Our personalities, stress, and intelligence affect how we see the world. And our perceptions affect our behavior, human relations, and performance, which in turn affect others. The term perception refers to a person’s interpretation of reality. In the perception process, you select, organize, and interpret stimuli through your senses.

Your perception is influenced by heredity and experience. Notice that the definition of perception refers to the “interpretation of reality.” In human relations, perception is just as important as reality. People often encounter the same thing and perceive it differently.

Ever hear that there are always two sides to every story? It starts with the way each person perceives the event in the first place, then how and what they remember. So fights often begin with two versions of events because people perceive the same thing differently. Some of the biases affecting perception that can hinder communications and lead to conflict include stereotypes, frames of reference, expectations, selective exposure, and interest.

Consider the bias of stereotyping, which is the process of generalizing the behavior of all members of a group. Stereotypes are drawn along all kinds of lines, including race, religion, nationality, and gender. Yes, we all stereotype people as a way of quickly perceiving a person’s behavior. Avoid stereotypes. Consciously attempt to get to know people as individuals, rather than to stereotype. To be effective in our human relations, we should try to perceive things from the other person’s frame of reference and be willing to work together for the benefit of all parties to create a win–win situation.