Perception

Neha Ojha (C-17) Juby Kurian (C-18)

Perception
A process by which individuals organize and interpret their sensory impressions in order to give meaning to their environment.

Peoples behavior

is based on their perception of what reality is, not on reality itself.

perceived is the world that is behaviorally important.

The world as it is

Input
Information from the environment

Input Input

Perceptio n

Interpretation

Individual Decisions and actions

1.

Sensation

3.

Organization
The process of placing selected perceptual stimuli into a framework for storage.

An individuals ability to detect stimuli in the immediate environment.

4.

2.

Selection

The process a person uses to eliminate some of the stimuli that have been sensed and to retain others for further processing.

Translation
The stage of the perceptual process at which stimuli are interpreted and given meaning.

It is the process by which we group outside stimuli into recognizable and identifiable patterns and whole objects. Certain factors are considered to be important contributors on assembling, organizing and categorizing information in the human brain.

Perceptual Grouping
Our tendency to group several individual stimuli into a meaningful and recognizable pattern. It is very basic in nature and largely it seems to be inborn. Some factors underlying grouping are -continuity -closure -proximity -similarity

Figure-Ground
The tendency to distinguish a central object from its surroundings.

Attribution Theory When individuals observe behavior, they attempt to determine whether it is internally or externally caused.
Distinctiveness: shows different behaviors in different situations. Consensus: response is the same as others to same situation. Consistency: responds in the same way over time.

Errors and Biases in Attributions

Fundamental Attribution Error
The tendency to underestimate the influence of external factors and overestimate the influence of internal factors when making judgments about the behavior of others.

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.

Self- serving bias

The tendency to attribute their own successes to internal factors while putting the blame for failures on external factors.

Selective Perception
People selectively interpret what they see on the basis of their interests, background, experience and attitudes. The tendency to single out those aspects of a situation, person, or object that are consistent with ones needs, values, or attitudes. Strongest impact is at the attention stage.

Halo effect
Drawing a general impression about an individual on the basis of a single characteristic. 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.

Contrast effects
Evaluation of a persons characteristics that are affected by comparisons with other people recently encountered who rank higher or lower on the same characteristics. People must be aware of the impact of contrast effects in many work settings.

Projection
Attributing ones own characteristics to other people. Especially likely to occur in interpretation stage. Projection can be controlled through a high degree of self-awareness and empathy.

Stereotyping
Judging someone on the basis of ones perception of the group to which that person belongs. Individual differences are obscured. Strong impact at the organization stage.

Employment Interview
Perceptual biases affect the accuracy of interviewers judgments of applicants.

Performance Expectations
Self-fulfilling prophecy (Pygmalion effect): The lower or higher performance of employees reflects preconceived leader expectations about employee capabilities.

Performance Evaluations
Appraisals are subjective perceptions of performance.

Employee Effort
Assessment of individual effort is a subjective judgment subject to perceptual distortion and bias.

References
Robbins and Judge book on Organizational Behavior Authors.com Wikipedia.com