1. Understanding Social Perception
Chapter Four
Understanding Social Perception
McGraw-Hill/Irwin
Organizational Behavior: Key Concepts, Skills & Best Practices, 3/e
Copyright © 2008 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

2. Social Perception
Perception is the process of interpreting one’s environment
Social perception involves how people think about themselves and other people

3. Causal Attributions
Causal Attributions – suspected or inferred causes of behavior

4. Heider’s Attribution Theory
People attribute other’s behavior either to internal factors or external factors
Internal factors – personal characteristics that cause behavior (such as ability or will)
External factors – environmental characteristics that cause behavior(such as difficult task or poor economy)

5. Kelley’s Model of Attribution
3 Criteria for determining a cause
Consensus involves a comparison of an individual’s behavior with that of his peers
Distinctiveness involves comparing a person’s behavior on one task with the behavior from other tasks.
Consistency is determined by judging if the individual’s performance on a given task is consistent over time.

6. Performance Charts
Figure 4-2

7. Kelley’s Model of Attribution
High consensus, high distinctiveness, low consistency  External attribution
Low consensus, low distinctiveness, high consistency  Internal attribution

8. Attributional Tendencies
Distorted interpretation (Attribution Errors)
Fundamental attribution bias - ignoring environment factors that affect behavior
Westerners show greater tendency of FAB than easterners
Why?
Self-serving bias- taking more personal responsibility for success than failure

9. Managerial Implications
Managers tend to disproportionately attribute subordinates’ behavior to internal causes
Attributional biases may lead to inappropriate managerial actions(promotion, transfer, layoff)
An employee’s attributions for his own performance have dramatic effects on subsequent motivation, performance, and self-esteem