Lets answer these questions
1. Which one would you choose?
A sure gain of $250? A 25 % chance of winning a $1000 and a 75% chance of winning nothing.
2. Which one would you choose? A sure loss of $750? A 75% chance of loosing $1000 and a 25 % chance of loosing nothing.
Lets answer these questions
1. The best student in my introductory MBA class in my earlier teaching assignment was interested in poetry and in designing fashion accessories. Student was always soft-spoken and followed faculty instruction very well, excelled in project work and presentations. What conclusions you make about the student?
Is student boy or girl? Which Indian state he might be from?
Perceptions
Is a process by which individuals organize and interpret their sensory impressions in order to give meaning to their environment. What one perceives can be substantially different from their objective reality.
Perceptions
Perception is the way we make sense of what we experience. Unique to individuals. Two individuals will perceive same situation differently.
College graduation Marriage Transfers / Getting new boss / mergers etc.
Factors Influencing Perception
Factors in the perceiver Attitudes / Motives Interests Experiences / Expectations Factors in the Situation Time Work Setting Social Setting Factors in the target Novelty Motion Sound / Size Background Proximity and Similarity Perception
Person Perception: Making Judgment about others
Attribution Theory
When individuals observe behavior, they attempt to determine whether it is internally or externally caused. Cause to Behavior
Internally caused behavior are believed to be under the personal control of the individual. Externally caused behavior Is seen as resulting from outside causes.
Attribution Theory
Arriving late in the class
Story on what is courage.
Anything that goes wrong in mother in laws life reason is ________________________.
You not getting promotion If your job profile is changed
Determination depends upon three factors
Distinctiveness - refers to whether an individual displays different behaviors in different situations. Whether this behavior is unusual? Consensus If everyone who is faced with a similar situation responds in the same way. Consistency Does person respond the same way over time?
Example
An employee coming in late for work
Distinctiveness the employee who is late also is the source of complaints by co-workers for being a goofoff.
Consensus If all the employees who took the same route to work are also late. Consistency Coming in 10 minutes late for work for an employee who otherwise is on time is perceived differently than for a person who is regularly late for work.
Attribution Theory
High External Internal External Internal
Distinctiveness
Low High
Individual Behavior
Consensus
Low
High Low
External
Internal
Consistency
Fundamental Attribution Error
The tendency to underestimate the influence of external factors and overestimate the influence of internal factors when making judgments about others.
Examples
Poor performance of a student on a test Poor performance of a sales person
Self-serving bias
The tendency for individuals to attribute their own successes to internal factors while putting the blame for failure on external factors
Frequently used shortcuts in judging others
Selective Perception
People selectively interpret what they see on the basis of their interests, background, experiences and attitudes. A survey of organizations executives Solution to organizational turnaround
Mktg person HR person Finance person Production person
Halo Effect
Drawing a general impression about an individual on the basis of a single characteristic.
Students who does good presentations and talks are assumed to be good students. People good in maths / logical reasoning are assumed to be intelligent.
Contrast Effects
Evaluation of a persons characteristics that are affected by comparisons with other people recently encountered who rank higher or lower on the same characteristics.
Your interview is after a mediocre person Your interview is after extremely talented person
Projection
Attributing ones own characteristics to other people.
An honest and trustworthy person sees world in a honest / trustworthy manner A manipulator sees world in a manipulative manner.
Stereotyping
Judging someone on the basis of ones perception of the group to which that person belongs. Stereotyping is helpful because it simplifies a complex world, however narrows down our way of thinking.
Women workers wont relocate for a promotion Men arent interested in child care Asian immigrants are hardworking and conscientious
What is your opinion?
Are generalizations good? Should they be / can they be avoided?
Some specific applications in the organization
Employment Interview Performance Expectations Performance Evaluation Employee Effort
Individual decision making