Perception

Prepared By
 “
There are things known and there
are things unknown, and in betwe
en are the doors of 
perception”
What Is Perception, and Why Is It Important?

Perception
A process by which ••People’s
People’s behavior
behavior isis
individuals organize and based
interpret their sensory
based on
on their
their
perception
perception of of what
what
impressions in order to
give meaning to their reality
reality is,
is, not
not on
on
environment. reality
reality itself.
itself.
Factors That
Influence
Perception
The Perceptual Process
1. Sensation
◦ An individual’s ability to
detect stimuli in the
immediate environment.
2. Selection
◦ The process a person uses
to eliminate some of the
stimuli that have been
sensed and to retain
others for further
processing.
3. Organization
◦ The process of placing
selected perceptual
stimuli into a framework
for “storage.
4. Translation
◦ The stage of the perceptual
process at which stimuli
are interpreted and given
meaning.
What are common
perceptual distortions?
 Common perceptual distortions include:
◦ Stereotypes or prototypes.
◦ Halo effects.
◦ Selective perception.
◦ Projection.
◦ Contrast effects.
◦ Self-fulfilling prophecy.
What are common
perceptual distortions?

 Stereotypes or prototypes.
◦ Combines information based on the category
or class to which a person, situation, or object
belongs.
◦ Strong impact at the organization stage.
◦ Individual differences are obscured.
What are common
perceptual distortions?
 Halo Effects.

◦ Occur when one attribute of a person or situation is

used to develop an overall impression of the
individual or situation.

◦ Likely to occur in the organization stage.

◦ Individual differences are obscured.

◦ Important in the performance appraisal process.

What are common
perceptual distortions?
Selective perception.

◦ The tendency to single out those aspects of a

situation, person, or object that are consistent with
one’s needs, values, or attitudes.

◦ Strongest impact is at the attention stage.

◦ Perception checking with other persons can help

counter the adverse impact of selective perception.
What are common
perceptual distortions?
 Projection.

◦ The assignment of one’s personal attributes to

other individuals.

◦ Especially likely to occur in interpretation

stage.

◦ Projection can be controlled through a high

degree of self-awareness and empathy.
What are common
perceptual distortions?

 Contrast effects.
◦ Occur when an individual is compared to other

people on the same characteristics on which

the others rank higher or lower.
What are common
perceptual distortions?
 Self-fulfilling prophecy.

◦ The tendency to create or find in another situation

or individual that which one expected to find.

◦ Also called the “Pygmalion effect.”

◦ Can have either positive or negative outcomes.

◦ Managers should adopt positive and optimistic

approaches to people at work.
How can the perceptual
process be managed?
 Impression management.

◦ A person’s systematic attempt to behave in ways

that create and maintain desired impressions in
others’ eyes.

◦ Successful managers:
 Use impression management to enhance their own
images.
 Are sensitive to other people’s use of impression
management.
 Impression Management Strategies used by
Employees

a) Demotion Preventive Strategy.

b) Promotion Enhancing Strategy.

Demotion Preventive Strategy is used when

employees want to minimize their
responsibilities for negative outcome.

Promotion Enhancing Strategy is used when

employees want to maximize their
responsibility for a positive outcome.
How can the perceptual
process be managed?
 Distortion management.
◦ Managers should:

 Balance automatic and controlled information

processing at the attention and selection stage.

 Broaden their schemas at the organizing stage.

 Be attuned to attributions at the interpretation stage.

What is attribution theory?

 Attribution theory aids in perceptual

interpretation by focusing on how people
attempt to:
◦ Understand the causes of a certain event.
◦ Assess responsibility for the outcomes of the
event.
◦ Evaluate the personal qualities of the people
involved in the event.
What is attribution theory?

 Internal versus external attributions of

causes of behavior.
◦ Internal causes are under the individual’s
control.
◦ External causes are within the person’s
environment.
What is attribution theory?

 Factors influencing internal and external

attributions.
◦ Distinctiveness — consistency of a person’s
behavior across situations.
◦ Consensus — likelihood of others responding
in a similar way.
◦ Consistency — whether an individual responds
the same way across time.
What is attribution theory?

 Fundamental attribution error.

◦ Applies to the evaluation of someone’s else
behavior.
◦ Attributing success to the influence of
situational factors.
◦ Attributing failure to the influence of personal
factors.
What is attribution theory?

 Attributions across cultures.

◦ The fundamental attribution error and self-
serving bias operate differently in different
cultures.
Summary and Implications
 Perception
◦ Individuals behave based not on the way their
external environment actually is but, rather, on
what they see or believe it to be.

◦ Evidence suggests that what individuals perceive

from their work situation will influence their
productivity more than will the situation itself.

◦ Absenteeism, turnover, and job satisfaction are also

reactions to the individual’s perceptions
 “ WE DON’T SEE THINGS AS THEY ARE,

WE SEE THINGS AS WE

ARE.”