1. Organizational Behavior: An Experiential Approach 7/E Joyce S. Osland, David A. Kolb, and Irwin M. Rubin 1 ©20 01 by Prentice Hall, Inc. Chapter 8

2. Organizational Behavior: An Experiential Approach 7/E Joyce S. Osland, David A. Kolb, and Irwin M. Rubin 2 ©20 01 by Prentice Hall, Inc. Objectives Define perception and explain the perceptual process Understand both the benefits and drawbacks of the perceptual process Recognize common perceptual errors Explain attribution theory Understand the relevance of perception and attribution for managers

3. Organizational Behavior: An Experiential Approach 7/E Joyce S. Osland, David A. Kolb, and Irwin M. Rubin 3 ©20 01 by Prentice Hall, Inc. Perception The process by which we select,organize,and evaluate the stimuli in our environment to make it meaningful for ourselves.

4. Organizational Behavior: An Experiential Approach 7/E Joyce S. Osland, David A. Kolb, and Irwin M. Rubin 4 ©20 01 by Prentice Hall, Inc. Perception Benefits Limits, selects, and organizes overwhelming amount of stimuli

5. Organizational Behavior: An Experiential Approach 7/E Joyce S. Osland, David A. Kolb, and Irwin M. Rubin 5 ©20 01 by Prentice Hall, Inc. Perception Prevents seeing everything that’s there Makes our interpretations questionable Promotes stereotypes Drawbacks

6. Organizational Behavior: An Experiential Approach 7/E Joyce S. Osland, David A. Kolb, and Irwin M. Rubin 6 ©20 01 by Prentice Hall, Inc. Attribution Theory Consensus – the extent to which others behave in the same manner Consistency – the extent to which the person acts in the same way all the time Distinctiveness – the extent to which the person behaves in the same manner in other contexts or situations.

7. Organizational Behavior: An Experiential Approach 7/E Joyce S. Osland, David A. Kolb, and Irwin M. Rubin 7 ©20 01 by Prentice Hall, Inc. Attribution Theory People look for cause-and-effect relationship to explain behavior. External Causation Internal causation

8. Organizational Behavior: An Experiential Approach 7/E Joyce S. Osland, David A. Kolb, and Irwin M. Rubin 8 ©20 01 by Prentice Hall, Inc. Fundamental Attribution Error “Hard on Others” Overestimate the influence of personal failings Underestimate the impact of external factors in others

9. Organizational Behavior: An Experiential Approach 7/E Joyce S. Osland, David A. Kolb, and Irwin M. Rubin 9 ©20 01 by Prentice Hall, Inc. Self-Fulfilling Prophecy When our expectations about another person cause that person to act in a way that is consistent with our expectations. Steps: –Expectations formed about future performance –Behaviour toward the person is consistent with our expectations –Effects are produced on the person’s beliefs (self- efficacy), motivations and performance –Behaviour fulfills expectations and reinforces original perceptions

10. Organizational Behavior: An Experiential Approach 7/E Joyce S. Osland, David A. Kolb, and Irwin M. Rubin 10 ©20 01 by Prentice Hall, Inc. Common Perceptual Error: Stereotypes Rarely accurately applied to specific individuals Resistant to change even in light of new information Based on relatively little information

11. Organizational Behavior: An Experiential Approach 7/E Joyce S. Osland, David A. Kolb, and Irwin M. Rubin 11 ©20 01 by Prentice Hall, Inc. Stereotypes Are Helpful When They Are... Consciously held Descriptive Accurate The first best guess about a group Modified after further experience and observation

12. Organizational Behavior: An Experiential Approach 7/E Joyce S. Osland, David A. Kolb, and Irwin M. Rubin 12 ©20 01 by Prentice Hall, Inc. Cross cultural perceptions are: Selective – we screen out most information Learned – we learn to see the world in a particular way Culturally determined – the way we see the world is based on our culture Consistent – once we see something in a certain way we continue to see it in that way Inaccurate – we see things that do not exist and do not see things that do exist. We perceive things based upon our cultural map.

13. Organizational Behavior: An Experiential Approach 7/E Joyce S. Osland, David A. Kolb, and Irwin M. Rubin 13 ©20 01 by Prentice Hall, Inc. Sources of Cross-Cultural Misinterpretation Subconscious cultural blinders— interpret events and behavior through our own cultural lens Lack of cultural self-awareness— unaware of our own cultural values and how others perceive us Projected similarity—assume other people and situations are more similar than they really are

14. Organizational Behavior: An Experiential Approach 7/E Joyce S. Osland, David A. Kolb, and Irwin M. Rubin 14 ©20 01 by Prentice Hall, Inc. In-Group/Out-Group Dynamics Automatic, unconscious stereotyping

15. Organizational Behavior: An Experiential Approach 7/E Joyce S. Osland, David A. Kolb, and Irwin M. Rubin 15 ©20 01 by Prentice Hall, Inc. Johari Window