BAHRIA UNIVERSITY

ORGANISATIONAL BEHAVIOR

ASSIGNMENT 2 BY SIR FARAZ

HAJRA ALI BBA 3-H

TOPIC: PERCEPTION.
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1. What is attribution theory? What are its implications for explaining organizational
behavior?

Attribution theory is a social psychology concept that refers to the process by which people
explain the causes of their own behavior and the behavior of others. It attempts to understand
how individuals perceive and interpret events and the actions of others, and how they attribute
those events and actions to internal or external factors.

In the context of organizational behavior, attribution theory has several implications. First, it can
help explain how people make judgments about the performance of others in the workplace. For
example, if an employee performs well on a task, attribution theory suggests that others may
attribute that success to the employee's abilities or effort. Alternatively, if an employee performs
poorly, others may attribute the failure to external factors, such as a lack of resources or poor
training.

Attribution theory also helps to explain the impact of feedback on employee motivation and
performance. Employees who receive positive feedback that is attributed to their own efforts or
abilities are more likely to be motivated to continue performing well. On the other hand,
employees who receive negative feedback that is attributed to factors outside of their control may
be less motivated to improve their performance.

Additionally, attribution theory can help organizations understand how employees perceive and
react to the actions of leaders and managers. For example, if a manager makes a decision that
employees perceive as unfair, they may attribute that decision to the manager's personal biases or
preferences rather than to the needs of the organization. This could lead to decreased trust in the
manager and reduced employee engagement.

Overall, understanding attribution theory can help organizations to better understand how
employees interpret and respond to events in the workplace, and can inform strategies for
improving performance, motivation, and employee engagement.
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2. How Are Our Perceptions Of Our Own Actions Different From Our Perceptions Of The
Actions Of Others?

Our perceptions of our own actions are often biased in comparison to our perceptions of the
actions of others. This phenomenon is known as the self-serving bias, which refers to the
tendency to attribute our successes to internal factors (such as our abilities or efforts) and our
failures to external factors (such as luck or situational factors).

In contrast, when observing the actions of others, we are more likely to attribute their successes
and failures to their own internal traits and characteristics. This is known as the fundamental
attribution error, which suggests that we tend to overestimate the importance of dispositional
factors (such as personality traits) and underestimate the impact of situational factors when
evaluating the behavior of others.

In the context of organizational behavior, these biases can have significant implications. For
example, if an employee receives positive feedback on a task, they may attribute their success to
their own abilities or efforts, which can increase their confidence and motivation. However, if
the same employee observes a colleague receiving similar feedback, they may attribute their
colleague's success to external factors (such as an easier task or favorable circumstances), which
can lead to resentment and decreased motivation.

Similarly, if a manager observes an employee struggling with a task, they may be more likely to
attribute the difficulty to the employee's lack of ability or effort rather than considering external
factors such as inadequate training or resource constraints. This can lead to unfairly negative
evaluations and decreased job satisfaction for the employee.

Overall, understanding these biases in perception can help individuals and organizations to
become more self-aware and avoid making inaccurate attributions about their own behavior and
the behavior of others. By acknowledging the impact of both internal and external factors on
performance and behavior, individuals can make more informed decisions and improve their
ability to work effectively in a team-based environment.
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3. How does selectivity affect perception? Give an example of how selectivity can create
perceptual distortion.

Selectivity refers to the tendency of our brains to filter and prioritize information based on our
interests, needs, and expectations. This filtering process can have a significant impact on our
perception, as it determines which stimuli we attend to and how we interpret them.

One example of how selectivity can create perceptual distortion is the phenomenon of
confirmation bias. Confirmation bias refers to the tendency to seek out and interpret information
in a way that confirms our existing beliefs and expectations. For example, if a manager has a
preconceived notion that an employee is not capable of handling a particular task, they may
selectively focus on instances of the employee struggling with the task, while ignoring or
downplaying instances of success. This can lead to a distorted perception of the employee's
abilities and performance, and can result in unfair evaluations and missed opportunities for
development.

Another example of selectivity in perception is the cocktail party effect, which refers to the
ability to selectively attend to and filter out specific stimuli in a noisy or crowded environment.
For example, if an employee is working in an open office environment, they may selectively
attend to conversations or noises that are relevant to their work, while filtering out irrelevant
stimuli such as background chatter or the sound of printers. This selectivity can help to improve
focus and productivity, but can also lead to a distortion in perception if important information is
missed or misunderstood.

Overall, selectivity in perception is a natural and necessary process that allows us to efficiently
process and interpret the vast amounts of information that we encounter on a daily basis.
However, it can also lead to perceptual distortion if we become too focused on certain stimuli or
if our preconceived beliefs and expectations influence how we interpret information.