Chapter 4 Perception, Attribution, and the Management of Diversity

1. Chapter 4Perception, Attribution, and the Management of Diversity

2. Perception • What? • The process by which individuals select, organize, and interpret the input from their senses to give meaning and order to the world around them

3. Figure 4.1 Components of Perception Perceiver Target Situation or context in which perception takes place

4. Components of Perception Perceiver Situation Target

5. The Accuracy of Perceptions • Implications: • Perceptions are critical for managerial functions • Motivating subordinates • Treating subordinates fairly and equitably • Making ethical decisions

6. The Accuracy of Perceptions • Not always accurate • Accuracy can be improved by understanding • what perceptions are • how they are formed • what influences them

7. Figure 4.2 Characteristics of the Perceiver That Affect Perception Insert Figure 4.2 here

8. Table 4.1 Factors That Influence Perception

9. Schemas • What? • Responsible for the organization and interpretation of information about targets of perception • Based on past experiences and knowledge • Resistant to change

10. Schemas • Types: • Functional • Adapt to complex environment • Dysfunctional • Inaccurate perceptions • Ex. Stereotypes

11. Motivational State and Mood • Motivational State: The needs, values, and desires of a perceiver at the time of perception. • Mood: How a perceiver feels at the time of perception.

12. Table 4.1 Factors That Influence Perception

13. Ambiguity • A lack of clearness or definiteness • As the ambiguity of a target increases, it becomes increasingly difficult for a perceiver to form an accurate perception

14. Social Status • What? • A person’s real or perceived position in society or in an organization. • Targets with relatively high status are perceived to be smarter, more credible, more knowledgeable, and more responsible for their actions than lower-status targets.

15. High Low Impression Management • An attempt to control the perceptions or impressions of others

16. Behavioral Matching The target of perception matches his or her behavior to that of the perceiver. A subordinate tries to imitate her boss’s behavior by being modest and soft-spoken because her boss is modest and soft-spoken. Self- Promotion The target tries to present herself or himself in as positive a light as possible. A worker reminds his boss about his past accomplishments and associates with co- workers who are evaluated highly. Table 4.2 Impression Management Tactics Appreciating or Flattering Others The target compliments the per- ceiver. This tactic works best when flattery is not extreme and when it involves a dimension important to the perceiver. A coworker compliments a manager on his excellent handling of a troublesome employee.

17. Table 4.1 Factors That Influence Perception

18. Salience • Extent to which a target of perception stands out in a group of people or things • Causes of salience Being novel Being figural Being inconsistent

19. Being novel Anything that makes a target unique in a situation Examples: Being the only person of a particular age, sex, or race in a situation Being figural Standing out from the background Example: Being in a spotlight, sitting at the head of the table, wearing bright clothes Being Inconsistent with other people’s expectations Behaving or looking in a way that is out of the ordinary Example: A normally shy person who is the life of the party Table 4.3 Causes of Salience

20. Table 4.4 Biases and Problems in Perception Primacy Effects The initial pieces of information that a perceiver has about a target have an inordinately large effect on the perceiver’s perception and evaluation of the target. Interviewers decide in the first few minutes of an interview whether or not a job candidate is a good prospect. Contrast Effect The perceiver’s perceptions of others influence the perceiver’s perception of a target. A manager’s perception of an average subordinate is likely to be lower if that subordinate is in a group with very high performers rather than in a group with very low performers. Halo Effect The perceiver’s general impression of a target influences his or her perception of the target on specific dimensions. A subordinate who has made a good overall impression on a supervisor is rated as performing high-quality work and always meeting deadlines regardless of work that is full of mistakes and late.

21. Table 4.4 Biases and Problems in Perception Similar-to- me Effect People perceive others who are similar to themselves more positively than they perceive those who are dissimilar. Supervisors rate subordinates who are similar to them more positively than they deserve. Harshness, Leniency, Average Tendency Some perceivers tend to be overly harsh in their perceptions, some overly lenient. Others view most targets as being about average. When rating subordinates’ performances, some supervisors give almost everyone a poor rating, some give almost everyone a good rating, and others rate almost everyone as being about average. Knowledge of Predictor Knowing how a target stands on a predictor of performance influences perceptions of the target. A professor perceives a student more positively than she deserves because the professor knows the student had a high score on the SAT.

22. Perception, Attribution, Management of Diversity

23. Attribution Theory • Describes how people explain the causes of behavior • Focuses on why people behave the way they do • Attributions can be made about the self or another person

24. Figure 4.3 Types of Attributions Insert Figure 4.3 here

25. Attributional Biases • Fundamental attribution error • Internal causes to behavior • Actor-observer effect • Internal to others and external to self • Self-serving attribution • Credit for success

26. Perception, Attribution, Management of Diversity

27. Objectives of Diversity Programs • Making explicit and breaking down organizational member’ stereotypes • Result in inaccurate perceptions and attributions • Making members aware of different kinds of backgrounds, experiences, and values

28. Objectives of Diversity Programs • Showing members how to deal effectively with diversity-related conflicts and tensions • Generally improving members’ understanding of each other

29. Diversity Training • Role-playing • Self-awareness activities • Awareness activities • Education • Mentoring • Formal • Informal

30. Sexual Harassment Quid Pro Quo Hostile Work Environment

31. Examples of Hostile Work Environment Sexual harassment • Pornographic pictures • Sexual jokes • Lewd comments • Sexually-oriented comments • Displays of sexually-oriented objects

32. Steps to Combat Sexual Harassment • Develop a sexual harassment policy • Clearly communicate the organization’s sexual harassment policy

33. Steps to Combat Sexual Harassment • Investigate charges of sexual harassment • Take corrective action • Provide sexual harassment training and education