CHAPTER 4Social Perceptions and Managing Diversity©McGra.docx

CHAPTER 4
Social Perceptions and Managing Diversity
©McGraw-Hill Education. All rights reserved. Authorized only
for instructor use in the classroom. No reproduction or further
distribution permitted without the prior written consent of
McGraw-Hill Education.
1
Major Questions You Should
Be Able to Answer
4.1 How do I form perceptions of others?
4.2 How can I use awareness of stereotypes to make better
decisions and manage more effectively?
4.3 How do I tend to interpret employee performance?
4.4 How does awareness about the layers of diversity help
organizations effectively manage diversity?
4.5 What is the business rationale for managing diversity?
4.6 What are the most common barriers to implementing
successful diversity programs?
4.7 What are organizations doing to effectively manage
diversity, and what works best?
©McGraw-Hill Education.
2

Person Perceptions
What is perception?
A cognitive process that enables us to interpret and understand
our surroundings
Important as perceptions affect actions and decisions
Perceptions are based on the characteristics of:
The perceiver
The target
The situation
Perception is a cognitive process that enables us to interpret and
understand our surroundings.
Recognition of objects is one of this process’s major functions.
For example, both people and animals recognize familiar
objects in their environments.
People must recognize objects to meaningfully interact with
their environment.
But since organizational behavior’s (OB’s) principal focus is on
people, social perception is emphasized rather than object
perception.
3
Model of Person Perception
Jump to Appendix 1 for description

Characteristics of the Perceiver
Direction of gaze: Gaze is the first step in the perception
process because it focuses your attention and tells the brain
what you think is important in the immediate environment.
Needs and goals: We are more likely to perceive whatever is
related to our goals and to our needs.
Experience with target: Our perception of a target is influenced
by our past experience with him or her.
Category-based knowledge: This knowledge consists of
perceptions, including stereotypes, that we have stored in
memory about various categories of people that we use to
interpret what we see and hear.
Gender and emotional status: Women recognize emotions more
accurately than men, and experiencing negative emotions such
as anger and frustration is likely to make your perceptions more
negative.
Cognitive load: Cognitive load represents the amount of activity
going on in your brain; your perceptions are more likely to be
distorted and susceptible to stereotypical judgments if you are
tired.
Characteristics of the Target
Direction of gaze: We form different perceptions of people
based on whether they are looking at us while conversing.
Facial features and body shape: We often use faces as markers
for gender, race, and age, but face and body characteristics can
lead us to fall back on cultural stereotypes.
Nonverbal cues: Gestures, touching, facial expressions, eye
contact, and body movements like slouching all convey
messages, and these nonverbal actions are highly influential in
perception.
Appearance or dress: We all are susceptible to being influenced
by appearance and attire.
Physical attractiveness: The beauty-is-good stereotype leads us
to perceive attractive people positively.

Characteristics of the Situation
Context of interaction: Perceptions are affected by the social
context in which the interaction takes place.
Culture and race consistency: We more accurately recognize
emotions and expressions displayed by people from our own
culture or from other familiar cultures.
4
Managerial Implications of Person Perception
Hiring
Implicit cognitions may lead to biased decisions.
Biased decisions are avoided by training, use of structured
interviews, use of multiple interviewers.
Performance appraisals
Faulty perceptions about performance leads to inaccurate
appraisals and erode morale.
Faulty perceptions are reduced by use of objective measures,
training, use of HR analytics for capturing daily performance.
Leadership
Employees’ evaluations of leader effectiveness are influenced
by their schemata of good and poor leaders.
Interviewers make hiring decisions based on their impression of
how an applicant fits the perceived requirements of a job.
Unfortunately, many of these decisions are made on the basis of
implicit cognition.
Implicit cognition represents any thoughts or beliefs that are
automatically activated from memory without our conscious

awareness.
The existence of implicit cognition leads people to make biased
decisions without an understanding that it is occurring.
Managers can be trained to understand and reduce this type of
hidden bias. Bias can be reduced by using structured as opposed
to unstructured interviews, and by relying on evaluations from
multiple interviewers rather than just one or two people. More
and more companies are using virtual interviews as a tool for
reducing problems associated with implicit cognition.
Faulty schemata about good versus poor performance can lead
to inaccurate performance appraisals, which erode morale.
Therefore, managers must accurately identify and communicate
the behavioral characteristics and results they look for in good
performance at the beginning of a review cycle.
Furthermore, because memory for specific instances of
employee performance deteriorates over time, managers need a
mechanism for accurately recalling employee behavior.
Research demonstrates that employees’ evaluations of leader
effectiveness are influenced strongly by their schemata of good
and poor leaders.
5
Test Your OB Knowledge (1 of 5)
Steven wants to be sure there is no implicit cognition creating
bias in his company’s interviewing process. The best course of
action is to
train all interviewers in the interview process.
have more than one interviewer conducting interviews.
conduct the interviews virtually.

use a structured interview approach.
All of the above.
The answer is E. All of the above. All four will reduce bias.
6
What Is a Stereotype?
An individual’s set of beliefs about the characteristics or
attributes of a group
May or may not be accurate
Can lead to poor decisions
Can create barriers for:
Women
Older individuals
People of color
People with disabilities
Stereotypes represent a key component of the perception
process because they are used during encoding.
A stereotype is an individual’s set of beliefs about the
characteristics or attributes of a group.
Stereotypes are not always negative. For example, the belief
that engineers are good at math is certainly part of a stereotype.
Stereotypes may or may not be accurate.
Unfortunately, stereotypes can lead to poor decisions.

Specifically they can create barriers for women, older
individuals, people of color, and people with disabilities, all
while undermining loyalty and job satisfaction.
7
How Stereotypes Are Formed and Maintained
Four steps
Categorization
Inferences
Expectations
Maintenance
Accurate information and motivation are needed to reduce the
use of stereotypes.
Stereotyping is based on the following four-step process:
Categorization. We categorize people into groups according to
criteria (such as gender, age, race, and occupation).
Inferences. Next, we infer that all people within a particular
category possess the same traits or characteristics
Expectations. We form expectations of others and interpret their
behavior according to our stereotypes.
Maintenance. We maintain stereotypes by overestimating the
frequency of stereotypic behaviors exhibited by others,
incorrectly explaining expected and unexpected behaviors,
differentiating minority individuals from ourselves.
Research shows that it takes accurate information and
motivation to reduce the use of stereotypes.
8
Stereotypes
Managerial challenges and recommendations

Educate people about stereotypes and how they influence
behavior and decision making.
Create opportunities for diverse employees to meet and work
with others.
Encourage all employees to increase their awareness.
The key managerial challenge is to reduce the extent to which
stereotypes influence decision making and interpersonal
processes throughout the organization.
Three ways that this can be achieved:
Managers should educate people about stereotypes and how they
can influence our behavior and decision making.
Managers should create opportunities for diverse employees to
meet and work together in cooperative groups of equal status.
Managers should encourage all employees to strive to increase
their awareness regarding stereotypes. Awareness helps reduce
the application of stereotypes when making decisions and when
interacting with others.
9
Which of the following statements is NOT accurate?
Stereotypes can lead to poor decisions.
All stereotypes are negative.
Stereotypes are used during the encoding process of perception.
Quality interpersonal contact among mixed groups may reduce
the use of stereotypes.
Some people have negative stereotypes about older individuals.

The answer is B. All stereotypes are negative. Stereotypes can
be positive.
10
Causal Attributions
What are causal attributions?
Suspected or inferred causes of behavior
Important because attributions affects our perceptions of cause
and our choice of action
Attribution theory is based on a simple premise: People infer
causes for observed behavior. Rightly or wrongly, we constantly
formulate cause-and-effect explanations for how we and others
behave.
Formally defined, causal attributions are suspected or inferred
causes of behavior.
Managers need to understand how people formulate these
attributions because the attributions profoundly affect
organizational behavior.
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Kelley’s Model of Attribution (1 of 2)
Behaviors can be attributed either to internal factors within a
person or external factors in the environment.
We make causal attributions by observing three dimensions of

behavior. These can be high or low.
Consensus
Distinctiveness
Consistency
Behavior can be attributed either to internal factors within a
person (such as ability) or to external factors in the
environment (such as a difficult task).
Kelley hypothesized that people make causal attributions by
observing three dimensions of behavior: consensus,
distinctiveness, and consistency.
These dimensions vary independently, forming various
combinations and leading to differing attributions.
Consensus compares an individual’s behavior with that of his or
her peers. There is high consensus when one acts like the rest of
the group and low consensus when one acts differently.
Distinctiveness compares a person’s behavior on one task with
his or her behavior on other tasks. High distinctiveness means
the individual has performed the task in question in a
significantly different manner than he or she has performed
other tasks.
Consistency judges if the individual’s performance on a given
task is consistent over time. Low consistency is undesirable for
obvious reasons, and implies that a person is unable to perform
a certain task at some standard level. High consistency implies
that a person performs a certain task the same way, with little or
no variation over time.
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Kelly’s Model of Attribution (2 of 2)
How does consensus, distinctiveness, and consistency lead to
specific attributions?
AttributionConsensus
(People)Distinctiveness
(Tasks)Consistency
(Time)InternalLowLowHighExternalHighHighLow
Kelley theorized that people attribute behavior to either internal
causes (personal factors) or external causes (environmental
factors) depending on the ranking of consensus, distinctiveness,
and consistency.
While other combinations are possible, the two options shown
above have been most frequently studied.
Say all employees are performing poorly (high consensus), on
only one of several tasks (high distinctiveness), and during only
one time period (low consistency). A supervisor will probably
attribute the employees’ poor performance to an external source
such as a temporary distraction or event.
In contrast, if only one employee performs poorly (low
consensus), across several tasks (low distinctiveness), and over
time (high consistency), the supervisor will likely attribute
performance to personal factors.
13
Attributional Tendencies
Fundamental attribution bias
A tendency to attribute another person’s behavior to his or her
personal characteristics, as opposed to situational factors

Self-serving bias
One’s tendency to take more personal responsibility for success
than for failure
The fundamental attribution bias reflects one’s tendency to
attribute another person’s behavior to his or her personal
characteristics, as opposed to situational factors. This bias
causes perceivers to ignore important environmental factors that
often significantly affect behavior. This leads to inaccurate
assessments of performance, which in turn foster inappropriate
responses to poor performance.
The self-serving bias represents one’s tendency to take more
personal responsibility for success than for failure. The self-
serving bias suggests employees will attribute their success to
internal factors (high ability or hard work) and their failures to
uncontrollable external factors (tough job, bad luck,
unproductive coworkers, or an unsympathetic boss). This
tendency plays out in all aspects of life.
14
Managerial Applications and Implications
Managerial tendency to attribute behavior to internal causes
may lead managers to take inappropriate actions.
An employee’s attributions for his or her own performance have
dramatic effects on subsequent motivation, performance, and
personal attitudes.

We tend to disproportionately attribute behavior to internal
causes. This can result in inaccurate evaluations of
performance, leading to reduced employee motivation. No one
likes to be blamed because of factors they perceive to be beyond
their control. The Organizing Framework for Understanding and
Applying OB offers a simple solution for overcoming this
tendency. You must remind yourself that behavior and
performance is a function of both person factors and
environmental characteristics.
Other attributional biases may lead managers to take
inappropriate actions. Such actions could include promotions,
transfers, layoffs, and so forth. This can dampen motivation and
performance.
Attributional training sessions can help. Basic attributional
processes can be explained, and we can be taught to detect and
avoid attributional biases.
An employee’s attributions for his or her own performance have
dramatic effects on subsequent motivation, performance, and
personal attitudes such as self- esteem. For instance, people
tend to give up, develop lower expectations for future success,
and experience decreased self-esteem when they attribute
failure to a lack of ability. Employees are more likely to display
high performance and job satisfaction when they attribute
success to internal factors such as ability and effort.
15
Megan was hurt at work. Megan’s manager concluded that
Megan was careless and clumsy. Megan’s manager may have
committed an error called ________ error.

fundamental attribution
ultimate perception
stereotyping
self-serving bias
internal cognition
The answer is A. Fundamental attribution error. The manager is
assuming it was Megan’s fault.
16
The Four Layers of Diversity
Diversity: the multitude of individual differences and
similarities that exist among people
Personality
Surface-level
Internal characteristics apparent to others (unchangeable)
Deep-level
External influences
Organizational dimensions
Figure 4.3 shows that personality is at the center of the
diversity wheel because it represents a stable set of
characteristics responsible for a person’s identity.
The next layer of diversity includes internal dimensions that are

referred to as surface-level dimensions of diversity. Surface-
level characteristics are those that are quickly apparent to
interactants, such as race, gender, and age. Because these
characteristics are viewed as unchangeable, they strongly
influence our attitudes and expectations and assumptions about
others, which, in turn, influence our behavior.
Figure 4.3 shows that the next layer of diversity comprises
external influences. They represent individual differences that
we have a greater ability to influence or control. Examples
include where you live today, your religious affiliation, whether
you are married and have children, and your work experiences.
These dimensions also exert a significant influence on our
perceptions, behavior, and attitudes.
The final layer of diversity includes organizational dimensions
such as seniority, work location, and job title and function.
Integrating these last two layers results in what is called deep-
level characteristics of diversity. Deep-level characteristics are
those that take time to emerge in interactions, such as attitudes,
opinions, and values. These characteristics are definitely under
our control.
17
Addressing Discrimination
Discrimination occurs when employment decisions about an
individual are due to individual characteristics and attributes
that are not related to the job.
Affirmative Action
Interventions to correct imbalances, injustice, mistakes, or
outright discrimination
Both voluntary and mandatory programs
Not based on quotas
Can lead to stigmas for those expected to benefit from AA
programs
Managing Diversity

Focuses on changing organizational culture and structure
Enable people to perform to potential
Relies on education, enforcement, and exposure
It’s important to understand that affirmative action is not a law
in and of itself. It is an outgrowth of equal employment
opportunity (EEO) legislation. The goal of this legislation is to
outlaw discrimination and to encourage organizations to
proactively prevent discrimination.
Discrimination occurs when employment decisions about an
individual are due to reasons not associated with performance or
are not related to the job. For example, organizations cannot
discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, national
origin, sex, age, physical or mental disabilities, or pregnancy.
18
As Jasmine got to know Mary, a co-worker of a different
ethnicity, Jasmine was surprised to learn how much she actually
had in common with Mary such as loving to hike and choice of
religion. Jasmine was experiencing which layer of diversity?
organizational dimensions
personality
surface-level characteristics
deep-level characteristics
internal dimensions

The answer is D. Deep-level characteristics.
19
Building the Business Case for
Managing Diversity
Business rationale for diversity
Managing diversity gives an organization the ability to grow
and maintain a business in an increasingly competitive
marketplace.
The access-and-legitimacy perspective is based on recognition
that the organization’s markets and constituencies are culturally
diverse.
The rationale for managing diversity is more than its legal,
social, or moral dimension. Quite simply, it’s good business.
Managing diversity gives the organization the ability to grow
and maintain a business in an increasingly competitive
marketplace.
An access-and-legitimacy perspective on diversity is based on
recognizing that the organization’s markets and constituencies
are culturally diverse.
It therefore behooves the organization to match the diversity in
parts of its own workforce as a way of gaining access to and
legitimacy with those markets and constituent groups.
One study discovered that customer satisfaction and employee
productivity were higher when the racio-ethnic composition of
customers matched that of store employees.
20

Are Women Breaking the Glass Ceiling?
Advancements
Educational attainment
Seats on board of directors
Leadership positions in education institutions
Women are breaking through but barriers and differences
remain.
Continuing pay gap
Pay gap for female MBA graduates
Gender discrimination
Barriers and Gaps
The glass ceiling represents an invisible but absolute barrier or
solid roadblock that prevents women from advancing to higher-
level positions.
Various statistics support the existence of a glass ceiling. The
pay gap between men and women is one example. In 2012, the
median weekly income in full-time management, professional,
and related occupations was $1,328 for men in contrast to $951
for women.
This gap includes MBA graduates. Female graduates from top
MBA programs earned 93 cents for every dollar earned by a
male graduate, and the pay gap tends to increase over time.
A WSJ/NBC national poll revealed that 40 percent of the
women reported experiencing gender discrimination.
Educational attainment: Women earned the majority of
bachelor’s and master’s degrees from 2006 through 2012.

Seats on boards of directors of Fortune 500 firms: 9.6% in 1995
and 16.6% in 2013.
Leadership positions in educational institutions: In 2010,
women represented 18.7% of college presidents and 29.9% of
board members.
Federal court appointments: In 2013, 32% and 30% of Federal
Courts of Appeals and U.S. District Court judges, respectively,
were women.
21
Trends in Workforce Diversity (1 of 2)
The Census Bureau predicts that by 2060 57% of the workforce
will consist of minority groups.
However, current minority groups appear to be stalled at their
own glass ceiling.
They make up a smaller percentage in the professional class.
They are involved in more discrimination cases.
They achieve lower earnings.
All told, minority groups will constitute approximately 57
percent of the workforce in 2060, according to the Census
Bureau.
And yet, three additional trends suggest that current-day
minority groups are stalled at their own glass ceiling.
Smaller percentage in the professional class. Latinos and

African Americans have a smaller relative hold on managerial
and professional jobs within their racial groupings.
More discrimination cases. The number of race-based charges of
discrimination that were deemed to show reasonable cause by
the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission increased
from 294 in 1995 to 957 in 2013. Companies paid a total of
$112 million to resolve these claims outside of litigation in
2013.
Lower earnings. Minorities also tend to earn less personal
income than whites. Median weekly earnings in 2010 were
$1,103, $884, $1,275, and $895 for whites, blacks, Asians, and
Latinos, respectively. Interestingly, Asians had the highest
median income.
22
Trends in Workforce Diversity (2 of 2)
Generational Diversity
The population and workforce is getting older.
Four generations of employees are working together (soon to be
five).
Managers need to deal with generational differences in values,
attitudes, and behavior.
America’s population and workforce are getting older, and the
workforce includes greater generational differences than ever
before. We already see four generations of employees working

together, soon to be joined by a fifth. Managers need to deal
effectively with these generational differences in values,
attitudes, and behaviors. Many companies—including IBM,
Lockheed Martin, Ernst & Young, and Aetna—address this issue
by providing training workshops on generational diversity.
23
Big Bucks Bank is located in a city with a growing Latino
population. Jane, the CEO, believes in the access-legitimacy
perspective. Jane will do which of the following?
Hire employees to match the diversity in the population.
Offer Latino food every Friday.
Offer international travel services.
Support the local university’s Spanish department.
All of the above.
The answer is A. Hire employees to match the diversity in the
population.
24
Barriers and Challenges to
Managing Diversity
Inaccurate stereotypes and prejudice
Ethnocentrism
Poor career planning
Negative diversity climate
Unsupportive and hostile environment
Lack of political savvy of diverse employees
Difficulty in balancing career and family issues

Fears of reverse discrimination
Diversity not seen as an organizational priority
Outdated appraisal and reward systems
Resistance to change
Inaccurate stereotypes and prejudice. This barrier manifests
itself in the belief that differences are viewed as weaknesses. In
turn, this promotes the view that diversity hiring will mean
sacrificing competence and quality.
Ethnocentrism. The ethnocentrism barrier represents the feeling
that one’s cultural rules and norms are superior or more
legitimate than the rules and norms of another culture.
Poor career planning. This barrier is associated with the lack of
opportunities for diverse employees to get the type of work
assignments that qualify them for senior management positions.
A negative diversity climate. We define organizational climate
as employee perceptions about an organization’s formal and
informal policies, practices, and procedures. Diversity climate
is a subcomponent of an organization’s overall climate and is
defined as the employees’ aggregate “perceptions about the
organization’s diversity-related formal structure characteristics
and informal values.”
An unsupportive and hostile working environment for diverse
employees. Sexual, racial, and age harassment are common
examples of hostile work environments. Whether perpetrated
against women, men, older individuals, or LGBT people, hostile
environments are demeaning, unethical, and appropriately called
“work environment pollution.”

Lack of political savvy on the part of diverse employees.
Diverse employees may not get promoted because they do not
know how to “play the game” of getting along and getting ahead
in an organization. Research reveals that women and people of
color are excluded from organizational networks.
Difficulty in balancing career and family issues. Women still
assume the majority of the responsibilities associated with
raising children.
Fears of reverse discrimination. Some employees believe that
managing diversity is a smoke screen for reverse discrimination.
This belief leads to very strong resistance because people feel
that one person’s gain is another’s loss.
Diversity is not seen as an organizational priority. This leads to
subtle resistance that shows up in the form of complaints and
negative attitudes. Employees may complain about the time,
energy, and resources devoted to diversity that could have been
spent doing “real work.”
The need to revamp the organization’s performance appraisal
and reward system. Performance appraisals and reward systems
must reinforce the need to effectively manage diversity. This
means that success will be based on a new set of criteria.
Resistance to change. Effectively managing diversity entails
significant organizational and personal change.
25
Managing Diversity
Organizations use a variety of generic approaches to
addressing diversity issues.
Include or exclude
Deny

Assimilate
Suppress
Isolate
Tolerate
Build relationships
Foster mutual adaptation
Only fostering mutual adaptation endorses the philosophy
behind managing diversity.
Option 1: Include or exclude
This choice may be an outgrowth of affirmative-action
programs. Its primary goal is to either increase or decrease the
number of diverse people at all levels of the organization.
Option 2: Deny
People using this option deny that differences exist. Denial may
manifest itself in proclamations that all decisions are color-,
gender-, and age-blind and that success is solely determined by
merit and performance.
Option 3: Assimilate
The basic premise behind this alternative is that all diverse
people will learn to fit in or become like the dominant group. It
only takes time and reinforcement for people to see the light.
Option 4: Suppress
Differences are squelched or discouraged when using this
approach. This can be done by telling or reinforcing others to
quit whining and complaining about issues.
Option 5: Isolate
This option maintains the current way of doing things by setting

the diverse person off to the side. In this way the individual is
unable to influence organizational change.
Option 6: Tolerate
Toleration entails acknowledging differences but not valuing or
accepting them. It represents a live-and-let-live approach that
superficially allows organizations to give lip-service to the
issue of managing diversity. Toleration is different from
isolation in that it allows for the inclusion of diverse people.
However, differences are not really valued or accepted when an
organization uses this option.
Option 7: Build relationships
This approach is based on the premise that good relationships
can overcome differences. It addresses diversity by fostering
quality relationships—characterized by acceptance and
understanding—among diverse groups.
Option 8: Foster mutual adaptation
In this option, people are willing to adapt or change their views
for the sake of creating positive relationships with others. This
implies that employees and management alike must be willing
to accept differences, and, most important, agree that everyone
and everything is open for change. Diversity training is one way
to kick start mutual adaptation.
26
Social Perception and Managing Diversity: Putting It All in
Context
Figure 4.5 Organizing Framework for Understanding and
Applying OB
Copyright 2014 Angelo Kinicki and Mel Fugate. All rights
reserved. Reproduction prohibited without permission of the
authors.

27
Appendix 1 Models of Person Perception
Return to slide
Characteristics of the perceiver
Direction of gaze
Needs and goals
Experience with target
Category based knowledge
Gender and emotional status
Cognitive load
Characteristics of the target
Direction of gaze
Facial and body shape characteristics
Nonverbal cues
Appearance or dress
Physical attractiveness
Characteristics of the situation
Context of interaction
Culture and race consistency between perceiver and target
28
Appendix 2 The Four Layers of Diversity
Return to slide
The four layers of diversity:

Organizational dimensions
Functional level and classification
Work content and field
Division department unit and group
Seniority
Work location
Union affiliation
Management status
External dimensions
Geographic location
Income
Personal habits
Recreational habits
Religion
Educational background
Work experience
Appearance
Parental status
Marital status
Internal dimensions are age, gender, sexual orientation,
educational background, work experience, appearance, parental
status, and marital status.
And in the center, is personality.
29
Appendix 3 Social Perception and Managing Diversity: Putting
It All in Context
Return to slide
The graphic shows the relationship between the three categories
Inputs, Process, and Outcomes.
Inputs

Person factors: diversity, demographics, and stereotypes
Situation factors: diversity climate
Leads to
Processes
Individual Level: perceptions, attributions, psychology safety
Group/Team Level: group, team dynamics
Organizational Level: options to manage diversity
Leads to
Outcomes
Individual Level: task performance, work attitudes, well-being
and flourishing, turnover, career outcomes.
Group/Team Level: group and team performance, and group
satisfaction
Organizational Level: employer of choice, customer
satisfaction, and reputation
In return, Outcomes relates to both Inputs and Processes.
30
Perception and Perception Checking
Introduction
“We usually see only the things we are looking for – so much
that we sometimes see them where they are not.” Eric
Hoffer
This lesson will help you deal with the challenge of
communicating in the face of perceptual differences. A number
of factors affect the way we select, organize, interpret, and
negotiate information. We will begin by looking at some of the
reasons why the world appears different to each of us. We will

also explore the numerous influences on perception and practice
the skill of perception checking.
It is important for us to remember that recognizing the
perceptual differences outlined in this lesson won’t eliminate
them, but it will make it easier to remember that another
person’s preferences aren’t crazy, just different.
Learning Objectives
- perform perception checks to help prevent misunderstandings.
Influences on Perception
· Physiological
· Senses
· Differences in vision and hearing are the easiest to recognize,
but even identical foods may taste differently to different
individuals. Odors that please some people repel others.
Temperature variations that leave some of us uncomfortable are
inconsequential to others.
· Age
· Older people often view the world differently from younger
ones because they have more experiences. Until the age of 7,
most children aren’t able to understand another person’s point
of view – this helps explain why children often seem egocentric.
· Health
· When you aren’t feeling well, you may behave differently.
· Fatigue
· Trying to deal with important issues when you are tired can

get you into trouble.
· Hunger
· Trying to conduct important business when you are hungry can
lead to problems.
· Biological cycles
· Are you a “morning person” or a “night person”? Each of us
has a daily cycle that dictates our tolerance to stress, our mood,
and alertness.
Now that you are aware of the physiological influences on
perceptions, consider that it may be possible to manage your
life so that you can deal with important issues at the most
effective times.
Additional Influences on Perception
· Cultural
· Language translations
· General Motors was surprised when its Chevrolet Nova model
did not sell well in Latin American countries. Officials from
G.M. finally realized the problem: In Spanish, no va means
“does not go.”
· Value of talk
· Western cultures view talk as desirable with silence as
negative since it may be interpreted as a lack of interest. Asian
cultures perceive talk differently. They typically discourage the
expression of thoughts and feelings. Silence is valued.

· Nonverbal behaviors
· Asian Cultures-- South Korea, Vietnam, and Japan--direct eye
contact is prohibited between people of differing status. A
person of lower status avoids eye contact with their superior as
a sign of respect.
· Some Middle Eastern cultures, people stand very close
together to smell one another's breath. To smell one another's
breath is desirable. In fact, to deny someone your breath
communicates shame.
· In some Arab cultures, men hold hands as a sign of trust.
Saudi businessmen often hold hands as a sign of trust. Saudi
women, however, are not to be touched in public. Saudi
Arabians typically enjoy getting very close, face to face, and
engaging in direct eye contact.
· In many cultures the use of the left hand is forbidden. Kenya,
Indonesia, and Pakistan forbid using the left hand for eating or
serving food. In Iran, the left hand is used for cleaning and
bodily functions and should never be used to receive gifts or
other objects.
· Geography
· People living in southern latitudes of the U.S. are less tolerant
of ambiguity, more likely to touch others, and more likely to
verbalize their thoughts and feelings.
· A southerner whose relatively talkative, high-touch style
seemed completely normal at home might be viewed as pushy
and aggressive in a new northern home.
· Social Roles
· Gender roles
· Socially approved ways that men and women are expected to
behave
· After members of a society learn these customary roles, they

tend to regard violations as unusual or even undesirable.
· Occupational roles
· The kind of work we do often influences our view of the
world.
· Self-Concept
· Judgments of others
· Extensive research shows that a person with high self-esteem
is more likely to have a high opinion of others, whereas a
person with low self-esteem is likely to have a low opinion of
others.
· Judgments of self
· If you have low self-esteem, you may often be cynical and
quick to ascribe the worst possible motives to others.
Social scientists use the term attribution to describe the process
of attaching meaning to behavior. We attribute meaning both to
our own actions and to the actions of others. Research has
uncovered several perceptual tendencies that can lead to
attribution errors.
The Accuracy and Inaccuracy of Perception
· We often judge ourselves more charitably than others.
· When they botch a job, we might think they weren’t listening
well or trying hard enough; when we botch a job, the problem
was unclear directions or not enough time.
· We tend to favor negative impressions of others over positive
ones.

· Research shows that when people are aware of both positive
and negative personal characteristics, they tend to be more
influence by the less desirable characteristics.
· We are influenced by what is most obvious.
· You might blame an unhappy working situation on the
manager, overlooking other factors beyond their control such as
a change in the economy, the policy of higher management, or
demands of customers or other workers.
· We cling to first impressions.
· It is an almost unavoidable tendency to form first impressions,
but remember to keep an open mind and be willing to change
your opinion as events may prove you wrong.
· We tend to assume that others are similar to us.
· Others don’t always think or feel the way we do and assuming
that similarities exist can lead to problems.
Perception checking provides a better way to handle your
interpretations.
· Because the goal is mutual understanding, perception checking
is a cooperative approach to communication.
A complete perception check has 3 parts:
1. Behavioral description
2. At least two possible interpretations of the behavior
3. A request for clarification about how to interpret the behavior
EXAMPLE
· “You said you really liked the job I did.” (Behavior)

· “On the other hand, there was something about your voice that
made me think you may not like it.” (First interpretation)
· “Maybe it’s just my imagination, though.” (Second
interpretation)
· “How do you really feel?” (Request for clarification)
Another Perception Checking Example
Description of behavior noticedWhen you walked out of the
room without saying “goodbye...”Two possible interpretations
of behavior“I didn’t know if you were mad at me”“or if you
were in a hurry and forgot.”Request for clarification
“What was up?”
Consider the following factors when deciding when and how to
use this approach:
· Completeness – you can shorten the perception check
· “You haven’t dropped by lately. Is anything the matter?”
(Single interpretation combined with request for clarification)
· Nonverbal Congruency
· succeeds only if your nonverbal behavior reflects the open-
mindedness of your words
· Cultural Rules
Latin America and Asia value social harmony over clarity
Perception-check whenever possible, but don’t overuse
it!Perception Checking Practice
Practice your perception checking ability by developing three-

part verifications for the following situations. Write each
component as if you were actually speaking to the other person.
No need to submit this assignment – it’s just for practice!
· You made what you thought was an excellent suggestion to
your manager. The manager looked disinterested but said she
would check on the matter right away. Three weeks have
passed, and nothing has changed. You walk into her office and
say . . .
1. Specific behavioral description:
2. Two possible interpretations of the behavior
· A coworker “steals” your best ideas and presents them as his
own during a weekly meeting. You walk into his office after the
meeting and say . . .
· Write your own perception check for a misunderstanding you
would like to clarify at your workplace.

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