Perception

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Chapter 3

• Perception
• October 4th, 2000

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What do you think of this Man?
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What do you think of this Woman?
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What do you think of these People?
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Perception A definition

• The process through which we select, organize,
  and interpret information gathered by our senses
  in order to understand the world around us. (p.
  67)
• Social Perception
• The process through which individuals attempt to
  combine, integrate, and interpret information
  about others (p. 68)

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Correspondent Inferences

• Judgements made about what someone is like based
  on observations of his or her behaviour
• Dangerous because
• Behaviour is complex and has many different
  causes
• People sometimes disguise their true
  characteristics

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Kelleys Theory of Causal Attribution

• Consensus
• Do others behave similarly in similar situations
• Consistency
• Does the individual behave similarly in other
  similar situations
• Distinctiveness
• Does the individual behave similarly in other
  contexts

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Perceptual Biases

• Fundamental Attribution Error
• What do you think when someone
• Cuts you off in traffic
• Does not return your phone call for 3 days
• Gets your order mixed up in a restaurant
• The Halo Effect
• Perceiving high correlations between
  characteristics that may be unrelated
• Be Like Me
• Interests and hobbies can help in job search
• First Impression Error

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Stereotypes

• Beliefs that all members of specific groups share
  similar traits and behaviours
• False positives and false negatives
• Discussion Question
• How may stereotypical judgements be overcome?

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Overcoming Social Perception

• Do not overlook the external causes of others
  behaviour
• Identify and confront your stereotypes
• Evaluate people based on objective factors
• Avoid making rash decisions

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Organizational Applications of Perception

• Performance Appraisals
• Selling yourself at the interview
• Selling Corporate image