WOP: Perceiving ourselves and others summary

Question 1

What is meant by the self concept? How can this be defined?

Answer 1

Self-concept is an individual’s self-belief and self-evaluations. Our self-concept is defined at an individual, relational and collective level.

Question 2

What three characteristics can an individual self concept be described?

Answer 2

complexity (number of distinct and important roles), consistency (amount of self-views that require similar personality traits) and clarity (clear, defined and stable)

Question 3

How is clarity affected by age?

Answer 3

Clarity increases with age because personality and values become relatively stable by adulthood and people develop better self-awareness through life experiences.

Question 4

What is the relationship between clarity and consistency?

Answer 4

Clarity is higher when the consistency is high.

Question 5

What is the relationship between each of these factors and wellbeing?

Answer 5

The higher the complexity, consistency and clarity, the better well-being people tend to have. Too much variation causes internal tension and conflict, but consistency can help with this.

Question 6

How does certain self concepts affect task performance?

Answer 6

Employees with complex self-concept tend to be better at adaptive performance and self-concept clarity improves general performance

Question 7

Describe in relative detail the four processes that shape the self concept and motivate a persons decisions and behaviour

Answer 7

Self enhancement- The extent to which a person is motivated to see themselves in a good light. People tend to believe they are better than average at things they care about.
Self-verification- The extent to which a person will seek information that is in line with their self concept. People will remember this information better than other info and are more motivated to work with people who verify this information.
Self evaluation- This includes self efficacy, self esteem and locus of control
Social-self- the social identity theory states we define ourselves as groups to establish emotional connections. We place these group identities in a hierarchal list. We strive to be part of a group but also unique.

Question 8

Describe the process of perception leading to attitudes and behaviour

Answer 8

Perception begins when we receive environmental stimuli through our senses. Through selective attention and emotional marker response we make a perceptual organisation and interpretation which leads to attitudes and behaviour.

Question 9

Describe two selective attention biases

Answer 9

One selective attention bias is the effect of our assumptions and expectations about future events. Our assumptions and expectations determine what we see (or what is more salient). Another selective attention bias is confirmation bias.

Question 10

What is meant by categorical thinking?

Answer 10

Categorical thinking refers to organizing perceptions into preconceived categories that are stored in our long-term memory.

Question 11

Name two other forms of perceptual grouping

Answer 11

Filling in the missing information and the tendency to look for patterns is also a form of perceptual grouping, the grouping of perceptions in trends.

Question 12

What is meant by the term mental models? What do they rely on?

Answer 12

Mental models are knowledge structures that we develop to describe, explain and predict the world around us. Mental models partly rely on the process of perceptual grouping.

Question 13

Name two ways of changing our mental models

Answer 13

Questioning our assumptions and working with people from more diverse backgrounds

Question 14

What is meant by stereotyping?

Answer 14

Stereotyping is the process of assigning traits to people based on their membership in a social category.

Question 15

How are stereotypes formed?

Answer 15

Personal experience, cultural prototypes and media images (movie characters)

Question 16

What is the function of stereotyping?

Answer 16

It is a form of categorical thinking which simplifies our view of the world and helps us predict behaviour

Question 17

What motivates stereotyping?

Answer 17

The observers need for social identity and self enhancement

Question 18

Describe the three processes that follow self enhancement

Answer 18

Categorisation (eg selective attention and stereotyping), homogenisation (people within groups are very similar) and differentiation (more favourable characteristics to in-group members

Question 19

Why does stereotype threat occur?

Answer 19

Because people try to avoid confirming the stereotype and try to push the negative image from their mind. These use cognitive energy.

Question 20

What are the dangers of stereotyping?

Answer 20

Stereotypes also cause us to generalize without evidence and lay the foundation for discrimination. Stereotypes can lead to systematic discrimination or intentional discrimination.

Question 21

Is it effective to consciously try to stop stereotyping?

Answer 21

It is possible to consciously minimize the extent to which we rely on stereotypic information.

Question 22

What is meant by the attribution process?

Answer 22

The attribution process is the perceptual process of deciding whether an observed behaviour or event is caused largely by internal or external factors.

Question 23

What are the three attribution rules people rely on?

Answer 23

Consistency, distinctiveness and consensus

Question 24

Name 8 errors associated with the attribution process

Answer 24

Self serving bias (attribute our own to situation), fundamental attribution error (personal bias), Self fulfilling prophecy, False-consensus bias (believing people have more in common in us than they do), Halo effect (our general impression, usually based on one prominent characteristic, colours our perception of other characteristics of that person (a friendly person is more likely to be seen as smart)), Primacy effect (relying on old information) and recency effect (relying only on new information)

Question 25

What factors effect the self fulfilling prophecy?

Answer 25

Stronger effect at the beginning of a relationship. It also holds when more people have the same expectations. It is also stronger with people with low self-esteem.

Question 26

Why may the false-consensus bias arise?

Answer 26

Because we choose people that are similar, because of selective attention, because it is comforting and because of stereotyping.

Question 27

What is meant by positive organisational behaviour?

Answer 27

A perspective that states that organizations should focus on building positive qualities and traits within individuals as opposed to focussing on what’s wrong with them.

Question 28

What three ways are potentially effective in improving perception?

Answer 28

Awareness of perceptual biases, self awareness (Becoming self aware of your own personal biases and becoming more open) and meaningful interaction (This is any activity in which people engage in valued activities. People who interact with each other will be less perceptually biased)

Question 29

What is a problem with simple awareness of perceptual biases?

Answer 29

It can actually reinforce stereotypes and is ineffective for people with deeply held prejudices against these groups

Question 30

What tools may people use in order to increase self awareness?

Answer 30

The implicit association test is a way of making people more self-aware of the biases. Applying the Johari Window, a model of mutual understanding that encourages disclosure and feedback to increase our own open area and reduce the blind, hidden and unknown areas, can help decrease the use of biases.

Question 31

Describe the results of the Johari Window

Answer 31

The open area includes information that is known both to you and to others. The blind area refers to information that is known to others but not to you. The hidden area refers to information known to you but hidden to others. The unknown area refers to information that you and others don’t know.

Question 32

How can the results of a Johari Window be worked on in order to decrease biases?

Answer 32

Increasing open areas can decrease the use of implicit biases.

Question 33

What is meant by the contact hypothesis?

Answer 33

Under certain conditions, people who interact with each other will be less perceptually biased because they have a more personal understanding of the other person and their group.

Question 34

What is meant by a global mindset?

Answer 34

An individual’s ability to perceive, appreciate and empathize with people from other cultures and to process complex cross-cultural information.

Question 35

How may organisations develop a global mindset?

Answer 35

Giving employees opportunities to compare their own mental models with those of co- workers or partners from other regions of the world