.2147/nan.s89257

Grant, J. E., & Chamberlain, S. R. (2016). Expanding the definition of addiction: DSM-5 vs. ICD-11. CNS Spectrums, 21(4), 300–303. https://doi.org/10.1017/s1092852916000183

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