What is perception
Process used to organize and interpret sensory impressions to give meaning to the environment
Subjective reality
Why do we care about perceptions
Our perceptions is the basic understanding others and their behaviour
Perception drives our behaviour
Perception is helpful…
But our perception is often bias/flawed
3 Characteristics of the perceptual Process
Perception are selective
We aim constancy
We aim for consistency
Basic Biases in Person Perception
Primacy and recency effect
Reliance on central traits
Implicit personality theories
Projection
Stereotyping
PRimacy and REcency Effects
THe reliance of early cues is known as the primary effect
THe tendency for a perceiver to rely on recent cues or last impression is known as recency effects
Reliance on Central Traits
People tend to organize their perception around central traits
Height, weight, physical appearance
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 feeling to others
Contrast Effect
something looks better or worse than it really is because you’re comparing it to something you just saw.
Stereotyping
The tendency to generalize people in a social category and ignore variation among them
What is Attribution
Attribution is the process by which we assign causes or motives to explain people’s behaviours
Dispositional (internal) or situational (external) factors
Kelley’s Attribution Model
Motives are judged through
Consensus
Do most people engage in the behavior or is it unique to this person?
Consistency
Does the person engage in the behavior regularly/consistently
Distinctiveness
Does the person engage in the behaviour in many situations, or is it distinctive to one situation
Consensus
Comparing the individuals behaviours with that of their peers
Low consensus you stand out
Consistency
Comparing the individual’s behaviour at different points in time
Distinctiveness
Comparing the individuals behaviour in one situation with their behaviour on other situations
People can be different across different situations
Fundamental attribution error (FAE)
When we attribute others’ (instead of our own) behaviors, we tend to attribute it to dispositions (vs. situations). Blame people, not situation.
The actor-observer effect
Actors and observers tend to view causes of actor’s behaviour differently. Observer: emphasizing dispositional factors (FAE). Actor: emphasizing situational factors.
