The word Perception comes from the Latin words, “percipio” meaning “receiving, collecting, and action of taking possession, apprehension with the mind or senses”.
a process by which individuals organize and interpret their sensory impressions in order to give meaning to their environment It is a cognitive process by which people attend to incoming stimuli, organize and interpret such stimuli into behavior. Perception is an important meditative cognitive process through which persons make interpretations of the stimuli’s or situation they are faced with. Stephen P. Robbins Perception is defined as the process by which an individual selects, organizes and interprets stimuli into a meaningful and coherent picture of the world. Fred Luthans
Stimulus is any unit of input to any of the senses; examples of stimuli (i.e. Sensory inputs) include products, packages, brand names; advertisement and commercials. Sensory receptors are the human organs (the eyes, ears, nose, mouth and skin) that receive sensory inputs. These sensory functions are to see, hear, smell, taste and feel respective.
The study of perception is largely the study of what we subconsciously add to or subtract from raw sensory inputs to produce a private picture of the world. Sensation is the immediate and direct response of the sensory organs to simple stimuli and advertisement, a package, a brand name. Human sensitivity refers to the experiences of sensation.
Perception is an intellectual process of transforming sensory stimuli to meaningful
information. It is the process of interpreting something that we see or hear in our mind and use it later to judge and give a verdict on a situation, person, group etc. It can be divided into six types − Of sound − The ability to receive sound by identifying vibrations. Of speech − The competence of interpreting and understanding the sounds of language heard.
1 Touch − Identifying objects through patterns of its surface by touching it. Taste − The ability to receive flavor of substances by tasting it through sensory organs known as taste buds. Other senses − They approve perception through body, like balance, acceleration, pain, time, sensation felt in throat and lungs etc. Of the social world − It permits people to understand other individuals and groups of their social world. Example − Priya goes to a restaurant and likes their customer service, so she will perceive that it is a good place to hang out and will recommend it to her friends, who may or may not like it. Priya’s perception about the restaurant is good.
Perceptual Process Perceptual process are the different stages of perception we go through. The different stages are −
Receiving is the first and most important stage in the process of perception. It is the initial stage in which a person collects all information and receives the information through the sense organs.
Selecting
Selecting is the second stage in the process. Here a person doesn’t receive the data randomly but selectively. A person selects some information out of all in accordance with his interest or needs. The selection of data is dominated by various external and internal factors. External factors − The factors that influence the perception of an individual externally are intensity, size, contrast, movement, repetition, familiarity, and novelty. Internal factors − The factors that influence the perception of an individual internally are psychological requirements, learning, background, experience, self-acceptance, and interest.
Organizing
2 Keeping things in order or say in a synchronized way is organizing. In order to make sense of the data received, it is important to organize them. We can organize the data by − Grouping them on the basis of their similarity, proximity, closure, continuity. Establishing a figure ground is the basic process in perception. Here by figure we mean what is kept as main focus and by ground we mean background stimuli, which are not given attention. Perceptual constancy that is the tendency to stabilize perception so that contextual changes don’t affect them.
Interpreting
Finally, we have the process of interpreting which means forming an idea about a particular object depending upon the need or interest. Interpretation means that the information we have sensed and organized, is finally given a meaning by turning it into something that can be categorized. It includes stereotyping, halo effect etc.
Importance of Perception in OB We need to understand what the role of perception in an organization is. It is very important in establishing different role of perceptions like −
Understanding the tasks to be performed.
Understanding associated importance of tasks allotted. Understanding preferred behavior to complete respective tasks. Clarifying role perceptions. For example, every member in a group has to be clear regarding the role allotted to them. Programmer writes the code, tester checks it, etc.
The major characteristics of the perceiver influencing perception/factors
influencing an individual’s perception
Attitude The attitude and aptitude of employees influence perception formation. If they have positive attitudes towards the management, they directly perceive the stimuli given by management. In the case of negative attitudes, the employees suspect the management’s approach.
3 Employees of high aptitude have a desire and attitude for growth. They behave positively toward the management of an organization.
Motives The motives and desires of employees cause them to view stimuli differently as per their level and angle. Helpful motives of the employees will always assist the management. If they desire to develop themselves and the organization, they will perceive objects and situations positively. Employees having low motives will not work sincerely. The perception will differ depending on different types of motives. Interest The interest of individuals draws more attention and recognition to stimuli. Less attention and recognition lowers the impact of stimuli or objects on behaviour. If employees lack interest, behaviour pattern will be less effective, and the perception will be weak.
Experience The experience of employees results in different levels of perception. A young employee takes time to understand the object and situation. Experienced employees generally understand objects quickly and correctly. However, in contradictory situations, it is difficult to correct aged persons, whereas the young are easily moulded towards achieving the objectives of the organization.
Expectation Expectations distort perceptions. People see what they expect to see. If they see the object and the situation differently from their expectations, they get frustrated. They are unable to modify their behaviour. The employees may expect more pay and so they perceive the management from that angle. The real stimuli are not properly perceived if expectations exist there on. The management has to evolve expectations for proper perception.
Self-Concept Another factor that can affect social perception is the perceivers’ self-concept. An individual with a positive self-concept tends to notice positive attributes in another person. In contrast,
4 a negative self-concept can lead a perceiver to pick out negative traits in another person. Greater understanding of self allows us to have more accurate perceptions of others.
Characteristics of the Target
Characteristics in the target that is being observed can affect what is perceived. Physical appearance plays a big role in our perception of others. Extremely attractive or unattractive individuals are more likely to be noticed in a group than ordinary looking individuals. Time The situation in which the interaction between the perceiver and the target takes place has an influence on the perceiver’s impression of the target. For Example, a person decked up for a party may not be noticeable but the same dress in office would be noticed distinctly, though the person has not changed.
Work setting You would have very frequently heard people say that their manager is different during working hours and 1800 opposite while in a social setting.
Social setting The strength of the situational cues also affects social perception. Some situations provide strong cues as to appropriate behaviour. In these situations, we assume that the individual’s behaviour can be accounted for by the situation and that it may not reflect the individual’s disposition. This is the discounting principle in social perception.
For example, you may encounter an automobile salesperson who has a warm and personable manner, asks you about your work and hobbies, and seems genuinely interested in your taste in cars. Can you assume that this behaviour reflects the salesperson’s personality? You probably cannot, because of the influence of the situation. This person is trying to sell you a car, and in this particular situation, he probably treats all customers in this manner.
Managerial Implications of Perception
People in organizations are always judging each other. Managers must appraise their
5 subordinate’s performance. Applications of perceptions in organizations. Employment Interview A major input into who is hired and who is rejected in any organisation is the employment interview. Evidence indicates that interviewers often make inaccurate perceptual judgements. Interviewers generally draw early impressions that become very quickly entrenched.
Performance Evaluation An employee’s performance appraisal very much depends on the perceptual process. The performance appraisal represents an assessment of an employee’s work. While this can be objective, many jobs are evaluated in subjective terms. Subjective measures are, by definition, judgmental.
Performance Expectations A manager’s expectations of an individual affect both the manager’s behaviour towards the individual and the individual’s response.
Employee Loyalty Another important judgment that managers make about employees is whether they are loyal to the organization. Few organizations appreciate employees, especially those in the managerial ranks openly disparaging the firm. Implications of Perception on Performance and Satisfaction Productivity Absenteeism and Turnover Job Satisfaction Productivity What individuals perceive from their work situation will influence their productivity. More than the situation itself than whether a job is actually interesting or challenging is not relevant. How a manager successfully plans and organizes the work of his subordinates and actually helps them in structuring their work is far less important than
6 how his subordinates perceive his efforts.
Absenteeism and Turnover
Absence and Turnover are some of the reactions to the individual’s perception. Managers must understand how each individual interprets his job. and where there is a significant difference between what is seen and what exists and try to eliminate the distortions.
Job Satisfaction Job satisfaction is a highly subjective, and feeling of the benefits that derive from the job. Clearly his variable is critically linked to perception. Clearly his variable is critically linked to perception. If job satisfaction is to be improved, the worker’s perception of the job characteristics, supervision and the organisation as a whole must be positive.
Perception Bias Primacy effect Recency effect Central traits Implicit personality theories Projection Stereotyping Primacy effect- The tendency for a perceiver to rely on early cues or first impressions. Recency effect- The tendency for a perceiver to rely on recent cues or last impressions. Central traits- Personal characteristics of a target person that are of particular interest to a perceiver Implicit personality theories- Personal theories that people have about which personality characteristics go together. Projection- The tendency for perceivers to attribute their own thoughts and feelings to others.
7 Stereotyping- The tendency to generalize about people in a certain social category and ignore variations among them.
