 Perception is important for understanding individual differences because how people perceived a situation determines how people behave. Perception is part of that personal dimension that makes people see situations differently as well as shapes their attitude in terms of their work environment. This lesson seeks to help students: 1. describe the major elements of the perceptual process; 2. identify the main factors that influence what individual perceive; and 3. Identify factors that determine how one person perceives another.

1. Understanding individual differences Perception

2. Perception Overview Perception is important for understanding individual differences because how people perceived a situation determines how people behave. Perception is part of that personal dimension that makes people see situations differently as well as shapes their attitude in terms of their work environment. This lesson seeks to help students: describe the major elements of the perceptual process; identify the main factors that influence what individual perceive; and identify factors that determine how one person perceives another.

3. Perception Definition Perception is the process by which people select, organize, interpret, and respond to information from the world around them. Perception is the selection and organization of environmental stimuli to provide meaningful experiences for the perceiver. The perceptual process consists of the following elements: Environmental stimuli Observation Perceptual selection Perceptual organization Interpretation response

5. Smell

6. Hearing

7. Sight

9. Closure

10. Proximity

12. Feelings

13. Behaviour

15. Perception Perceptual Selection When the stimuli are received a person might pay attention to some of the aspects in the environment and ignore others. This filtering out of most information to deal with the most important matter is referred to as selective screening. The influencing factors are due mainly to external and internal factors. External factors are: Size Intensity Contrast Motion Repetition Novelty and familiarity A combination of the above may be operating at any time to affect perception.

17. Learning affects perception by the development of perceptual sets. A perceptual set is an expectation of a particular interpretation based on past experience with the same or similar objects.

18. Motivation – the urgent needs and desires at any particular time can influence perception.What do you see in this picture? Which white circle is larger? How would you describe these potato chips?

19. Perceptual organization The process by which people group environmental stimuli into recognizable patterns Perceptual grouping is the tendency to form perceive objects as a continuous pattern.

21. Characteristics of the perceiver, and

23. General appearance

24. Skin colour

25. Posture

26. Age

27. Gender

28. Voice quality

29. Personality traits

32. Perceptual defence

33. Stereotyping

34. The halo effect

35. Projection

38. Stereotyping

39. The belief that all members of a specific group share similar traits and behaviours.

40. Halo effect

41. A tendency to colour everything we know about a person because of one recognizable favourable or unfavourable trait.

42. Projection

43. tendency to see one’s traits in others.

44. The role of culture –

46. Learning Classical learning ( workplace hospital) Unconditioned stimulus Patient Reflex action Nervous behaviour of a nurse Condition stimulus Emergency light A patient who needs treatment arrives at the hospital. As the patient enters the casualty a red light goes off to indicate an emergency. Nurses seeing the light become nervous about their tasks.

47. Learning Operant conditioning A process by which individuals learn voluntary behaviour, that is perform deliberate actions. This concept in reference to the workplace suggests that the individual influences the environment to produce a consequence and as a result the individual learns voluntary behaviour. Managers can influence the frequency of behaviour by changing the consequences of the behaviour through reinforcement and rewards.

48. Reinforcement Contingency of reinforcement The relationship between the preceding and following environmental events and the behaviour, which results in a change in behaviour. Reinforcement contingent on consequences Employee task behaviour Antecedent Consequence Manager and employee set goals The employee may or may not reach the target Is the consequence negative or positive? Action of the manager – reprimand or compliment based of the consequence

49. Positive reinforcement Positive reinforcement is the presentation of a pleasant consequence after the occurrence of a desired goal. Principles of positive reinforcement: Contingent reinforcement – the reinforcer must be administered only if the desired behaviour is performed. Immediate reinforcement – the reinforcer will be most effective if given immediately when the desired behaviour has occurred Reinforcement size – the larger the amount, the more effective on the frequency of desired behaviour. Reinforcement deprivation – the more a person is deprived, the greater the effect on future occurrence

51. Contingencies of reinforcement Guidelines: Do not reward all employee in the same way. Carefully examine the consequences of nonactions as well as action. Let employees know which behaviours will be reinforced. Let employees know what they are doing wrong. Do not punish employees in front of others. Make the response equal to the behaviour by not cheating workers out of their just reward.