Looking at the hidden part of the iceberg

Why do we see something and why we dont?

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 peoples 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.

Basic Elements in the Perceptual Process

Perceptual Selection

External Factors

Sizelarger objects attract

Intensityhigher intensity attracts

 Contrastthose that differ from familiar attract

Motion/movementthose in motion attract

Repetitionrepetitive things attract

Noveltynew things attract attention

Familiaritythings that are familiar, when they are not expected in a particular
context

INTERNAL FACTORS
Personalitypersonality factors seek others that are similar
Backgroundpeople from similar background
Psychological needthey make people see what may not be present
Experiencesimilarity based on past experience of particular type with people, objects or
events
Self-acceptancewhether one is able to affirm oneself makes one to see events in that
light

Organization of Stimuli

Perceptual Grouping

Similaritysimilar stimuli are grouped together

Proximitythings closer to each other are grouped together

Closuretendency to complete the incomplete

Figure-groundtendency to keep certain phenomenon in focus and certain others in

background

Perceptual constancytendency to stabilize perceptions so that contextual changes do not

affect them

Proximity

Similarity
 Closure

Figure-ground
Process of Interpreting
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 halofavourable opinion
Negative halounfavourable opinion
Perceptual Defence
To deal with conflicting messages and data
Denial
Modification of data
Justification
Helps the individual from modifying his/her own beliefs, attitudes and values in relation to
the phenomenon
Projectionseeing others as ones own behaviour or inclination
 Contextual factors
Interpersonal contextrelationship between perceiver and others. Bias because of
previous conflicts
Other persons backgroundfamiliar people and strangers. My caste, my neighbour, my
region, language
Organizational contextperception 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

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 grandparents come to visit, these are all ways of managing impressions

Characteristics of the perceiver & perceived

Perceiver
Knowing oneself makes it easier to see others accurately.
Ones own characteristics affect the characteristics one is likely to see in others.
People who accept themselves are more likely to be able to see favourable aspects of
other people.

Perceived
The status of the person perceived will greatly influence others perception of the
person.
The person being perceived is usually placed into categories to simplify the viewers
perceptual activities. Two common categories are status and role.
 The visible traits of the person perceived will greatly influence others perception of
the person.
Attribution process

Person Perception:
Making Judgments About Others

Kellys Attribution Theory

When individuals observe behaviour, they attempt to determine whether it is
internally or externally caused.
Distinctivenesswhether displays different behaviours in different situations
Consensuseveryone in the same situation responds similarly
Consistencyis 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
 Kellys 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 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 causes)
when placed in the same situation)

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.