Johns 10e Irm ch03 PDF

CHAPTER 3
PERCEPTION, ATTRIBUTION, AND DIVERSITY
CHAPTER LEARNING OBJECTIVES
After reading Chapter 3 students should be able to:

LO3.1. Define perception and discuss some of the general factors that influence
perception.
LO3.2. Explain social identity theory and Bruner’s model of the perceptual process.
LO3.3. Describe the main biases in person perception.
LO3.4. Describe how people form attributions about the causes of behaviour and various
biases in attribution.
LO3.5. Discuss the concepts of workforce diversity and valuing diversity and how racial,
ethnic, religious, gender, age, and LGBT stereotypes affect organizational
behaviour and what organizations can do to manage diversity.
LO3.6. Discuss trust perceptions and perceived organizational support, and describe
organizational support theory.
LO3.7. Discuss person perception and perceptual biases in human resources.
CHAPTER OUTLINE AND TEACHING NOTES
What Is Perception?
Perception is the process of interpreting the messages of our senses to provide order and
meaning to the environment. Individuals’ perceptual systems help interpret reality, and
when that reality is another person, the influence that perception has on organizational
behaviour becomes clear. People frequently base their actions on the interpretation of
reality that their perceptual system provides rather than on reality itself. Among the most
important perceptions that influence organizational behaviour are the perceptions that
organizational members have of each other or what is known as person perception.
Components of Perception
Perception has three components – a perceiver, a target that is being perceived, and some
situational context in which the perception is occurring.
The Perceiver
The perceiver’s experience, needs, and emotions can affect his or her perceptions.
a. Experience — The perceiver’s past experience leads him or her to develop

expectations, and these expectations affect current perceptions.
Copyright © 2017 Pearson Canada Inc.

3-2 Johns/Saks, Organizational Behaviour, Tenth Edition
b. Needs — The particular needs that an individual has at any given point in time will
influence his or her perceptions. Often, this results in an individual perceiving what
he or she wants to perceive.
c. Emotional State — The particular emotions that an individual is experiencing at any
given point in time also affect perception. Often one person, when angry,
misperceives another. Sometimes, the perceptual system serves to defend against
unpleasant emotions, a phenomenon called perceptual defence. In general, we tend to
“see what we want to see.”
The Target
Ambiguity influences the amount of interpretation and addition of meaning to the target.
Perceivers have some need to resolve ambiguities about the target. Ambiguous targets are
especially susceptible to interpretation, which is what perception is all about.
The Situation
The situational context in which a perceptual event takes place affects perception, usually
by adding information about the target. The most important effect that the situation can
have is to add information about the target.
Social Identity Theory
According to social identity theory, people form perceptions of themselves based on their
characteristics and memberships in social categories. Our sense of self is composed of a
personal identity and a social identity. Our personal identity is based on our unique
personal characteristics, such as our interests, abilities, and traits. Social identity is based
on our perception that we belong to various social groups, such as our gender, nationality,
religion, occupation, and so on. Personal and social identities help us answer the
question, “Who am I?” We categorize ourselves and others to make sense of and
understand the social environment. Once a category is chosen, we tend to see members of
that category as embodying the most typical attributes of that category, or what are called
“prototypes.” Further, people tend to perceive members of their own social categories in
more positive and favourable ways than those who are different and belong to other
categories. As a result, social identity theory is useful for understanding stereotyping and
discrimination.
A Model of the Perceptual Process
Jerome Bruner developed a model of the perceptual process in which the concept of cues
is important. Cues are the bits and pieces of information contained in the target and the
situation that we use (or ignore) in forming our perceptions of the target. According to
Bruner’s perceptual model, when we encounter an unfamiliar target we are very open to
the cues contained in the target and the situation surrounding it. However, once familiar
cues are encountered, we attempt to categorize the target. At this point, we are very
selective about which cues we perceive, searching out cues that strengthen our
categorization of the target. This cue selectivity refers to the perceiver choosing only
certain cues out of all the available cues to perceive. Such selectivity is efficient, though

Chapter 3 Perception, Attribution, and Diversity 3-3
efficiency can both aid and hinder our perceptual accuracy. Bruner’s model points out
three common perceptual tendencies.
Selectivity. Perception is selective – perceivers do not use all the available cues, and
those they use are thus given special emphasis.
Constancy. Perceptual constancy is the tendency to perceive the target in the same way
over time or across situations.
Consistency. Perceptual consistency is the tendency to select, ignore, and distort cues in
such a manner that they fit together to form a homogeneous image of the target.
Basic Biases in Person Perception
The perception an individual has of another person is not always an accurate depiction of
reality. A number of perceptual biases influence our perception.
Primacy and Recency Effects

Primacy effect is the tendency to form a fast impression of another person by relying on
early cues or first impressions. Primacy can have a lasting effect on the perceiver since
the perceiver tends to select cues that are consistent with the first impression. Recency
effect is the tendency to give undue weight to the most recent information obtained or last
impressions. In other words, last impressions count most.
Reliance on Central Traits

Another perceptual bias occurs when an individual organizes his or her perceptions
around the presence of certain traits or characteristics of a target person that are of
interest to him or her. This reliance on central traits influences the perception of the
target person, biasing the perceiver to center on those traits that he or she considers
important. Physical appearance such as height is a common central trait in work settings
that is related to a variety of job-related outcomes. Individuals who are overweight tend
to be evaluated negatively on a number of workplace outcomes.
Implicit Personality Theories

Implicit personality theories suggests that an individual has a “theory” about which
personality characteristics go together. For example, if someone is hardworking one may
take it for granted that this person is also honest. Since such “theories” are very often
inaccurate, they represent another example of perceptual bias.
Projection
Projection is the tendency to attribute one’s own thoughts and feelings to others. In some
cases, projection is an efficient and sensible perceptual strategy and although the
projection an individual makes may be accurate, in many situations it is not. Just because
a person is honest doesn’t mean that everyone else is honest. Thus, projection can lead to
perceptual difficulties.

Stereotyping
Stereotyping is the tendency to generalize about people in a social category and ignore
variations among them. Categories on which people might base a stereotype include race,
religion, age, gender, ethnic background, social class, occupation, and so on. There are
three specific aspects to stereotyping:
ª We distinguish some category of people (university professors).

ª We assume that the individuals in this category have certain traits (absent-minded,
disorganized, ivory-tower mentality).
ª We perceive that everyone in this category possesses these traits (“All my professors
this year will be absent-minded, disorganized, and have an ivory-tower mentality”).
Stereotypes can be favourable or unfavourable and may be evoked with very little
information. Although they help clarify ambiguous targets, stereotypes are very often
inaccurate, especially when they are used to develop perceptions of specific individuals.
A number of factors work to reinforce inaccurate stereotypes. Even incorrect stereotypes
help us process information about others quickly and efficiently and sometimes it is
easier for the perceiver to rely on an inaccurate stereotype than it is to discover the true
nature of the target. Inaccurate stereotypes are often reinforced by selective perception
and the selective application of language. Since most stereotyping is inaccurate, it is best
to obtain information about targets before jumping to conclusions. Occupational
stereotypes often cause people to assign an elaborate complex of personal characteristics
to others based on their membership in a particular occupation.
Attribution: Perceiving Causes and Motives
Attribution is the process by which causes or motives are assigned to explain people’s
behaviour. Dispositional attributions are explanations for behaviour based on an actor’s
personality or intellect. Situational attributions are explanations for behaviour based on
an actor’s external situation or environment. The attribution process is important because
many rewards and punishments in organizations are based on judgments about what
really caused a target person to behave in a certain way.
Three implicit questions guide our decisions as to whether we should attribute the
behaviour to dispositional or situational causes.
Ï Does the person engage in the behaviour regularly and consistently? (Consistency
cues)
Ï Do most people engage in the behaviour, or is it unique to this person? (Consensus
cues)
Ï Does the person engage in the behaviour in many situations, or is it distinctive to one
situation? (Distinctiveness cues)

Consistency Cues
Consistency cues reflect how consistently a person engages in some behaviour over time.
In general, greater consistency provokes dispositional attributions.
Consensus Cues
Consensus cues reflect how a person’s behaviour compares with that of others. In
general, lower consensus behaviours provoke dispositional attributions.
Distinctiveness Cues
Distinctiveness cues reflect the extent to which a person engages in some behaviour
across a variety of situations. In general, behaviours that lack distinctiveness (and thus
occur in various situations) provoke dispositional attributions. When a behaviour is
highly distinctive in that it occurs in only one situation, we are likely to assume that some
aspect of the situation caused the behaviour.
Attribution in Action
We often have information at hand about consistency, consensus, and distinctiveness, and
we tend to use this information whenever we judge people and their behaviour. The
example in the textbook describes three employees who are absent from work. A
manager must develop an attribution about the cause to decide which action is warranted.
The following cue combination results in a dispositional attribution: high consistency,
low consensus, low distinctiveness. The following cue combination results in a
situational attribution: high consistency, high consensus, high distinctiveness. The
following cue combination results in a temporary situation attribution: low consistency,
high consensus, and low distinctiveness.
Biases in Attribution
Several attributional biases exist despite rational attempts to apply cues in making
attributions. Three biases in attribution are the fundamental attribution error, actor-
observer effect, and self-serving bias.
Fundamental attribution error. The fundamental attribution error is the tendency to

overemphasize dispositional explanations for behaviour at the expense of situational
explanations. This occurs because people are often seen behaving in constraining and
constant situations and because the impact of social roles on behaviour is not taken into
account. We fail to realize that the observed behaviour is distinctive to a particular
situation.
Actor-observer effect. The actor-observer effect is the propensity for actors and observers
to view the causes of the actor’s behaviour differently. Attributions of the observer are
more dispositional, and those of the actor are more situational. Thus, the observer is
making the fundamental attribution error while the actor emphasizes the role of the
situation. Research on the actor–observer effect has found that it appears to be more
likely under particular conditions such as when explaining negative events.

Self-serving bias. Self-serving bias is the tendency to take credit for successful outcomes
and to deny responsibility for failures. Thus, successes may be attributed to one’s
disposition, and failures may be attributed to an uncontrollable situation. People explain
the very same behaviour differently on the basis of events that happened after the
behaviour occurred.
Person Perception and Workforce Diversity
Workforce diversity refers to differences among recruits and employees in

characteristics, such as gender, race, age, religion, cultural background, physical ability,
and sexual orientation. Workforce diversity is an important issue today because the
workforce is becoming more diverse and there is growing recognition that many
organizations have not successfully managed workforce diversity.
The Changing Workplace

The changes in the composition of the Canadian workforce over the past few years has
had a dramatic effect on the makeup of the workforce and has forced organizations and
individuals to deal with these new realities. Changing immigration patterns, the ageing
baby boomers, and the increasing movement of women into paid employment have
created greater diversity in the workplace. Globalization, mergers, and strategic alliances
also require that employees interact with people from different cultures. The increased
emphasis on teamwork as a means of job design and quality enhancement has also
contributed to the increased interest in diversity issues.
Valuing Diversity
While legal regulations have encouraged firms to engage in fair hiring and employment
practices for decades, it is only recently that organizations have come to recognize the
value of diversity and not merely meeting legislated levels. A critical motive for valuing
diversity is the basic fairness of doing so. In addition, there is increasing awareness that
diversity and its proper management can yield strategic and competitive advantages.
Table 3.5 lists the competitive advantages to valuing and managing a diverse workforce.
Stereotypes and Workforce Diversity

A major barrier to valuing diversity is the stereotype. Common workplace stereotypes are
based on gender, age, race, religion, ethnicity, and sexual orientation. Stereotypes can
have negative effects on how individuals are treated in organizations.
Stereotype threat occurs when members of a social group (e.g., visible minorities,
women) feel they might be judged or treated according to a stereotype and that their
behaviour and/or performance will confirm the stereotype. In other words, the existence
of a stereotype threat can undermine a person’s performance. Research has found
evidence for stereotype threat effects for ethnicity/race stereotypes and gender-based
stereotypes. There is also some evidence that workers are often pressured to cover up or
downplay their membership in a particular group.
Racial, Ethnic, and Religious Stereotypes. The impact that racial, ethnic, and religious
stereotypes have as a barrier to organizations valuing diversity is examined. Racial,
ethnic, and religious stereotypes are pervasive, persistent, frequently negative, and often

self-contradictory. Examples that you can use to illustrate racial stereotypes can range
from Asians that are seen as mathematically and technically superior, and African
American athletes that are seen as athletically superior, but characterized as not having
the requisite leadership skills to handle a key position such as the quarterback on a
football team. In terms of human resource outcomes, just getting in the door can be a
problem. Whites have been found to advance further in the hiring process than blacks
even when the applicants are the same age and physical size, have identical education and
work experience, and share similar personalities. A recent study on religious
discrimination found that female job applicants who appeared to be Muslim experienced
more negative interpersonal behaviour and discrimination than non-Muslim female
applicants. Along these lines, you might refer students to the Ethical Focus feature which
describes how discrimination in hiring has been found to occur when job applicants have
an ethnic-sounding name. Career advancement based on racial or ethic stereotypes is also
common. Attributions have been found to play an important role in how job performance
is interpreted.
Gender Stereotypes. Gender stereotypes are also problematic for organizations. Women
are severely underrepresented in managerial and administrative jobs. Since males
dominate business and many males have a false stereotype of women’s executive
capabilities, women have not been able to advance as easily as men to higher
management levels. Studies have shown that successful middle managers are perceived
as having traits and attitudes that are similar to those generally ascribed to men. Thus,
stereotypes of successful middle managers do not correspond to stereotypes of women.
Although good managers are described today as possessing less masculine characteristics
than in past decades, the most recent research indicates that both men and women of
varying age, education, and work experience still describe a good manager as possessing
predominantly masculine characteristics. Thus, the stereotype of a leader is culturally
masculine. People perceive leaders as similar to men but not very similar to women.
This stereotype is detrimental to the hiring, development, promotion, and salaries of

women. Gender stereotypes are partly to blame for the underrepresentation of women in
managerial jobs. However, the detrimental effects of gender stereotypes can be reduced
or removed when decision makers have increased experience and training, are held
accountable for their decisions, have good job-related information about the
qualifications, competence, and performance of particular women and an accurate picture
of the job that they are applying for or seeking promotion into. In particular, several
studies reveal convincingly that women do not generally suffer from gender stereotypes
in performance evaluations that their supervisors provide. Instructors can use the “glass
ceiling” and discuss which industries or jobs students see as having the greatest incidence
of gender stereotypes. Use the construction, accounting, manufacturing, sales and
marketing jobs as a starting point. Women have made the most significant progress
moving into senior management and executive positions in the financial services
industry. On the other hand, industries that tend to be stereotypically male, such as paper
and forest products, steel production, motor vehicles and parts, oil and gas, and general
manufacturing and construction, continue to have the lowest representation of women in
senior positions.

Age Stereotypes. Age stereotyping is something that many students will have difficulty in
grasping. Knowing that a person falls into a certain age range, we have a tendency to
make certain assumptions about the person’s physical, psychological, and intellectual
capabilities. For example, older people tend to be perceived as having less capacity for
performance than younger people. They are also viewed as being less productive and
lacking the potential for development. These stereotypes are essentially inaccurate. Age
seldom limits the capacity for development until post-employment years. The most
comprehensive study on age and job performance found that age is not related to task
performance or creativity. However, older workers were found to exhibit more
citizenship behaviours and greater safety-related behaviour, and fewer counterproductive
work behaviours. Older workers were also found to exhibit less workplace aggression,
on-the-job substance use, tardiness, and absenteeism. Thus, older workers perform as
well or better than younger workers across numerous dimensions of job performance
Nonetheless, as a result of false stereotypes, many older people have experienced

discrimination, and many have taken their complaints to human rights agencies.
Discrimination on the basis of age is experienced by people as young as 40 to 45, who are
often passed over for merit pay and promotions or pressured to take early retirement. Age
stereotypes may have less impact on human resource decisions when managers have
good information about the capacities of the particular employee in question.
We find that using a highly technical area such as personal computers and popular culture
based business such as music and leisure wear will give students an appreciation of how
age stereotyping can play a role in organizational life. A good way to begin this
discussion is to have students complete the experiential exercise “Beliefs about Older
Workers” at the end of the chapter and then have students work in groups and calculate
their scores as described in the scoring and interpretation section of the exercise. The On-
the-Job Challenge question (Australia’s Jobs Bonus Initiative) can also be used as part of
a discussion of age stereotypes and the effect they have on human resource outcomes.
LGBT Stereotypes. Although there are laws in Canada that protect the rights of LGBT
workers, LGBT employees face barriers and discrimination in the workplace that can
limit their career advancement. The results of several surveys found that LGBT
employees face discrimination at work and LGBT men and women report exclusion from
the “old boys’ club.” As a result, many LGBT employees do not come out at work for
fear of the potential repercussions and negative consequences.
One report found that a lack of education and awareness and a reliance on stereotypes is
the root of the problem. These misperceptions and stereotypes lead to discriminatory
behaviours towards LGBT employees, such as homophobia, inappropriate humour,
exclusion from networks inside and outside of the organization, social exclusion, ridicule,
and a lack of role models. LGBT employees who are not out at work report greater
feelings of being stalled in their careers, and dissatisfaction with their rate of promotion
and advancement.

In recent years, an increasing number of organizations have begun to make their

workplaces more inclusive for LGBT employees. LGBT-inclusive workplaces can
increase employee engagement because they allow employees to be authentic and spend
less time self-editing, which can also increase loyalty and reduce turnover. When
organizations implement programs to create LGBT-inclusive workplaces, they improve
LGBT employee relationships with co-workers, increase perceptions of fairness, and
increase organizational commitment and career satisfaction, which can lead to increased
productivity.
Managing Workforce Diversity

Diversity needs to be managed to have a positive impact on work behaviour and an
organization. Management can use a number of strategies to achieve and manage a
diverse workforce. One way to begin this discussion is to have students read the chapter-
opening vignette on RBC, and then describe the strategies used to manage diversity. You
might also review Exhibit 3.8 which lists the common activities included in diversity
programs. It might be helpful to review these activities and ask students if they have
experienced any of them in organizations they have applied for or worked in.
The most important thing for students to understand from this section is how
organizations can manage a diverse workforce and that organizations integrate diversity
into all of its policies and practices rather than treat diversity as a stand-alone practice.
The textbook describes the following additional examples of how to manage diversity:
1. Select enough minority members to elevate them beyond token status.

2. Encourage teamwork that brings minority and majority members together.
3. Ensure that those making career decisions about employees have accurate information
about them.
4. Train people to be aware of stereotypes and to value diversity.
Diversity training programs are one of the most common approaches for managing
diversity, however, there is little hard research on the success of these programs. Further,
there is some anecdotal evidence that these programs can actually cause disruption and
bad feelings when all they do is get people to open up and voice their stereotypes and
then send them back to work. Thus, awareness training should be accompanied by skills
training that is relevant to the particular needs of the organization as well as a number of
other tactics (see Exhibit 3.8). Organizations that have been successful in managing
diversity have an inclusive culture that values individual differences
Other tactics that organizations can use are described in future chapters:
The implications of generational differences in values and work attitudes (Chapter 4)
Recognizing diversity in employee needs and motives (Chapter 5)
Using flexible work arrangements to offer employees flexibility (Chapter 6)

Using employee surveys to foster better communication (Chapters 10 and 15)
Perceptions of Trust
Trust is a topic that students can easily identify with. A good way to begin a discussion
on this topic is to ask students what trust means to them and if they trust managers in
general and if they trust managers in their current job or a previous job. The discussion
can also focus on why they do or do not trust managers they have worked for. You might
also ask your students if they trust their co-workers and the effect this has had on them if
they do or do not trust them.
Trust refers to a willingness to be vulnerable and to take risks with respect to the actions
of another party. Trust perceptions toward management are based on perceptions of
ability, benevolence, and integrity. Ability refers to employee perceptions regarding
management’s competence and skills. Benevolence refers to the extent that employees
perceive management as caring and concerned for their interests. Integrity refers to
employee perceptions that management adheres to and behaves according to a set of
values and principles. The combination of these three factors influences perceptions of
trust. Employees who perceive their supervisor as fair also have higher trust perceptions.
Perceptions of trust in management are positively related to job satisfaction,

organizational commitment, job performance and organizational citizenship behaviour,
and negatively related to turnover intentions. Trust is considered to be the most critical
factor when judging best workplaces in Canada. Trust among co-workers is also
important and it has been found to be related to physical symptoms and withdrawal.
Perceived Organizational Support
Perceived organizational support (POS) refers to employees’ general belief that their
organization values their contribution and cares about their well-being. According to
organizational support theory, employees who have strong perceptions of organizational
support feel an obligation to care about the organization’s welfare and to help the
organization achieve its objectives. They feel a greater sense of purpose and meaning and
a strong sense of belonging to the organization. As a result, employees incorporate their
membership and role within the organization into their social identity and employees feel
obligated to reciprocate the organization’s care and support. POS is related to job
satisfaction, organizational commitment, a positive mood, performance, reduced strains,
and lower absenteeism and turnover.
The main factors that contribute to POS are perceived supervisor support (the belief that
one’s supervisor values his/her contribution and cares about their well-being), fairness,
organizational rewards, and job conditions. Supportive human resource practices that
demonstrate an investment in employees and recognition of employee contributions are
most likely to lead to the development of greater POS.

Person Perception in Human Resources
Perceptions play an important role in human resources and can influence who gets hired
and how one is evaluated once they are hired. Perceptions play a role in three important
areas of human resources: applicant perceptions of recruitment and selection, the
employment interview, and the performance appraisal.
Perceptions of Recruitment and Selection

Research on recruitment and selection indicates that how job applicants are treated during
the recruitment and selection process influences their perceptions toward the organization
and their likelihood of accepting a job offer. According to signalling theory, job
applicants interpret their recruitment experiences as cues or signals about unknown
characteristics of the organization and what it will be like to work in an organization.
These perceptions are important because they influence a job applicant’s likelihood of
remaining in the selection process and accepting a job offer.
Applicants also form perceptions toward organizations based on the selection tests they
are required to complete. Job applicants form more positive perceptions of the selection
process when selection procedures are perceived as fair. Applicants who have more
positive perceptions of selection fairness are more likely to view the organization
favourably and to have stronger intentions to accept a job offer and recommend the
organization to others. Employment interviews and work samples are perceived more
favourably than cognitive ability tests, which are perceived more favourably than
personality tests and honesty tests.
Perceptions in the Employment Interview

A complex perceptual task like the employment interview is used to illustrate how
perceptual accuracy can be a problem. Research shows that the interview is a valid
selection device, although it is far from perfectly accurate, especially when the
interviewer conducts it in an unstructured, free-form format. The interview is a difficult
setting in which to form accurate impressions about others. Interviewers often adopt
“perceptual” crutches” that hinder accurate perception.
A number of factors affect the validity of the employment interview. Applicants are
usually motivated to present an especially favourable impression of themselves.
Perceptual biases that increase the difficulties in the interview include primacy, the use of
inaccurate ideal stereotypes, and the tendency to underweight positive information about
applicants which means that negative information has undue impact on the decision.
Contrast effects occur when previously interviewed job applicants affect an interviewer’s
perception of a current applicant, leading to an exaggeration of differences between
applicants. This might occur in an interview when an interviewer rates an average
candidate low after the interviewer has just seen two excellent candidates.
The validity of the interview improves when it is structured. Based on research conducted
by Derek Chapman and David Zweig, interview structure involves four dimensions:
evaluation standardization (the extent to which the interviewer uses standardized and

numeric scoring procedures); question sophistication (the extent to which the interviewer
uses job-related behavioural questions and situational questions); question consistency
(the extent to which the interviewer asks the same questions in the same order of every
candidate); and rapport building (the extent to which the interviewer does not ask
personal questions that are unrelated to the job). Interviews are more likely to be
structured when the interviewer had formal interview training and focuses on selection
rather than recruitment during the interview.
Perceptions and the Performance Appraisal

Organizations need to measure performance for decisions about pay raises, promotions,
and training needs. This involves the use of objective and subjective measures of
performance.
Objective and Subjective Measures. Objective measures, such as attendance records and
sales figures can be used to measure performance. These are measures that do not involve
a substantial degree of human judgment. However, it is difficult to find objective
indicators of performance as one moves up the organizational hierarchy and they are
often contaminated by situational factors. Thus, organizations must often rely on
subjective measures of effectiveness that are usually provided by managers and involve
the use of rating scales. However, observers’ are confronted by a number of perceptual
roadblocks such as not being in a position to observe many instances of effective and
ineffective performance as well as rater errors.
Rater Errors. Subjective performance appraisal is susceptible to some of the perceptual

biases we discussed earlier such as primacy, recency, and stereotypes. In addition, rater
errors are also possible in subjective performance evaluation. Leniency is the tendency to
perceive the job performance of ratees as especially good. Harshness is the tendency to
perceive the job performance of ratees as especially ineffective. Central tendency is the
tendency to assign most ratees to middle-range job performance categories. These rating
tendencies are partially a function of rater’s personal experiences and not all instances of
them represent perceptual errors.
The halo effect occurs when the observer allows the rating of an individual on one trait or
characteristic to colour the ratings on other traits or characteristics. For example, a
manager who rates an employee low on punctuality may devalue the employee’s quality
of work as well. As a result, the rater fails to perceive differences within ratees.
Similar-to-me effects occur when a rater gives more favourable evaluations to people
who are similar to the rater in terms of background or attitudes. For example, a rater may
overestimate the performance of an individual who holds similar religious or political
views. This probably stems from a tendency to view our own performance, attitudes, and
background as “good” and then generalize that to others who are similar to us in some
way.
Because it is difficult to get good subjective evaluations of employee performance, a

number of techniques have been developed for reducing perceptual errors and biases.

One example of this is a behaviourally anchored rating scale (BARS) that gives very
specific behavioural examples of good, average, and poor performance. The idea is that
with such an aid the rater will be less susceptible to perceptual errors.
Another example is frame-of- reference (FOR) training which involves providing raters
with a common frame-of-reference to use when rating individuals. Raters learn about
each performance dimension and are provided with examples of good, average, and poor
performance and to use the same frame-of-reference when rating all individuals.
Research on FOR training has shown that it is a very effective method for improving
rating accuracy
A CLASSROOM DEMONSTRATION: THE FUNDAMENTAL ATTRIBUTION

ERROR
The text defines the fundamental attribution error as the tendency for observers to
overemphasize dispositional factors in explaining the behaviour of others at the expense
of situational explanations. The role of situational factors is thus downplayed. We often
introduce this topic (without preamble) using the following exercise: Before class begins,
privately ask one of the brighter, more outgoing students to think up three difficult but
general knowledge questions to which he or she knows the answer. When the time arrives
to discuss the fundamental attribution error, announce to the class that this “questioner”
will quiz an “answerer.” Choose another bright student with high ego strength to be the
“answerer.” As you might guess, this “needle in a haystack” setup doesn’t favour the
answerer, who doesn’t do very well. Then ask the class “Who’s smarter? The questioner
or the answerer?” The students grin, because they know that 1) the questioner looks
brighter and 2) this is something of a setup.
Then continue by pointing out that the classroom demonstration is a simulation of an

actual study done by Lee Ross and colleagues (L. Ross, T.M. Amabile, & J.L. Steinmets,
“Social Roles, Social Controls, and Biases in Social Perception Processes,” Journal of
Personality and Social Psychology, 1977). In that study and others, observer, questioners,
and answerers have rated the questioner as more knowledgeable. This is, of course, a
dispositional attribution, and it occurs despite the strong and obvious impact of a
situational factor (role assignment as questioner or answerer) on the outcome of the quiz.
A CLASSROOM DEMONSTRATION: SELF-SERVING BIAS
The text defines self-serving bias as a tendency to take credit for successes and to deny
responsibility for failures. A little more generally, self-serving bias can also be seen in
self-assessment of one’s own character. Dana S. Dunn (“Demonstrating a Self-Serving
Bias,” Teaching of Psychology, February 1989, pp. 21-22) describes a simple but
effective technique for illustrating this in the classroom. Simply have student volunteers
cite some of their strengths and weaknesses and write them in two columns on the board.
Professor Dunn notes that the strengths column will generally be longer than the
weaknesses column, and that several weaknesses will in fact be modest or socially

acceptable versions of strengths (e.g., “workaholic”). Professor Dunn also points out that
this can be done as an (anonymous) hand-in assignment. The instructor can then calculate
the mean strength and weakness results for the next class session. Possible debriefing
questions: Are these biases indicative of true self-perceptions, or do they contain some
self-presentational public relations? Are they adaptive or maladaptive? How do they
affect encounters such as performance evaluation discussions between managers and
employees?
Another approach for demonstrating the self-serving bias is to ask students to recall the
last time they did very well on an exam and the last they did very poorly. Then have them
list the main reasons why they did very well on one exam and the reasons they did very
poorly on the other exam. Have them list their reasons in order of importance. Then ask
them to label their main reasons as dispositional or situational. The results should reveal
that students take credit for their successful exam but find situational explanations for
their poor exam performance.
SAMPLE ANSWERS TO DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
1. Suppose an employee does a particularly poor job on an assigned project. Discuss

the attribution process that this person’s manager will use to form judgments about
this poor performance. Be sure to discuss how the manager will use consistency,
consensus, and distinctiveness cues.
The manager’s goal is to determine whether an employee is lazy or poorly motivated
(dispositional attribution) or whether some situational factor, such as poor equipment or
weak support damaged performance. If the person has failed in other projects (low
distinctiveness), exhibited poor performance for a long time (high consistency), and done
poorly when others have done well (low consensus) a dispositional attribution is likely. If
the person has usually performed various tasks well and has done so for a long time (thus
the current behaviour is highly distinctive and not consistent) and if other workers also
have trouble with this project (high consensus) a situational attribution is likely. Failure
on the project is a function of the task and not the worker.
2. Discuss the factors that make it difficult for employment interviewers to form
accurate perceptions of interviewees. Explain why a gender or racial stereotype
might be more likely to affect a hiring decision than a performance appraisal
decision. How can interviews and performance appraisals be designed to improve the
accuracy of perceptions?
The interview is of short duration and does not allow the interviewer to actually see the
candidate in typical working conditions. In addition, the interviewer may not have
experience seeing applicants succeed and fail on the job in question. Thus, it may be
difficult for the interviewer to decide just what questions and answers are relevant. The
candidate is also motivated to put his or her “best foot forward,” and may misrepresent
himself or herself. Finally, the interviewer’s desire to “sell” the organization to the
candidate may interfere with questioning tactics and objectivity. When a person has had a
period of interaction with another, stereotypes about that individual are less likely to

occur than if it is a first encounter. Since hiring interviews are more than likely with
someone unfamiliar with the interviewee, and since performance appraisals are usually
conducted by someone familiar with the individual, stereotypes are more likely to affect a
hiring decision than a performance appraisal. Interviews can be designed to improve the
accuracy of perceptions when they are structured. Interview structure involves four
dimensions: evaluation standardization (the extent to which the interviewer uses
standardized and numeric scoring procedures); question sophistication (the extent to
which the interviewer uses job-related behavioural questions and situational questions);
question consistency (the extent to which the interviewer asks the same questions in the
same order of every candidate); and rapport building (the extent to which the interviewer
does not ask personal questions that are unrelated to the job). Further, interviews are
more likely to be structured when the interviewer has had formal interview training and
focuses on selection rather than recruitment during the interview. Performance appraisals
can be designed to improve the accuracy of perceptions by using rating scales with more
specific behavioural labels or what is known as a behaviourally anchored rating scale.
The assumption is that giving specific examples of effective and ineffective performance
will facilitate the rater’s perceptual processes and recall. Frame-of-reference training can
also be provided to raters to ensure that they use a common frame of reference when
rating individuals.
3. What are the implications of social identity theory for diversity in organizations?
Describe some of the things that an organization can do to remove the barriers to
workplace diversity. List some of the advantages gained by organizations that
effectively manage a diverse workforce.
If people categorize others into social categories and then perceive them as embodying
the most typical attributes of that category, stereotypes are likely to persist. Further, to the
extent that people view members of other social categories negatively, diversity can lead
to conflict and discrimination. It is therefore important to remove such stereotypes from
the workplace and the barriers to workplace diversity. To remove the barriers to
workplace diversity, the text suggests a number of strategies including:
1. Select enough minority members to elevate them beyond token status.

2. Encourage teamwork and cooperation that brings minority and majority members
together.
3. Ensure that those making career decisions about employees have accurate information
about them.
4. Provide training to make employees aware of stereotypes.
Some of the most common activities included in diversity programs are listed in Exhibit
3.8 (page 105).
The competitive advantages to valuing and managing a diverse workforce are presented
in Exhibit 3.5 (page 96) of the text and include a cost argument; resource-acquisition
argument; marketing argument; creativity argument; problem-solving argument; and
system flexibility argument. In general, a company that effectively manages a diverse
workforce is more likely to reflect society as a whole and will thus be more able to meet

and exceed its needs. Diversity management can be a source of competitive advantage
and can make organizations more effective in global and international business.
4. Explain stereotype threat effects and provide some examples of how they might occur
in organizations and the consequences. What can organizations do to prevent
stereotype threat effects?
Stereotype threat occurs when members of a social group (e.g., visible minorities,
women) feel they might be judged or treated according to a stereotype and that their
behaviour or performance will confirm the stereotype. The existence of a stereotype
threat can undermine a person’s performance and research has found evidence for
stereotype threat effects for ethnicity/race stereotypes and gender-based stereotypes. It
can occur in organizations when stereotyped group members take employment tests and
their performance may be undermined when they encounter cues of a salient negative
stereotype in the testing environment (e.g., ethnic minorities have inferior intellectual
abilities). Organizations can prevent stereotype threat effects by ensuring that testing and
work environments are nonthreatening to all individuals. Stereotype-activating cues such
as asking individuals their race/gender prior to taking a test should be removed. Thus,
individuals should not be asked for demographic information prior to taking a test.
5. Review the Ethical Focus feature, What’s in a name? You’re Hired…or Not!, and use
Bruner’s model of the perceptual process to explain why job applicants with ethnic-
sounding names are less likely to receive callbacks. What perceptual biases might
explain the lower callbacks received for resumes with ethnic-sounding names? What
should organizations do to avoid name discrimination? What should job applicants
do?
Bruner’s model of the perceptual process helps us understand how ethnic sounding names
result in fewer callbacks. According to Bruner’s perceptual model, when we encounter an
unfamiliar target we are very open to the cues contained in the target and the situation
surrounding it. However, once familiar cues are encountered, we attempt to categorize
the target. We then become very selective about which cues we perceive, searching out
cues that strengthen our categorization of the target. Cue selectivity refers to the perceiver
choosing only certain cues out of all the available cues to perceive. Thus, when an ethical
sounding name is encountered, the perceiver starts to categorize the target and forms a
perception of the applicant based on this cue or piece of information (ethnic applicant). In
this case, the perceiver sees the applicant as an ethnic person who is not from Canada and
might not speak English very well. This initial perception then influences the search for
additional information and the tendency to be selective in searching for cues that are
consistent with the initial perception (perceptual consistency) and to ignore information
that is not consistent with the initial categorization (such as information about education
and work experience). Unfortunately, the initial perception is often negative and leads to
other negative perceptions such as language and communication problems. As a result,
the final perception is negative and the applicant with an ethnic sounding name is less
likely to receive a callback. Some possible perceptual biases at work include primacy
effects, reliance on central traits (ethnic person), implicit personality theories (ethnic
persons do not speak English very well and have communication problems), and
stereotypes. To avoid this kind of name discrimination, organizations should not look at

the name of an applicant until after they have been evaluated. This will avoid the
tendency to rate the applicant negatively because of their name and the resulting initial
categorization and perception. Job applicants might just list their first name and surname
initial on their resume.
ADDITIONAL DISCUSSION QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
1. Discuss how differences in the experiences of students and professors might affect
their perceptions of students’ written work and class comments.
As an example, we can look at business experience. Consider two professors of
organizational behaviour: one has extensive business experience and one does not. These
two professors might have very different expectations of students’ written work and class
comments based on their own degree of “real world” experience. Similarly, students
themselves may vary in the business experience they possess, and thus differ in their
perception about what constitutes an adequate exam response or class comment.
Consequently, the business experience of a particular student and his or her professor
might affect the extent to which their perceptions of the students’ performance are in
agreement. In general, professors are older and more educated than their students and
so they might possess standards which prompt perceptual disagreement with students.
2. Using implicit personality theory, explain how physical attractiveness influences job-
related outcomes in employment interviews and performance appraisals?
The text defines implicit personality theories as theories that people have about which
personality characteristics go together. Thus, the trait of physical attractiveness is likely
to be associated with other positive personality characteristics that make up a person’s
theory. Theories about physical attractiveness usually include positive perceptions of a
person’s social competence, qualifications, and potential job success. Thus, in general,
physically attractive people will be perceived as having other positive characteristics. As
a result, they are more likely to be rated favourably in a job interview, to be hired, and
paid more. In addition, physically attractive persons tend to receive higher performance
appraisal ratings and are more likely to be promoted. The use of a structured interview
guide and a behaviourally anchored rating scale can help to reduce perceptual bias in the
employment interview and performance appraisals and increase the accuracy of ratings.
3. Discuss the occupational stereotypes that you hold about computer programmers, the
clergy, truck drivers, bartenders, and bankers. How do you think these stereotypes
have developed? Has an occupational stereotype ever caused you to commit a
socially embarrassing error when meeting someone for the first time?
Computer programmers are often stereotyped as computer nerds, bartenders as heavy
drinkers, and bankers as excessively conservative. (All of these occupations are
stereotyped as male domains.) Such stereotypes probably develop through a variety of
mechanisms. In some cases, there may be a “grain of truth” in the stereotype (example,
most truck drivers are males) that sets the stage for the elaboration of the stereotype (all
truck drivers are “macho”). In other cases a trivial aspect of the occupation (such as,
bankers dress conservatively) is extended to apply to the personal qualities of its

members (for example, bankers must be conservative). Finally, occupational stereotypes

are often reinforced by media portrayals and children’s schoolbooks. Many people have
embarrassingly mistaken a female executive or professor for a secretary.
4. Use Bruner’s perceptual model (Exhibit 3.3) and social identity theory to explain why
performance appraisals and interviewers’ judgments are frequently inaccurate.
Both performance evaluators and interviewers should be open to cues contained in a
target person, since they are required to make an explicit judgment about the person. In
each case, however, there is a strong tendency to search out familiar cues, categorize the
target, and process additional information in a biased manner to maintain and justify an
initial categorization. For example, an interviewer might learn early in the interview that
a job candidate is looking for a new job because he does not wish to accept a
geographical transfer from his present employer. The interviewer may categorize the
candidate as “disloyal” and “the type who puts his family before the organization” and
proceed to perceive all other interview cues in a way that supports this judgment. Based
on social identity theory, evaluators will categorize a person and then perceive them as
embodying the most typical attributes of that category. Further, because social categories
are relational and comparative, the evaluator might perceive the person being evaluated
in a more positive or negative light compared to him/herself and others. As a result, the
evaluation is likely to be inaccurate to the extent that it is based on how the person is
categorized and how that categorization compares to others in the mind of the evaluator.
Such evaluations might also be subject to stereotyping and discrimination.
5. Discuss how perceptions of organizational support can influence employees’ attitudes

and behaviour. What can organizations do to develop positive perceptions of
organizational support?
Perceived organizational support (POS) refers to employees’ general belief that their
organization values their contribution and cares about their well-being. According to
social support theory, employees who have strong perceptions of organizational support
feel an obligation to care about the organization’s welfare and to help the organization
achieve its objectives. They feel a greater sense of purpose and meaning and a strong
sense of belonging to the organization. As a result, employees feel obligated to
reciprocate the organization’s care and support and this leads to more positive attitudes
and behaviour. In fact, POS is related to job satisfaction, organizational commitment, a
positive mood, performance, reduced strains, and lower absenteeism and turnover. The
main factors that contribute to POS are perceived supervisor support, fairness,
organizational rewards, and job conditions. Supportive human resource practices that
demonstrate an investment in employees and recognition of employee contributions are
also associated with greater POS. Thus, to develop perceptions of organizational support,
organizations should ensure that they have fair procedures in place to reward and
recognize employees’ accomplishments and performance. There should also be
favourable job conditions and supervisors should be highly supportive. Supportive human
resource practices include participation in decision-making, opportunities for growth and
development, and a fair reward and recognition system.

6. A study of small business failures found that owners generally cited factors such as
economic depression or strong competition as causes. However, creditors of these
failed businesses were much more likely to cite ineffective management. What
attribution bias is indicated by these findings? Why do you think the difference in
attribution occurs?
This is an actor-observer effect, and the business owners are actors while the creditors are
observers. The business owners explain their behaviour is due to the situation while the
creditors imply faulty disposition. A self-serving bias may also be at work in both parties,
since the bankers are rejecting responsibility for giving credit to a bad risk and the
business owners are rejecting responsibility for misusing the loan. These biases obviously
help protect the egos of both parties, although they probably apply more strongly to the
business owners than to the creditors. However, one cannot rule out honest differences in
information here. The creditors are accustomed to dealing with successful businesses,
otherwise they themselves would fail. This makes failure unusual — a condition that begs
for a special explanation. On the other hand, the owner of the failed business was
intimately involved in the venture, itself, and may know that the three fast food
restaurants that moved in on opposite corners just didn’t give his or her small restaurant
any slack to survive.
EXTRA DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
1. Give an example of a behaviour that is described dispositionally by one observer and

situationally by another.
2. Discuss the factors that might lead performance raters to exhibit leniency and
harshness. Consider past experiences and current organizational factors.
3. Give an example of the fundamental attribution error and discuss how an actor might
have a different viewpoint from an observer who makes the attribution.
4. Discuss conditions under which stereotypes are most and least likely to affect the
perception of a target person.
5. You are a job candidate with average qualifications. Explain how the contrast effect
might help you land a job. Explain how stereotype threat might result in a female
candidate not getting a job.
6. Explain how consensus cues contribute to a formation of situational versus
dispositional attributions.
7. Describe a situation where you either had a high or low level of trust toward a
manager and or an organization. Explain what factors influenced your perception of
trust and how it affected your job attitudes and behaviour.
8. Describe a situation where you either had a high or low perceived organizational
support. Explain what factors influenced your perceptions of support and how it
affected your job attitudes and behaviour.

SAMPLE ANSWERS TO INTEGRATIVE DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
1. Describe how the principles of operant learning theory and social cognitive theory
can be used to manage workplace diversity and reduce the effects of workplace
stereotypes. How can the organizational learning practices described in Chapter 2 be
used for managing diversity?
Managing diversity involves changing people’s attitudes and behaviour. Operant learning
theory can be used to reinforce behaviour that supports diversity such as improved
interactions and communication among members of diverse groups, or rewards for hiring,
promoting, and training members of minority groups. Social cognitive theory suggests
that managers can act as models for valuing diversity by exhibiting appropriate
behaviours. Some organizational learning practices that can be used for managing
diversity include organizational behavioural modification and basic awareness and skills
training programs as well as training programs that illustrate the value of diversity and
increase awareness of stereotypes.
2. Consider how the four basic types of managerial activities described in Chapter 1
(i.e., routine communication, traditional management, networking, and human
resource management) can influence employees’ perceptions of trust and perceived
organizational support (POS). How should managers perform each of these activities
to improve employees’ perceptions of trust and POS?
Trust refers to a willingness to be vulnerable and to take risks with respect to the actions
of another party. Trust perceptions toward management are based on perceptions of
ability, benevolence, and integrity. The four basic types of managerial activities can
influence perceptions of trust to the extent that they influence employee perceptions of
ability, benevolence, and integrity. For example, routine communications and traditional
management might influence perceptions of a manager’s ability (perceptions regarding
competence and skills). Networking might influence perceptions of integrity (perceptions
that management adheres to and behaves according to a set of values and principles) as a
function of those individuals and groups that a manager interacts and socializes with.
Human resource management is most likely to influence perceptions of benevolence (the
extent that employees perceive management as caring and concerned for their interests).
This might explain why managers who are successful in terms of unit effectiveness and
employee satisfaction and commitment devote more time and effort to human resource
management and less to networking. Thus, manager’s who wish to improve employees’
perceptions of trust should develop their skills in communication and traditional
management activities; network with individuals and groups with an acceptable set of
values and principles; and adopt human resource practices that show concern for
employees’ interests and needs.
Perceived organizational support refers to employees’ general belief that their

organization values their contribution and cares about their well-being. The main factors
that contribute to POS are perceived supervisor support, fairness, organizational rewards,
and job conditions. Supportive human resource practices that demonstrate an investment
in employees and recognition of employee contributions are also associated with greater
POS. In terms of the managerial activities, human resource management is most likely to

contribute to POS especially if it involves rewarding and recognizing employee

performance and accomplishments, participation in decision-making, and training and
developing employees. As indicated above, managers who are successful in terms of unit
effectiveness and employee satisfaction and commitment devote more time and effort to
human resource management and less to networking. Their effect on unit effectiveness
and employee satisfaction and commitment is probably due in part to the positive effect
that human resource management activities have on POS.
SAMPLE ANSWER TO ON-THE-JOB CHALLENGE QUESTION:

AUSTRALIA’S JOBS BONUS INITIATIVE
What do you think about the Australian government’s Jobs Bonus initiative? Do
perceptions have anything to do with this initiative? Do you think this will help or hurt
older workers and the perception and stereotype of them? Is this something that
Canadian governments should consider doing? What are the implications for employees
and organizations?
As indicated in the text, there are two views regarding the Job Bonus initiative. On the
one hand, it can be seen as a positive move to encourage organizations to hire older
workers. On the other hand, it can be seen as a negative initiative because it suggests that
older workers are not as good as younger workers and so you have to pay organizations
or provide them with a bonus to hire them. Thus, the bonus reinforces the stereotype that
older workers are inferior to younger workers. This should generate some interesting
debate among students. You might have students discuss this in groups and then form a
view on whether or not the initiative is a good idea or not. Alternatively, you can assign
groups a position either in favour or against the initiative and ask them to defend it.
Clearly, the initiative is meant to try and break down the negative stereotypes about older
workers and the perception that they will not do as good a job as young workers. If
students believe that the initiative will hurt older workers, ask them why and to suggest
an alternative program. Of course, if the program results in organizations hiring older
workers then it is hard to argue against it. After all, employment equity laws and
programs are meant to ensure that members of protected groups are being hired. When
considering whether such a policy should be implemented in Canada, you might want to
inform your students that a recent survey found that 71.5 of small and medium-sized
employers across Canada indicated that it is not likely that job openings will be filled by
someone older than 65 now or in the future (see Canadian HR Reporter, January 24,
2013, page 1 and 10). This is not a good sign given that many older workers are planning
to remain employed rather than retire. In the long-run, such an initiative might result in
more older workers being hired and a change in perceptions as more and more
organizations begin to see the value in having older workers who bring years of
experience and knowledge with them and help to create a more diverse workforce.
Proving incentives and targets to hire protected groups is nothing new and the Job Bonus
initiative is an interesting example geared towards the hiring of older workers.

TEACHING NOTES FOR BELIEFS ABOUT OLDER WORKERS

EXPERIENTIAL EXERCISE
Complete the Beliefs about Older Workers exercise in Chapter 3 of the text (page 117).
This exercise is designed to assess the attitudes people have about older workers.
To score beliefs about older workers, subtract responses to each of the following items
from 6: 3, 4, 9, 10, 12, 14, 15, 18, 19, 20, 21, 23, 24, 26, and 27. For example, if you put
2 for item 3, give yourself a 4 (6 minus 2). Then simply add up the resulting responses to
all 27 items. The total score should fall somewhere between 27 and 135. Low scores
indicate an overall negative belief about older workers, while high scores indicate
positive beliefs. Thus, the higher one’s score, the more favourable are their attitudes
toward older workers.
Research on older workers has generally found that a negative stereotype of older
workers exists in organizations. The danger of this is that it can lead to negative attitudes
and discriminatory behaviour toward older workers.
A study of 179 employees from three organizations obtained scores that ranged from 54
to 118. The average score was 90 which indicated somewhat positive beliefs about older
workers. As reported in other studies, older workers had more positive beliefs about older
workers than younger workers. However, younger workers who had more interactions
with older workers were found to have more positive beliefs about older workers.
To facilitate discussion, you might have students write their score, age, and how often
they come in contact with older workers (daily, several times a week, once a week, or
monthly) on pieces of paper. Working in groups and using calculators, the class can
compute the class average. Based on the distribution of age and contact with older
workers in the class, create two age groups (young and older) and two contact with older
worker groups (low and high) and calculate the average of these groups. Also, a
distribution of the scores might be posted on the board.
Source: Hassell, B. L., & Perrewe, P. L. (1995). An examination of beliefs about older
workers: Do stereotypes still exist? Journal of Organizational Behavior, 16, 457–468.
With respect to the questions in the text, consider the following:
1. Have students get some idea of what their score is and how it compares to other
students in their group or the class.
2. Students should now try to understand their score and their beliefs about older
workers. One way to begin is to consider any age differences. Ask students to
consider why younger people might have more biased perceptions of older workers.
3. Students should try to understand how their contact with older people might influence
their perceptions. In this respect, they should consider the amount of contact they

have with older people (number of people and frequency) and if those students with
more contact have less biased and more positive perceptions.
4. Students should consider other reasons for their beliefs about older workers and why
their beliefs are more negative or positive than others in the class. They should also
think about the implications of their beliefs in terms of how they treat and interact
with older people.
5. Ask students to think of ways to develop more positive beliefs about older workers.
Perhaps spending more time and interacting with older people they know; doing
volunteer work with older people; going out of their way to get to know older people,
and so on.
The following questions can also be used with this exercise:
1. What is your score on the Beliefs about Older Workers exercise? What does your
score say about you? How does it compare to the average score of employees in the
three organizations studied and your class?
2. Discuss how your score might influence your perceptions of:
a) older people in general.
b) older students.
c) older people at work
3. Compare and contrast someone with a low score versus someone with a high score in
terms of:
a) Their perceptions of older people at work
b) Their behaviour towards older people at work
c) Their age and frequency of contact with older people.
4. Discuss how perceptions of older persons in the workplace could influence their
work-life and career.
5. What can organizations do to improve the way older workers are treated in the
workplace.
TEACHING NOTES FOR THE NEW HIRING POLICY CASE INCIDENT
1. Discuss the role of perceptions and attributions in the new hiring policy. Do
perceptions and attributions have anything to do with the hiring policy?
Perceptions and attributions have a great deal to do with the new hiring policy. At
issue here is the fact that society tends to have negative perceptions of people who are
overweight and the tendency to attribute being overweight to dispositions rather than
situational factors. People who are overweight tend to be perceived negatively and
this results in negative evaluations on various work outcomes such as hiring,
promotion decisions, and performance evaluations. What’s more, people who are
overweight are viewed as responsible for their weight thereby leading to dispositional
attributions. In terms of biases, one can see here a reliance on central traits,
stereotyping, and the fundamental attribution error.

2. Discuss the role of stereotypes and bias in the new hiring policy. Do stereotypes and
bias have anything to do with the hiring policy? Is it discrimination?
Clearly, there exists a stereotype of overweight people that is very negative (e.g., they
are lazy and do not take care of themselves). If we remove this stereotype and the
dispositional attribution, then overweight people will be perceived very differently
and more favourably. The policy takes the position that the best person for a job can’t
possibly be somebody who is overweight. There is of course no real evidence for this
and it is based on a negative stereotype. The hospital’s position is based on the
appearance of an employee and what they consider to be appropriate and the belief
that overweight employees are more likely to be absent. One gets the impression that
the reason for the hospital’s policy is to reduce health care costs because as stated by
the CEO, “excessive weight has all kinds of encumbrances for the hospital and its
health plan.”
The main sticking point is that the laws in Texas do not prohibit weight
discrimination in hiring even though they do prohibit discrimination based on race,
age, or religion. To put this in context, ask students if it would be acceptable for the
organization to not hire job applicants of a certain race, age, or religion. They will
certainly say that doing so would be wrong; if so, then isn’t it also wrong to turn away
applicants because of their weight? When you put it in this context, those students
who might not have seen the policy as discriminatory might begin to change their
mind. Of course, what matters most is whether or not an individual is qualified to
perform the job not their weight. Thus, students should come to see that such a hiring
policy is based on negative perceptions and stereotyping and it is a form of
discrimination.
3. Do you agree with the hospital’s new hiring policy? What are the implications of the
policy for the hospital, its employees, and patients?
This is likely to generate a considerable amount of debate among students as many
will have strong views about this hiring policy. Some will see it for what it is –
blatant discrimination while others will see it as something that an organization has a
right to do. Hiring the most qualified job applicants is what is in the best interest of
the hospital’s patients regardless of their weight. The organization can provide work-
life balance programs to help all employees improve their health and well-being. Not
hiring the most qualified persons for the job and instead focusing on weight will not
be in the best interest of the hospital and its patients. The policy will also be harmful
to employees who are considered to be obese and therefore perceived as less qualified
and worthy than their thinner co-workers.
ADDITIONAL CASE INCIDENT: THE NEW CEO
In March 2009, the Canadian National Institute for the Blind (CNIB) announced the
appointment of John M. Rafferty as the organization’s new president and CEO. CNIB is a

nationwide charity that provides services and support to Canadians who are blind or
visually impaired. Rafferty left a lucrative private-sector job to join CNIB. According to
Al Jameson, chair of CNIB’s national board of directors, Rafferty is an exceptional
business leader whose skills and experience make him an excellent fit for CNIB. In fact,
Rafferty has 13 years of national and international experience as a senior executive who
has served in numerous leadership positions.
However, Rafferty’s appointment upset many people in the community and prompted
criticism of CNIB. Some even referred to his hiring as despicable and a step backward.
Unlike all his predecessors and every top executive in the 91-year history of CNIB,
Rafferty can see. He is CNIB’s first “sighted” president and CEO. His hiring resulted in a
complicated debate about identity and employment equity within Canada’s diverse blind
and visually impaired community.
According to John Rae, vice-president of the Alliance for Equality of Blind

Canadians (AEBC), the hiring of a sighted person as CEO is yet another example of
CNIB “turning its back on the people it was set up to serve.” By selecting Rafferty, CNIB
has implied that blind Canadians qualified to lead a major organization do not exist. How
can CNIB lobby corporations to hire the blind when it will not do so itself?
Sources: Dale, D. (2009, May 3). Debate stirs over hiring of sighted CNIB head: Board
defends choice as critics ask how it can lobby firms to hire blind when it will not do so
itself. Toronto Star, A1; Meet the President: John M. Rafferty.
www.cnib.ca/en/about/who/president/default.aspx.
1. Discuss the role of perceptions in people’s reactions to the hiring of John Rafferty.
Use Bruner’s model of the perceptual process and social identity theory to explain
people’s perceptions and reactions.
2. Do you think CNIB should have hired John Rafferty as the organization’s new
president and CEO, or should they have hired an individual who is blind or visually
impaired? Explain your answer.
3. Does this incident have anything to do with equity and diversity? Explain your
answer.
TEACHING NOTES FOR THE NEW CEO CASE INCIDENT
1. Discuss the role of perceptions in people’s reactions to the hiring of John Rafferty.
Use Bruner’s model of the perceptual process and social identity theory to explain
people’s perceptions and reactions?
As indicated in the case, some people’s perceptions of John Rafferty are based on his
ability to see rather than his many years of leadership experience. The negative reactions
to his appointment stem from a perception that as a sighted person he is not an
appropriate choice for CEO of the CNIB. Bruner’s model of the perceptual process
emphasizes the concept of cues or bits and pieces of information contained in the target
and the situation that we use (or ignore) informing our perceptions of the target.
According to Bruner’s perceptual model, when we encounter an unfamiliar target we are

very open to the cues contained in the target and the situation surrounding it. However,
once familiar cues are encountered, we attempt to categorize the target. At this point, we
are very selective about which cues we perceive, searching out cues that strengthen our
categorization of the target. This cue selectivity refers to the perceiver choosing only
certain cues out of all the available cues to perceive. Such selectivity is efficient, though
efficiency can both aid and hinder our perceptual accuracy. As for perceptions of John
Rafferty, the main cue used by some perceivers is his ability to see and this becomes the
basis for perceiving him as a bad choice for CEO. The selectivity involved is clearly
evident in that those opposed to his appointment focus exclusively on his sightedness.
Once categorized as “sighted” the perception of him becomes constant (the tendency to
perceive the target in the same way over time or across situations) and consistent (the
tendency to select, ignore, and distort cues in such a manner that they fit together to form
a homogeneous image of the target).
According to social identity theory, people form perceptions of themselves based on their
characteristics and memberships in social categories. Once a category is chosen, we tend
to see members of that category as embodying the most typical attributes of that category,
or what are called “prototypes.” Further, people tend to perceive members of their own
social categories in more positive and favourable ways than those who are different and
belong to other categories. As for the case, it is clear that people are being categorized as
“sighted” versus “blind.” John Rafferty has been categorized as a “sighted” person and is
perceived less positively then a blind person.
2. Do you think CNIB should have hired John Rafferty as the organization’s new
president and CEO or should they have hired an individual who is blind or visually
impaired? Explain your answer.
Students are likely to have differing opinions about this as reflected in the case. Some are
likely to focus on the fact that he has 13 years of national and international experience as
a senior executive and has been in a number of leadership positions and this makes him a
good choice for CEO. Others are likely to share the view of those who believe that the
job of CEO should go to a blind person in support of the view that “How can CNIB lobby
corporations to hire the blind when it will not do so itself?” Another interesting way to
look at this is to ask, “If the CNIB is not a diverse employer and hence not willing to hire
sighted persons, then how can they expect other organizations to embrace diversity and
hire blind persons?” Students should understand the role of perceptions here as well as
the implications for diversity and what it means to embrace and support diversity.
3. Does this incident have anything to do with equity and diversity? Explain your
answer.
Students might not see this as being about equity or diversity at first but they should
understand that just as equity and diversity involves recruiting and hiring persons with
disabilities it also works the other way – just because a person does not have a disability
is not a reason not to hire him/her. If the CNIB wants to lobby corporations to hire blind
persons and to embrace diversity then they too must be equitable in its hiring practices
and consider both blind and sighted applicants for all jobs at the CNIB including the top
job.

NOTE: John Rafferty joined the CNIB in 2009 and remains the organization’s eighth
president and CEO. To learn more about John Rafferty, go to:
http://www.cnib.ca/en/about/who/team/president/Pages/default.aspx
TEACHING NOTES FOR LGBTA AT TD BANK FINANCIAL GROUP IN 2012

CASE STUDY
1. Discuss what it means to value diversity. Does TD Bank value diversity? Provide
some examples to support your answer.
To value diversity involves more than not just tolerating it or blending everyone into
a narrow mainstream. A critical motive is the basic fairness of valuing diversity and
various initiatives that provide for a diverse and inclusive workplace. TD Bank
clearly values diversity and recognized that it was the right thing to do and an
important part of corporate social responsibility and its business strategy. In 2006,
they created the Diversity Leadership Council (DLC) which allowed senior
executives to take ownership of diversity and inclusivity by deciding how to
implement these practices across the bank. The DLC oversaw a multitude of diversity
initiatives and ensured that no one in the organization was mistreated on any
dimension, including gender, ethnic origin, physical ability or sexual orientation. TD
has implemented a number of resources and events to promote a comfortable, barrier-
free and inclusive work environment for all employees. As indicated in the case, TD
has made the promotion of diversity and inclusivity a priority for many years and in
2005 diversity was integrated into the business strategy. The bank has a formal policy
on the elimination of discrimination and formal programs to increase workforce
diversity along with a code of ethics as well as various initiatives to increase diversity
such as recruitment, engagement with employees, mentoring and networking, as well
as training and development. In addition, women account for 65.60 percent of its
Canadian workforce, 33.13 percent of senior management, and 46.63 percent of
middle management and equivalent positions. You might want to review Exhibit 3 of
the case which describes how TD fosters diversity.
2. What are some of the initiatives that TD Bank has implemented to increase diversity?
What effect has this had on the bank and its employees?
TD Bank has implemented various initiatives to increase diversity such as
recruitment, engagement with employees, mentoring and networking, as well as
training and development programs. As a result of these initiatives, TD Bank has
been recognized as one of the Top Diversity Employers. See Exhibit 3 of the case for
specific examples of how TD fosters diversity.

3. When TD bank formed the LGBTA committee, only 94 employees were signed up for
same-sex benefits and there were no “out” executives at the bank. Why do you think
so few employees were signed up for same-sex benefits and there were no “out”
executives? Use the material in the chapter to explain your answer.
As discussed in the chapter, employees who are members of the lesbian, gay,
bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) community fear that coming out will result in bias
and discrimination towards them. Although there are laws in Canada that protect the
rights of LGBT workers, LGBT employees nonetheless face barriers and
discrimination in the workplace that can limit their career advancement. In fact, the
results of several surveys have shown that LGBT employees face discrimination at
work. This is probably why few employees signed up for same-sex benefits and there
were no “out” executives. They feared the negative consequences that would result
from bias and discrimination towards them if they came out. In addition, LGBT men
and women report exclusion from the “old boys’ club” and LGBT women report a
less friendly workplace and more hurdles than LGBT men. As a result, many LGBT
employees do not come out at work for fear of the potential repercussions and
negative consequences. In fact, as indicated in the case, some employees including
executives at TD didn’t feel ease being upfront about their sexuality as they thought it
would limit their careers.
4. The response from stakeholders to TD’s LGBTA initiatives was mixed. Some
stakeholders were indifferent, others were supportive, and some were anti-LGBTA. In
addition, some clients and investors threatened to leave the bank. What role do
perceptions and perceptual biases in person perception play in the different
stakeholder reactions? Explain your answer.
The various reactions suggest that perceptions are playing a role in how the different
stakeholders responded to TD’s LGBTA initiatives. As indicated in the case, some
stakeholders were anti-LGBTA for personal, traditional, or religious reasons. The
negative feedback the bank received is due to negative perceptions and stereotypes of
LGBTA persons from people who are biased towards members of the LGBTA
community. As indicated in the text, this is due in part to a lack of education and
awareness. As a result, a reliance on stereotypes is the root of the problem. Such
stereotypes and misperceptions lead to discriminatory behaviour towards LGBT
employees, such as homophobia, inappropriate humour, exclusion from networks
inside and outside of the organization, social exclusion, ridicule, and a lack of role
models.
5. What are some of the LGBTA programs that TD bank implemented, and what effect
did this have on the organization, employees, customers, and other banks?
TD Bank implemented a number of LGBTA programs and services to its employees
such as mentoring, networking events, internal social networks, and HIV/AIDS
programs. Mentoring opportunities are offered in its regional offices to teach new
employees how to use their identification as LGBTA as an advantage and how to
build a successful career at the bank. They also organize networking events for

LGBTA employees as well as allies twice a year across North America. In addition,
the Employee Pride Network (EPN) was created as a communication tool for LGBTA
events, sponsorships, and other initiatives. LGBTA awareness training is available for
new employees. The bank also launched a LGBTA Community within its
Connections social media application. Employees who follow or join the LGBTA
Community receive updates on events and initiatives in their region. TD also
contributes more than $1 million towards LGBTA organizations. As described in the
case, the LGBTA strategy at TD is comprised of four elements:
1. Acknowledging and valuing differences in customers, employees and
shareholders.
2. Attracting and retaining the best talent available and having access to the most
diverse and creative work force.
3. Improving the value of TD’s franchise for future generations.
4. Achieving long-term sustainability as an organization that resonates with
customers, employees and the communities it serves.
These programs have had a positive effect on the various stakeholders. For example,
between March 2006 and March 2008 the number of employees with same-sex
benefits increased by 36 percent. The case notes that by 2009 many LGBTA
employees within the bank were benefiting from its programs and TD aimed to
become the “employer of choice” for the LGBTA community in the financial sector.
This has helped to make TD a leader in diversity and in LGBTA initiatives and
programs which has had positive benefits for its employees and customers. In
addition, the other banks have followed suit and implemented their own programs and
initiatives to include LGBTA in its diversity programs. Thus, TDs LGTBA initiatives
have positive consequences for all of its main stakeholders.
6. Why were some employees hesitant to identify as LGBTA? Why were some managers
resistant to the LGBTA initiatives and their responsibility, even after they received
diversity training?
As indicated in the case, many employees were hesitant to identify as LGBTA
because they perceived a possible trade-off between feeling comfortable at work and
successful career progression and there were communication barriers in the bank.
Further, despite management training in “Embracing Diversity” and “The Value of
Allies,” some managers were resistant towards their responsibility and there was no
incentive system in place to motivate managers to champion diversity or LGBTA-
specific initiatives. As noted in the text, perceptual selectivity, constancy, and
consistency means that changing perceptions is not easy and will take time which
explains why some managers remained resistant to the LGBTA initiatives not to
mention perceptual biases such as stereotyping.

7. What are some of the mistakes that the bank made with its LGBTA initiatives? Do you
think this had anything to do with perceptions and stereotypes? Explain your answer
and consider the relevance of social identity theory.
The bank made a number of mistakes with its LGBTA initiatives. For example, it
seems that they did not do enough to get all managers on board as champions of
diversity and LGBTA-initiatives given that numerous managers were showing
resistance with respect to their role and responsibilities. In addition, the bank failed to
recognize differences between subgroups of the LGBTA community and instead
painted the LGBTA community with one brush. In other words, they did not realize
that there was diversity within the community which was an issue for employees and
customers. As a result, many programs were specifically targeted towards gay men
and this negatively impacted its advertising strategy as they did not understand how
to market to other segments of the LGBTA community. These mistakes might be
partly due to stereotypes of the LGBTA community which pained all members of the
community as being similar and failing to recognize important differences. In other
words, it was assumed that all members of the LGBTA community are similar so
variations within the community were ignored. Social identity theory also suggests
that the category of LGBTA was perceived as having certain attributes or
“prototypes” and so all LGBTA persons are perceived as having these same
attributes. This helps to explain why there were not initiatives directed for subgroups
within the LGBTA community as it was assumed that the initiatives implemented
were appropriate for all members.
8. Why don’t all of the bank’s managers see LGBTA as a priority and what can be done
to change this? What can be done to better promote the LGBTA initiatives to
employees?
For TD Bank, LGBTA initiatives were the right thing to do and also a business
strategy. However, some of the bank’s managers did not see LGBTA as a priority.
This could be because some believe that being part of the LBGTA community or
supporting the community is immoral and wrong based on their religious beliefs
and/or those who believe that LGBTA is not an issue that needs to be dealt with so
actively by a conservative bank. In addition, stereotyping and discrimination might
also continue to be at work along with the difficulty in changing perceptions that are
selective, consistent, and constant and often inaccurate. And as explained by social
identity theory, people perceive members of their own social categories in a more
positive and favourable light than those who are different and belong to other
categories.
Additional LGBTA training might be required for some managers if not all of them as
the training they received does not seem to have been extensive enough to gain their
full and complete support for the LGBTA initiatives. In addition, training might also
focus on explicit as well as implicit bias (see Applied Focus: Police Anti-Bias
Training). The Bank also has to continue to emphasize the importance of LGBTA
initiatives as part of its commitment to diversity and as an employer of choice for
LGBTA employees. Both the CEO and president of TD have stressed that support for

LGBTA is also a matter of supporting human rights and is the “right thing to do.”
Thus, TD has remained committed to being a leader in LGBTA and diversity and has
added more initiatives for its sub-groups within the LGBTA community. TD remains
a leader in this area not only because of its initiatives but also because it did not
retreat from its public stance of support for LGBTA even after the backlash from
various stakeholders. In addition to training and new initiatives, the bank can also
continue to emphasize the value of diversity for all of its stakeholders and its
continued reputation and success.

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CHAPTER 3

PERCEPTION, ATTRIBUTION, AND DIVERSITY

CHAPTER LEARNING OBJECTIVES

After reading Chapter 3 students should be able to:

CHAPTER OUTLINE AND TEACHING NOTES

a. Experience — The perceiver’s past experience leads him or her to develop

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Social Identity Theory

A Model of the Perceptual Process

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Basic Biases in Person Perception

Primacy and Recency Effects

Reliance on Central Traits

Implicit Personality Theories

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ª We distinguish some category of people (university professors).

Attribution: Perceiving Causes and Motives

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Fundamental attribution error. The fundamental attribution error is the tendency to

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Person Perception and Workforce Diversity

Workforce diversity refers to differences among recruits and employees in

The Changing Workplace

Stereotypes and Workforce Diversity

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This stereotype is detrimental to the hiring, development, promotion, and salaries of

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Nonetheless, as a result of false stereotypes, many older people have experienced

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In recent years, an increasing number of organizations have begun to make their

Managing Workforce Diversity

1. Select enough minority members to elevate them beyond token status.

The implications of generational differences in values and work attitudes (Chapter 4)

Recognizing diversity in employee needs and motives (Chapter 5)

Using flexible work arrangements to offer employees flexibility (Chapter 6)

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Using employee surveys to foster better communication (Chapters 10 and 15)

Perceptions of trust in management are positively related to job satisfaction,

Perceived Organizational Support

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Person Perception in Human Resources

Perceptions of Recruitment and Selection

Perceptions in the Employment Interview

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Perceptions and the Performance Appraisal

Rater Errors. Subjective performance appraisal is susceptible to some of the perceptual

Because it is difficult to get good subjective evaluations of employee performance, a

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A CLASSROOM DEMONSTRATION: THE FUNDAMENTAL ATTRIBUTION

Then continue by pointing out that the classroom demonstration is a simulation of an

A CLASSROOM DEMONSTRATION: SELF-SERVING BIAS

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SAMPLE ANSWERS TO DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

1. Suppose an employee does a particularly poor job on an assigned project. Discuss

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1. Select enough minority members to elevate them beyond token status.

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ADDITIONAL DISCUSSION QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS

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members (for example, bankers must be conservative). Finally, occupational stereotypes

5. Discuss how perceptions of organizational support can influence employees’ attitudes

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