The “It's Not My Fault!” Exercise: Exploring The Causes and Consequences of Managers' Explanations for Poor Performance

Abstract

Experienced managers know that perceptions matter greatly when it comes to working effectively with employees. The task for organizational behavior (OB) instructors, especially in the undergraduate classroom, is to make the perceptions topic come alive for students who may not appreciate at first the application and significance of this subject for their future careers. This two-part exercise helps OB students understand how managers' perceptions shape the judgments they make about the causes of employees' poor performance and how these judgments affect managers' responses. In part one, students personalize the subject through an individual reflection exercise and group discussion. In part two, a realistic scenario-based exercise, students adopt the role of a manager dealing with an employee's performance failure. Exercise debriefing emphasizes the application of attribution theory concepts. Several options are suggested for integrating additional OB topics, such as the self-fulfilling prophecy, attribution errors, and confirmation bias.