Inhaling+Perception

__**INHALING: PERCEPTION**__



Perception is a social and cognitive process in which people assign meaning to sensory cues- what they are seeing, hearing, touching, tasting and smelling. Many people feel that seeing is believing, but clearly, that is not necessarily true. In the picture above, our eyes deceive us and create an illusion that allows us to see the picture as moving, even though it is not. "Perception is based by the perceiving person's experience and understanding of his or her place in the world." Perception is an active process that varies based upon the person deciphering the cues. If perception was an inactive process of just noticing facts, then all people would perceive things the same.  Perception occurs in three subprocesses that occur simultaneously: selection, organization and inference making. First, a person receives information through one of their senses, then they begin the active process of deciphering that information. Selection is the decision of what cues one is going to pay attention to. For example, if a person is at a sporting event and are watching the game, they will most likely not hear what the group of people behind them is talking about because they are selecting to focus on the surrounding conversations. Organizing is giving structure and stability to the information that one chooses to select. This process allows people to refer to similar experiences they have had to understand what they are currently experiencing. The third and final step of perception is inferring, in which a person makes their judgment over the situation. Inferring does not rely on facts, but relies on deciphering the information one has selected and then comparing it to other experiences they have had when organizing the information. These three steps together create meaning.  The process of perception relies on each person acting uniquely and without a set of rules to dictate what information they focus on. This is why two people can have on conversation and perceive it completely differently. Similarly, a person can see a situation and walk away thinking they have fully understood it, but have the complete wrong idea.  Understanding the process of perception and being conscious of the fact that everyone perceives things differently can help a leader motivate and understand their group members while creating an environment that celebrates and encourages creativity, innovation and discussion. media type="youtube" key="42E2fAWM6rA" height="315" width="420" align="center"