Sensation and Perception in the
Workplace
Module from SIOP
Sensation and Perception in the
Workplace
• Sensation involves the processes that occur
when receptors in our sensory organs (e.g.,
eyes, ears, tongue) are activated and send
signals to the brain
• Perception involves the interpretation and
organization of those sensations in order to
give meaning to sensory information
Sensation and Perception in the
Workplace
• In what professions might different senses
become important?
– Sight
– Hearing
– Taste and smell
• How could individual differences in perception
make a difference in the workplace?
– Speech, depth perception
Sensory Abilities
• Sensory Abilities differ across individuals
– Sight can involve things like color discrimination or acute
night vision
• Color discrimination important for graphic designers
• Night vision for truck drivers, pilots
– Hearing abilities include auditory attention (focus on single
sound) or hearing sensitivity (differences in pitch or
loudness)
• Attention matters for tool operators (signals usually auditory)
• Sensitivity for musicians and music-related occupations
– Taste and smell (e.g., palate, olfactory discrimination)
• Food testers, chefs, sommeliers (wine stewards)
• Perfume developer
Perceptual Abilities
• People perceive things differently
– Depth perception is important for pilots, machine
operators
– Speech perception is important for translators,
clergy, speech pathologists
• People can only attend to so many things
– Multi-tasking seems like a good idea until texting
and driving
Class Discussion
• If people differ in sensory and perceptual
abilities, and if jobs can require different levels
of these abilities, what kinds of things can
employers do to make sure they have
employees who have these abilities?
• What might be the consequences if the wrong
person were hired for jobs requiring sensory
or perceptual abilities?
Further Reading
• Buffardi, L., Fleishman, E.A., Morath, R.A., & McCarthy, P.M.
(2000). Relationships between ability requirements and
human errors in job tasks. Journal of Applied Psychology,
85, 551-564.
• Essock, E.A., Sinai, M.J., McCarley, J.S., Krebs, W.K., &
DeFord, J.K., (1999). Perceptual ability with real-world
nighttime scenes: Image-intensified, infrared, and fusedcolor imagery. Human Factors: The Journal of the Human
Factors and Ergonomics Society, 41, 438-452.
• Motowidlo, S.J., Borman, W.C., & Schmit, M.J., (1997). A
theory of individual differences in task and contextual
performance. Human Performance, 10, 71-83.