Page 219 - DMGT402_MANAGEMENT_PRACTICES_AND_ORGANIZATIONAL_BEHAVIOUR

Management Practices and Organisational Behaviour

Notes (g) Expectations: Finally, expectations can distort your perceptions in that you will see
what you expect to see. The research findings of the study conducted by Sheldon S
Zalkind and Timothy W Costello on some specific characteristics of the perceiver
reveal
(i) Knowing oneself makes it easier to see others accurately.

(ii) One's own characteristics affect the characteristics one is likely to see in others.
(iii) People who accept themselves are more likely to be able to see favourable
aspects of other people.

(iv) Accuracy in perceiving others is not a single skill.
These four characteristics greatly influence how a person perceives others in the
environmental situation.

2. Characteristics of the Target: Characteristics in the target that is being observed can affect
what is perceived. Physical appearance plays a big role in our perception of others. Extremely
attractive or unattractive individuals are more likely to be noticed in a group than ordinary
looking individuals. Motion, sound, size and other attributes of a target shape the way we
see it.
Physical appearance plays a big role in our perception of others. The perceiver will notice
the target's physical features like height, weight, estimated age, race and gender. Perceivers
tend to notice physical appearance characteristics that contrast with the norm, that are
intense, or that are new or unusual. Physical attractiveness often colours our entire
impression of another person. Interviewers rate attractive candidates more favourably
and attractive candidates are awarded higher starting salaries.

Verbal communication from targets also affects our perception of them. We listen to the
topics they speak about, their voice tone, and their accent and make judgements based on
this input.
Non-verbal communication conveys a great deal of information about the target. The
perceiver deciphers eye contact, facial expressions, body movements, and posture all in an
attempt to form an impression of the target.
The perceiver, who observes the target's behaviour, infers the intentions of the target. For
example, if our manager comes to our office doorway, we think "oh no! he is going to give
me more work to do". Or we may perceive that his intention is to congratulate us on a
recent success. In any case, the perceiver's interpretation of the target's intentions affects
the way the perceiver views the target.
Targets are not looked at in isolation; the relationship of a target to its background
influences perception because of our tendency to group close things and similar things
together. Objects that are close to each other will tend to be perceived together rather than
separately. As a result of physical or time proximity, we often put together objects or
events that are unrelated. For example, employees in a particular department are seen as
a group. If two employees of a department suddenly resign, we tend to assume their
departures were related when in fact, they might be totally unrelated.

People, objects or events that are similar to each other also tend to be grouped together.
The greater the similarity, the greater the probability we will tend to perceive them as a
group.

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