Perception is how individuals select, organize, and interpret stimuli from their environment to form a meaningful understanding. There are several factors that influence perception, including both external stimuli like intensity, size, and contrast, as well as internal factors like needs, learning, and motivation. The process of perception involves exposure to stimuli, attention, interpretation, storage in memory, and decision making. Common perceptual biases that can influence how people perceive others include selective perception, attribution, stereotyping, halo effect, projection, perceptual set, and expectancy. Managing perception is important for adjusting to changing environments, making decisions, influencing others, avoiding inappropriate judgments, and managing diversity.