Attitudes and Behavior

Cognitive
Cognitive Dissonance
Dissonance Theory
Theory
In
In the
the late
late 1950s,
1950s, Leon
Leon Festinger
Festinger proposed
proposed the
the theory
theory
of
of Cognitive
Cognitive Dissonance
Dissonance
The
The theory
theory sought
sought to
to explain
explain the
the linkage
linkage between
between
attitudes
attitudes and
and behavior
behavior
Dissonance
Dissonance means
means an
an inconsistency
inconsistency
Cognitive
Cognitive dissonance
dissonance refers
refers to
to any
any incompatibility
incompatibility
that
that an
an individual
individual might
might perceive
perceive between
between two
two or
or more
more
of
of his/her
his/her attitudes,
attitudes, or
or between
between his/her
his/her behavior
behavior and
and
1
attitudes
attitudes

Attitudes and Behavior

Cognitive
Cognitive Dissonance
Dissonance Theory
Theory
continued
continued
You
You know
know attending
attending in
in the
the class
class is
is important
important for
for your
your
learning.
learning. This
This is
is your
your attitude.
attitude. So
So you
you should
should present,
present,
but
but you
you do
do not
not do
do that.
that. This
This is
is your
your behavior
behavior
(incompatibility
(incompatibility between
between attitude
attitude and
and behavior)
behavior)
You
You would
would like
like to
to take
take bribes.
bribes. This
This is
is your
your one
one
attitude.
attitude. On
On the
the other
other hand
hand you
you do
do not
not like
like to
to take
take
bribes
bribes because
because you
you are
are afraid
afraid of
of legal
legal problems
problems and
and
social
social dishonor.
dishonor. This
This is
is your
your another
another attitude.
attitude. There
There
is
is an
an incompatibility
incompatibility between
between two
two attitudes.
attitudes.
2

Attitudes and Behavior

Cognitive
CognitiveDissonance
DissonanceTheory
Theory
continued
continued

Festinger
Festinger argued
arguedthat
thatany
anyform
form of
ofinconsistency
inconsistencyisisuncomfortable
uncomfortable
Individuals
Individuals will
willattempt
attempt to
toreduce
reducethe
thedissonance
dissonanceand,
and,hence,
hence,the
the
discomfort
discomfort
Therefore,
Therefore,individuals
individualswill
willseek
seekaastable
stablestate,
state,in
inwhich
whichthere
thereisisaa
minimum
minimum of
ofdissonance
dissonance
No
Noindividuals,
individuals, of
ofcourse,
course, can
cancompletely
completelyavoid
avoiddissonance
dissonance
You
Youknow
know attending
attendingin
inthe
theclass
classisisimportant
important for
for your
your learning.
learning. So
So
you
youshould
shouldpresent,
present,but
butyou
youdo
donot
notdo
dothat.
that.
3

Attitudes and Behavior

Cognitive
CognitiveDissonance
DissonanceTheory
Theory
continued
continued

Festinger
Festinger proposed
proposed that
that the
the desire
desire to
to reduce
reduce
dissonance
dissonance would
would be
be determined
determined by
by the
the importance
importance of
of
the
the elements
elements creating
creating the
the dissonance
dissonance
and
and the
the degree
degree of
of influence
influence the
the individual
individual believes
believes
he/she
he/she has
has over
over the
the elements
elements
and
and the
the rewards
rewards that
that may
may be
be involved
involved in
in dissonance
dissonance
IfIf the
the elements
elements creating
creating the
the dissonance
dissonance are
are relatively
relatively
unimportant,
unimportant, the
the pressure
pressure to
to correct
correct this
this imbalance
imbalance will
will
4
be
be low.
low.

Attitudes and Behavior

Cognitive
Cognitive Dissonance
Dissonance Theory
Theory
continued
continued

Suppose,
Suppose,you
youare
areworking
workingas
asaajunior
juniorexecutive
executivein
inaacompany.
company.You
You
always
alwaysdislike
dislikeand
andare
arestrongly
stronglyagainst
againstto
towork
workafter
afterregular
regularoffice
office
hour.
hour.
But
Butyour
yourmanager
manageralways
alwaysask
askall
allof
ofyou
youto
towork
workup
upto
to8:00
8:00PM
PMto
to
finish
finishpending
pendingworks.
works.
This
Thisisisvery
veryimportant
importantfor
forthe
thecompanys
companysexport
exportshipment.
shipment.
Now
Nowafter
aftercouple
coupleof
ofyears,
years,you
youare
arethe
theManager.
Manager.What
What will
will you
you
do?
do?
In
Inprinciple
principleyou
youare
areagainst
againstthis.
this.At
Atthe
thesame
sametime
timeto
tomeet
meet
companys
companysgoal
goal(which
(whichisisyour
yourresponsibility
responsibilityas
asaaManager
Managerand
and
also
alsoyou
youare
arebound
boundto
todo
dothat
thatto
toretain
retainyour
yourjob),
job),you
youhave
haveto
todo
do
that.
that.

The
The elements
elements involved
involved are
are very
very important,
important, so
so difficult
difficult to
to
5
reduce
reduce dissonance.
dissonance.

Attitudes and Behavior

Cognitive
Cognitive Dissonance
Dissonance Theory
Theory
continued
continued
There
Theremay
maybe
becouple
coupleof
of alternatives.
alternatives.
You
Youcan
canmaintain
maintainyour
your principle
principle and
and let
let the
the employees
employees to
togo
go
home
homeafter
after regular
regular office
officehour.
hour.
You
Youcan
canask
askthe
theemployees
employeesto
towork
workduring
duringinterval
intervaltime
timeto
tofinish
finish
the
theworks
works
You
Youcan
cannow
now suggest
suggestyour
youremployees
employeesthat
that working
workinglonger
longertime
timeisis
good
goodfor
fortheir
their knowledge
knowledgeand
andskill
skill
You
Youcan
cansimply
simplydecide
decidethat
thatsince
sinceyou
youare
arenow
now the
theManager,
Manager,you
you
have
haveto
toperform
perform your
your duty.
duty.To
Toperform
perform own
own duty
dutyisisaamore
more
important
importantprinciple
principlethat
thatretaining
retainingown
ownperceived
perceivedprinciple.
principle.
Or,
Or,you
youcan
cansimply
simplyignore
ignoreyour
your principle
principle by
byconfirming
confirmingthat
thatyou
you
used
usedto
tobelieve
believe on
onthat
thatprinciple
principlein
inthe
thepast,
past, not
not now.
now.This
This isis aa
competitive
competitiveera.
era.We
Wehave
haveto
towork
worklonger
longertime
timesince
sincewe
weare
are 6
getting
gettinggood
goodsalary.
salary.

Perception and Individual Decision Making

Peoples
Peoples behavior
behavior is
is based
based on
on their
their perception
perception
of
of what
what reality
reality is,
is, not
not on
on reality
reality itself.
itself.

The
The world
world as
as itit is
is perceived
perceived is
is the
the world
world that
that is
is
behaviorally
behaviorally important.
important.

Perception and Individual Decision Making

What Is
Perception,
and Why Is It
Important?

Perception
The process of recognizing,
organizing and interpreting
information
A process by which
individuals organize and
interpret their sensory
impressions in order to give
meaning to their environment.
8

Perception and Individual Decision Making

Factors Influence Perception

Perception and Individual Decision Making

Person Perception:
Making Judgments
About Others
Attribution Theory
When individuals
observe behavior,
they attempt to
determine whether it
is internally or
externally caused.

Distinctiveness: Shows
different behaviors in different
situations.
Consensus: Response is the
same as others to same
situation.
Consistency: Responds in
the same way over time.
10

Perception and Individual Decision Making

Attribution Theory

11

Perception and Individual Decision Making

Fundamental Attribution
Error
The tendency to
underestimate the
influence of external
factors and
overestimate the
influence of internal
factors when making
judgments about the
behavior of others

Errors and
Biases in
Attributions
In general, we tend to
blame the person first,
not the situation.

12

Perception and Individual Decision Making

Thought:
Thought: When
When
Fundamental Attribution
students
get
an
A
on
students get an A on
Error
an
exam,
they
often
say
an exam, they often say
they
they studied
studied hard.
hard. But
But
Self-Serving Bias
when
when they
they dont
dont do
do well,
well, The tendency for
how
individuals to attribute
how does
does the
the selfselfserving
their own successes to
serving bias
bias come
come into
into
internal factors while
play?
play?
putting the blame for
Hint:
Hint: Whose
Whose fault
fault is
is itit
failures on external
usually
usually when
when an
an exam
exam
factors
is
is tough?
tough?
13

Perception and Individual Decision

Making
Frequently Used Shortcuts
in Judging Others
Selective Perception
People selectively
interpret what they see on
the basis of their
interests, background,
experience, and attitudes.

14

Perception and Individual Decision Making

Halo Effect
Frequently Used Shortcuts
in Judging Others

Drawing a general impression

about an individual on the
basis of a single characteristic

Contrast Effects
Evaluation of a persons
characteristics that are
affected by comparisons
with other people recently
encountered who rank
higher or lower on the
15
same characteristics

Perception and Individual Decision Making

Frequently Used Shortcuts
in Judging Others

Projection
Attributing ones own
characteristics to other people

Stereotyping
Judging someone on the
basis of ones perception
of the group to which that
person belongs
16

Perception and Individual Decision Making

Specific Applications in Organizations
Employment Interview
Perceptual biases of raters affect the accuracy of interviewers
judgments of applicants

Performance Expectations
Self-fulfilling prophecy (Pygmalion effect): The lower or higher
performance of employees reflects preconceived leader expectations
about employee capabilities.

Ethnic Profiling
A form of stereotyping in which a group of individuals is singled out
typically on the basis of race or ethnicityfor intensive inquiry,
scrutinizing, or investigation

Performance Evaluations
Appraisals are often the subjective (judgmental) perceptions of
appraisers of another employees job performance.

17

Perception and Individual Decision Making

The Link Between Perceptions and Individual Decision Making

18

Perception and Individual Decision Making

Two alternative approaches to decision

making
Classical Decision Maker

Behavioral Decision
Maker

Clearly defined problem

Knowledge of all possible
alternatives and their
consequences
Choice of the optimum
alternative
Managerial action

Cognitive
limitation
Bounded
rationality

Problem not clearly

defined
Knowledge is limited on
possible alternatives
and their consequences
Choice of a satisfactory
alternative
Managerial action

19

Perception and Individual Decision Making

Assumptions of the Rational
Or Classical Decisionmaking Model

Classical / Rational Decisionmaking Model

Describes how individuals
should behave in order to
maximize some outcome

Model
ModelAssumptions
Assumptions
Problem
Problemclarity
clarity
Known
Knownoptions
options
Clear
Clearpreferences
preferences
Constant
Constantpreferences
preferences
No
Notime
timeor
orcost
cost
constraints
constraints
Maximum
Maximumpayoff
payoff
20

Perception and Individual Decision Making

Steps in the Rational Decision-making Model

Define the problem.
Identify the decision criteria.
Allocate weights to the criteria.
Develop the alternatives.
Evaluate the alternatives.
Select the best alternative.
21

Perception and Individual Decision Making

How Are Decisions
Actually Made in
Organizations?

Bounded Rationality
Individuals make
decisions by
constructing simplified
models that extract the
essential features from
problems without
capturing all their
complexity.
22

Perception and Individual Decision Making

How Are Decisions Actually Made in

Organizations?
Satisficing: seeking the first alternative that
solves problem
Engaging in incremental rather than unique
problem solving through successive limited
comparison of alternatives to the current
alternative in effect

23

Perception and Individual Decision Making

Common Biases and Errors

Anchoring Bias
Overconfidence
Bias
Believing too
much in our own
ability to make
good decisions

Using early, first received

information as the basis for
making subsequent
judgments

Confirmation Bias
Using only the facts that
support our decision

24

Perception and Individual Decision Making

Common Biases and Errors

Availability Bias
Using information
that is most readily
at hand
Recent
Vivid

Representative Bias
Mixing apples with oranges
Assessing the likelihood of
an occurrence by trying to
match it with a preexisting
category using only the facts
that support our decision
You have experience that
some engineers from a
specific university are good,
so you are interested in hiring
a new manager with MBA
from the same university
25

Perception and Individual Decision Making

Common Biases and Errors

Randomness Error
Creating meaning out of
random events

Escalation of
Commitment Error
When a series of decisions
has to take
In spite of new negative
information, staying with a
decision even when there is
clear evidence that its wrong
It happens due to escalation
of commitment increases for
the existing decision

Hindsight Bias
Looking back, once the
outcome has occurred, and
falsely believe that you
accurately predicted the
outcome of an event
It reduces our capability to
learn from the past
develops unreasonable
confidence
26

Perception and Individual Decision Making

Intuition
Intuitive Decision Making
An unconscious process created out of distilled experience

Conditions Favoring Intuitive Decision Making

A high level of uncertainty exists

There is little precedent to draw on
Variables are less scientifically predictable
Facts are limited
Facts dont clearly point the way
Analytical data are of little use
Several plausible alternative solutions exist
Time is limited and pressing for the right
27

Perception and Individual Decision Making

Individual Differences in Decision Making
Personality
Aspects of conscientiousness and escalation of
commitment

Self Esteem
Gender

High self serving bias

Women tend to analyze decisions more than men.

Culture
Belief, Values, Tradition
28

Perception and Individual Decision Making

Organizational Constraints on Decision Makers
Performance Evaluation
Evaluation criteria influence the choice of actions

Reward Systems
Decision makers make action choices that are favored by
the organization

Formal Regulations
Organizational rules and policies limit the alternative choices
of decision makers

System-imposed Time Constraints

Organizations require decisions by specific deadlines

Historical Precedents
Past decisions influence current decisions

29

Perception and Individual Decision Making

Ways to Improve Decision Making

Analyze the situation and adjust your decision

making style to fit the situation.

Be aware of biases and try to limit their impact.

Combine rational analysis with intuition to

increase decision-making effectiveness.

Dont assume that your specific decision style is

appropriate to every situation.

Enhance personal creativity by looking for novel

solutions or seeing problems in new ways, and
using analogies.
30

Perception and Individual Decision Making

Reducing Bias and Errors
Focus on goals.
Clear goals make decision making easier and help to
eliminate options inconsistent with your interests.

Look for information that disconfirms beliefs.

Overtly considering ways we could be wrong
We should challenge our tendencies to think that were not
smarter than we actually are.

Dont try to create meaning out of random

events.
Dont attempt to create meaning out of coincidence.
31

Perception and Individual Decision Making

Michael has just discovered he is registered for two classes
at the same time and must make a decision about which
one to take this semester. He considers the professor
teaching this semester, the time of the class, and the
classes his friends are taking. He then considers his
options for when he can take each class again, as well as
the costs and benefits for taking each this semester
versus later next year. He then makes his decision.
Michael has just engaged in what type of decision
making?

32

Perception and Individual Decision Making

In making his decision, Michael forgot to

consider the implications of the color of paint in
the room where each class was being offered.
Given that room color can influence mood,
which can influence performance, why didnt
Michael consider it?

33

Perception and Individual Decision Making

34