C132- Perception and the Communication Process Study Guide

Get Engaged- Be engaged in the process of self-assessment. With each interaction, assess your role before, during and after.

1. Be careful of creating a self-fulfilling prophecy. Before an interaction, you are likely to consider how the interaction will go—your role, how you will act, and what you will say. Consider the process of what you believe to be true will be true (in other words, the self-fulfilling prophecy). If you tell yourself or visualize that you will communicate poorly, you will. If you tell yourself or visualize that you will communicate effectively, you will! 2. Self-monitor. During an interaction, monitor your interaction and your behavior. Develop a plan for how you want to behave (communicate) and stick to your plan. 3. Walk the walk. During an interaction, play the role of a competent communicator. Smile, make eye contact, be assertive, do not interrupt, listen holistically, and respond appropriately. Acting the part helps you identify with the part, and soon you will be the part. 4. Perform a critical assessment. After an interaction, be critical of the process. Ask assessment questions, consider the whys and the why-nots, and develop a plan for the next interaction. 5. Practice, practice, practice. Be active in the process. Try and try again. Be good to your self and embrace the process. You can do this!

Organization:

Once stimuli have gotten your attention, you must decide what to do with this information or how to organize it. Where does it go? Picture having file cabinets in our brains and trying to keep all of the information in order. These file cabinets have drawers for experiences, categories, or schemas, such as personalities and characteristics, or reels. These are also known as scripts, or how you believe an order of events will be. This stage is like putting the file labels on the file folders. To continue with our example: your friend is not spending time with you, and this got your attention. Now, you must "file" that behavior somewhere. You begin to open your file drawers and determine where to place this information.

Cultural norms and expectations

Culture is not just ethnicity or origin; it can include associations such as family, religion, gender, group membership, and so forth. One of the most influential cultural norms and expectations are gender roles—how a man or woman should behave. Example: American women are expected to behave differently than Mexican women. The norm for Italian males is different than the norm for Indian males. An even simpler example often experienced in the United States is that boys are expected to be strong (limited expression of emotion) and girls are expected to be sensitive (emotionally expressive).

Component: Value Definition: Enduring concept of right and wrong

Dimensions: Good/bad Example: You value honesty and truth.

Component: Attitude Definition: Learned predisposition to respond favorably or unfavorably toward something

Dimensions: Likes/dislikes Example: You like ice cream, video games, and free music downloads.

Component: Belief Definition: Way in which you structure reality

Dimensions: True/false Example: You believe your parents love you.

STRATEGIES FOR ENHANCING SELF-ESTEEM- Lose Your Baggage

Dump your psychological and experiential baggage: Work to move beyond the negatives of your past so that you focus on the present and relieve your self-esteem of the burden of things you cannot change.

Improving communication

Each perception check can empower more effective communication. Understanding how our own behavior can be perceived is crucial to ensuring that we are projecting the message we intend to project and that the receiver is clear on what we are communicating.

Perception Process Influences As you can imagine, everything and anything can influence the perception process. From culture to workplace experiences, everything we take in will be filed for use in the perception process. Here is a list of our common influences:

Environment- Workplace, home, church, school Culture- Family, background, group affiliation Expectations- Norms Experiences- Authentic, pseudo Observations- What gets an individual's attention Stereotypes- Assumptions Media- What is seen, read, and heard Influences- Friends, family, teachers, bosses Chemicals- Alcohol, drugs Relationships- Power, subordination Filters- Mechanisms for selecting information to include or exclude

Defining Perception: Perception is your understanding and truth. It is how you make sense of what is happening. Perception is influential to the communication process, because how we act or react, or communicate or interact, is the result of perception.

Example: For example, if your perception of a friend is that the friend is not contacting you because she is mad at you, you may either avoid or confront your friend. However, if your perception is that the friend is busy and needs to make time to hang out, you may call the friend and plan a date.

Dimension: Spiritual Self Definition: The component of self based on introspection about values, morals, and beliefs

Example: Belief or disbelief in a supreme being or force; regard for life in all its forms

Dimension: Material Self Definition: The component of self derived from physical elements that reflect who you are

Example: The self you reveal through your body, clothes, car, phone

Dimension: Social Self Definition: The variety of selves that appear in different situations and roles, reflected in interactions with others

Example: Your informal self interacting with friends; your formal self interacting with your professors

A stimulus is an external change that arouses an organism. True or False

False. A stimulus is an external or internal change that arouses an organism.

A person's understanding of the truth is called opinion. True or False

False. Perception is a person's understanding of the truth.

Stimulation, orderliness, interpretation, memory, and recall are the five elements of the perception process. True or False

False. The second element of the perception process is organization.

self-expectations

Goals you set for yourself; how you believe you ought to behave and what you ought to accomplish.

Low Self-Esteem

Hari gets an "A" on his physics exam. He attributes it to luck. Taj spends hours perfecting his piano skills. When he makes a mistake, he feels guilt and shame.

Cultural Norms and Expectations:

Hiro joins a soccer team, and his sister, Marie, takes ballet lessons.

Others' perceptions

How do others view you? This is also known as reflective appraisals, because you consider the views provided by others. The others being significant others, such as partners, family, friends, parents, and so forth. What is their perception of you? What do they tell you? Example: "Tony, you are a smart and resourceful student!" This perception of you begins to shape your own thoughts about your role as student.

Self-interpretation

How we assess our own behaviors or personality is called self-interpretation. It takes place when we reflect on our behaviors, actions, and personal traits. Example: Stan believes that stealing is wrong. As a student he once copied his friend's paper and submitted it as his own. Reflecting on this behavior (copying the paper) and reflecting on his beliefs (stealing is wrong), Stan interprets that he was wrong; he went against how he believes he should act.

intrapersonal communication

How you take in stimuli in the environment or information and make sense of it; also, thoughts and ideas that you say to yourself.

How Does Self-Concept Influence Interpersonal Communication? The way we view our self influences the way we communicate. Our self-messages (intrapersonal communication) are the foundation for how we interact with others (interpersonal communication). What is inside of us comes out in the way we communicate. Consider the following examples:

I'm a smart student. This communicator likely helps others, participates in class, and is resourceful in finding answers and solving problems. I'm not such a smart student. This communicator is likely more reserved than others, less willing to participate, and is resigned to earning below-average grades. I'm not as funny as Minny. This communicator might be intimidated to speak up in the company of Minny, perhaps even proclaiming a lack of a sense of humor. My mom thinks I am technically inclined. This communicator might pursue conversations that discuss technology, might apply for technological jobs, or might pursue an education in technology. I do not act like a woman. This communicator might exclude herself from associations that represent women, might limit friendships with other women, or perhaps even discounts other women as being too feminine. Again, what you think about yourself manifests in your communication. Intrapersonal communication (self-messages) is the foundation for interpersonal communication (messages between self and others). The construction of self is the result of these self-messages—thoughts and assessments that create the conceptualization of self (self-concept).

STRATEGIES FOR ENHANCING SELF-ESTEEM- Engage in Positive Self-Talk

If you want positive results, talk positively to yourself. If you are self-critical and negative, you may set yourself up for failure. Rephrase doubts and negative thoughts into positive, uplifting encouragement.

Communicate to Enhance Your Powers of Perception

If you want to enhance your perceptual accuracy, we recommend the following: • Increase your awareness by fully listening, observing, and paying attention to your surroundings and other people. • Avoid stereotypes or generalizations about people. • Check your perceptions—indirectly and directly—to confirm or refute your interpretations of events or someone's behavior.

Importance of Perception Checking Here are some benefits to perception checking:

Improving communication Eliminating false perceptions Modeling effective communication

STRATEGIES FOR ENHANCING SELF-ESTEEM- Visualize

In anticipation of a significant event, picture how you want the event to go, as a mental rehearsal. If you feel anxious or nervous, visualize success instead of failure.

self-talk

Inner speech; communication with the self.

Listen to others

Listen to others. Consider input from others (both implied and overt). "Don't be so sensitive" is an overt statement. A look or tone can be an implied message. Take note of these messages as part of your assessment.

Self Check Versus Other Check:

Mario's boss thinks that Mario was too busy to give his energy and time to this campaign. Mario thinks that his boss is too task driven to care about the employee's needs. Each perception is likely inaccurate and can lead to future ineffective communication. How can both Mario and his boss check their perceptions for accuracy? Each should engage in the perception checking process. There are two sides to the perception checking process: self check and other check.

Reflective Appraisals:

Marjorie's boyfriend tells her she's the most beautiful girl in the world. Tally's stepfather tells her that she's not very smart.

Social Comparison:

Natalie admires Sunni's dress.

Offer self-information

Offer self-information. By disclosing who you are to others, you are likely to process why you are the way you are. In addition, when you offer self-information to others, they can reflect back and help you clarify, explain, or even understand how you perceive yourself and how others perceive you.

The Perception Process

Perception, the process of receiving information from your senses, involves three stages: 1. Attention and selection, when you notice and choose stimuli in your environment on which to focus 2. Organization, when you convert stimuli into understandable information 3. Interpretation, when you attach meaning to what you have attended to, selected, and organized People often differ in their perceptions of things, events, and other people. Your life experiences, how you were raised, and how you developed contribute a great deal to how you perceive the world around you.

social comparison

Process of comparing oneself to others to measure one's worth.

Question yourself

Question yourself: Why do I act this way? What leads me to talk like that? Why do I get intimidated in that situation? This self-questioning can provide insight to your behaviors and esteem.

Self-Awareness: How Well Do You Know Yourself?

Self-awareness is the ability to develop and communicate a representation of yourself to others. According to Layder, self-awareness includes five properties. The self is: psychological, operating within a social context; emotional, which fuels our behavior; a focal point of action and control; flexible and multifaceted; and spiritual.

Start with Self

Self-awareness is the process of looking at the parts that make up the self and examining how each part plays a role in your ultimate self-concept.

Five Elements of the Perception Process:

Stimulation Organization Interpretation Memory Recall

selection

The act of choosing specific stimuli in your environment to focus on. Example: Watching TV in your room while hearing giggling and laughter, and ignoring the TV show to eavesdrop on the giggler

attention

The act of perceiving stimuli in your environment. Example: Watching TV in your room while hearing giggling and laughter, and ignoring the TV show to eavesdrop on the giggler

perception

The arousal of any of your senses. Example: Hearing the sound of laughter

self-awareness

The capacity to observe and reflect on one's own mental states.

material self

The element of the self reflected in all the tangible things you own.

self-concept clarity

The extent to which beliefs about oneself are clearly and confidently identified and stable over time.

self-reflexiveness

The human ability to think about what you are doing while you are doing it.

self-fulfilling prophecy

The notion that predictions about one's future are likely to come true because one believes that they will come true.

closure

The perceptual process of filling in missing information. Example: Deciding that your sister is talking on the phone to her boyfriend, because she only laughs like that when she talks to him

reframing

The process of redefining events and experiences from a different point of view.

Communication with Others

The self-concept develops as we communicate with others, receive their feedback, make sense out of it, and internalize or reject all or part of it.

Assumed Roles

The self-concept is affected by roles we assume, such as son or daughter, employee, parent, spouse, or student.

Self-Concept: Who Are You?

The self-concept is your interior identity or subjective description of who you think you are. Your self-image is your view of yourself in a particular situation. The self-concept contains three components: attitudes, beliefs, and values. Philosopher William James believed that three "selves" exist in each of us: • Material self: the tangible things you own, such as your body, possessions, home, and so forth; • Social self: that part of you that interacts with others; and • Spiritual self: a mixture of your beliefs and your sense of who you are in relationship to other forces in the universe. Our self-concept develops through our communication with others, our association with various groups, the roles we assume in our lives, and the labels we use to describe ourselves. Our avowed identity is assigned by ourselves, whereas our ascribed identity involves characteristics other people assign or attribute to us.

self

The sum of who you are as a person; your central inner force.

visualization

The technique of imagining that you are performing a particular task in a certain way; a method of enhancing self-esteem.

Self-Labels

The terms we use to describe our attitudes, beliefs, values, and actions play a role in shaping the self-concept.

belief

The way in which you structure your understanding of reality—what is true and what is false.

Memory:

This is the stage where you actually file information and close the drawer. This information can be accessed when necessary to help you interpret future information. Keep in mind that each stage is personally directed, so it makes sense that each element is subjective. For example, in the file drawer for mad people, you have memories filed. This might include different experiences with mad people, reactions, examples, and outcomes.

STRATEGIES FOR ENHANCING SELF-ESTEEM- Reframe

Try to look at experiences and events, especially those that can cause you to lose self-esteem, from a different point of view. Keep the larger picture in mind, rather than focusing on one isolated, negative incident.

indirect perception checking

Using your own perceptual abilities to seek additional information to confirm or refute your interpretations of someone's behavior.

Stimulation:

We are all drawn to stimuli, and these stimuli are different for each one of us. There is a saying: what gets your attention, gets you. This implies that, if the stimuli attract you, then you will have a reaction to them. For example, because your friend is not spending time with you, you are bothered. The situation has your attention.

Conscious competence.

We are aware that we know or can do something, but it has not yet become an integrated skill or habit.

Unconscious incompetence.

We are unaware of our own incompetence. We don't know what we don't know.

Association with Groups

We develop our self-concept partly because of and through our identification with groups or organizations.

Write a profile

What about your self do you know and do others know? What parts of you are transparent? You can assess this by writing a profile of yourself: how you view yourself and what you think about yourself. Then ask two other people to write a profile about you. These two people should be people you know, such as a family member or classmate. Compare the three profiles. What is similar? What is different? What is known to you and not to the others? What is known to the others and not to you? The answers to these questions can help you identify whether what you perceive yourself to be is what others perceive you to be. If you want to make these comparisons more congruent, consider methods for doing just that such as emulating role models, practicing role behaviors, and consistently assessing the profile.

Self-Esteem: What Is Your Value?

Your assessment of your worth as a person in terms of skills, abilities, talents, and appearance constitutes your level of self-esteem. Self-esteem is affected by many things, but primary among them are your gender, your comparisons of yourself to others, the expectations you hold for yourself, and your self-fulfilling prophecies.

self-esteem

Your assessment of your worth or value as reflected in your perception of such things as your skills, abilities, talents, and appearance.

social self

Your concept of self as developed through your personal, social interactions with others.

spiritual self

Your concept of self based on your beliefs and your sense of who you are in relationship to other forces in the universe; also includes your thoughts and introspections about your values and moral standards.

self-concept

Your interior identity or subjective description of who you think you are.

self-image

Your view of yourself in a particular situation or circumstance.

Why is perception an important part of the communication process?

a.) It shows you the truth about other people. b.) It gives you a framework for making choices. c.) It drives how you act and communicate. d.) It helps you to retain more memories. Correct Answer: c

Which of these BEST explains how filters can influence perception?

a.) People are influenced by everything they see and hear. b.) People can choose which information they see and hear. c.) People are more likely to react to stimuli they do not agree with. d.) People can use the advice of others to learn how to react to stimuli. Correct Answer: b

Which of these is a benefit of perception checking?

a.) eliminating false perceptions b.) learning more about the world c.) understanding other's motivations d.) making others see your point of view Correct Answer: a

Which of these is NOT an element of perception?

a.) examination b.) interpretation c.) organization d.) stimulation Correct Answer: a

Perception checking can help people _________ because it helps them understand their behavior.

a.) improve communication b.) eliminate false perceptions c.) model effective communication d.) understand others' perceptions Correct Answer: a

Jason usually tutors high school students, but this weekend is he tutoring one of his peers. What will MOST LIKELY affect Jason's perception during the tutoring session?

a.) media b.) influences c.) relationships d.) filters Correct Answer: c

Be aware of your communication with yourself and others.

• Becoming aware of yourself, as you develop your self-concept, involves communicating with others, associating with groups with whom you identify, assuming social roles, and selecting self-labels that describe who you are. • Inventory yourself for any negative self-fulfilling prophecies that can be detrimental to your self-esteem. • Engage in positive intrapersonal communication, or self-talk, because a heightened awareness of how you talk to yourself can help enhance self-esteem. • Develop your perceptual abilities by becoming more aware of yourself and others. • Use direct and indirect perception checks to sharpen your perceptual accuracy.

Tips for Acquiring High Self-Esteem: Naturally, competent communicators want to know how best to ensure a high self-esteem to be better communicators. Here are some ideas:

1. Do not expect perfection. Allow yourself to embrace the process and learn. 2. Allow yourself to be vulnerable. You cannot be strong all the time, and there is experience to be gained in all interactions. 3. Do not connect approval with success. The approval of others is not the determinant of your self worth. 4. Spend energy. Being competent at most things takes time and energy. 5. Strive for objectivity. Challenge feelings of less-than or negative thoughts. 6. Look for models. Seek out those you wish to be like; observe and practice their behavior. 7. Appreciate small achievements. Reflect on interactions that went well, no matter how small. Embrace the small success and feel good about it. 8. Use affirmations. Many people with high self-esteem seek out resources of affirmation, such as books, poems, mantras, songs, and so forth. 9. Be good to yourself. Know that you are the best you can be in any given moment with the tools you have at the time. You do better when you know better.

Is Self-Concept Different from Self-Esteem? If you consider self-concept to be peoples' objective assessment of who they are (their role), then self-esteem is the subjective evaluation of that role. Consider the following:

1. If you consider yourself capable and competent, you perform better. 2. If you consider yourself not a good communicator, you likely shy away from interactions. 3. If you have low self-esteem, you value your roles negatively, such as Imhoff. 4. If you have high self-esteem, you value your roles positively, such as Effie. For example, my role is Olympic swimmer and my evaluation of that role is that I'm not a very good Olympic swimmer. Self-esteem is the measuring tool for the value we place on our role (our self). Those with a lower self-esteem (a measuring tape that only goes to 10, for example) generally have a low measurement of themselves. Those with a higher self-esteem (a measuring tape that goes to 20, for example) generally have a high measurement of themselves (in other words, a positive self-image).

gender

A cultural construction that includes one's biological sex (male or female), psychological characteristics (femininity, masculinity, androgyny), attitudes about the sexes, and sexual orientation.

stereotype

A generalization applied to persons perceived to have attributes common to a particular group.

attitude

A learned predisposition to respond to a person, object, or idea in a favorable or unfavorable way.

symbolic self-awareness

A unique human ability to develop and communicate a representation of oneself to others through language.

Interpretation:

Also known as the evaluation stage, we now evaluate this information. For example, when people do not engage in a relationship, they are usually either mad or too busy.

value

An enduring concept of good and bad or right and wrong.

ascribed identity

An identity assigned to you by others.

avowed identity

An identity you assign to yourself and portray.

narcissism

An inflated view of self, especially about one's own power and importance.

High Self-Esteem

Andrea makes a chocolate cake from scratch. Although it's a little burnt and dry, she is happy knowing that she tried her best. Jamie reads books with messages of support and approval.

Ask for input

Ask others for input about yourself. Ensure to seek out this information from people you respect or deem competent communicators.

direct perception checking

Asking someone else whether your interpretations of what you perceive are correct.

STRATEGIES FOR ENHANCING SELF-ESTEEM- Surround Yourself with Positive People

Associating with people with high self-esteem can help you enhance your own self-esteem and develop a more positive outlook.

Recall:

At some point in the future, it is likely you will recall this information to help you interpret the current situation. Be mindful that the recollection of this information is much more subjective than objective. For example, imagine that you are considering how to react to, or communicate with, your friend, and you go to that file drawer to recall your experiences with mad people. These experiences will guide your reactions, or communication. Also, pretend that the last time you confronted a friend about your feelings regarding her behavior, she got defensive. A big conflict ensued that ultimately resulted in harsh words, hurt feelings, and the end of the friendship.

Unconscious competence.

At this level, skills become second nature. We know or can do something but don't have to concentrate to be able to act on that knowledge or draw on that skill.

Conscious incompetence.

At this level, we become aware or conscious that we are not competent; we know what we don't know.

interpretation

Attaching meaning to what is attended to, selected, and organized.

Communication and the Enhancement of Self-Esteem

Because enhanced self-esteem is a goal for most of us, we provide six means of improving the way you feel about yourself: • Engage in positive self-talk; • Visualize the behavior you want to enact or the attributes you wish to acquire; • Reframe, meaning redefine events and experiences from a different point of view; • Develop honest relationships, ones in which people tell you the truth about yourself so you can get some growth from the feedback; • Surround yourself with positive people, not "Debbie Downers"; and • Lose your baggage, meaning let go of the past and those experiences that can cause your self-esteem to suffer.

Applying Perceptual Influences to Relationships Carlos is the defiant and aggressive communicator. Carlos has memories of observing his parents in conflict when he was a child. He remembers feeling scared and confused when observing the arguments. He filed away those interpretations to be recalled later. Now, let's look at Carlos as an adult in both his relationship with his father and his relationship with his co-workers. In both situations, Carlos's communication style is influenced by his perceptions and also how he is perceived by others.

Carlos's relationship with his father: As an adult, Carlos recalls feeling scared and confused when he communicates with his father. He now combats the child-like feeling with aggression. He perceives his father as being authoritarian, and to maintain his power during interactions, Carlos speaks with a loud voice, talks over and interrupts his father, and ultimately creates a hostile communication interaction. When Carlos's father addresses this, Carlos gets defiant and disengages in the communication, usually leaving the room and avoiding his father. Carlos's relationship with his co-workers: In the workplace, when Carlos communicates with his superiors, he connects that superiority with his father, that recollection that his father is an authoritarian. This confuses Carlos. To combat those feelings of confusion, Carlos communicates with a condescending tone and from a posture of superiority, typically talking down to his superiors and co-workers. He asserts how much he knows and how others are not as knowledgeable as he. This creates conflict in his working relationships because Carlos is perceived as not receiving criticism well and being hot headed.

Eliminating false perceptions

Checking in with others about their behavior helps to limit inaccurate perceptions that can lead to ineffective and even dysfunctional communication.

Modeling effective communication

Checking in with others also helps to foster collaboration and models competent communication for others. This is the true example of the competent communicator: one that models effective communication for others.

Comparisons with others

Comparing ourselves with others is common and normal. Also known as social comparison, we get a sense of who we are by evaluating others. Example: "Jenny received a B on the exam; I received an A on the exam. Therefore, I am a smart student; smarter than other students."

Self-check:

Considering interactions: It is important to consider your interactions with people while they are taking place. This will help you gauge interest, confusion, and other reactions. Other check: Mario's boss, when observing Mario's behavior, could have performed another type of perception check to more accurately understand Mario's behavior. The elements of this perception check include providing the observation, offering two interpretations for the behavior, and then asking for clarification. For example, Mario's boss could have said, "You are speaking very fast. I'm guessing that you either have another appointment or are perhaps too busy to work on this project. Can you help me understand your behavior?"

organization

Converting information into convenient, understandable, and efficient patterns that allow us to make sense of what we have observed. Example: Realizing that the laughter is coming from your younger sister, who's on the phone

STRATEGIES FOR ENHANCING SELF-ESTEEM- Develop Honest Relationships

Cultivate friends you can confide in and who will give you honest feedback for improving your skills and abilities. Accept that feedback in the spirit of enhancing your self-esteem and making yourself a wiser, better person.