Post on 23-Mar-2016
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“Understanding Emotions and the Myth of Rationality”
Elizabeth J. Rozell, Ph.D.Kenneth E. Meyer Professor of Management
Missouri State University
What Is Perception, and Why Is It Important?
•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.
Perception
A process by which individuals organize and interpret their
sensory impressions in order to give
meaning to their environment.
Person Perception: Making Judgments About Others
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.
Attribution Theory
When individuals observe behavior, they attempt to determine whether it is internally or externally caused.
Errors and Biases in Attributions
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. In general, we
tend to blame the person first, not the situation.
Errors and Biases in Attributions (cont’d)
Self-Serving Bias
The tendency for individuals to attribute their own successes to internal factors while putting the blame for failures on external
factors.
Thought: When student gets an “A” on an exam,
they often say they studied hard. But when they don’t do well, how
does the self serving bias come into play?
Hint: Whose fault is it usually when an exam is
“tough”?
Frequently Used Shortcuts in Judging Others
Selective Perception
People selectively interpret what they see on the basis of their interests, background,
experience, and attitudes.
Frequently Used Shortcuts in Judging Others
Halo Effect
Drawing a general impression about an
individual on the basis of a single characteristic
Contrast Effects
Evaluation of a person’s characteristics that are affected by comparisons with
other people recently encountered who rank higher or lower on the same
characteristics
Frequently Used Shortcuts in Judging Others
Projection
Attributing one’s own characteristics
to other people.
Stereotyping
Judging someone on the basis of one’s
perception of the group to which that person
belongs.
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 ethnicity—for intensive inquiry, scrutinizing, or investigation.
Specific Applications in Organizations (cont’d)
Performance Evaluations– Appraisals are often the subjective (judgmental)
perceptions of appraisers of another employee’s job performance.
Emotions- Why Emotions Were Ignored in OB
The “myth of rationality”– Organizations are not emotion-free.
Emotions of any kind are disruptive to organizations.– Original OB focus was solely on the effects of
strong negative emotions that interfered with individual and organizational efficiency.
What Are Emotions?
MoodsFeelings that tend to be less intense than emotions and that lack a contextual stimulus.
EmotionsIntense feelings that are directed at someone or something.
AffectA broad range of emotions
that people experience.
Felt versus Displayed Emotions
Felt EmotionsAn individual’s actual emotions.Displayed EmotionsEmotions that are organizationally required and considered appropriate in a given job.
What Are Emotions?
Emotional LaborA situation in which an employee expresses organizationally desired emotions during interpersonal transactions.Emotional DissonanceA situation in which an employee must project one emotion while simultaneously feeling another.
Emotion Continuum
The closer any two emotions are to each other on the continuum, the more likely people are to confuse them.
Source: Based on R.D. Woodworth, Experimental Psychology (New York: Holt, 1938).
OB Applications of Understanding Emotions
Ability and Selection– Emotions affect employee effectiveness.
Decision Making– Emotions are an important part of the decision-
making process in organizations. Motivation
– Emotional commitment to work and high motivation are strongly linked.
Leadership– Emotions are important to acceptance of
messages from organizational leaders.
OB Applications… (cont’d)
Interpersonal Conflict– Conflict in the workplace and individual
emotions are strongly intertwined. Customer Services
– Emotions affect service quality delivered to customers which, in turn, affects customer relationships.
Deviant Workplace Behaviors– Negative emotions lead to employee deviance
(actions that violate norms and threaten the organization).• Productivity failures• Property theft and destruction• Political actions• Personal aggression
Emotional Intelligence: The Concept
Emotional Intelligence (EI)• Self-awareness• Self-management• Self-motivation• Empathy• Social skills
Research Findings• High EI scores, not high
IQ scores, characterize high performers.
Emotional IntelligenceAn assortment of noncognitive skills, capabilities, and competencies that influence a person’s ability to succeed in coping with environmental demands and pressures.
“We are being judged by a new yardstick; not just how smart we are, or by our training and expertise, but also how well we handle ourselves and each other.”
Daniel Goleman, Ph.D.Working with
Emotional Intelligence
Emotional Intelligence
Emotional intelligence is not about being nice all the time.• It is about being honest.
Emotional intelligence is not about being “touchy-feely.”• It is about being aware of your feelings, and those of
others.
Emotional intelligence is not about being emotional.• It is about being smart with your emotions.
What is Emotional Intelligence?
• Greater career success
• Stronger personal relationships
• Increased optimism and confidence
• Better health
Personal Benefits of Emotional Intelligence
• Effective leadership skills
• Improved communication
• Less workplace conflict
• Better problem solving skills
• Increased likelihood of promotion
Professional Benefits of Emotional Intelligence
• Self-Awareness
• Self-Regulation
• Self-Motivation
• Empathy
• Effective Relationships
Relate to Ourselves
Relate to Others
The Five Essential Competencies of Emotional Intelligence
“If you understand your own feelings you get a really great handle on how you’re going to interact and perform with others…
So one of the first startingpoints is, ‘what’s going oninside of me?’”
Chuck WolfePresident,
C. J. Wolfe Associates, LLC
Self-Awareness
“If we are in a heightened state of agitation or anger we cannot make good decisions, we cannot reason well.”
Christine CasperCommunication, Motivation
& Management Inc.
Self-Regulation
“High performers are those who are able to see with some clarity to what degree they are responsible for a setback and to what degree it may be circumstance or other people, and as a result they areable to be more persistent.”
Dr. J.P. Pawliw-FryCo-Director,
Inst. For Health & Human Potential
Self-Motivation
“If people will stop for a moment and put themselves in another person’s shoes…it will help them modify their own behavior. It will help them develop relationshipswith those people.”
Darryl Grigg, Ed.D.Co-Developer,
American Express Emotional Competence Program
Empathy
"And so there's a real pay-off. The people who will become the leaders, the people who will become the star performers, are the ones who have the strengths in the key emotional intelligence abilities."
Daniel Goleman, Ph.D.Founder,
Emotional Intelligence Services
Social Skills
Rozell’s Research Stream in EI
Topics of Recent Publication
• EI as a predictor of performance in salespeople
• EI as a predictor of workplace aggression
• EI as a predictor of group satisfaction
• EI as a moderator of emotional labor and burnout
• EI as a predictor of impression management
Rozell’s Research Stream in EI (cont.)
Topics of Recent Publication
• EI and ethical decision making
• EI and work attitudes
• EI and organizational citizenship behaviors
• EI and management development
• EI and international students in business school curriculum
Example Study #1
EI and Workplace Aggression
Research Question: • Does EI impact workplace aggression?
We expected that as a person’s EI increased, his or her ability to control negative emotions would be enhanced, and therefore, workplace aggression would decrease.
Sample: • 110 behavioral health workers
Example Study #1 (cont.)
Findings: • Verbal aggression – no significance• Physical aggression – significant• Hostility – significant• Anger – no significance
Implications:• Organizations should seek to hire and retain
employees with high emotional intelligence.• Also implications for training, selection, placement
practices, and performance appraisal practices.
Example Study #2
EI and Performance in Salespeople
Research Question:• Does EI impact performance in salespeople?
We expected that the highest levels of salesperformance would be achieved by salespeople possessing the highest levels of EI.
Sample:• 103 salespeople employed by a national company
that specializes in medical devices.
Example Study #2 (cont.)
Findings:• Performance significantly related to emotional
intelligence• Emotional awareness – significant• Internal emotional control – significant• External emotional control – no significance
Implications:• Important for a salesperson to have ability to control
own emotions (e.g. rejection) and have empathy (e.g. understand) needs of clients.
• Implications for sales training, job assignment, and selection.
Questions?