Perceptions & Rationality PDF

PERCEPTIONS & RATIONALITY L. Jeff Seaton, PhD. Murray State University  GOOD or BAD MUSIC SLIDE #1  FOOD SOURCE or NOT SLIDE #2  Perception of the Glass SLIDE #3  Perceptions “There are things known and there are things unknown...

PERCEPTIONS & RATIONALITY L. Jeff Seaton, PhD. Murray State University  GOOD or BAD MUSIC SLIDE #1  FOOD SOURCE or NOT SLIDE #2  Perception of the Glass SLIDE #3  Perceptions “There are things known and there are things unknown, and in the between are the doors to perception.” Aldous Huxley “We all see the same thing but we don’t see that same thing in the same way.” Dr. Seaton SLIDE #4  Perceptions Perceptions – the set of processes by which an individual selects, organizes, and interprets what they see, hear, touch, smell, and taste (five senses) to give meaning and order to the world around them. SLIDE #5  Perception Process Selection: Focusing attention on certain sights, sounds, tastes, touches, or smells in our environment. Organization: Structuring the information you have selected into a coherent pattern in your mind. Interpretation: Assigning meaning to information we have selected. SLIDE #6  Perceptions The individual will behave according to what they perceive to be reality. Therefore, in the study of behavior, “Our perceptions becomes our reality.” SLIDE #7  Foundations of the Individual The things that make us who we are RESOURCE ATTRIBU ENVIRONMEN S TES T ABILITIES FRIENDS OPPORTUNI TIES FAMILY ROLE MODELS EXPERIENC ES GAINED KNOWLEDG E SLIDE #8  FISH DINNER? SLIDE #9 SLIDE #10  Schemas A schema is a mental concept that informs a person about what to expect from a variety of experiences and situations. Schemas are developed based on information provided by life experiences and are then stored in memory. Our brains create and use schemas as a short cut to make future encounters with similar situations easier to navigate. ***Are influenced by culture and environment. SLIDE #11 SLIDE #12 SLIDE #13  Perception Errors Perceptions, which are often formed in a single glance (1/10 of a second), affect the accuracy of an individual’s judgment of other people and other things. As was stated in the beginning, an individual’s perception becomes their reality. SLIDE #14  Attributions Creating explanations for others’ comments or behaviors. – Internal: A person’s behavior can be explained by internal factors (personality, individual characteristics or traits, demographics, etc.) – External: A person’s behavior can be explained by outside factors (environment, other people, etc.) Stereotyping: categorizing or labeling people on the basis of a single attribute SLIDE #15  POSITION SLIDE #16  Executive Janitor SLIDE #17  Ambiguous Information Information whose meaning is not clear allowing it to be interpreted in multiple or conflicting ways. WHAT IS THE WHITE OBJECT IN THE NEXT SLIDE? SLIDE #18 SLIDE #18  Ambiguous Information The weather was hot and steamy. I went to a bar. There wasn't a lot of people there. The area was not a tourist area. She is a full figured girl. He’s had the same job since high school. There was no phone or internet service available. The food was served buffet style. SLIDE #19  Causes of Perception Error Time constraints and information costs – people have neither the time nor money to search for all possible alternatives and evaluate all potential consequences, therefore, their perception is based on the information they have. Slide #20  Causes of Perception Error Prior Hypothesis Bias – Allowing strong prior beliefs about a relationship between variables to influence decisions based on these beliefs even when evidence shows they are wrong. Representativeness – The decision maker incorrectly generalizes a decision from a small sample or a single episode. Slide #21  Causes of Perception Error Selective Perception: The process by which individuals perceive what they want to in the information based on their particular frame of reference: they ignore or quickly forget opposing information or viewpoints. Confirmatory Bias: Suggest that once a perception is formed, the mind starts to resist alternative views. Slide #22  RATIONAL Rational - the quality of being based on or in accordance with reason or logic. - the quality of being able to think sensibly or logically. - the quality or state of being rational - the quality or state of b eing agreeable to reason SLIDE #23  RATIONALITY Perfect World Rationality All people agree on what is rational because they see the same thing, in the same way. So people who choose a different option, perspective, behavior, alternative, solution, etc. should be considered irrational? ****Is perfect world rationality based on true reason and logic or a “perception” of reason and logic? SLIDE #24  Causes of Rational Differences Universalism vs Relativism Universal Perspective is based on the concept of moral absolutism: the idea that if something isn't right in one place or for one person, it is not Relative right for anyone, Perspective anywhere. is the belief that there's no absolute truth. Truth depends on a particular individual, culture, situation, time, etc. Truth depends on the individuals, groups, cultures, holding them. Slide #25  Draw a Normal And Rational Person SLIDE #26  AM I “NORMAL” OR “ABNORMAL” Normality (behavior) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Normality (also known as normalcy) is the state of being normal. The study of what is normal is called normatology – this field attempts to develop an operational definition distinguishing between normality and abnormality (or pathology). Definitions of normality vary by person, time, place, and situation – it changes along with changing societal standards and norms. Normality exists based on societal norms, and whether someone is normal is entirely up to how he or she views him or herself in contrast to how society views him or her. The general question of 'What is normal?' is discussed in many fields, including philosophy, psychology and sociology. Normality has been functionally and differentially defined by a vast number of disciplines, so there is not one single definition. Although it is difficult to define normality, since it is a flexible concept, the existence of these ramifications also makes it an important definition. While trying to define and quantify normality is a good start, all definitions confront the problem of whether we are even describing an idea that exists since there are so many different ways of viewing the concept. SLIDE #27  NORMAL VS ABNORMAL Being different doesn’t necessarily mean a person is wrong or abnormal, it simply means they are different. One of the hardest things to learn as a manager or in everyday relationships is that we shouldn’t use ourselves as the standard for normal or rational. SLIDE #28  DIFFERENCES IN RATIONALITY Bounded Rationality – Contrary to the “perfect world rationality philosophy” in bounded rationality each person has different opinions about how to define “rationality.” Bounded Rationality – is based on what the individual knows, feels, values, and perceives to be true and rational. SLIDE #29  Examples of Bounded Rationality Bank Teller: You have worked as a bank teller for several months when one of the other tellers who has become a good friend tells you that her daughter is extremely ill and that she must have an operation to survive. She also tells you that she has no insurance and the operation will cost $10,000. Sometime later you ask her about her daughter and she tells you she is just fine now. She then confides in you that she took $10,000.00 from a dormant account at the bank to pay for the operation. She assures you that she has already started paying it back and will continue to do so until it is all returned. What do you do? SLIDE #30  Examples of Bounded Rationality Journalism/Advertising: You as a newspaper journalist have received reliable information that a national study has been concluded that showed that bottled water has virtually no health advantages over the tap water in most cities, including yours. The study included graphics showing how much money is being wasted each year by consumers of bottled water. The AquaPure Bottled Water Company has an advertising account with your newspaper worth over $75,000 a year. You know if you run the story AquaPure will probably pull its account with your newspaper. What do you do? SLIDE #31  Examples of Bounded Rationality Law Enforcement: You are a rookie officer assigned to a training officer for the first six months of your employment. The training officer is a 20-year veteran and is a close friend of the Assistant Chief of Police. The third day that you are working with him you respond to a burglary call at a local convenience store. It is 2:30 am and the manager has been notified. While you are waiting for his arrival you observe your partner take a soda, candy and a bag of chips. He hurriedly consumes the soda and chips before the manager arrives. When the manager arrives a report is taken on all of the merchandise that is missing from the store including the soda, candy and chips. What, if SLIDE #32 anything, should you do?