Perception, Personality, and Emotion

Perception and Personality, and Emotions Questions for Consideration Questions for Consideration What is perception? What causes people to have different perceptions of the same situation? Can people be mistaken in their perceptions? Does perception really affect outcome? What is personality and how does it affect behaviour? Can emotions help or get in the way when dealing with others?

Perception What is Perception? Why Is it Important? The process by which individuals organize and interpret their sensory impressions in order to give meaning to their environment. Why Is it Important? Because people’s behaviour is based on their perception of what reality is, not on reality itself. The world as it is perceived is the world that is behaviourally important.

Why We Study Perceptions We study this topic to better understand how people make attributions about events. We don’t see reality. We interpret what we see and call it reality. The attribution process guides our behaviour, regardless of the truth of the attribution

Factors Influencing Perception The Perceiver The Target The Situation

Factors that Influence Perception The Target • Novelty Motion Sounds Size Background Proximity The Perceiver Attitudes Motives Interests Experience Expectations The Situation Time Work setting Social setting

Perceptual Errors Attribution Theory Selective Perception Halo Effect Contrast Effects Projection Stereotyping

Attribution Theory When individuals observe behaviour, they attempt to determine whether it is internally or externally caused. Distinctiveness Does individual act the same way in other situations? Consensus Does individual act the same as others in same situation? Consistency Does the individual act the same way over time?

Attribution Theory Fundamental Attribution Error Self-Serving Bias The tendency to underestimate the influence of external factors and overestimate the influence of internal factors when making judgments about the behaviour of others. Self-Serving Bias The tendency for individuals to attribute their own successes to internal factors while putting the blame for failures on external factors.

Attribution Theory Attribution Observation Interpretation of cause High (Seldom) Distinctiveness External (How often does the person do this in Internal other settings?) Low (Frequently) High (Frequently) Consensus External Individual (How often do other behaviour people do this in Internal similar situations?) Low (Seldom) High (Frequently) Consistency Internal (How often did the person do this in External the past?) Low (Seldom)

Additional Perceptual Errors Selective Perception People selectively interpret what they see based on their interests, background, experience, and attitudes Halo Effect Drawing a general impression about an individual based on a single characteristic Contrast Effects A person’s evaluation is affected by comparisons with other individuals recently encountered

Additional Perceptual Errors Projection Attributing one’s own characteristics to other people Stereotyping Judging someone on the basis of your perception of the group to which that person belongs

Personality Personality Determinants Personality Traits The sum total of ways in which an individual reacts and interacts with others. Personality Determinants Heredity Environment Situation Personality Traits Enduring characteristics that describe an individual’s behaviour The Big Five Model

Sixteen Primary Personality Traits 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. Reserved Less intelligent Affected by feelings Submissive Serious Expedient Timid Tough-minded Trusting Practical Forthright Self-assured Conservative Group-dependent Uncontrolled Relaxed vs. Outgoing More intelligent Emotionally stable Dominant Happy-go-lucky Conscientious Venturesome Sensitive Suspicious Imaginative Shrewd Apprehensive Experimenting Self-sufficient Controlled Tense

The Big Five Model Classifications Extroversion Agreeableness Conscientiousness Emotional Stability Openness to Experience

Big Five Personality Factors and Performance Relationship to Job Performance Relationship to Team Performance Extroversion * Positively related to job performance in occupations requiring social interaction * Positively related to training proficiency for all occupations * Positively related to team performance * Positively related to degree of participation within team Agreeableness * Positively related to job performance in service jobs * Most studies found no link between agreeableness and performance or productivity in teams * Some found a negative link between person’s likeability and team performance Conscientiousness * Positively related to job performance for all occupational groups * May be better than ability in predicting job performance

Big Five Personality Factors and Performance Relationship to Job Performance Relationship to Team Performance Emotional Stability * A minimal threshold amount may be necessary for adequate performance; greater degrees not related to job performance * Positively related to performance in service jobs * May be better than ability in predicting job performance across all occupational groups Openness to Experience *Positively related to training proficiency *Data unavailable

Major Personality Attributes Influencing OB Locus of Control Machiavellianism Self-Esteem Self-Monitoring Risk Taking Type A and Type B Personalities

Locus of Control The degree to which people believe they are in control of their own fate Internals Individuals who believe that they control what happens to them Externals Individuals who believe that what happens to them is controlled by outside forces such as luck or chance

Machiavellianism Degree to which an individual is pragmatic, maintains emotional distance, and believes that ends can justify means

Self-Esteem Individuals’ degree of liking or disliking of themselves

Self-Monitoring A personality trait that measures an individual’s ability to adjust behaviour to external situational factors

Risk-Taking Refers to a person’s willingness to take chances or risks

Type A Personality Always moving, walking, and eating rapidly. Feel impatient with the rate at which most events take place. Strive to think or do two or more things at once. Cannot cope with leisure time. Are obsessed with numbers, measuring their success in terms of how many or how much of everything they acquire.

Type B Personality Never suffer from a sense of time urgency with its accompanying impatience. Feel no need to display or discuss either their achievements or accomplishments unless such exposure is demanded by the situation. Play for fun and relaxation, rather than to exhibit their superiority at any cost. Can relax without guilt.

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