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Module 5 - OB

Perception involves how people interpret internal and external messages. It is influenced by past experiences and current interests. There are many factors that influence perception, both external like intensity, size, and novelty, and internal like motivation, personality, and learning. Common shortcuts in judging others include attribution errors, selective perception, halo effect, contrast effect, and stereotyping. Understanding perception and cognitive biases can help improve decision making in organizations.

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10 views

Module 5 - OB

Perception involves how people interpret internal and external messages. It is influenced by past experiences and current interests. There are many factors that influence perception, both external like intensity, size, and novelty, and internal like motivation, personality, and learning. Common shortcuts in judging others include attribution errors, selective perception, halo effect, contrast effect, and stereotyping. Understanding perception and cognitive biases can help improve decision making in organizations.

Uploaded by

sonam
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Module 5

Perception & Decision Making


What is Perception?
• Perception is the process by which people become
aware of internal and external messages and interpret
these messages into meanings.
• Every individual has only limited cognitive space for
processing information.
• The raw incoming data is interpreted in the light of his
past experiences, and interns of his current needs and
interests.
Significance of Perception
• Departmental head and subordinate react differently to top
management directives
• An individual’s answer to a question is based on what he heard the
boss say, not on what the boss actually said
• The same boss may be viewed as most effective superior by some
subordinates and some other sub-ordinates may consider him as
most ineffective boss
• Any change in the personnel policy of the organization may be
perceived as desirable by middle managers, but undesirable by
shop floor workers or vice versa.
Perception Involves 5 Sub Processes

• Inputs – Specific Stimulus


• Processing Mechanisms – Selection,
Organization, Interpretation
• Outputs – Attitudes, Opinions, Beliefs
• Behaviour
External Attention Factors
• Intensity: The intensity principle of attention states
that the more intense the external stimulus, the more
likely it is to be perceived. E.g. Loud Voice, Bright
Light, Strong Odour
• Size: The larger the object, more likely it will be
perceived E.g. Classifieds vs. Full Advertisement
• Contrast: External Stimuli which stand out against the
background will attract the attention.
– E.g. Safety Signs, Written Messages
External Attention Factors
• Repetition: Repeated External Stimuli is more attention
getting than single one. E.g. Instructions,
Advertisements

• Motion: People will pay more attention to moving


objects in their field of vision than to the stationary
ones

• Novelty & Familiarity: Novel or Familiar External


Situation acts as attention getter. E.g. Job Rotation
Internal Attention Factors
• Learning: Plays a role in developing
Perceptual Set
• Previous learning creates expectancy to
perceive in certain manner
Internal Attention Factors
• Motivation: Plays a role in Perceptual Selectivity
• Perception of frustrated individual significantly differs
from that of highly motivated individual
• Depending on strength of power, affiliation or
achievement motive, individual will give attention to
relevant situational factors
• E.g. Person insecure about his job is likely to perceive
job threatening comments
Internal Attention Factors
• Personality: Affects what individual is likely to attend
to in confronting situation
• Determines individual’s response disposition (tendency
to perceive familiar stimuli rather than unfamiliar ones)
• E.g. Policeman, Doctor, Mechanic witnessing Car
Accident differently
• Optimistic vs. Deviant Individual
• Jolly vs. Sad Individual
• Secure people perceive other as warm individuals and not as cold
or indifferent.
• Thoughtful people do not make extreme judgments of others. They
can perceive different shades of grey rather than only black or
white.
• Self accepting people have faith in their individuality and tend to
perceive things favorably.
• Self-accepting people perceive themselves as liked, wanted and
accepted by others. Those who are not self-accepting tend to
distrust others.
• Self-accepting people also accept others easily, whereas those who
are not self-accepting do not accept others also readily.
Common Shortcuts in Judging Others
Attribution Theory
• Explains the way in which we judge people
differently depending on meaning we
attribute to given behaviour
• We attempt to determine whether behaviour
was internally or externally caused
• This determination depends on
Distinctiveness, Consensus, Consistency
Internal Vs. External Cause
• Internally Caused Behaviours are under
control of individual
• Externally Caused Behaviours – Situation
Forced Individual to
Errors While Making Judgments

Fundamental Attribution Error


• Tendency to underestimate influence of external factors and
overestimate influence of internal factors while making
judgment about others.

Self Serving Bias


• The tendency for individuals to attribute their own successes
to internal factors and put the blame for failures on external
factors.
Common Shortcuts in Judging Others

• Selective Perception

• Halo Effect

• Contrast Effect

• Stereotyping
Selective Perception
• Any Characteristic that makes a person,
object or event stand out will increase the
probability we will perceive it
• We cant observe everything that goes around
us
• As we cannot assimilate all that we observe
we take in bits and pieces
Halo Effect
• Drawing general impression about an
individual on the basis of a single
characteristics such as Intelligence,
Sociability or Appearance
• E.g. Tell critic to write 10 things he admires
about particular person and vice versa
Contrast Effect
• We don’t evaluate person in isolation
• Our reaction is influenced by other
persons we have recently encountered
• E.g. Interview
Stereotyping
• Judging somebody on the basis of our
perception of the group to which he or she
belongs
• Generalizing Inaccurately
• E.g. Older workers cant learn new skills
• Keep constant check so that Stereotypes do not
influence our judgments
Application of Shortcuts in
Organization
• Employment Interview
• Performance Expectations

• Performance Evaluation

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