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Chapter 4
Sensation and Perception
Coon, Introduction to Psychology, 15th Edition. © 2019
Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or
duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole
or in part.
Gateway Theme
We actively construct our perceptions out of the information
provided by our senses and our past experiences. The resulting
perceptions are not always accurate representations of events.
Coon, Introduction to Psychology, 15th Edition. © 2019
Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or
duplicated,
or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
How do we take in and process information from the world
around us? What is the difference between sensing and
perceiving a given stimulus? The study of these questions in
psychology is called psychophysics, and you may find
interesting how complex these processes are that we take for
granted on a minute-by-minute basis.
2
Gateway Questions
In general, how do sensory systems function?
Why are we more aware of some sensations than others?
How does the visual system function?
What are the mechanisms of hearing?
How do the chemical senses operate?
What are the somesthetic senses?
In general, how do we construct our perceptions?
How is it possible to see depth and judge distance?
How do expectations, motives, emotions, and learning alter
perception?
How can I perceive events more accurately?
How can effective communication help me in my personal and
professional life?
Coon, Introduction to Psychology, 15th Edition. © 2019
Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or
duplicated,
or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
Our sensory systems work to receive information from our
environment and convert them into an electrochemical signal
that gets sent to the brain, a process called transduction. Once
the information is received in the brain, the process of
perception occurs, where we select, organize, and interpret
those stimuli.
3
Psychophysics (1 of 2)
An artificial visual system
Coon, Introduction to Psychology, 15th Edition. © 2019
Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or
duplicated,
or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
Have you ever had a hearing test where the audiologist asks you
to raise your hand whenever you hear something? She was
measuring your absolute threshold for hearing. If, instead, she
were to play a tone and ask you to indicate when you hear it
change, she would be measuring your difference threshold. The
standard for these thresholds is a 50 percent hit rate, or
detecting the stimulus (or stimulus change) 50 percent of the
time.
Our sensory systems are not simply passive receptors for
information, but rather select which information is attended to
and sent off to the brain for further processing.
In terms of unusual sensory systems, called extrasensory
perception (ESP), the majority of the available data
investigating its existence has found…. (wait for it)… nothing!
So if ESP exists, we’ve been unable to demonstrate it
scientifically.
4
Psychophysics (2 of 2)
Visual pop-out
Coon, Introduction to Psychology, 15th Edition. © 2019
Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or
duplicated,
or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
Because our senses can select which stimuli to attend to, they
can also reduce their response to ongoing, unchanging stimuli in
a process called sensory adaptation. This is different than
habituation discussed in other chapters, as this is an actual
weakening of the physical receptors versus simply reducing our
behavioral response to a constant stimulus.
Cells in the brain called feature detectors are specifically
designed to identify certain types of sensory input (shapes,
colors, lines, etc.). These individual cells work together to help
us construct “wholes” from the individual components of a
sensory stimulus.
5
Seeing (or Not Seeing) What Is There
Focusing attention
Coon, Introduction to Psychology, 15th Edition. © 2019
Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or
duplicated,
or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
When we make the conscious (or something unconscious)
decision to focus on a narrow set of data from our surroundings,
this is called selective attention. Imagine what life would be
like if you could not selectively “tune out” the noise from our
environment and you had to attend equally to the sound of the
cash register, the flavor of your coffee, and the sound of the
espresso machine making the next beverage. If you could not
filter out this irrelevant data, you might quickly lose your
sanity!
Related to this is inattentional blindness, or a failure to notice a
stimulus because we are focusing elsewhere. How might this be
relevant when you are driving and also talking or texting on
your cell phone? When stimuli change, inattentional blindness
can be reduced. So you see that many different concepts all
work together to influence what we sense and perceive (in this
case sensory adaptation, selective attention, and inattentional
blindness).
6
Structure of the Eye
Anatomy of the eye
Coon, Introduction to Psychology, 15th Edition. © 2019
Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or
duplicated,
or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
The light that we see falls within the visible range of the
electromagnetic spectrum, and the nature of the light waves
determines how we perceive them. The wavelength corresponds
to huge, the narrower the band of wavelengths the greater the
saturation, and the amplitude of the waves indicates the
brightness of the color.
There are many different structures of the eye, each of which
plays its own role in the visual system. Study carefully the
following parts:
Cornea
Iris and Pupil
Lens (and the process of accommodation)
Retina
There are other ocular structures, but these are the ones that are
most immediately salient in the process of vision.
When the structures do not work quite right, we may suffer
visual distortions. When light images are focused in front of or
behind the retina, we may experience myopia or hyperopia
respectively (you may know these as near-sightedness and far-
sightedness). These often result from incorrect curvature of the
cornea, a condition called astigmatism. As we age, the natural
flexibility of the lens reduces, leading to an age-related
reduction of near vision called presbyopia.
7
Rods and Cones
Anatomy of the retina
Coon, Introduction to Psychology, 15th Edition. © 2019
Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or
duplicated,
or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
The photoreceptors in your retina, the rods and cones, are each
responsible for specific types of visual experiences. Cones
allow us to see when there is plenty of light around, and are
sensitive to colors. Rods work well in dimmer situations, but
only receive black and white data. When these receptors come
together they form the optic nerve, which departs the retina
leaving us with a blind spot in each eye.
The cones are also concentrated in the center of the retina,
called the fovea, and this is where we have our greatest visual
acuity (or clarity). On the outsides of the retina we have more
rods, and this fact explains why peripheral vision is less
focused and clear than central vision. At night if you want to
see something a little more sharply (when there is less light) try
moving the image to the left or right of your center visual field
and the rods may help you focus on it. During the day, however,
this will not work!
8
Color Vision
Firing rates of blue, green and red cones in response to different
colors
Coon, Introduction to Psychology, 15th Edition. © 2019
Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or
duplicated,
or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
The trichromatic theory of color vision notes that we have three
different kinds of cones that are receptive to different color
ranges in the spectrum. The opponent process theory suggests
that our visual receptors process colors in “either/or” pairs
(red/green, yellow/blue, and black/white). Together these two
theories explain how color perception as well as opposing
afterimages occur. What are the strengths and weaknesses of
each theory?
When color receptors fail to work properly we may experience
what is erroneously called color blindness, but is really color
weakness. It is more common in men than in women, and most
common in white men.
Imagine how your life might be different if you had never seen
colors and did not even understand the concept of a color!
9
Seeing in the Dark
Typical time course of dark adaptation
Coon, Introduction to Psychology, 15th Edition. © 2019
Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or
duplicated,
or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
When you move into a darker situation, the process of dark
adaptation begins. The colored ring of muscle (the iris) dilates
the opening in the eye (the pupil) so that more light can get in,
and the retinal cells adapt in a chemical process. Review the
text to see exactly how this process occurs, and how light
sensitivity is restored when we move out of the darkness.
10
How We Hear Sounds
Characteristics of sound waves
Coon, Introduction to Psychology, 15th Edition. © 2019
Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or
duplicated,
or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
Just like light waves, sound waves have various properties that
determine what we hear. The frequency of the wave determines
the pitch and the amplitude reveals the loudness or intensity.
There are several structures of the ear, each of which is
important to understand in order to comprehend the process
from sound wave reception to recognition of the auditory
stimulus. Study carefully how the following structures work:
pinna
auditory canal
eardrum (tympanic membrane)
ossicles (malleus/hammer, incus/anvil, and stapes/stirrup)
oval window
cochlea
basilar membrane
organ of Corti
hair cells
While this may feel like a lot of information, note how each
structure works with the one before it and the one after it in
order for you to have an auditory experience.
The two primary theories of pitch perception are named for the
principles they forward—the place theory suggests that
stimulation of different areas (or places) in the cochlea
correspond with higher or lower pitch reception, while the
frequency theory posits that the hair cells fire at a certain rate
depending on the frequency of the sound wave that stimulates
them.
11
Hearing Loss
Decibel scale
Coon, Introduction to Psychology, 15th Edition. © 2019
Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or
duplicated,
or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
A common question is “what causes a person to lose their
hearing?” There is no simple answer, as hearing loss can have
many causes. Conduction hearing loss is a result of problems
with the structures of the middle ear, which decreases vibrations
as they make their way to the inner ear. Sensorineural hearing
loss occurs when the inner ear’s hair cells or the auditory nerve
are damaged, and cannot transmit signals effectively to the
brain. This is often caused by exposure to very loud noise over
an extended time period.
How are different types of hearing loss treated? What sort of
technology can help restore hearing?
12
The Sense of Smell
Receptors for the sense of smell (olfaction)
Coon, Introduction to Psychology, 15th Edition. © 2019
Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or
duplicated,
or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
Our sense of smell is far more important than you may realize,
and is closely connected to emotional centers in the brain. This
is why scents evoke such visceral, emotional memories.
We have the genes for many different types of scent reception,
but only 400 of them are expressed in the average human being.
Chemicals in the air fit in a lock and key fashion so that we
have an olfactory experience. The scents that we find pleasant
or aversive are based on many factors, including cultural
background and our own experiences.
What must it be like to suffer from anosmia, or “smell
blindness?” Do you think you’d be bothered by it?
13
Taste and Flavors
Receptors for the sense of taste
Coon, Introduction to Psychology, 15th Edition. © 2019
Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or
duplicated,
or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
Another chemical system is our sense of gustation, or taste.
There are five identified taste sensations—sweet, salty, bitter,
sour, and umami—and each is precipitated by specific
chemicals that stimulate taste buds. The sense of taste is rather
simple when compared to other sensory systems, as chemicals
dissolve in our mouths and stimulate those same taste buds,
which in turn send signals to the brain where we have a
gustatory experience.
As with smell, the things that we find pleasant to taste are
determined by a number of factors, including culture, genetics,
and experience.
14
The Skin Senses
Receptors for the skin senses
Coon, Introduction to Psychology, 15th Edition. © 2019
Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or
duplicated,
or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
Although the skin senses tend to get relegated to “second class”
status in the study of psychophysics, they really shouldn’t! Our
sense of touch—or the haptic system—is an important part of
our lives. A hot shower, a significant other stroking your arm,
sexual experiences—these are all due to the ability to feel
touch. Our skin is the largest organ on our body, so make sure
to focus on how the receptors for touch allow you to have these
experiences.
15
Pain
A sensory gate of pain
Coon, Introduction to Psychology, 15th Edition. © 2019
Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or
duplicated,
or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
Although we may not like the experience of pain, it is important
that we be able to feel it. This is how the body informs us that
there is something wrong that needs our attention and, in some
cases, intervention. The large nerve fibers that send sharp
messages comprise the body’s warning system, while the small
nerve fibers that carry achy, chronic pain are the body’s
reminding system. The first tells us that something bad is
happening, while the second tells us that something bad has
happened.
The gate control theory of pains suggests that the pain pathways
in the spinal cord have “gates” that can be opened or closed.
When they are closed, pain messages cannot pass through and
make it to the brain. Many medications that are regarded as pain
killers are really pain blockers, in as much as they close the
gates so that pain messages cannot be received (and thus
perceived) in the brain.
What methods of pain control exist beyond using medications?
Can we truly stop pain without chemical intervention?
The experience of phantom limb pain shows us that sometimes
we can experience pain that is caused by something other than
the stimulation of the pain site. This represents a “misfiring” of
nerves that leave us with that pain experience.
16
The Vestibular System
Coon, Introduction to Psychology, 15th Edition. © 2019
Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or
duplicated,
or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
What causes motion sickness when we ride a roller coaster, fly
in a helicopter, or travel in a car or train? This is a result of the
vestibular system, which is primarily informed by structures in
the inner ear (the otolith organs and the semicircular canals).
This is the system that informs us of the effects of gravity and
acceleration and gives us a sense of balance.
When we move (or stop moving) fluid in these organs continues
moving (or stops moving) to give us information about that
motion. If the fluid movement is in conflict with what our other
senses (mostly vision) tell us is happening, we can develop the
motion sickness that we associate with different activities. So if
you think floating in space is fun, you might not be so
impressed when you get very nauseated!
17
Interpreting Sensory Input
Coon, Introduction to Psychology, 15th Edition. © 2019
Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or
duplicated,
or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
It may seem very straightforward that we sense information, the
data are sent to the brain, and then we interpret it. How hard can
that be, right? Well don’t be fooled! There are many ways our
sensory and perceptual systems can be misled.
Perceptual illusions occur when there is a disconnect between
what we perceive and what is actually happening in the world
around us. You may try to search for examples of optical
illusions (also called visual or perceptual illusions) on the
internet to see a number of examples. What is interesting about
them is that the awareness that what we are seeing is not what is
actually there is not enough to cause us to see the stimulus
differently.
How does an illusion differ from a hallucination?
When we are uncertain of the accuracy of our perception, we
may seek out additional sources of information to confirm it.
This is called reality testing, and it is an important component
of some mental illnesses where the defining feature is psychosis
(or loss of contact with reality).
18
Bottom-Up and Top-Down Processing
Coon, Introduction to Psychology, 15th Edition. © 2019
Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or
duplicated,
or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
When do our expectations guide and influence our perceptions,
and under what circumstances are perceptions a unique result of
the sensory information available? This is the crux of how we
distinguish between bottom-up and top-down processing. Make
sure that you remember that they are not necessarily
independent of each other. In many situations, we use both
processes at the same time. Refer to the text for some examples
of each type of processing.
19
Gestalt Organizing Principles
Coon, Introduction to Psychology, 15th Edition. © 2019
Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or
duplicated,
or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
The Gestalt principles of perception refer to a set of organizing
processes that allow our brains to look for and find
relationships between sensory information in our surroundings.
Though susceptible to errors, the Gestalt principles help us to
make sense of the world around us, reducing an enormous
amount of data to more manageable levels. Focus on the
following organizing principles:
Nearness (or proximity)
Similarity
Continuation (or continuity)
Closure
Common region
Contiguity
Take time to appreciate how these principles utilize the basics
of the figure-ground relationship.
20
Perceptual Constancies
Shape constancy
Coon, Introduction to Psychology, 15th Edition. © 2019
Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or
duplicated,
or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
You should be in awe of how hard it is to actually fool your
own brain. One example of this difficulty lies in the existence
of perceptual constancies—including size, shape, and brightness
constancy, among others. These phenomena show us that our
brains can distinguish between real change and apparent change
in our surroundings. As an example, when something moves
farther away from you it appears to get smaller, but your brain
knows that it is not actually getting smaller.
21
Binocular Depth Cues
Convergence
Coon, Introduction to Psychology, 15th Edition. © 2019
Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or
duplicated,
or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
When we are trying to determine how far something is from
us—three dimensional perception—we are using depth cues.
And when we use both eyes, they are called binocular cues. Two
examples include:
Retinal disparity (the difference between how images are cast
on our left and right retinas), and;
Convergence—how our eyes move together as something that
we are looking at gets closer to us.
Both eyes are needed to use this type of information, but in
some cases we only need information from one eye or the other.
22
Monocular Depth Cues
Pictorial depth cues
Coon, Introduction to Psychology, 15th Edition. © 2019
Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or
duplicated,
or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
These cues are monocular (or one-eye) cues. Refer to your text
for a description of each:
Linear perspective
Relative size
Height in the plane
Light and shadow
Overlapping (or interposition)
Texture gradients
Aerial perspective
Relative motion (motion parallax)
How are these cues used in different situations, including
artwork and architecture?
23
Motives, Emotions, and Perception
Coon, Introduction to Psychology, 15th Edition. © 2019
Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or
duplicated,
or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
Have you ever heard that it is a bad idea to go grocery shopping
when you are hungry? It is true, but if you happen to find
yourself in such a store, make sure to stay away from the
prepared foods area. Why?
We are affected in the way we sense and perceive by the
internal states we are experiencing. As such, when we’re very
hungry a piece of hot pizza or a pan of macaroni and cheese
might appear, smell, and even taste far better than they would
when we are not hungry. This is not just a function of being full
in the stomach, but rather our perceptual processes change as a
result of different internal states.
How might this affect other areas of functioning? For example,
do you find your significant other as physically attractive when
you are angry at him or her?
24
Perceptual Expectancies
Creating perceptual expectancies
Coon, Introduction to Psychology, 15th Edition. © 2019
Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or
duplicated,
or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
A perceptual set (or expectancy) refers to the tendency to
perceive things in a specific way based largely on our
expectations of what we are going to perceive.
This is something that is used in the world around us, often
without us knowing about it. For example, at a restaurant do
you order the “special of the day” thinking that it is some
amazing preparation by a world class chef? Does it taste better
if you’re told that it is a “special?” Would you feel differently
if you knew that most of the time a “special of the day” is really
just a way of getting rid of the leftover food from the previous
day?
25
Perceptual Learning: Do They See What We See?
The effects of prior experience on perception
Coon, Introduction to Psychology, 15th Edition. © 2019
Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or
duplicated,
or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
The fact that our perception can be altered by expectation is
really a consequence of learning, which as you may remember
can lead to an actual change in the brain. Can this change filter
down (or up) to our perceptual systems? This is the basis of
perceptual learning.
This also helps us understand how cultural differences can exist
in perception. Refer to the text for a discussion of why the
Müller-Lyer illusion works in some cultures but not in others
based on the “carpentered world” hypothesis.
26
How To Become a Better “Eyewitness” to Life
Table 4.2 Factors Affecting the Accuracy of Eyewitness
PerceptionsSources of ErrorSummary of FindingsWording of
questionsAn eyewitness’s testimony about an event can be
affected by the wording of questions that the witness is
asked.Postevent informationEyewitness technology about an
event often reflects not only what was actually seen, but also
information obtained later on.Attitudes, expectationsAn
eyewitness’s perception and memory for an event may be
affected by his or her attitudes and expectations.Drug
intoxicationDrug(including alcohol) intoxication impairs
witness’ ability to recall events after they occur.Cross-racial
perceptionsEyewitnesses are better at identifying members of
their own race than they are at identifying people of other races.
Weapon focusThe presence of a weapon impairs an eyewitness’s
ability to identity the culprit’s face and other personal details
.Accuracy-confidenceAn eyewitness’s confidence is not a good
predictor of his or her accuracy.Exposure timeThe less time that
an eyewitness has to observe an event, the less correctly that
she or he will perceive and remember it.Unconscious
transferenceEyewitnesses sometimes identify as a culprit
someone whom they have seen in another situation or
content.Color perceptionJudgements of color made under
monochromatic light (such as an orange streetlight ) are highly
unreliable.StressHigh levels of stress impair the accuracy of
eyewitness perceptions.
Source: Adapted from Wells & Olson, 2003: Yarmey, 2010
Coon, Introduction to Psychology, 15th Edition. © 2019
Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or
duplicated,
or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
Take a look at these recommendations (and study them in the
textbook). Can you think of ways in which they apply to you?
It’s amazing how such simple suggestions can make such a big
difference!
27
MGMT 501
CASE STUDY ASSIGNMENT INSTRUCTIONSOVERVIEW
This assignment will allow students to discuss how leadership
styles, management styles, and types of power might affect the
success of an organization. The following once stable
organization (RST) has recently reversed direction and is now
struggling to survive.
Students are being asked to review some of the organization’s
data from the past several years and recommend some changes
that might reverse the negative trends in the metrics provided in
the Excel spreadsheet.
INSTRUCTIONS
For this assignment, the student will write a 1000–1500-word
assessment in APA format of their findings and
recommendations for improvement at the RST Company and the
reason for each recommendation. There will be a title page
required, but no abstract. Write at graduate-level quality.
Perform academic research through the LU Online Library by
selecting four peer-reviewed scholarly journal articles and the
Satterlee text. Using the information above and the included
bar charts, determine what needs to happen to return this
company to its past success. Use the following headings to
complete the assignment:
Title page
RST Carports and Metal Roofing
Introduction
Experience Levels of Employees
How Leadership Styles Could Have Affected the Change at RST
How Management Decision Styles Could Have Affected the
Change at RST
How Types of Power Could Have Affected the Change at RST
A Pareto Analysis of the Three Main Problems That Could Have
Affected the Change at RST
Recommendations
Conclusion
References
Note: Your assignment will be checked for originality via the
Turnitin plagiarism tool.
MGMT 501
CASE STUDY ASSIGNMENT INSTRUCTIONSOVERVIEW
This assignment will allow students to discuss how leadership
styles, management styles, and types of power might affect the
success of an organization. The following once stable
organization (RST) has recently reversed direction and is now
struggling to survive.
Students are being asked to review some of the organization’s
data from the past several years and recommend some changes
that might reverse the negative trends in the metrics provided in
the Excel spreadsheet.
INSTRUCTIONS
For this assignment, the student will write a 1000–1500-word
assessment in APA format of their findings and
recommendations for improvement at the RST Company and the
reason for each recommendation. There will be a title page
required, but no abstract. Write at graduate-level quality.
Perform academic research through the LU Online Library by
selecting four peer-reviewed scholarly journal articles and the
Satterlee text. Using the information above and the included
bar charts, determine what needs to happen to return this
company to its past success. Use the following headings to
complete the assignment:
Title page
RST Carports and Metal Roofing
Introduction
Experience Levels of Employees
How Leadership Styles Could Have Affected the Change at RST
How Management Decision Styles Could Have Affected the
Change at RST
How Types of Power Could Have Affected the Change at RST
A Pareto Analysis of the Three Main Problems That Could Have
Affected the Change at RST
Recommendations
Conclusion
References
Note: Your assignment will be checked for originality via the
Turnitin plagiarism tool.
Page
of 3
ZOOM
MGMT 501Page 1 of 3
CASE STUDY: RSTCARPORTS AND METAL ROOFING
CASE
History
RST Carports was founded in 1980 as a private Midwest small
business company. The business includes a 600,000 square foot
building with office space to support its management. The
business is in Albany Indiana and initially produced and
installed 4 versions of carports which was gradually increased
to 48 versions over the years. In 2000, the business ventured
into the metal roofing business and began manufacturing and
installing 18 varieties of metal roofing from the same facility in
Albany. The company was profitable every year from 1981-
2017, only losing money in its initial year of existence. The
company used a pull system to control inventory, used the
Seven Quality Tools and Seven Management Tools to solve 90%
of their problems, and used Six-Sigma and Shainin Red -X
Problem Solving to solve their complex problems. All of the
Executive Managers were Six Sigma Blackbelts certified by
ASQ.
In July 2017, Jerry Jones, the President, and private owner of
the very successful business sold the company to WXY
Corporation, a large competitor, for $60.8M. WXY elected a
new Divisional Manager from its corporate office, Art
Anderson, to replace Jerry Jones the week after the sale.
Anderson immediately brought in a WXY SWOT team to make a
one-month assessment of the RST management and working
employees and to review its methods of operation.
Structure Changes
One month after the sale, Art Anderson elected to change the
RST management structure, reducing over 50% of the executive
management positions, approximately 40% of the middle and
lower level manager positions, and 30% of the employees who
performed the manufacturing and installation work. All
management employees were forced to take a 20% reduction in
pay, and working employees were forced to take a 10%
reduction. Many of the original RST executive management
team elected to retire immediately. Gone were CFO- Dan
Demis, Operations Manager- Larry Lange, Engineering
Manager- Andy Andrews, Maintenance Manager- Bob Bex, and
Materials Manager- Carl Candle. The Quality Manager, Earl
Engle, quit shortly after the takeover and moved on to a
competitor for a higher-paying job.
The CFO and HR Manager positions were consolidated into one
position. The CFO manager retired, and the HR Manager quit.
The Materials Manager and Purchasing Manager positions were
also consolidated; the Materials Manager retired, and the
Purchasing Manager quit. The Engineering Manager and
Maintenance Manager positions were also consolidated, and
both managers retired. The IT Managers position was
eliminated, and that service was transferred to Corporate office
at WXY. The Information Technology Manager was offered a
lower paying job at Corporate, and elected to quit. Anderson
acquired replacements from Corporate office.
Worker Morale
In January 2018, the disgruntled working employees asked for
the United Steel Workers Union to attempt to step in and help
organize the non-management employees into a union because
of the numerous safety problems and the reductions in pay they
were forced to take after the takeover. There were several
employee meetings between the Steel Workers Union and the
200 workers who manufactured and installed the products
throughout 2018 and 2019. While waiting on the Steel Workers
Union to negotiate with management on forming a union,
several other
MGMT 50 1Page 2 of 3
working employees also retired or quit. One of the problems
that RST was going through was having lost much of the
expertise in the management and employee worker ranks after
the takeover. Due to a lack of experience in key areas, there
was an increase in accidents, increased quality problems in
manufacturing with misfits and missing parts in kits going to
the builders in the field, and absenteeism increased
significantly. There were several quarrels between management
employees, management employees and workers, and workers
and workers. The once collaborative group of individuals who
had collaborated effectively for several years had become
combative after the takeover.
Management Morale
Unfortunately, the workers were not the only ones who were
affected. As can be seen in the management overtime chart, the
management employees were now being required to work 60-
hour weeks with no pay for overtime, which they had received
pay for before the takeover, but with minimal overtime hours.
Bickering between the quality manager and operations manager
had increased due to the declining quality levels of assembled
units. The reduced quality had a direct correlation with the
rescinding profit margins. The Engineering Manager was
arguing with the Purchasing manager for changing venders to
secure lower prices (with lower quality) from new suppliers
(current WXY vendors) who had replaced metal rolls from their
previous suppliers. Problems with rust, holes, mismatches, and
cracks were the main problems, and the thicknesses of the metal
sides and roofing varied out of specification, with mounting
holes also being off location causing re-drilling and leaks
through off-center existing holes. The new Operations
Manager, 36 year-old David Davis (who was handpicked by the
Divisional Manage, Art Anderson to implement all the changes)
conflicted with most of the other managers because of the
eroding performance of the company over the previous 2 years.
Unfortunately, most of the previous managers who were
qualified Six Sigma Black and Green Belts were no longer
employees, so solving for these complex problems did not
happen. It was a constant fire drill trying to sort and contain
defective materials.
Worker Overtime
Because of the drastic reductions in the number of working
employees, the remaining employees seldom received a
weekend off, and without the union they were asking for, some
were fired when not showing up on the weekends. This resulted
in a continuous revolving door of new employees being hired,
which resulted in more injuries to workers and increased quality
problems with all products. This was one of the main
complaints that employees addressed with the Steel Workers
Union.
Training
Most training programs were eliminated, and the training
function handled by the previous HR Manager, Olga Older, was
transferred to WXY Corporate training. The prior requirement
of 48 hours per year training for each management and working
employee was reduced to 2 hours of diversity and sexual
harassment training annually for all employees. The previous
two-day orientation training program for new hires was
eliminated and new employees were sent to jobs with 4 hours
on-the-job training with current workers on the job. This was
another main complaint that employees addressed with the Steel
Workers Union.
MGMT 501Page 3 of 3
Years of Service
As can be seen in the spreadsheet, there were many management
employees with more than 30 years of experience in their
positions who elected to retire. Many of these employees were
replaced with other employees selected by WXY corporate to
fill these positions. The years of experience of the new
management employees appear to be significantly less than
those who left.
What Needs to be Done?
Finally, after the first 4 months in 2020, the CEO of WXY hired
W2
Solution
s Consulting Company to go into the RST company and
determine what needs to happen. W2
Chapter 4Sensation and PerceptionCoon, Introduction to Psych

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Chapter 4Sensation and PerceptionCoon, Introduction to Psych

  • 1. Chapter 4 Sensation and Perception Coon, Introduction to Psychology, 15th Edition. © 2019 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Gateway Theme We actively construct our perceptions out of the information provided by our senses and our past experiences. The resulting perceptions are not always accurate representations of events. Coon, Introduction to Psychology, 15th Edition. © 2019 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. How do we take in and process information from the world around us? What is the difference between sensing and perceiving a given stimulus? The study of these questions in psychology is called psychophysics, and you may find interesting how complex these processes are that we take for granted on a minute-by-minute basis. 2 Gateway Questions In general, how do sensory systems function? Why are we more aware of some sensations than others? How does the visual system function? What are the mechanisms of hearing? How do the chemical senses operate?
  • 2. What are the somesthetic senses? In general, how do we construct our perceptions? How is it possible to see depth and judge distance? How do expectations, motives, emotions, and learning alter perception? How can I perceive events more accurately? How can effective communication help me in my personal and professional life? Coon, Introduction to Psychology, 15th Edition. © 2019 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Our sensory systems work to receive information from our environment and convert them into an electrochemical signal that gets sent to the brain, a process called transduction. Once the information is received in the brain, the process of perception occurs, where we select, organize, and interpret those stimuli. 3 Psychophysics (1 of 2) An artificial visual system Coon, Introduction to Psychology, 15th Edition. © 2019 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Have you ever had a hearing test where the audiologist asks you to raise your hand whenever you hear something? She was measuring your absolute threshold for hearing. If, instead, she were to play a tone and ask you to indicate when you hear it change, she would be measuring your difference threshold. The
  • 3. standard for these thresholds is a 50 percent hit rate, or detecting the stimulus (or stimulus change) 50 percent of the time. Our sensory systems are not simply passive receptors for information, but rather select which information is attended to and sent off to the brain for further processing. In terms of unusual sensory systems, called extrasensory perception (ESP), the majority of the available data investigating its existence has found…. (wait for it)… nothing! So if ESP exists, we’ve been unable to demonstrate it scientifically. 4 Psychophysics (2 of 2) Visual pop-out Coon, Introduction to Psychology, 15th Edition. © 2019 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Because our senses can select which stimuli to attend to, they can also reduce their response to ongoing, unchanging stimuli in a process called sensory adaptation. This is different than habituation discussed in other chapters, as this is an actual weakening of the physical receptors versus simply reducing our behavioral response to a constant stimulus. Cells in the brain called feature detectors are specifically designed to identify certain types of sensory input (shapes, colors, lines, etc.). These individual cells work together to help us construct “wholes” from the individual components of a sensory stimulus.
  • 4. 5 Seeing (or Not Seeing) What Is There Focusing attention Coon, Introduction to Psychology, 15th Edition. © 2019 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. When we make the conscious (or something unconscious) decision to focus on a narrow set of data from our surroundings, this is called selective attention. Imagine what life would be like if you could not selectively “tune out” the noise from our environment and you had to attend equally to the sound of the cash register, the flavor of your coffee, and the sound of the espresso machine making the next beverage. If you could not filter out this irrelevant data, you might quickly lose your sanity! Related to this is inattentional blindness, or a failure to notice a stimulus because we are focusing elsewhere. How might this be relevant when you are driving and also talking or texting on your cell phone? When stimuli change, inattentional blindness can be reduced. So you see that many different concepts all work together to influence what we sense and perceive (in this case sensory adaptation, selective attention, and inattentional blindness). 6 Structure of the Eye Anatomy of the eye Coon, Introduction to Psychology, 15th Edition. © 2019
  • 5. Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. The light that we see falls within the visible range of the electromagnetic spectrum, and the nature of the light waves determines how we perceive them. The wavelength corresponds to huge, the narrower the band of wavelengths the greater the saturation, and the amplitude of the waves indicates the brightness of the color. There are many different structures of the eye, each of which plays its own role in the visual system. Study carefully the following parts: Cornea Iris and Pupil Lens (and the process of accommodation) Retina There are other ocular structures, but these are the ones that are most immediately salient in the process of vision. When the structures do not work quite right, we may suffer visual distortions. When light images are focused in front of or behind the retina, we may experience myopia or hyperopia respectively (you may know these as near-sightedness and far- sightedness). These often result from incorrect curvature of the cornea, a condition called astigmatism. As we age, the natural flexibility of the lens reduces, leading to an age-related reduction of near vision called presbyopia. 7 Rods and Cones Anatomy of the retina
  • 6. Coon, Introduction to Psychology, 15th Edition. © 2019 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. The photoreceptors in your retina, the rods and cones, are each responsible for specific types of visual experiences. Cones allow us to see when there is plenty of light around, and are sensitive to colors. Rods work well in dimmer situations, but only receive black and white data. When these receptors come together they form the optic nerve, which departs the retina leaving us with a blind spot in each eye. The cones are also concentrated in the center of the retina, called the fovea, and this is where we have our greatest visual acuity (or clarity). On the outsides of the retina we have more rods, and this fact explains why peripheral vision is less focused and clear than central vision. At night if you want to see something a little more sharply (when there is less light) try moving the image to the left or right of your center visual field and the rods may help you focus on it. During the day, however, this will not work! 8 Color Vision Firing rates of blue, green and red cones in response to different colors Coon, Introduction to Psychology, 15th Edition. © 2019 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. The trichromatic theory of color vision notes that we have three different kinds of cones that are receptive to different color
  • 7. ranges in the spectrum. The opponent process theory suggests that our visual receptors process colors in “either/or” pairs (red/green, yellow/blue, and black/white). Together these two theories explain how color perception as well as opposing afterimages occur. What are the strengths and weaknesses of each theory? When color receptors fail to work properly we may experience what is erroneously called color blindness, but is really color weakness. It is more common in men than in women, and most common in white men. Imagine how your life might be different if you had never seen colors and did not even understand the concept of a color! 9 Seeing in the Dark Typical time course of dark adaptation Coon, Introduction to Psychology, 15th Edition. © 2019 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. When you move into a darker situation, the process of dark adaptation begins. The colored ring of muscle (the iris) dilates the opening in the eye (the pupil) so that more light can get in, and the retinal cells adapt in a chemical process. Review the text to see exactly how this process occurs, and how light sensitivity is restored when we move out of the darkness. 10 How We Hear Sounds Characteristics of sound waves
  • 8. Coon, Introduction to Psychology, 15th Edition. © 2019 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Just like light waves, sound waves have various properties that determine what we hear. The frequency of the wave determines the pitch and the amplitude reveals the loudness or intensity. There are several structures of the ear, each of which is important to understand in order to comprehend the process from sound wave reception to recognition of the auditory stimulus. Study carefully how the following structures work: pinna auditory canal eardrum (tympanic membrane) ossicles (malleus/hammer, incus/anvil, and stapes/stirrup) oval window cochlea basilar membrane organ of Corti hair cells While this may feel like a lot of information, note how each structure works with the one before it and the one after it in order for you to have an auditory experience. The two primary theories of pitch perception are named for the principles they forward—the place theory suggests that stimulation of different areas (or places) in the cochlea correspond with higher or lower pitch reception, while the frequency theory posits that the hair cells fire at a certain rate depending on the frequency of the sound wave that stimulates them. 11
  • 9. Hearing Loss Decibel scale Coon, Introduction to Psychology, 15th Edition. © 2019 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. A common question is “what causes a person to lose their hearing?” There is no simple answer, as hearing loss can have many causes. Conduction hearing loss is a result of problems with the structures of the middle ear, which decreases vibrations as they make their way to the inner ear. Sensorineural hearing loss occurs when the inner ear’s hair cells or the auditory nerve are damaged, and cannot transmit signals effectively to the brain. This is often caused by exposure to very loud noise over an extended time period. How are different types of hearing loss treated? What sort of technology can help restore hearing? 12 The Sense of Smell Receptors for the sense of smell (olfaction) Coon, Introduction to Psychology, 15th Edition. © 2019 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Our sense of smell is far more important than you may realize, and is closely connected to emotional centers in the brain. This is why scents evoke such visceral, emotional memories.
  • 10. We have the genes for many different types of scent reception, but only 400 of them are expressed in the average human being. Chemicals in the air fit in a lock and key fashion so that we have an olfactory experience. The scents that we find pleasant or aversive are based on many factors, including cultural background and our own experiences. What must it be like to suffer from anosmia, or “smell blindness?” Do you think you’d be bothered by it? 13 Taste and Flavors Receptors for the sense of taste Coon, Introduction to Psychology, 15th Edition. © 2019 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Another chemical system is our sense of gustation, or taste. There are five identified taste sensations—sweet, salty, bitter, sour, and umami—and each is precipitated by specific chemicals that stimulate taste buds. The sense of taste is rather simple when compared to other sensory systems, as chemicals dissolve in our mouths and stimulate those same taste buds, which in turn send signals to the brain where we have a gustatory experience. As with smell, the things that we find pleasant to taste are determined by a number of factors, including culture, genetics, and experience. 14 The Skin Senses
  • 11. Receptors for the skin senses Coon, Introduction to Psychology, 15th Edition. © 2019 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Although the skin senses tend to get relegated to “second class” status in the study of psychophysics, they really shouldn’t! Our sense of touch—or the haptic system—is an important part of our lives. A hot shower, a significant other stroking your arm, sexual experiences—these are all due to the ability to feel touch. Our skin is the largest organ on our body, so make sure to focus on how the receptors for touch allow you to have these experiences. 15 Pain A sensory gate of pain Coon, Introduction to Psychology, 15th Edition. © 2019 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Although we may not like the experience of pain, it is important that we be able to feel it. This is how the body informs us that there is something wrong that needs our attention and, in some cases, intervention. The large nerve fibers that send sharp messages comprise the body’s warning system, while the small nerve fibers that carry achy, chronic pain are the body’s reminding system. The first tells us that something bad is happening, while the second tells us that something bad has happened.
  • 12. The gate control theory of pains suggests that the pain pathways in the spinal cord have “gates” that can be opened or closed. When they are closed, pain messages cannot pass through and make it to the brain. Many medications that are regarded as pain killers are really pain blockers, in as much as they close the gates so that pain messages cannot be received (and thus perceived) in the brain. What methods of pain control exist beyond using medications? Can we truly stop pain without chemical intervention? The experience of phantom limb pain shows us that sometimes we can experience pain that is caused by something other than the stimulation of the pain site. This represents a “misfiring” of nerves that leave us with that pain experience. 16 The Vestibular System Coon, Introduction to Psychology, 15th Edition. © 2019 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. What causes motion sickness when we ride a roller coaster, fly in a helicopter, or travel in a car or train? This is a result of the vestibular system, which is primarily informed by structures in the inner ear (the otolith organs and the semicircular canals). This is the system that informs us of the effects of gravity and acceleration and gives us a sense of balance. When we move (or stop moving) fluid in these organs continues moving (or stops moving) to give us information about that
  • 13. motion. If the fluid movement is in conflict with what our other senses (mostly vision) tell us is happening, we can develop the motion sickness that we associate with different activities. So if you think floating in space is fun, you might not be so impressed when you get very nauseated! 17 Interpreting Sensory Input Coon, Introduction to Psychology, 15th Edition. © 2019 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. It may seem very straightforward that we sense information, the data are sent to the brain, and then we interpret it. How hard can that be, right? Well don’t be fooled! There are many ways our sensory and perceptual systems can be misled. Perceptual illusions occur when there is a disconnect between what we perceive and what is actually happening in the world around us. You may try to search for examples of optical illusions (also called visual or perceptual illusions) on the internet to see a number of examples. What is interesting about them is that the awareness that what we are seeing is not what is actually there is not enough to cause us to see the stimulus differently. How does an illusion differ from a hallucination? When we are uncertain of the accuracy of our perception, we may seek out additional sources of information to confirm it. This is called reality testing, and it is an important component of some mental illnesses where the defining feature is psychosis (or loss of contact with reality).
  • 14. 18 Bottom-Up and Top-Down Processing Coon, Introduction to Psychology, 15th Edition. © 2019 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. When do our expectations guide and influence our perceptions, and under what circumstances are perceptions a unique result of the sensory information available? This is the crux of how we distinguish between bottom-up and top-down processing. Make sure that you remember that they are not necessarily independent of each other. In many situations, we use both processes at the same time. Refer to the text for some examples of each type of processing. 19 Gestalt Organizing Principles Coon, Introduction to Psychology, 15th Edition. © 2019 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. The Gestalt principles of perception refer to a set of organizing processes that allow our brains to look for and find relationships between sensory information in our surroundings. Though susceptible to errors, the Gestalt principles help us to make sense of the world around us, reducing an enormous amount of data to more manageable levels. Focus on the following organizing principles:
  • 15. Nearness (or proximity) Similarity Continuation (or continuity) Closure Common region Contiguity Take time to appreciate how these principles utilize the basics of the figure-ground relationship. 20 Perceptual Constancies Shape constancy Coon, Introduction to Psychology, 15th Edition. © 2019 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. You should be in awe of how hard it is to actually fool your own brain. One example of this difficulty lies in the existence of perceptual constancies—including size, shape, and brightness constancy, among others. These phenomena show us that our brains can distinguish between real change and apparent change in our surroundings. As an example, when something moves farther away from you it appears to get smaller, but your brain knows that it is not actually getting smaller. 21 Binocular Depth Cues Convergence Coon, Introduction to Psychology, 15th Edition. © 2019 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or
  • 16. duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. When we are trying to determine how far something is from us—three dimensional perception—we are using depth cues. And when we use both eyes, they are called binocular cues. Two examples include: Retinal disparity (the difference between how images are cast on our left and right retinas), and; Convergence—how our eyes move together as something that we are looking at gets closer to us. Both eyes are needed to use this type of information, but in some cases we only need information from one eye or the other. 22 Monocular Depth Cues Pictorial depth cues Coon, Introduction to Psychology, 15th Edition. © 2019 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. These cues are monocular (or one-eye) cues. Refer to your text for a description of each: Linear perspective Relative size Height in the plane Light and shadow Overlapping (or interposition) Texture gradients Aerial perspective
  • 17. Relative motion (motion parallax) How are these cues used in different situations, including artwork and architecture? 23 Motives, Emotions, and Perception Coon, Introduction to Psychology, 15th Edition. © 2019 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. Have you ever heard that it is a bad idea to go grocery shopping when you are hungry? It is true, but if you happen to find yourself in such a store, make sure to stay away from the prepared foods area. Why? We are affected in the way we sense and perceive by the internal states we are experiencing. As such, when we’re very hungry a piece of hot pizza or a pan of macaroni and cheese might appear, smell, and even taste far better than they would when we are not hungry. This is not just a function of being full in the stomach, but rather our perceptual processes change as a result of different internal states. How might this affect other areas of functioning? For example, do you find your significant other as physically attractive when you are angry at him or her? 24 Perceptual Expectancies Creating perceptual expectancies
  • 18. Coon, Introduction to Psychology, 15th Edition. © 2019 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. A perceptual set (or expectancy) refers to the tendency to perceive things in a specific way based largely on our expectations of what we are going to perceive. This is something that is used in the world around us, often without us knowing about it. For example, at a restaurant do you order the “special of the day” thinking that it is some amazing preparation by a world class chef? Does it taste better if you’re told that it is a “special?” Would you feel differently if you knew that most of the time a “special of the day” is really just a way of getting rid of the leftover food from the previous day? 25 Perceptual Learning: Do They See What We See? The effects of prior experience on perception Coon, Introduction to Psychology, 15th Edition. © 2019 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part. The fact that our perception can be altered by expectation is really a consequence of learning, which as you may remember can lead to an actual change in the brain. Can this change filter down (or up) to our perceptual systems? This is the basis of perceptual learning. This also helps us understand how cultural differences can exist in perception. Refer to the text for a discussion of why the
  • 19. Müller-Lyer illusion works in some cultures but not in others based on the “carpentered world” hypothesis. 26 How To Become a Better “Eyewitness” to Life Table 4.2 Factors Affecting the Accuracy of Eyewitness PerceptionsSources of ErrorSummary of FindingsWording of questionsAn eyewitness’s testimony about an event can be affected by the wording of questions that the witness is asked.Postevent informationEyewitness technology about an event often reflects not only what was actually seen, but also information obtained later on.Attitudes, expectationsAn eyewitness’s perception and memory for an event may be affected by his or her attitudes and expectations.Drug intoxicationDrug(including alcohol) intoxication impairs witness’ ability to recall events after they occur.Cross-racial perceptionsEyewitnesses are better at identifying members of their own race than they are at identifying people of other races. Weapon focusThe presence of a weapon impairs an eyewitness’s ability to identity the culprit’s face and other personal details .Accuracy-confidenceAn eyewitness’s confidence is not a good predictor of his or her accuracy.Exposure timeThe less time that an eyewitness has to observe an event, the less correctly that she or he will perceive and remember it.Unconscious transferenceEyewitnesses sometimes identify as a culprit someone whom they have seen in another situation or content.Color perceptionJudgements of color made under monochromatic light (such as an orange streetlight ) are highly unreliable.StressHigh levels of stress impair the accuracy of eyewitness perceptions. Source: Adapted from Wells & Olson, 2003: Yarmey, 2010 Coon, Introduction to Psychology, 15th Edition. © 2019 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
  • 20. Take a look at these recommendations (and study them in the textbook). Can you think of ways in which they apply to you? It’s amazing how such simple suggestions can make such a big difference! 27 MGMT 501 CASE STUDY ASSIGNMENT INSTRUCTIONSOVERVIEW This assignment will allow students to discuss how leadership styles, management styles, and types of power might affect the success of an organization. The following once stable organization (RST) has recently reversed direction and is now struggling to survive. Students are being asked to review some of the organization’s data from the past several years and recommend some changes that might reverse the negative trends in the metrics provided in the Excel spreadsheet. INSTRUCTIONS For this assignment, the student will write a 1000–1500-word assessment in APA format of their findings and recommendations for improvement at the RST Company and the reason for each recommendation. There will be a title page required, but no abstract. Write at graduate-level quality. Perform academic research through the LU Online Library by selecting four peer-reviewed scholarly journal articles and the Satterlee text. Using the information above and the included bar charts, determine what needs to happen to return this company to its past success. Use the following headings to
  • 21. complete the assignment: Title page RST Carports and Metal Roofing Introduction Experience Levels of Employees How Leadership Styles Could Have Affected the Change at RST How Management Decision Styles Could Have Affected the Change at RST How Types of Power Could Have Affected the Change at RST A Pareto Analysis of the Three Main Problems That Could Have Affected the Change at RST Recommendations Conclusion References Note: Your assignment will be checked for originality via the Turnitin plagiarism tool. MGMT 501 CASE STUDY ASSIGNMENT INSTRUCTIONSOVERVIEW This assignment will allow students to discuss how leadership styles, management styles, and types of power might affect the success of an organization. The following once stable organization (RST) has recently reversed direction and is now struggling to survive. Students are being asked to review some of the organization’s data from the past several years and recommend some changes that might reverse the negative trends in the metrics provided in the Excel spreadsheet. INSTRUCTIONS For this assignment, the student will write a 1000–1500-word assessment in APA format of their findings and recommendations for improvement at the RST Company and the reason for each recommendation. There will be a title page required, but no abstract. Write at graduate-level quality. Perform academic research through the LU Online Library by
  • 22. selecting four peer-reviewed scholarly journal articles and the Satterlee text. Using the information above and the included bar charts, determine what needs to happen to return this company to its past success. Use the following headings to complete the assignment: Title page RST Carports and Metal Roofing Introduction Experience Levels of Employees How Leadership Styles Could Have Affected the Change at RST How Management Decision Styles Could Have Affected the Change at RST How Types of Power Could Have Affected the Change at RST A Pareto Analysis of the Three Main Problems That Could Have Affected the Change at RST Recommendations Conclusion References Note: Your assignment will be checked for originality via the Turnitin plagiarism tool. Page of 3 ZOOM MGMT 501Page 1 of 3 CASE STUDY: RSTCARPORTS AND METAL ROOFING CASE History RST Carports was founded in 1980 as a private Midwest small business company. The business includes a 600,000 square foot building with office space to support its management. The business is in Albany Indiana and initially produced and installed 4 versions of carports which was gradually increased to 48 versions over the years. In 2000, the business ventured into the metal roofing business and began manufacturing and
  • 23. installing 18 varieties of metal roofing from the same facility in Albany. The company was profitable every year from 1981- 2017, only losing money in its initial year of existence. The company used a pull system to control inventory, used the Seven Quality Tools and Seven Management Tools to solve 90% of their problems, and used Six-Sigma and Shainin Red -X Problem Solving to solve their complex problems. All of the Executive Managers were Six Sigma Blackbelts certified by ASQ. In July 2017, Jerry Jones, the President, and private owner of the very successful business sold the company to WXY Corporation, a large competitor, for $60.8M. WXY elected a new Divisional Manager from its corporate office, Art Anderson, to replace Jerry Jones the week after the sale. Anderson immediately brought in a WXY SWOT team to make a one-month assessment of the RST management and working employees and to review its methods of operation. Structure Changes One month after the sale, Art Anderson elected to change the RST management structure, reducing over 50% of the executive management positions, approximately 40% of the middle and lower level manager positions, and 30% of the employees who performed the manufacturing and installation work. All management employees were forced to take a 20% reduction in pay, and working employees were forced to take a 10% reduction. Many of the original RST executive management team elected to retire immediately. Gone were CFO- Dan Demis, Operations Manager- Larry Lange, Engineering Manager- Andy Andrews, Maintenance Manager- Bob Bex, and Materials Manager- Carl Candle. The Quality Manager, Earl Engle, quit shortly after the takeover and moved on to a competitor for a higher-paying job. The CFO and HR Manager positions were consolidated into one position. The CFO manager retired, and the HR Manager quit. The Materials Manager and Purchasing Manager positions were also consolidated; the Materials Manager retired, and the
  • 24. Purchasing Manager quit. The Engineering Manager and Maintenance Manager positions were also consolidated, and both managers retired. The IT Managers position was eliminated, and that service was transferred to Corporate office at WXY. The Information Technology Manager was offered a lower paying job at Corporate, and elected to quit. Anderson acquired replacements from Corporate office. Worker Morale In January 2018, the disgruntled working employees asked for the United Steel Workers Union to attempt to step in and help organize the non-management employees into a union because of the numerous safety problems and the reductions in pay they were forced to take after the takeover. There were several employee meetings between the Steel Workers Union and the 200 workers who manufactured and installed the products throughout 2018 and 2019. While waiting on the Steel Workers Union to negotiate with management on forming a union, several other MGMT 50 1Page 2 of 3 working employees also retired or quit. One of the problems that RST was going through was having lost much of the expertise in the management and employee worker ranks after the takeover. Due to a lack of experience in key areas, there was an increase in accidents, increased quality problems in manufacturing with misfits and missing parts in kits going to the builders in the field, and absenteeism increased significantly. There were several quarrels between management employees, management employees and workers, and workers and workers. The once collaborative group of individuals who had collaborated effectively for several years had become combative after the takeover. Management Morale Unfortunately, the workers were not the only ones who were affected. As can be seen in the management overtime chart, the management employees were now being required to work 60- hour weeks with no pay for overtime, which they had received
  • 25. pay for before the takeover, but with minimal overtime hours. Bickering between the quality manager and operations manager had increased due to the declining quality levels of assembled units. The reduced quality had a direct correlation with the rescinding profit margins. The Engineering Manager was arguing with the Purchasing manager for changing venders to secure lower prices (with lower quality) from new suppliers (current WXY vendors) who had replaced metal rolls from their previous suppliers. Problems with rust, holes, mismatches, and cracks were the main problems, and the thicknesses of the metal sides and roofing varied out of specification, with mounting holes also being off location causing re-drilling and leaks through off-center existing holes. The new Operations Manager, 36 year-old David Davis (who was handpicked by the Divisional Manage, Art Anderson to implement all the changes) conflicted with most of the other managers because of the eroding performance of the company over the previous 2 years. Unfortunately, most of the previous managers who were qualified Six Sigma Black and Green Belts were no longer employees, so solving for these complex problems did not happen. It was a constant fire drill trying to sort and contain defective materials. Worker Overtime Because of the drastic reductions in the number of working employees, the remaining employees seldom received a weekend off, and without the union they were asking for, some were fired when not showing up on the weekends. This resulted in a continuous revolving door of new employees being hired, which resulted in more injuries to workers and increased quality problems with all products. This was one of the main complaints that employees addressed with the Steel Workers Union. Training Most training programs were eliminated, and the training function handled by the previous HR Manager, Olga Older, was transferred to WXY Corporate training. The prior requirement
  • 26. of 48 hours per year training for each management and working employee was reduced to 2 hours of diversity and sexual harassment training annually for all employees. The previous two-day orientation training program for new hires was eliminated and new employees were sent to jobs with 4 hours on-the-job training with current workers on the job. This was another main complaint that employees addressed with the Steel Workers Union. MGMT 501Page 3 of 3 Years of Service As can be seen in the spreadsheet, there were many management employees with more than 30 years of experience in their positions who elected to retire. Many of these employees were replaced with other employees selected by WXY corporate to fill these positions. The years of experience of the new management employees appear to be significantly less than those who left. What Needs to be Done? Finally, after the first 4 months in 2020, the CEO of WXY hired W2 Solution s Consulting Company to go into the RST company and determine what needs to happen. W2