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Personality, Perception,
and Attribution
Chapter 3 Organizational
BehaviorNelson & Quick, 6th edition
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Individual Differences
Individual Differences - the way in which factors such as skills, abilities, personalities, perceptions, attitudes, values, and ethics differ from one individual to another
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Variables Influencing Individual Behavior
The person Skills & abilities Personality Perceptions Attitudes Values Ethics
The environment Organization Work group Job Personal life
BehaviorBehavior
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B = f(P,E)
Interactional Psychology
Interactional psychology - a psychological approach that says in order to understand human behavior, we must know something about the person and about the situation
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Propositions of Interactional Psychology
• Behavior is a function of a continuous, multi-directional interaction between person and situation
• Person is active in process– Changed by situations – Changes situations
• People vary in many characteristics• Two situational interpretations
– The objective situation– Person’s subjective view of the situation
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Definition of Personality
Personality -
A relatively stable set of characteristics that influences an individual’s behavior
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Personality Theories
Trait Theory - understand individuals by breaking down behavior patterns into a series of observable traits
Integrative Approach - describes personality as a composite of an individual’s psychological processes
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Big Five Personality Traits
Extraversion Gregarious, assertive, sociable
Agreeableness Cooperative, warm, agreeable
Conscientiousness Hardworking, organized, dependable
Emotional stability Calm, self-confident, cool
Openness to experience
Creative, curious, cultured
SOURCES: P. T. Costa and R. R. McCrae, The NEO-PI Personality Inventory (Odessa, Fla.: Psychological Assessment Resources, 1992); J. F. Salgado, “The Five Factor Model of Personality and Job Performance in the European Community,” Journal of Applied Psychology 82 (1997): 30-43.
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Core Self-Evaluation (CSE) Traits Locus of Control
Internal External
I control what happens to me!
People and circumstances control my fate!
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Core Self-Evaluation (CSE) Traits
Self-Efficacy - beliefs and expectations about one’s ability to accomplish a specific task effectively
Sources of self-efficacyPrior experiences and prior successBehavior models (observing success)PersuasionAssessment of current physical & emotional capabilities
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Self-EsteemFeelings of Self-Worth
Success tendsto increaseself-esteem
Failure tendsto decreaseself-esteem
Core Self-Evaluation (CSE) Traits
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High self monitors– flexible: adjust
behavior according to the situation and the behavior of others
– can appear unpredictable & inconsistent
Low self monitors– act from internal states
rather than from situational cues
– show consistency– less likely to respond to
work group norms or supervisory feedback
Self-MonitoringBehavior based on cues from others & situations
Core Self-Evaluation (CSE) Traits
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Who Is Most Likely to . . .Low-self monitors
High-self monitors
Get promoted
Change employers
Make a job-related geographic move
Accomplish tasks, meet other’s expectations, seek out central
positions in social networks
Self-promote
Demonstrate higher levels of managerial self-awareness;
base behavior on other’s cues and the situation
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Positive Affect - an individual’s tendency to accentuate the positive aspects of oneself, other people, and the world in general
Negative Affect - an individual’s tendency to accentuate the negative aspects of oneself, other people, and the world in general
Core Self-Evaluation (CSE) Traits
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Personality Characteristics in Organizations
A strong situation can overwhelm the effectsof individual personalitiesby providing strong cuesfor appropriate behavior
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Strong personalitieswill dominatein a weaksituation
Personality Characteristics in Organizations
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Four Measures of Personality
Projective Test - elicits an individual’s response to abstract stimuli
Behavioral Measures - personality assessments that involve observing an individual’s behavior in a controlled situation
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Four Measures of Personality
Self-Report Questionnaire - assessment involving an individual’s responses to questions
Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) - instrument measuring Jung’s theory of individual differences.
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Myers-Briggs Type Indicator
Based on Carl Jung’s theories– People are fundamentally different– People are fundamentally alike– People have preference combinations
for extraversion/introversion, perception, judgment
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Based on Carl Jung’s theories– Human similarities/differences
understood by combining preferences• Ways of doing things• Extraversion or introversion
– No preferences better than others– Understand, celebrate, and
appreciate differences
Myers-Briggs Type Indicator
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Myers Briggs Type Indicator
Briggs & Myers developed the MBTI to understand individual differences by analyzing the combinations of preferences
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MBTI Preferences
Preferences Represents
Extraversion Introversion How one
re-energizes
Sensing INtuiting How one gathers
information
Thinking Feeling How one makes decisions
Judging Perceiving How one orients to the
outer world
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MBTI Scales
ISTJ ISFJ INFJ INTJ
ISTP ISFP INFP INTP
ESTP ESFP ENFP ENTP
ESTJ ESFJ ENFJ ENTJ
Introverts
Extroverts
Sensing Types Intuitive TypesSOURCE: Modified and reproduced by special permission of the Publisher. CPP, Inc. Palo Alto, CA 94303 from Introduction to Type, Sixth Edition by Isabel Briggs Myers. Copyright 1998 by CPP, Inc. All rights reserved. Further reproduction is prohibited without the publisher’s written consent.
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Uses of MBTI
• Identify learning and teaching styles• Decide on careers (Example: many
managers are ESTJs)• Determine decision making style• Determine management style• Build teams
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Social Perception
Model
Social Perception
Target Characteristics• Physical appearance• Verbal communication• Nonverbal cues• Intentions
Perceiver Characteristics• Familiarity with target• Attitudes/Mood • Self-Concept• Cognitive structure
Situational Characteristics• Interaction context• Strength of situational cues
Barriers • Selective perception• Stereotyping• First-impression error• Projection• Self-fulfilling prophecies
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Impression ManagementImpression Management -
process by which individuals try to control the impression others have of them– Name dropping– Appearance– Self-description– Flattery– Favors– Agreement with opinion
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Attribution Theory
Attribution theory - explains how individuals pinpoint the causes of their own behavior or that of others
Internal attribution - attributing success to ability or effort
External attribution - attributing success to sources beyond your control
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Attribution Biases
Fundamental Attribution Error - tendency to make attributions to internal causes when focusing on someone else’s behavior
Self-serving Bias - tendency to attribute one’s own successes to internal causes and one’s failures to external causes
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Chapter 3: Reflect & DiscussThe Breakfast Club Video Clip
What to Watch for and Ask Yourself• Which Big-Five personality dimensions describe
each character in this scene?• Which characters show positive affect? Which
show negative affect?• Refer to the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI)
section in this chapter. Which of the 16 types shown in Table 3.3 best describes each character? Why?