COMS101

Chapter 2Perception,

Self, & Communication

Definitions of Perception

Perception is “the process of becoming aware of objects and events from the senses” (p. 32).

• Active Perception – “your mind selecting, organizing, and interpreting what you sense” (p. 33).

• Subjective Perception – “your uniquely constructed meaning attributed to stimuli” (p. 33).

What do you see in this picture?

Noise: Why do perceptions differ?• Physiological Factors – your make-up– Hard of hearing, bad eyesight

• Past Experiences and Roles - learned– Ex. – Bad experience with b/f or g/f

• Culture/Co-culture – shared beliefs

• Present feelings/Circumstances– Frustrated, tired, bored

How does the Perception Process Work?

Selection Organization Interpretation

All happen at the same time

1) Selection

• Selection – Paying attention to what is important to you.

– Selective Attention: Focusing on certain cues and ignoring others.

• Boys vs. Girls– How many times is the basketball passed by the team in white shirts?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ahg6qcgoay4

2) Organization

Organizing things into “a whole”

• Figure – focal point • Ground – everything else– What was the figure/ground in the video?

• Closure – fill in if we do not have all of the information.– Misunderstanding an overheard conversation.– Ruler example

3) Interpretation

Putting meaning to the stimuli.

• Select Something, organize it to the surroundings, interpret it based off of everything.

Questions about Selection, Organization, Interpretation???

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What about Perceiving Self/Others?Errors in Perception

1) Attribution Errors2) Perceptual Errors

1) Attribution Errors

Making cause/effect references

• Fundamental Attribution Error: – Others fail because of their personal faults – Others succeed because of luck or the situation

• Self Serving Bias: – Our successes are due to our qualities– Our failures are due to circumstances

Question

• What is similar about fundamental attribution errors and a self-serving biases???

2) Perceptual ErrorsPerceiving others’ “being”

• Stereotyping – oversimplified and standardized image of a person because of his/her membership to a group.

• First Impressions – Formed in about 3 seconds.– Clothing, height, weight, attractiveness, interaction skills

Perceiving Ourselves

Our self concept is socially constructed by others

• Self-Image– How you picture yourself– Feedback from Others

• Confirmation, rejection, disconfirmation

• Self-Esteem– How you feel about yourself– Based on perceived successes and failures

Self-concept

Self-image

Self-esteem

Self-concept = An evaluation of yourself.

Questions???

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