What Is Perception, and Why Is It Important? People’s behavior is based on their perception of what reality is, not on reality itself. The world as it is perceived is the world that is behaviorally important. Perception A process by which individuals organize and interpret their sensory impressions in order to give meaning to their environment.

Perception What is Perception? Why is it Important? How we view and interpret the events and situations in the world about us. Why is it Important? Because people’s behavior is based on their perception of what reality is, not on reality itself.

What is the perceptual process? Stages of the perceptual process. 1- Picking up some external stimuli 2- Screening, when we only acknowledge the stimuli we choose to acknowledge 3- Some interpretation and categorization of these stimuli, possibly based on previous experience or on our upbringing. 4

Example You hear that your team has lost a game. You screen this information in a negative manner, assuming something is wrong with the team rather than it has just had a bad day or was unlucky. You interpret this information on the basis of previous experience and decide it is a further example of bad team management.

Factors That Influence Perception

Selective Perception Selectively interpret the target basing on own interests, background, experience, and attitudes. Halo effect The perceiver’s pick upon a particular attribute of the perceived to determine their overall perception.

Contrast Effects Projection The perceiver’s perceptions of others distort the perceiver’s perception of a target. Projection Attribute own characteristics to others. (take homogeneity for granted) Stereotyping Judge someone on the basis of the perception of the group to which they belong instead of their own characteristics.

Person Perception: Making Judgments About Others 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.

Attribution Theory

Errors and Biases in Attributions The tendency to underestimate the influence of external factors and overestimate the influence of internal factors when making judgments about the behavior of others.

Errors and Biases in Attributions (cont’d) Self-Serving Bias The tendency for individuals to attribute their own successes to internal factors while putting the blame for failures on external factors.

Frequently Used Shortcuts in Judging Others Selective Perception People selectively interpret what they see on the basis of their interests, background, experience, and attitudes.

Frequently Used Shortcuts in Judging Others Halo Effect Drawing a general impression about an individual on the basis of a single characteristic Contrast Effects Evaluation of a person’s characteristics that are affected by comparisons with other people recently encountered who rank higher or lower on the same characteristics.

Frequently Used Shortcuts in Judging Others Projection Attributing one’s own characteristics to other people. Stereotyping Judging someone on the basis of one’s perception of the group to which that person belongs.

Specific Applications in Organizations Employment Interview Perceptual biases of raters 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. Ethnic Profiling A form of stereotyping in which a group of individuals is singled out—typically on the basis of race or ethnicity—for intensive inquiry, scrutinizing, or investigation.

Specific Applications in Organizations (cont’d) Performance Evaluations Appraisals are often the subjective (judgmental) perceptions of appraisers of another employee’s job performance. Employee Effort Assessment of individual effort is a subjective judgment subject to perceptual distortion and bias.

The Link Between Perceptions and Individual Decision Making Problem A perceived discrepancy between the current state of affairs and a desired state. Perception of the decision maker Decisions Choices made from among alternatives developed from data perceived as relevant. Outcomes

Decision Making Definition: The process by which members of an organization choose a specific course of action to respond to both problems and opportunities. The Decision-Making Process Rational Model of Decision Making Bounded Rationality Implicit Favorite Model Intuitive Model

Rational Model of Decision Making Assumptions: the decision maker has all the necessary information and will choose the best possible solution or response. Steps: 1.Ascertain the need for decision-disparity 2. Identify the decision criteria 3.Allocate weight to the criteria 4.Develop,evaluate the alternatives 5.Select the best

Assumptions of the Rational Model Problem clarity. Known options. Clear preferences. Constant preferences. No time or cost constraints. People choose maximum payoff.

Bounded Rationality Bounded Rationality: People’s ability to reason is constrained by the limitations of the human mind itself. If a problem is too complicated people simplify it and use satisficing Satisficing: Searching for and choosing the first acceptable response or solution, not necessarily the best possible one.

Intuitive Model an unconscious process created out of distilled experience. intuition is often based on accumulated experiences which allow one to recognize patterns. Main problem: since the criteria are not open to examination, intuition is often strongly influenced by perceptual biases.

Intuitive Decision Making most common under conditions of High uncertainty levels Little precedent Hard to predictable variables Limited facts Unclear sense of direction Analytical data is of little use Several plausible alternatives Time constraints