Perception
The dynamic psychological process responsible for attending to, organizing and interpreting sensory data.
= Perception is about subjectivity
Perceptual world:
Individual’s personal internal image, map or picture of their social, physical and organizational environment
SENSORY INPUT SLECTIVE ATTENTION PERCEPTUAL ORGANIZATION INTERPRETATION BEHAVIORAL RESPONSE
Sender
encoding
Receiver
decoding
Selective attention (perception)
the ability to choose from the stream of sensory data, to concentrate on particular elements, and ignore others
Perceptual threshold
a boundary point, either side of which our senses respectively will or will not be able to detect stimuli (e.g., sound, light, touch etc.)
Habituation
the decrease in our perceptual response to stimuli once they have become clear
Perceptual filters:
individual characteristics, tendencies, biases that affect (or interfere with) the effective transmission and receipt of messages.
Halo Effect
(reliance on central traits)
Beauty - intelligence, good person
Height - competence
Stereotyping
“judging individuals based on one’s perception of the group to which that person belongs and ignoring variations among them”
Stereotype threat
Members of a social group feel they might be judged according to a stereotype and that their behavior/or performance will only confirm that
Self-fulfilling prophecy
A prediction that comes true because someone expects it to happen
Discrimination
Treatment or consideration of, or making a distinction in favor or against a person based on the group, class or category to which that person belongs rather than on individual merit
Appearance bias:
Being attractive benefits for both men and women: 11 to 15 % more income.
Tall men earn more than others (Harper, 2000).
Attribution
The process by which we make sense of our environment through our perceptions.
Aesthetic labor
trying to control the appearance of employees (e.g., facial expressions, speech, accent, style of dress, hairstyles etc.)
Culture:
- Systems of knowledge shared by a relatively large group of people
- Way of life of a group of people
- Sum of total of the learned behavior of a group of people
Organizational culture:
“the way we do things around here” (Deal and Kennedy, 1982)
“how people behave when no one is watching” (Hofstede, 1980)
“collective programming of the mind” (Hofstede, 2001)
Cultural manifestations
Symbols
Rituals
Stories
Symbols:
Indicators of organizational culture with a meaning (e.g., authority symbol)
Rituals
Rites, ceremonies, events (e.g., recognition awards, Friday)
Stories
Anecdotes on past events (e.g., story of the founder, star employees)
Organizational socialization
The process by which people learn the attitudes, knowledge, and the behaviors that are necessary for them to function in a group or organization
Anticipatory stage
Expectations that a new comer has about the job and the organization before starting work
Accomodation stage
Period during which newcomers learn about organization’s norms, values, behaviours, expectations
Role management stage
Fine-tuning newcomers’ learning and adding those responsabilities expected form fully fledged organizational members
Types and traits of organizational culture
Caring Purpose Learning Enjoyment Results Authority Safety Order
Hofstede’s cultural dimensions
- Individualisn – Collectivism
- Power repsect – Power Tolerance
- Unceratinty acceptance – Uncertainty avoidance
- Aggressive goal behavior – Passive goal behavior
- Long term oriented – short term oriented
GLOBE
Global Leadership of Organizational Behavior Effectiveness
- Expanding Hofstede’s work with new cultural dimensions:
ASSERTIVENESS
HUMANE ORIENTATION
PERFORMANCE ORIENTATION
Assertiveness:
the degree to which individuals are bold, forceful, dominant, or demanding in their relationship with others
Humane orientation
the degree to which a society rewards individuals for being altruistic, generous, and kind to others
Humane orientation
the degree to which a society rewards individuals for being altruistic, generous, and kind to others
Performance orientation
the degree to which a society encourages and rewards group members for performance improvement and excellence
Strong and weak cultures
Main barriers to effective organizational communication:
Power differences Gender differences Physical surroundings Language Cultural diversity
Non-verbal behavior
Body movements Appereance With your eyes Through touch Voice qualities Smell Phsysical space Time usage Through objects
High context culture
Communication is indirect, implicit, subtle, layered and nuanced
Messages are both spoken and read between the lines
Messages are often implied but not plainly expressed
Nonverbal cues like tone of voice, eye movements, gestures and facial expressions carry a great deal of meaning
Establishing relationship first
Low context culture
Communication is concise, straight forward, explicit, simple and clear
Requires attention to the literal meanings of words than to the context surrounding them
Repetition is often used to provide the necessary clarity
The purpose and outcome of the communication takes precedence over interpersonal relationships
Get down to business first
Gender differences in communication
Emotional Intelligence (EQ)
A person’s ability to:
- perceive emotions in the self and others,
- understand the meaning of these emotions, and
- regulate his or her own emotions accordingly
