Perception and the reality; the conflict, confusion and the (perceived) solution!

Is perception the reality!

We often mistake our perception as the reality; whether we think fast or slow, whether we think on the basis of our heuristics, biases, our intuitions or whether we think or perceive things on the basis of our level of intelligence; with all the intelligence that we have and using theory, data and calculations that we know, probability included.

We perceive ourselves as the smartest in the room. Are we actually? The reality may be different! We may not be actually the smartest in reality, but we perceive ourselves as the smartest as we humans are predisposed towards that.

We often hear it; whenever there is a disagreement or conflict between perception and reality: the common refrain is “Perception is reality”, or when we are plain confused about reality. This is all pervasive; you can see it everywhere, present all the time, applicable to everyone; it is omnipresent.

This is the aphorism we often use to justify a perception however unjustifiable it may be; how far it may be from reality or just plain out of touch with reality. We employ it as a sledgehammer to beat others into accepting our preferred reality(so-called).

“At a more philosophical level, this adage creates a sense of relativism (think squishiness) in circumstances that are more likely absolute (think “the world is flat”).” Jim Taylor

The nuances! I’m tech guy and trained economist; a strong believer of theory backed by data, every theory tested empirically by data and its validity proven. Empirical testing is not all; experience counts still! “Oxford Advance Learners” is my favorite since school and that defines perception as;

*The way you notice things, especially with the senses.

*The ability to understand the true nature of something.

*An idea, a belief, or an image you have as a result of how you see or understand something.

Plainly speaking; it’s a mental interpretation, the way of regarding, understanding and interpreting something;

whereas, reality is;

*The true situation and the problems that actually exist in life, in contrast to how you would like life to be.

* A thing that is actually experienced or seen, in contrast to what people might imagine.

Reality is the state of things as they actually exist; existent that is self-sufficient, absolute or objective and not subject to human conventions, decisions or definitions; human whims or human fancies!

Definition is how we define things, it is not absolute. Simply put, it is the way we define things; however vague it may be.

My view is that perception is not the reality, perception is different from reality; while the former is a mental thing, the latter is clearly something different and not subject to manipulation like you cannot manipulate the fact reality that the sun rises from the east. If we conflate perception with reality, we reject reality in its actuality and move ourselves back to the stone-ages.

How we look into reality, the contradiction:

“Perception is not reality, but, admittedly, perception can become a person’s reality (there is a difference) because perception has a potent influence on how we look at reality.” Jim Taylor

In fact, perception has a potent influence on the way we look into realty; the way we view reality, oftentimes it acts as the lens using which we view reality. Perception shapes our focus, how we process information, how we interpret things, how we synthesize data and remember reality. We tend to assume that our perception is an accurate representation of reality and again; how far we may be from reality per se, how different reality may be from the way it actually exists. Fact is that we are genetically predisposed towards that. Our past knowledge, emotional & pre-conceived notions, self interest, cognitive distortions shape our perception of reality and the lens using which we view reality.

To quote “Daniel Kahneman”, the psychologist, bestselling author for “Thinking; Fast and Slow”, the guy who won the Nobel in Economics Science in 2002 by identifying cognitive biases; “Humans create subjective social reality that deviates from objective reality”.

Philosophy of reality:

Does reality actually exist? Or it is a subjective construction as one school of thought perceives; we actually do not experience reality directly, it is rather guided by our senses that limit how we process, synthesize, decide about reality. That our experience of reality is limited by the way we think what reality is. It does not matter how reality actually exists. Reality does not exist beyond what we can comprehend; what we can see! Tech can turn tables, it can turn our disbelief into reality, objectively measure reality and naysayers may argue that reading or objectively measuring reality using tech requires perception( more research needed) that proves perception is reality.

Positive illusion:

What is wrong! if perception diverges from reality, what if someone perceives the world in a different way than the way it actually exists. A nuanced answer; what if someone holds an inflated view of one’s capabilities, which can generate hope, enhanced persistence. Hope is anyway gives us another day. But let’s us not be delusional; it can be a liability, can lead to unattainable goals for which we do not have the requisite skills, we do not have the resources or we are plainly unlucky, what we are not prepared for and that can create an inability to function or a substantial disconnect, severe mental disorder.

Different individuals have different perceptions, some with dystopian world view, no common ground, often diametrically opposite, lack of consensus and that is dangerous for democracy, rule of law. Democracy and deliberating upon this is not my cup of tea; my concern is organizations.

“Going to extremes, a massive divide between perceptions in a country would likely lead to a slow, but steady, disintegration of the institutions that hold a society together (dystopian themes in literature and film or, well, our world today).” Jim Taylor

From an organizational point of view, if we perceive reality in different ways or plain out of touch with reality or the way things actually exist, without any common ground, then that’s not good for the organization; we cannot attain organizational goals for organization is not an individual rather a summation of individuals.

How to ensure that perceptions remain close to reality:

#Assume your perception is reality; but it’s only your reality, not reality perception, not universal, may be different from my version of reality!

# Different people perceive reality in different ways; so, let’s not be dismissive. Let’s have a constructive debate! We may find a common ground 😌

# Perception is fluid, it’s not static like a price of rock. Let it evolve with exposure and that takes courage and respect for other’s views!

# Sharpen your perception s, recognise and remove the distortions, distortions that may warp your percentage; recognising and seeing them will better ground your perceptions in reality rather than the other way around.

# Your perception is fluid and subject to change, but it suffers from the inertia of complacency. Challenge and see it pass the test of reality.

# Validate your perception. Seek advice from experts and persons with credibility. Your friends may likely have the same perceptions as you as they are your friends.

#Be open to modifying your perceptions if the preponderance of evidence demands it; rigidity is far worse than being wrong.

If someone posits; is perception reality?

You stand up and tell them that it might be their perception, but it is not reality.

Credit:

1. Jim Taylor, Ph.D.,

Teaches at the University of San Francisco. His specialty is the psychology of business, sport, and parenting. Jim has been a consultant to and has provided individual and group training to executives and businesses.

2. Daniel Kahneman,

Senior Scholar and Faculty Member Emeritus at Princeton University’s Department of Psychology and Princeton School of Public and International Affairs.