Understanding and Managing People

Tutorial 10

Perception

Part 1

• A review of PDP goal 2 (group-related goal)

• Spend about 10-15 minutes reviewing SMART plan and evidence collected so far including for goal 2.

• individually feedback on:• The Group goal• Evidence collected so far for this goal AND• Action plan to collect other evidence

• (As you know they need to collect 3 pieces of evidence per goal as a minimum)

What is perception

Part 2: "Ten Minute Paper"• The purpose of this exercise is to check student progress, both

in understanding the material and in reacting to course material, in relation to the perception lecture

Answer the following questions• Why Study Perception? • How would you define perception?’ • Identify the main features of the process of perception?• ‘What theory is Frits Heider (1958) & Harold Kelley (1971) often

attributed to developing? • Explain and illustrate the main processes and problems in

perception. • (response should include false attributions, heuristics, halo effect

etc.)

Part 3: 20 minutes• Outline the key features regarding the process of perception. • What are the (internal and external) factors influencing selective attention

and how can acknowledge of these factors be exploited in a commercial settings?

• You observe someone behaving in what you perceive to be a highly unusual

manner at work, contrary as far as you can observe to ‘common sense’. How would you proceed to understand and to make sense of their behaviour?

• Explain the principles of attribution theory and its importance to, and

implications for, management. Apply the principles to your own working life. • Think of some examples of perceptual distortions and errors. Why is it

important for managers to be aware of them? What do you think are the main causes and implications of these distortions and errors?

Part 4• Illustrate how differing factors influence our perceptions of

other people, for example, that we assess other’s characteristics from their faces.

• 5-minutes to work out as much as you can about each of the five people, using only what they can see in the picture.

• Consider characteristics such as their intelligence, approachability, reliability and other such characteristics.

• Explain clearly which items of evidence from the photographs led you to make those assessments.

Part 2: "Ten Minute Paper"• Why Study Perception? • To understand social science perspective as compared to natural

science• How would you define perception?’ • The dynamic psychological process responsible for attending to,

organizing and interpreting sensory data• Identify the main features of the process of perception?

Part 2: "Ten Minute Paper"• ‘What theory is Frits Heider (1958) & Harold Kelley (1971)

often attributed to developing? • Observed behavior is often translated by internal or external

cause• Explain and illustrate the main processes and problems in

perception. • Internal

• Lazy, partying, all the time• External

• Family problems, working, other commitments• Halo effect• Stereotype• Perceptual defense• Self-serving bias