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Chapter 5
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Lecture notes of 5 pages for the course Behaviour in organisations at QUB
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Chapter 5 - Perception and emotionsBasic features of perception
Our perception is selective, subjective and largely automatic, rather than conscious.
The basic ingredient of our perceptions are sensory stimuli, which the brain habitually sifts
and interprets in a meaningful way
We are only able to deal with the continuous bombardment of information because we
employ selective attention – we are only able to focus on some of the sensory stimuli that
are reaching us
Our intentions and emotions colour our perceptions, they determine what we draw from the
environment
What we experience is subjective – it’s strongly influenced by our existing knowledge (ideas,
experiences and backgrounds)
Out of the bombardment of sensory stimuli, the
perceiver selects some of the information for
attention and processing
Based on prior knowledge and current motivations,
the perceiver then works out what the information
means and responds accordingly
Once they have responded, their actions become part
of the environment, so influence the person’s own
and others ongoing perceptions of what is happening
, Process of perception
A definition of perception is hard to find – it’s defined in different ways in various disciplines
Eysenck and Keane (2005) define it as ‘basic psychological systems associated with each sensory
modality, together with central brain processes which integrate and interpret the output from these
physiological systems’
Our ability to perceive depends upon 3 things:
Receiving – being able to attend to and receive signals from
the environment (able hear, touch… and use them at the right
time). This is where selective attention happens.
Organizing – able to mentally organize and combine the
signals. Subjectivity has its major influence.
Interpreting – being able to assign meaning or make sense of
what we are experiencing. Our brains workout combinations
of signals that are likely to go together and those which aren’t
feasible.
The sequence of perception: top-down or bottom-up?
During the process of receiving and organizing information, we are already attaching meaning to
what we are in the process of perceiving based on our past experiences. We almost always engage in
the three processes simultaneously.
Bottom-up perception:
Perception led predominantly by gathering external sensory data and then working out what
it means
When we think there may be consequences in getting it wrong, we rely more heavily on this
Rather than ensuring accuracy, thinking too much can hinder our attempts at sound
judgement and decision-making. If we try too hard to take in as much information as
possible, it can interfere with out ability to focus on the more important aspects of the
situation and cause irrelevant information to be included in the decision-making process.
Top-down perception:
Perception led predominantly by existing knowledge and expectations rather than external
sensory data
We tend to rely on this in circumstances that are very familiar
Danger of relying too much on existing knowledge – changes in the environment that
require a response may go unnoticed
We have perceptual biases; we attend to certain cues that do not necessarily support good
judgement
Primary effect is a perceptual error in which we quickly form an opinion of people based on
the first information we receive
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