PERCEIV
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HE SELF
AND OTH
ERS
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AP
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R 2
PERCEPTION
A cognitive process through which we interpret our experiences and come to our own unique understandings; its role in the communication process is crucial
COMMUNICATION PROCESSING•Means by which we gather, organize and evaluate the information we receive• Selecting information
Different conclusions
•Perceptions are organized into existing memory bases called schemas
SCHEMAS• Mental structures that put together
related bits of information• As we receive information, we must make
sense of it• Chunks of information form patterns
• Help you understand how things work or anticipate how they should proceed
CHALLENGES WITH SCHEMA AND PERCEPTION•Mindlessness
• Less critical processor of information; autopilot• Perks and drawbacks associated with mindlessness
•Selective perception• Succumbing to perception (biased)• Active and critical
•Undue influence• Attribute greater credibility than is due
ATTRIBUTIONS: INTERPRETING PERCEPTIONS•Attributions: personal characteristics used to explain behavior•Fundamental attribution error: overemphasize the internal and underemphasize the external•Self-serving bias: success comes from internal factors, failure comes from external factors• Interaction appearance theory: people change their attributions of someone with interaction
Self-Serving Bias
IMPROVING PERCEPTIONS• Verify your perceptions
• Don’t jump to conclusions
• Be thoughtful when you seek explanations
• Resist the natural tendency to fall back on the most obvious explanation
• Look beyond first impressions• Delay judgment!
PERCEPTION IN A DIVERSE WORLD• The Cultural Context
• Effective communication in today’s world requires an appreciation for diversity
• How your unique background affects your perceptions
• Perceptual Barriers• Successful intercultural communication
requires mindfulness• Mutual understanding brings cooperation
PERCEPTUAL BARRIERS• Cultural Myopia
• When individuals fail to consider other cultural perspectives by being blinded by their own circumstances
• Nearsightedness grounded in the belief that one’s own culture is appropriate and relevant in all situations to all people
• Most dangerous when the dominant group is unaware or insensitive towards the needs/values of others
PERCEPTUAL BARRIERS• Stereotyping
• Fitting individuals into an existing schema without adjusting that schema appropriately
• An impression of a group of people that is set; when you meet an individual from this group, you apply your set of perceptions of the entire group to that individual
• Prejudice• Deep seeded unkindness and ill will towards a
group, based on negative stereotypes and feelings of superiorityPrejudic
e
COGNITION: PERCEIVING OURSELVES• We must understand our own identity
and project it• Come in a name (or nickname)• How we perceive ourselves and how we want
others to perceive us
•3 major influences on our cognitions (thoughts about ourselves• Self-concept• Self-esteem• Self-efficacy
SELF-CONCEPT• Your awareness and understanding of
who you are• Interpreted and influenced by your thoughts,
actions, abilities, values, goals, and ideals• Developed by thinking about your strengths and
weaknesses, observing your behavior in a wide variety of situations, witnessing your own reactions to situations, and watching others’ reactions to you
• Behavior AND cognition make a communicator
SELF-CONCEPT• Incredible power to shape
communication with others• Apprehension in certain communication situations• Willingness to interact with others• How you approach someone with a request
• The reverse is also true: when you interact with them, you get impressions from them that reveal how they evaluate you as a person and as a communicator
SELF-CONCEPT• Direct Evidence
• Compliments, insults, support, negative remarks
• Indirect Evidence• Innuendo, gossip, subtle non-verbal cues, lack of
communication
• Social Comparison theory• Compare to ourselves to others as we develop our
ideas about ourselves• Can influences how we think about ourselves and what
we are willing to do to close the unavoidable gap
SELF-ESTEEM• How you feel about yourself in a
particular situation• Set of attitudes that people hold about their own
emotions, thoughts, abilities, skills, behavior, and beliefs that fluctuate according to the situation or context
• Closely associated with self-concept: must know yourself in order to have attitudes about yourself
• Many researches believe self-concept forms first, then self-esteem
SELF-ESTEEM• High self-esteem usually associated with
confidence• Individuals are better able to incorporate their
successes into their self-concept• Research shows people with high self-esteem are more
confident in their interpersonal relationships too
• Research suggests low self esteem caused by inaccurate information about themselves or mistrust in the knowledge they do possess
SELF-EFFICACY• Ability to predict actual success from self-
concept and self-esteem; guides your choice of communication situations• Avoid situations where self-efficacy may be low• Based on (in)ability to make a good impression,
people choose computer mediated communication over face-to-face interactions
• High levels of self-efficacy can lead to overconfidence; need to maintain some uncertainty
SELF-EFFICACY• Interpreting events
• How we cope with failure and success• Do the feelings snowball and build upon each
other?• Or rather, are you less emotionally affected?
• Self-fulfilling prophecy• Prediction that causes an individual to alter their
behavior in a way that makes the prediction more likely to occur
• Can be positive or negative
ASSESSING OUR PERCEPTIONS OF SELF• As a communicator, you are constantly
assessing your competence level for strengths and weaknesses• Evaluate your expectations, execution, and
outcomes in three ways• Self-actualization• Self-adequacy• Self-denigration
• Self-actualization• Feelings or thoughts you get when you know that you
have negotiated a communication situation as well as possible
• Most positive evaluation you can make about your competence level
• Self-adequacy• Assess your communication performance as sufficient or
acceptable; not stellar, but good enough• Can lead to self-improvement; not always necessary
• Self-denigration• Criticizing or attacking yourself• Unnecessary and unwarranted and prevents real
improvement
BEHAVIOR: MANAGING OUR IDENTITIES• You define yourself internally and make
decisions about how to share your internal view with others• Manifested through verbal/nonverbal behaviors• Cognition and behavior play roles in the way you
perceive others and the way others perceive you
• Aspects of ourselves we want to share and other aspects we would rather keep private
SELF-PRESENTATION• Intentional communication designed to
show elements of self for strategic purposes• Focus on self-presentation when your social identity is
being evaluated
• Comes in many forms: face-to-face, email, text message, or via social networking sites• Preference may exist• Asynchronous channels (email, text message, cards) are
preferred when you are unsure of the reaction your will get when you present yourself
SELF-PRESENTATION• Self-monitoring: ability to watch your
environment and others in it for cues as to how to present yourself in a particular situation• High self-monitors always try to portray themselves as
the “right person in the right place at the right time”• Low self-monitors communicate according to their
deep-seated values or beliefs
• Find the right balance of self-monitoring• High self monitors will drive themselves crazy by
focusing on every little thing that they do
SELF-DISCLOSURE• Revealing yourself to others by sharing
information about yourself• It must be important, not easily known by
others, and must be voluntary
• A tool for confirming our self-concept or improving our self esteem• It is a tactic often used to obtain reassurance or
comfort from a trusted friend
• Sensitivity level
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