Discuss perception checking and why might it be helpful. Then, provide an appropriate perception check for the following situation: You walk into the Student Union to meet your roommate for lunch. When you sit down at the table, your roommate turns away from you, averts her eyes, says she isn't hungry, and gives only brief replies to your comments.

What will be an ideal response?

- Perception checking is asking someone whether your interpretation of his or her nonverbal behavior is accurate.
- You do not need to go through life constantly checking everyone's nonverbal cues. Overusing this skill would irritate most people. However, if you are uncertain about how someone feels and it is important to know, a perception check may be in order. Asking about a specific nonverbal cue will help you interpret your communication partner's behavior in future interactions as well.
- In this scenario, a perception check needs to focus on your interpretation of your roommate's emotional state.
- A sample perception check would be, "I'm gathering by your body language, the fact that you won't even look at me, and your lack of responsiveness that you're upset. You look angry. What's up?"
- Student examples will vary.