Understanding Individual Behavior: Learning, Perception and Attribution

Perception
The process of attaining awareness or understanding of sensory information. The interpretation of certain stimulae that an individual confronts with (actions/situations)

Sensation & Perception

Perception & Behavior

Sub-processes of perception
Confrontation, Attention and Registration

Stimulus Characteristics:
Intensity, Size, Motion, Contrast, Novelty and Familiarity

Organism Characteristics:
Learning, Personality, Motivation

Sub-processes of perception
Principles of perception (interpretation)

1. Figure Ground Principle 2. Perceptual Grouping:

Closure, Continuity, Proximity, Similarity 3. Perceptual Constancy 4. Perceptual Context

Problems in Perception

1. Using the in-approperiate principle of interpretation 2. Perceptual defense:

Denial, Acceptance with distortion, Acceptance but refusal to change, Acceptance

3. Stereotyping 4. Halo effect 5. Attribution errors (Dispositional vs Situational attribution)

Impression Management

1.

Impression Motivation
Promotion-enhancement Demotion-prevention

2.

Impression Construction

Promotion-enhancement: Entitlements, Enhancements, Obstacle disclosure, Association Demotion-prevention: Accounts, Apologies, Disassociation

Learning Behavioral Management

Learning
The permanent change in behavior that occurs as a result of experience. Characteristics: Learning involves change It is relatively permanent It is experience based Types of learning: Informational, Experiential, Vicarious (Observational) learning

Reinforcement
Law of effect A reinforcement is defined to occur when an event following a response causes an increase in the probability of that response occurring in the future. A reinforcer is the environment change that happens contingent upon the behavioural response.

Classification of Reinforces

Desirable Consequence

Undesirable Consequence

Applied Withdrawn

Positive Reinforcement Punishment

Punishment Negative Reinforcement

Interventions
Positive reinforcement: rewarding a desirable behavior Negative reinforcement: Removal of unpleasent consequrnce when a desirable behavior occurs Punishment: Application of an undesirable consequence Extinction: withholding of reinforcement for a previously reinforced behaviour which decreases the future probability of that behaviour

Fixed vs Varible ratio strategy Continuous, fixed and Intermittent schedule strategy

OB Modification Through Learning

Process:
1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

Identify critical behaviors Make the baseline measurements of the critical behavior(s) Identify consequences (the ABC analysis) Choosing/developing and applying the intervention strategy Evaluation/Feedback about the improvement