Perception is a process by which individuals organize and interpret their sensory expressions in order to give meaning to their environment.

Factors That Influence Perception

Factors In The Target Factors In The Perceiver
Perception

Factors In The Situation

Factors In Perceiver
1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

Factors In The Target Novelty Motion Sounds Size Background Proximity Similarity

Factors In Situation Time Work Setting Social Setting

Attitude Motives Interests Experience Expertise

For professors: A student not submitting the assignment in time.

For Managers: An employee not performing as per specified standards.

This theory tries to explain the ways in which we judge people differently, depending upon the meaning we attribute to a given behavior. It says that when we observe individual behavior we try to find out the cause of that behavior-Internal & External which depends on three factors- Distinctiveness, Consensus, Consistency.

Distinctiveness or Consensus or Consistency

Internal or External Cause

Behavior

Distinctive: Not always late

Consensus: All are late

Consistency: A is always late Oversleeping Traffic Internal External

An Employee A is Late At Work

Observation Interpretation Attribution of Cause H External Distinctiveness L Internal Individual H External Behavior Consensus L Internal H Internal Consistency External L

Fundamental Attribution Error: A manager will blame his sales agent for any failure rather than the innovative product launched by competitor.
Self Serving Bias: The tendency for individuals to attribute their own successes to internal factors and put the blame for failures on external factors.

Selective Perception: We cannot take in all that we observe, we take in bits and pieces. A classic example is we more likely notice the car like our own or a boss reprimanding some people and not others who are doing the same thing. Halo Effect: When we draw a general impression about an individual on the basis of a single characteristic such as intelligence, sociability etc it is halo effect.

Contrast Effects: Evaluation of a persons characteristics that is affected by comparisons with other people recently encountered who rank higher or lower on the same characteristics. The classic example is a candidate is likely to receive a more favorable evaluation if preceded by mediocre applicants and a less favorable evaluation if preceded by strong applicants.

Stereotyping: Judging someone on the basis of ones perception of the group to which that person belongs. The classic example would be. All Muslims are terrorists . Older workers cannot lean new skills.

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, scrutiny or investigation. After 9/11 attack proponents argue that profiling Arab descent is necessary to prevent the terrorism.

For influencing productivity Its necessary to assess how workers perceive their jobs. As the workers might not interpret the working conditions, payment structures, appraisal systems or successfully made plans by the managers in the way the manager or organization expects.

Furthermore absenteeism, turnover, & job satisfaction are also reactions to an individuals perceptions. Managers must spend time understanding how each individual interprets reality.

Dissatisfaction with working conditions and the belief that an organization lacks promotion opportunities are judgments based on attempts to create meaning out of the job.
The employees conclusion that a job is good or bad is an interpretation.

Thus managers must spend time understanding how each individual interprets reality and, when there is a significant difference between what someone sees and what exists, try to eliminate the distortions.

Thank You!