MIDLANDS STATE UNIVERSITY

Module Code: BM 101(Business Communication)

Department: INFORMATION SYSTEMS

Level: 1.2

Lecturer: :Mr Chagwesha

Due date: :

Team: :6

Question: Using practical examples critically discuss how self perception and perception
about others affect interpersonal interactions
GROUP MEMBERS

SURNAME NAME(s) DEPARTMENT REG.

NUMBER
PHIRI TREVOR NYONGANI HINFOSYS R186542J
RANGA TENDAI HINFOSYS R189095R
RUNZONZA SOLOMON HINFOSYS R187216V
SAUROMBE MARSHALL HINFOSYS R187380V
SEPE GERALD HINFOSYS R1813201F
SEVERA TAPIWANASHE COLLEN HINFOSYS R1813116H
SIGAUKE TINASHE BLESSING HINFOSYS R1811581X
SITHOLE BRIAN HINFOSYS R188128Z
SITHOLE MANDY HINFOSYS R183522M
TAURO TAFADZWA INNOCENT HINFOSYS R1812862P
TAWAMBA TAFADZWA SIMON HINFOSYS R187908P
TSVANHU EULITAH HINFOSYS R189201X
TUNGA NGAAKUDZWE HINFOSYS R187384H
BENEVOLENCE
UTETE TAKUDZWA CLIVE HINFOSYS R188985B
VHETU DECENT HINFOSYS R187672J
VUMA LEVI HINFOSYS R188183A
VUTUZA TAFARA HINFOSYS R184744P
ZHOU ASHEILY NYASHA HINFOSYS R1810384E
ZINAKA BLESSED HINFOSYS R184412F
ZINYUKE JAMES TAFARA HINFOSYS R189989R
ZULU DUMISANI LEO HINFOSYS R189479B
MUDAVANHU SAMUEL HINFOSYS R186947V
MADZEDZE KUDAKWASHE HINFOSYS R188671Y
CHENEKA CHARLENE TANAKA HINFOSYS R185534P
JUMBE WELLINGTON HINFOSYS R175919Z
USING PRACTICAL EXAMPLES, CRITICALLY DISCUSS HOW SELF
PERCEPTION AND PERCEPTION ABOUT OTHER AFFECT INTERPERSONAL
INTERACTIONS.

Perception is the process by which we assign meaning to sensitive data in our interactions
with others and self-perception can be further defined as, how one sees others and the world
around him which comes from the cultural background of that individual. In the perceptual
process, we select, organize and interpret stimuli so that they make sense to us.

Perception acts as a filter through which all communication passes as it travels from one
person to the next. Because people tend to perceive things differently, the same message may
be interpreted quite differently by different people. Some common perceptual distortions that
may affect interpersonal interactions include stereotypes, culture, moods, personal
experiences where on the self-perception side we may be looking at self-concept, self-esteem
and self-presentation.

Stereotypes

Stereotypes are when individuals use generalizations that inaccurate to judge people. When
we stereotype someone, we apply our general perceptions of a particular group to an
individual .This help us to simplify the process of perception and form a quick impression of
the person, reflect on some of your perceptions of groups of people based on their economic
status, cultural background ,religious beliefs ,educational level. For example, you may
perceive wealthy people as being self-absorbed and selfish, while someone else may perceive
them as being generous and hardworking. As a result, being aware of our stereotypes is
important to ensure effective communication during interpersonal interactions since it may
guide our communication with others hence decreasing the risk of miscommunication though
sometimes they are entirely inaccurate.

Culture
Culture influences how we perceive the behaviors and messages of others for example if you
travel to another country, you may probably experience different things whether it may be
language,food,styles of dress and even smells may be unique as a result you probably
perceived things differently from someone who was a native of that country. A culture who
may values direct eye-contact would most likely perceive someone looking directly at you as
being respectful, if however the other person is from a culture where its disrespectful to look
at someone in eyes when talking you may perceive their lack of eye-contact as being rude and
misinterpret the situation if you don’t understand the differences in cultural expectations
.Again, you may be coming from a culture that values punctuality and you are meeting a
business client from a culture that views time as being flexible and she arrives to your
scheduled meeting 25 minutes late and then you misinterpret her late arrival as being
unprofessional even though its acceptable to show up 25 to 50 minutes after the scheduled
starting time to her culture.

Moods

Our moods also influence our perceptions about others .Something that you would not usually
find upsetting may bother to annoy you because of your present mood. For example you may
typically enjoy having a coworker and your neighbor drop been your office unexpectedly to
chat, on one particular day however you are trying to complete a project by a deadline and
don’t have time to talk. Due to that work pressure and stress level you may perceive that
person to be bothersome and annoying on this particular day whereas on other days you
would welcome the casual conversation.

Moreover, self-perception about others can affect our interpersonal interactions in a number
of ways classified as self-concept, self-esteem and self-presentation among others. Self-
perception may include the manner in which we perceive our self and how this influences the
way in which we communicate with others and how they perceive and communicate to us.

Self –Concept

Self-concept consists of the perceptions and beliefs we have about ourselves, it’s relatively
stable yet it can change and evolve as we grow and gain new life experiences. At one time
we may define ourselves by occupation,roles,education,physical attributes or personality
traits and these elements can affect the way we interact with others .For example, you may
perceive yourself as a strong student ,a great athlete or talented artist ,since we don’t always
judge ourselves exactly as others see us ,others may not see us in this same way, that is some
contestants on American Idol auditions explain to the judges that they actually audition to be
excellent singers, when they actually audition for the show, the judges may disagree with
these perceptions.
Self-esteem

This involves the subjective evaluation of our worth, how we feel about ourselves or the
value we place on our abilities and behaviours.For example when you really feel good about
your ability as an actor you have high self-esteem about acting as you audition for various
roles, you do so with confidence and therefore you will be able to interact and act effectively.
On the other hand, if you have low self-esteem regarding your acting ability you may shy
away from auditions and interact in a negative manner about your acting ability.Overally, the
set of perceptions we have about ourselves will influence our interpersonal interactions and
this in turn impacts the perceptions that others form of us.

Self-Presentation

This involves presenting yourself to another as you would like to be perceived. Self-
presentation influences how we want others to perceive us .Goffman(1959) spoke of the
“face” which is the view you want others to have of you. For example you may present
yourself one way as a student speaking with your professor and in another way as a student
speaking with a classmate, In the first scenario, you maybe polite and positive about the
course, commenting to the professor on the relevance of a recent lecture to your future career
goals whereas when it’s your friend whom you are speaking with about the course you may
use slang and indicate you are taking the course simply because it fulfills a requirement for
your major.

Egocentrism

The idea of egocentrism means the inability to take another's perspective. As you might
imagine, this interferes with our ability to accurately perceive others. While this is common in
children, most of us outgrow this, but not all. In egocentrism, we assume that others should
react to situations the way we would. Perceptual set is the idea that individuals perceive only
what they want or expect to perceive. This limits their ability to accurately perceive what is
actually there. An example of this is the preconception that is formed when we see a baby
wrapped in blue. It then becomes difficult for us to imagine that this child could be a girl.
REFERENCES

Darlington, D. (2005) How Perception Helps Communication, in Brown, G. (ed) (2004)

Communication and Perception, Wrexham:Oak Cottage Gyfelia

Gamble, G. and Gamble, R. (2013) Self Confidence and Opinions, Mombasa:Chronicles

Housden, M. (2003) Markting Research and Informtion, Oxford: Butterworth

Kimbrell, G. and Woloszyk, C. (2008) Impacts of Perception On Communication,

Blantyre:Markndell Publishers

Kotler, P and Andreason, A. (2009) Interaction Between Persons In Different Levels, New
Jersey: Prentice-Hall

Stimpson, D. and Farquharson, J. (2002) Effective Communication Skills, London:Skydew

Publishers

Stone, P. and Smith, A. (2016) Self Confidence And Perceptions, available at

www.trustinventors.ac.uk, accessed on 17/04/19