Subject Name Code Credit Hours

Organizational Behavior BBA 2633 3

Organizational Behavior
BBA 2633

Individual Foundation to Behavior

1 Lecture Hour

Lecturer: Mr. Mohan B. Basnet

Email: mohanbasnet@gmail.com
 Course Evaluation
Course Evaluation
• Consists of Two components, namely:
• 1. Continuous Evaluation:
– Quizzes 10%
– Assignment 20%
– Mid-Semester Exam 20%

• 2. Final Examination: 50%

• TOTAL 100%
Course Evaluation
Learning Modes
Lectures
Tutorials
Quizzes
Exams
Projects
Presentations
Learning Outcomes of the Session
Learning Outcomes of the Session
• Able to explain what is perception and
perceptual process.
• Able to know factors affecting perceptions.
• Able to describe how shortcut can assist in or
distort our judgments of others.
• Can people be mistaken in their perceptions?
• Does perception really affect outcomes?
 Perception
 The process by which individuals organize and interpret their
impressions in order to give meaning to their environment. –
S.P. Robbins
 Perception is defined as the process by which an individual
selects, organizes and interprets information inputs to create
a meaningful picture of the world. - Bernard and Grays
 Individuals behave in a given manner based not on the way
their environment actually is but, rather, on what they see or
believe it to be.
 An organization may spend millions of dollars to create a
pleasant work environment for its employees. However,
despite these expenditures, an employee who believes that
his or her job is lousy will behave accordingly.
 Perception (cont.)
• Why is perception important in the study of
OB?
• Simply-because people’s behavior is based on
their perception of what reality is, not on
reality itself. The world as it is perceived is the
world that is behaviorally important.
 PERCEPTUAL PROCESS
 Perception is a process.
 Perception process is the step-wise individual
activity required to understand, organize and
interpret information received from the
environment.
 It has input, processes and output variables.
 Based on perceptual output, people show
their behavior.
 PERCEPTUAL PROCESS (cont.)
The perceptual process (model) comprises the
following steps to complete individual perceptual
process:
1. Inputs (environmental stimuli)
• Perceived inputs are the objects, events, people
etc. that are received by the perceiver.
• Environmental stimuli refers to the environmental
forces that are continuously bombarding our five
senses- feeling, hearing, seeing, smelling and
tasting.
 PERCEPTUAL PROCESS (cont.)
2. Processes : the input received through sense
organs are processed through the three sub-
process.
a) Selection (selective attention): Our five senses
organs are constantly bombarded with stimuli
(inputs).
 Some things get noticed, but most are screened
out.
 This process of filtering information received by
our sensory organs is called selective perception
(selective attention).
 PERCEPTUAL PROCESS (cont.)
b) Organization: Perceptual organization is the process by
which people group selected information.
 Generally, people group environmental stimuli into
recognizable and identifiable pattern.
 In other words, assembling the selected information that is
incoming into a meaningful whole is called organization.
c) Interpretation: It is highly subjective and judgmental in
nature.
 It is the process of defining and interpreting the organized
stimuli into the meaningful way.
3. Output (emotions and behaviors): The output of perception
can be seen in the form of behaviors and emotions.
 They may be feelings, actions, attitudes etc.
 FACTORS INFLUENCING PERCEPTION
The Perceiver: When an individual (“the
perceiver”) looks at something (“the target”) and
attempts to interpret what he or she sees, that
interpretation is heavily influenced by the
perceiver’s personal characteristics.
• Attitudes
• Motives
• Interests
• Experience
• Expectations
 FACTORS INFLUENCING PERCEPTION (cont.)
 The Target: A target’s characteristics also affect what is
perceived. Loud people are more likely to be noticed in
a group than are quiet ones. Extremely attractive or
unattractive individuals are also more likely to be
noticed.
• Novelty
• Motion
• Sounds
• Size
• Background
• Proximity
 FACTORS INFLUENCING PERCEPTION (cont.)
 The Situation: The context in which we see objects or
events is important. Elements in the surrounding
environment influence our perceptions.
 For instance, it might be entirely appropriate to wear
shorts and T-shirts in a social setting, but these clothes
may not be appropriate in a work setting. Therefore,
your interpretation of the same clothes will vary with
the context.
• Time
• Work setting
• Social setting
 PERCEPTUAL ERRORS
 Attribution Theory: The theory that when we observe what seems
like a typical behavior by an individual, we attempt to determine
whether it is internally or externally caused.
• Internal causes: Personality traits, emotions, motives, ability etc.
• External causes: Other people, the situation, chance, luck etc.
 Fundamental attribution errors: the tendency of people to
underestimate the influence of external factors and overestimate
the influence of internal factors when making judgments about the
behaviors of others.
 Self-serving bias: The tendency of individuals to attribute their own
success to internal factors while putting the blame for failure, on
external factors.
 PERCEPTUAL ERRORS (cont.)
 Selective Perception: People’s selective
interpretation of what they see based on their
interests, background, experience, and attitudes.
 Halo Effect: Drawing a general impression of an
individual on the basis of a single characteristic.
 Contrast Effects: The concept that our reaction to
one person is often influenced by other people
we have recently encountered.
 Projection: Attributing one’s own characteristics
to other people.
 PERCEPTUAL ERRORS (cont.)
 Stereotyping: Judging someone on the basis
of one’s perception of the group to which that
person belongs.
 Prejudice: An unfounded dislike of a person or
group based on their belonging to a particular
stereotyped group.
 What causes people to have different perceptions of the same situation?

• A number of factors operate to shape and sometimes

distort perception. These factors can be present in the
perceiver, in the object or target being perceived, or in
the context of the situation in which the perception is
made. The perceiver’s attitudes, motives, interests, and
past experiences all shape the way he or she sees an
event. The target’s characteristics also affect what is
perceived. Novelty, motion, sounds, size, and other
characteristics of a target shape the way it is seen.
Objects or events that are unrelated are often
perceived together because they are close physically or
in timing. Persons, objects, or events that are similar to
each other also tend to be viewed as a group. The
setting in which we see objects or events also affects
how they are perceived.
 Can people be mistaken in their perceptions?
• Perceiving and interpreting what others do is
difficult and takes time. As a result, we
develop shortcuts to make this task more
manageable. These shortcuts, described by
attribution theory, selective perception, the
halo effect, contrast effects, projection, and
stereotyping, are often valuable—they can
sometimes allow us to make accurate
perceptions quickly and provide valid data for
making predictions. However, they are not
foolproof. They can and do get us into trouble.
 Does perception really affect outcomes?
•
• The evidence suggests that what individuals perceive
about their work situation influences their productivity
more than the situation does. Whether a job is actually
interesting or challenging is irrelevant. Whether a
manager actually helps employees to structure their
work more efficiently and effectively is far less
important than how employees perceive the manager’s
efforts. Similarly, issues such as fair pay, the validity of
performance appraisals, and the adequacy of working
conditions are not judged “objectively.” Rather,
individuals interpret conditions surrounding their jobs
based on how they perceive their jobs.
 Assignment

 What causes people to have different

perceptions of the same situation? Can
people be mistaken in their perceptions?

Deadline: May 31, 2018

 Business
Reference English
and (BBATextbooks
Suggested 1213)
- Acharya, Bhawani Shankar (2009), Organizational
Relations, First Edition, Asmita Books Publishers &
Distributors (P) Ltd. Bhotahity, Kathmandu, Nepal
- Adhikari, Devraj (2009). Organizational Behavior,
Third Edition, Buddha Academic Publishers and
Distributors Pvt. Ltd., Kathmandu, Nepal
- Luthans, Fred (2005). Organizational Behavior, Tata
Mcgraw Hill, Singapore
- Robbins, S. P. (2005). Organizational Behavior, Tenth
Edition, Pearson Education Press, Singapore
THANK YOU