Chapter 3 Perceiving Ourselves and Others in Organizations

Self-Concept Dimensions (3 C’s) § Complexity • People have multiple self-views § Consistency •

Self-Enhancement and Self. Verification § Self-enhancement • Drive to promote/protect a positive self-view -

Self-Evaluation and Social Self § Self-evaluation • Self-esteem – extent that we like and

Perception Defined § The process of receiving information about and making sense of the

Selective Attention Selecting vs ignoring sensory information § Affected by object and perceiver characteristics

Perceptual Organization/Interpretation § Categorical thinking • Mostly nonconscious process of organizing people/things § Perceptual

Stereotyping Through Categorization, Homogenization, Differentiation Social identity and self-enhancement reinforce stereotyping through: § Categorization

Attribution Rules Internal Attribution Frequently Seldom Consistency Distinctiveness Consensus Seldom Frequently External Attribution 3

Self-Fulfilling Prophecy Cycle Supervisor forms expectations Employee’s behavior matches expectations Expectations affect supervisor’s behavior

Self-Fulfilling Prophecy Effect is Strongest. . . § . . . at the beginning

Other Perceptual Effects § Halo effect • One trait affects perception of person’s other

Strategies to Improve Perceptions 1. Awareness of perceptual biases 2. Improving self-awareness • Applying

Global Mindset § An individual’s ability to perceive, appreciate, and empathize with people from

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Self-Concept Dimensions (3 C’s) § Complexity • People have multiple self-views § Consistency • Similar personality and values across multiple selves § Clarity • Clearly and confidently described, internally consistent, and stable across time. § People have better well-being with: • multiple selves (complexity) • well established selves (clarity) • selves are similar and compatible with traits (consistency) 3 -2

Self-Enhancement and Self. Verification § Self-enhancement • Drive to promote/protect a positive self-view - competent, attractive, lucky, ethical, valued • Positive self-concept outcomes: - better personal adjustment and mental/physical health - inflates personal causation and probability of success § Self-verification • • Motivation to verify/maintain our self-concept Stabilizes our self-concept People prefer feedback consistent with their self-concept Self-verification outcomes: - Tend to perceive information consistent with our self-concept - We interact more with those who affirm our self-concept 3 -3

Self-Evaluation and Social Self § Self-evaluation • Self-esteem – extent that we like and respect ourselves • Self-efficacy -- belief in one’s ability, motivation, role perceptions, and situation to complete a task • Locus of control -- general belief about personal control over life events § Social Self • Social identity -- defining ourselves in terms of groups to which we belong or have an emotional attachment • We identify with groups that support self-enhancement 3 -4

Perception Defined § The process of receiving information about and making sense of the world around us • Determining which information gets noticed • how to categorize this information • how to interpret information within our existing knowledge framework 3 -5

Selective Attention Selecting vs ignoring sensory information § Affected by object and perceiver characteristics § Emotional markers attached to selected information § Confirmation bias § • Information contrary to our beliefs/values is screened out 3 -6

Perceptual Organization/Interpretation § Categorical thinking • Mostly nonconscious process of organizing people/things § Perceptual grouping principles • Similarity or proximity • Closure -- filling in missing pieces • Perceiving trends § Interpreting incoming information • Emotional markers automatically evaluate information 3 -7

Stereotyping Through Categorization, Homogenization, Differentiation Social identity and self-enhancement reinforce stereotyping through: § Categorization -- Categorize people into groups § Homogenization -- Assign similar traits within a group; different traits to other groups § Differentiation -- Assign less favourable attributes to other groups 3 -8

Attribution Rules Internal Attribution Frequently Seldom Consistency Distinctiveness Consensus Seldom Frequently External Attribution 3 -9

Self-Fulfilling Prophecy Cycle Supervisor forms expectations Employee’s behavior matches expectations Expectations affect supervisor’s behavior Supervisor’s behavior affects employee 3 -10

Self-Fulfilling Prophecy Effect is Strongest. . . § . . . at the beginning of the relationship (e. g. employee joins the team) § . . . when several people have similar expectations about the person § . . . when the employee has low rather than high past achievement 3 -11

Other Perceptual Effects § Halo effect • One trait affects perception of person’s other traits § False-consensus effect • overestimate how many others have similar beliefs or traits like ours § Primacy effect • First impressions § Recency effect • Most recent information dominates perceptions 3 -12

Strategies to Improve Perceptions 1. Awareness of perceptual biases 2. Improving self-awareness • Applying Johari Window 3. Meaningful interaction • Close, frequent interaction toward a shared goal • Equal status • Engaged in a meaningful task 3 -13

Global Mindset § An individual’s ability to perceive, appreciate, and empathize with people from other cultures, and to process complex cross-cultural information. • awareness of, openness to, and respect for other views and practices in the world • capacity to empathize and act effectively across cultures • ability to process complex information about novel environments • ability to comprehend and reconcile intercultural matters with multiple levels of thinking 3 -14