PERCEPTION

PERCEPTION -Definition
In simple terms perception is understood as the act of seeing what is there to be seen. But what is seen is influenced by the individual. The study of perception is concerned with identifying the processes through which we interpret and organize sensory information to produce our conscious experience of objects and object relationship. Perception is the process of receiving information about and making sense of the world around us. It involves deciding which information to notice, how to categorize this information, and how to interpret it within the framework of our existing knowledge. Perception includes all those processes by which an individual receives information about environment-seeing, hearing, feeling, tasting, and smelling. The study of the perceptual process shows that their functioning is affected by three classes of variables; the objects or events being perceived, the environment in which perception occurs, and the individual doing the perceiving.

PERCEPTION AND SEMANTICS

Always perception and sensation is used as synonyms. But it is not one and the same. For the sake of clarity, sensation may be stated that the study of sensation is concerned with the initial contact between organisms and the physical environment. It focuses on describing the relationship between various forms of sensory stimulation and how these inputs are registered by the sensory organs. The raw sensory inputs are of no consequence they need to be processed and interpreted. This is the job of perception. Thus, sensation is the first step in the perceptual process.

FACTORS INFLUENCING PERCEPTION

As understood from the third definition in the slides, perception is influenced by the perceiver, the object, and the situation.

Situational factors Physical setting Social setting Organizational Setting

Perceivers Characteristics Needs Experiences Values Attitudes Personality

INDIVIDUAL PERCEPTION

Characteristics of the Perceived Nature Size Appearance Location etc..

FACTORS INFLUENCING PERCEPTION

A number of factors operate to shape and sometimes distort perception. These factors can reside in the perceiver, in the object, or target, being perceived; or in the context of the situation in which the perception is made. When an individual looks at a target and attempts to interpret what he or she sees, that interpretation is heavily influenced by the personal characteristics of the individual perceiver. Personal characteristics that affect perception include a persons attitude, personality, motives, interests, past experiences, and expectations.

Contd.
Characteristics of the target we observe can affect what we perceive. Loud people are more likely to be noticed in a group than a quiet ones. So, too, are extremely attractive or unattractive individuals. Because we dont look at targets in isolation, the relationship of a target to its background also influences perception, as does our tendency to group close things and similar things together.

CONTD
The context in which we see objects is also important. The time which we see an object or event can influence attention, as can location, light, heat, or any number of situational factors.

ATTRIBUTION THEORY
Nonliving objects such as desks, machines, and buildings are subject to the laws of nature, but they have no beliefs, motives, or intentions people do. Thats why when we observe people, we attempt to develop explanations of why they behave in certain ways. Our perception and judgment of a persons actions, therefore will be significantly influenced by the assumptions we make about that persons internal state.

ATTRIBUTION THEORY
Attribution theory tries to explain the ways in which we judge people differently, depending on the meaning we attribute to a given behavior. It suggest that when we observe people, we attempt to determine whether it was internally or externally caused. The determination however, depends largely on three factors: 1. Distinctiveness 2. Consensus and 3. Consistency.

CONTD.
Internally caused behaviors are those we believe to be under the personal control of an individual. Externally caused behavior is what we imagine the situation forced the individual to do. Now lets discuss each of the three determining factors: 1. Distinctiveness refers to whether an individual displays different behaviors in different situations. 2. If everyone who faces a similar situation responds in the same way, we can say the behavior shows consensus. 3. Finally it is the consistency of the persons actions in the situation.

ATTRIBUTION THEORY
Observation Interpretation High Attribution of cause External Internal High External Internal

Distinctiveness

Low

Individual Behavior

Consensus

Low

High External

Consistency

Low

Internal

Contd
One of the most interesting findings is that errors or biases distort attributions. For instance, substantial evidence suggests that when we make judgments about the behavior of other people, we tend to underestimate the influence of external factors and overestimate the influence of internal or personal factors. This is termed as fundamental attribution error. Self-service bias is tendency for individuals to attribute their own success to internal factors and put the blame for failures on external factors.

Frequently Used Shortcuts In Judging Others

We use number of shortcuts when we judge others. These techniques frequently valuable: They allows us to make accurate perceptions rapidly and provide valid data for making predictions. However, they are not foolproof. They can and do get us into trouble. Understanding these shortcuts can help you recognize when they can result in significant distortions. Some of the shortcuts we use are: Selective Perception Halo Effect Contrast Effects Stereotyping

SHORTCUTS IN JUDGING OTHERS

Selective Perception: The tendency to selectively interpret what one sees on the basis of ones interests, background, experience, and attitude. Halo Effect: When we draw a general impression about an individual on the basis of single characteristic, such as intelligence, sociability, or appearance, a halo effect is operation. In simple words, halo effect is tendency to draw a general impression about an individual on the basis of a single characteristic.

SHORTCUTS IN JUDGING OTHERS

Contrast Effects: Evaluation of a persons characteristics that is affected by comparisons with other people recently encountered who rank higher or lower on the same characteristics. Stereotyping: When we judge someone on the basis of our perception of the group to which he or she belongs, we are using the shortcut called stereotyping.

SPECIFIC APPLICATIONS OF SHORTCUTS IN ORGANIZATONS

People in the organization are always judging each other. Managers must appraise their employees performances. We evaluate how much effort our coworkers are putting into their jobs. When a new person joins a work team, the other members immediately size her up In many cases, our judgments have important have important consequences for the organizations. Employee Interview Performance Expectations Performance Evaluation