Perception

PERCEPTION
■ What Is Perception?
– A process by which individuals organize and interpret
their sensory impressions in order to give meaning to
their environment.

– The process of receiving, selecting, organizing,

interpreting, checking and reacting to sensory stimuli
or data.

SELECTION AND ORGANISATION OF ENVIRONMENT STIMULI TO

PROVIDE MEANINGFUL EXPERIENCES FOR THE PERCEIVER.

PSYCHOLOGICAL PROCESS WHEREBY PEOPLE TAKE INFORMATION

FROM THE ENVIRONMENT AND MAKE SENSE OF THEIR WORLD.
PERCEPTION

■ Why Is It Important?
– It is the source of knowledge of the world
– Action is based on knowledge
– Because people’s behaviour is based on their
perception of what reality is, not on reality itself.
– The world that is perceived is the world that is
behaviourally important.
– The goal of perception is to compute rapidly the
approximate answers that are good enough for
immediate survival; you cannot ruminate over whether
the lion is near or far.
 Perceptual Process
Characteristics of the
Stimuli
(External factors—People,
Receiving Selecting Organizing objects or situations)
Intensity
Contrast
Repetition
Reacting Checking Interpreting Novelty
Size
Movement
Familiarity

Characteristics of the
Perceiver
Perceptual Output
(Internal Factors)
Opinions
Psychological Needs
Feelings
Experience
Attitudes
Self-acceptance
Values
Background
Personality
 Basic Elements in the Perceptual Process
Observation
Environmental Stimuli • Taste
• Smell
• Hearing
• Sight
• Touch
Perceptual Selection
External Factors Internal Factors Organization of Stimuli
Size Personality •Figure – ground
Intensity Learning •Perceptual Grouping
Contrast Motivation
Motion •Closure
Repetition •Proximity
Novelty •Similarity
Familiarity •Perceptual constancy

Interpretation
Response
PERCEPTUAL ERRORS •Covert
•Perceptual defense •Attitudes
•Stereotyping
•Halo effect •Motivations
•Projection •Feelings
•Expectancy effects •Overt
ATTRIBUTIONS •Behaviour
•Internal versus external causes
•Causes for success and failure
Perceptual Selection
• External Factors
• Size—larger objects attract
• Intensity—higher intensity attracts
• Contrast—those that differ from familiar attract
• Motion/movement—those in motion attract
• Repetition—repetitive things attract
• Novelty—new things attract attention
• Familiarity—things that are familiar, when they
are not expected in a particular context
INTERNAL FACTORS
■ Personality—personality factors seek others that are similar
■ Background—people from similar background
■ Psychological need—they make people see what may not be
present
■ Experience—similarity based on past experience of particular
type with people, objects or events
■ Self-acceptance—whether one is able to affirm oneself makes
one to see events in that light
■ Muller-Lyer Illusion
Organization of Stimuli
• Perceptual Grouping
• Similarity—similar stimuli are grouped together
• Proximity—things closer to each other are grouped
together
• Closure—tendency to complete the incomplete
• Figure-ground—tendency to keep certain phenomenon in
focus and certain others in background
• Perceptual constancy—tendency to stabilize perceptions so
that contextual changes do not affect them
■ Proximity
■ Similarity
■ Closure
■ Figure-ground
Interpretation of data

■ LBFS

■ Looked but failed to see

Process of Interpreting
Stereotyping

Halo
Perceptual Set
Effect

Interpretation of
Data

Organizational
Context Perceptual
Defense
Contextual Factors
Interpersonal
Context
Other Person’s
Background
Perceptual set

■ Previously held beliefs, general opinions or attitudes

■ Workers are lazy, shirk work, and want to get all advantages

■ Pygmalion effect/self-fulfilling prophecy

Stereotyping

■ Favourable or unfavourable opinion about a particular group

or one type of people
■ SC/STs
■ Muslims
■ South Indians
Halo Effect

■ Opinion or attitude towards a single person or object

■ If someone has a favourable attitude toward a person, his or
her subsequent perceptions of the same person are
influenced by this attitude
■ A positive halo—favourable opinion
■ Negative halo—unfavourable opinion
Perceptual Defence

■ To deal with conflicting messages and data

1. Denial
2. Modification of data
3. Justification
■ Helps the individual from modifying his/her own beliefs,
attitudes and values in relation to the phenomenon
■ Projection—seeing others as one’s own behaviour or
inclination
Contextual factors

■ Interpersonal context—relationship between perceiver and

others. Bias because of previous conflicts
■ Other person’s background—familiar people and strangers.
My caste, my neighbour, my region, language
■ Organizational context—perception according to the group or
department to which one belongs.
Person perception

■ The process by which individuals attribute characteristics or

traits to other people
■ Central tendency: Appraising everyone at the middle of the rating
scale.
■ Contrast error: Basing an appraisal on comparison with other
employees rather than on established performance criteria.
■ Different from me: Giving a poor appraisal because the person
has qualities or characteristics not possessed by the appraiser.
■ Halo effect: Appraising an employee undeservedly on one quality
(performance, for example) because s/he is perceived highly by
the appraiser on another quality (attractiveness).
■ Horn effect: The opposite of the halo effect. Giving someone a
poor appraisal on one quality (attractiveness) influences poor
rating on other qualities. (performance).
■ Initial impression: Basing an appraisal on first impressions rather
than on how the person has behaved throughout the period to
which appraisal relates.
■ Latest behaviour: Basing an appraisal on the person's recent
behaviour.
■ Lenient or generous rating: Perhaps the most common error,
being consistently generous in appraisal mostly to avoid conflict.
■ Performance dimension error: Giving someone a similar
appraisal on two distinct but similar qualities, because they
happen to follow each other on the appraisal form.
■ Same as me: Giving a good appraisal because the person has
qualities or characteristics possessed by the appraiser.
■ Spillover effect: Basing this appraisal, good or bad, on the results
of the previous appraisal rather than on how the person has
behaved during the appraisal period.
■ Status effect: Giving those in higher level positions consistently
better appraisals than those in lower level jobs.
■ Strict rating: Being consistently harsh in appraising performance.
Factors that influence person
perception
■ The person perceived
Variety of cues:
– Facial expression
– General appearance
– Skin color
– Posture
– Age/gender/voice quality
– Personality traits
– Behaviours
■ The perceiver:
personality, motivation, learning
■ The situation
Characteristics of the perceiver & perceived
Perceiver
1. Knowing oneself makes it easier to see others accurately.
2. One’s own characteristics affect the characteristics one is likely to
see in others.
3. People who accept themselves are more likely to be able to see
favourable aspects of other people.

Perceived
1. The status of the person perceived will greatly influence others’
perception of the person.
2. The person being perceived is usually placed into categories to
simplify the viewer’s perceptual activities. Two common categories
are status and role.
3. The visible traits of the person perceived will greatly influence
other’s perception of the person.
 Attribution process
Information, Perceived Behaviour,
beliefs, causes of Feelings,
motivation behavior Expectations
(Internal or
External)

• Antecedent • Attributions • Consequences

factors made by the for the perceiver
internal to perceiver
the perceiver
Person Perception:
Making Judgments About Others

■ Kelly’s Attribution Theory

– When individuals observe behaviour, they attempt to
determine whether it is internally or externally caused.
■ Distinctiveness—whether displays different behaviours in different
situations
■ Consensus—everyone in the same situation responds similarly
■ Consistency—is the response same over time?
 Attribution of
Observation Interpretation
the cause

High External
Distinctiveness
Low Internal

High External
Individual
Consensus
Behaviour
Low Internal

High Internal

Consistency
Low External

Kelly’s Attribution theory

High consensus
(others behave in the same
manner in this situation)
External Attribution
Low consistency (this person's behavior
(this person does not behave in the stems from external
same manner on other occasions causes)
when placed in the same situation)

High Distinctiveness
(this person does not behave in this
manner in other situations)

Low consensus
(others do not behave in the same
manner in this situation)
Internal Attribution
High consistency (this person's behavior
(this person behaves in the stems from internal
same manner on other occasions
when placed in the same situation) causes)

Low Distinctiveness
(this person behaves in this
manner in other situations)
■ Fundamental Attribution Error
– The tendency to underestimate the influence of
external factors and overestimate the influence of
internal factors when making judgments about the
behaviour of others.

■ Self – Serving Bias

– The tendency for individuals to attribute their own
successes to internal factors while putting the blame
for failures on external factors.
Boss’ Behaviour Toward Perceived Boss’ Behaviour Toward Perceived
Strong Performers Weak Performers
Discusses project objectives. Gives Gives specific directives when
subordinate the freedom to choose discussing tasks and goals
own approach to solving problems
or reaching goals

Treats mistakes or incorrect Pays close attention to mistakes

judgments as learning
opportunities
Is open to subordinate’s
suggestions. Solicits opinions from
subordinate
Gives subordinate interesting and
challenging assignments
May frequently defer to
subordinate’s opinions in
disagreements.
and incorrect judgments. Quick to
emphasize what subordinate is
doing wrong
Pays little attention to
subordinate’s suggestions. Rarely
asks subordinate for input.
Gives subordinate routine
assignments
Usually imposes own views in
disagreements
 MANAGING
PERCEPTIONS
Impression management

Attempt to manipulate or control the impression that others form

about the person
“we all put on a show at times by using our non-verbal
communication to create a deliberate impression.
The clothes we choose to wear for an interview or a
date, wearing sun glasses even when it is cloudy as
it looks ‘cool’, having our hair cut in a certain style,
putting on a ‘telephonic voice, feigning interest in a
boring lecture by our instructor, behaving nicely
when our grand parents come to visit, these are all
ways of managing impressions”