The Behaviour Effect

What happens when you provide someone with feedback?  Do they welcome your comments?  Does it depend on who it is you are providing the feedback to?  What exactly do you feedback to them…their behaviour?  their actions? their attitude?

Many would agree that a person’s attitude has a real and measurable impact on behaviour.  Many managers think that it is the employee’s poor attitude that causes them to produce poor quality work or a good attitude makes a person a better worker.

How would you feel if I told you that it is impossible to observe attitude?

To demonstrate what I mean, lets start with the dictionary definition of  ‘observe’.

Ob-serve

1. to see, watch, perceive, or notice.  “He observed the passerby in the street.”
2. to regard with attention, esp. so as to see or learn something.  “I want to observe her reaction to the judge’s question.”
3. to watch, view, or note for a scientific. official, or other special purpose.  ” To observe an eclipse.”

So how do we observe an attitude?  For example, someone enters a room in a raging temper, obviously incredibly upset and fuming about something that has happened.  Did I observe the raging temper?  Some of you might be saying ‘yes’, but what did I actually observe?  I saw the person enter the room, their face was contorted, they had tight closed fists held stiffly at their sides.  They were walking briskly and were mumbling about something I couldn’t quite make out.

I inferred from my observations that they were in a raging temper.  Inference?  Let’s check the definition.

In-fer

1. to derive by reasoning; conclude or judge from premises or evidence.  ” They inferred form his cool tone of voice”
2. to guess; speculate; surmise
3. to hint; imply,suggest

That inference, the conclusion about the meaning of the observations, says as much about me the observer as it does about the person under observation.  I cannot prove that the person was in a fowl temper, I can only use the specific examples of their behaviour that evidence my conclusions.

So what does this mean?  Why is it important to note this differentiation?

Conclusions about attitude or personality are subjective, and people are very easily offended when their attitude or personality is attacked.  Focusing on your conclusion or judgement of the behaviour very rarely results in improved performance.  In fact, it’s one of the best possible ways to achieve ill feeling.

So what do we do?  You think (due to observations of behaviour) that someone has a bad attitude…how are we to let them know (because without feedback we cannot expect an improvement) without including our own perceptions and judgements?

We concentrate on the observable behaviour.  OK, an example.  You think John has a bad attitude and that it’s affecting the quality of his work.  When providing him with feedback, you need to ask yourself which of his behaviours is causing the problems…his lateness and arguing with his colleagues…and let John know about those, don’t mention attitude.

This way, we avoid building barriers to be heard and provide specific information about behaviour that can be improved.  John can concentrate on being on time, which is measurable rather than be offended and wondering what exactly a bad attitude means.

Remember, feedback is supposed to be helpful.  Determine whether what you want to say will help or not by asking yourself, ” Will my comments be specific enough and non-threatening enough to help them improve?”

Distinguish between what you observe and what you infer… This distinction is very important.

How much of an effect does the print font we use have on the reader?  Does the ease or difficulty of reading text have an impact on our view of the information?  How do we process information?

Recent experimental research shows that the print font we use can have a profound effect on our understanding of information.  This happens because the print fonts influence how fluently we process the information, even though the font has no actually relationship with the information it is displaying.  How much consideration do you give to the font that you use?

Take for example a recipe…how easy the steps are to read will have a significant effect on how easy we presume the recipe is to follow and meal is to prepare.  This is above and beyond the link we place on complex recipes being difficult to prepare.  A recommendation than would be for restaurants to display their menu in a harder to read font as customers will presume that they are more difficult to prepare, taking additional skill and effort.  It might even prevent the hobby cook from trying the dish at home.

Another point is highlighted with regards to how quickly the reader will make a decision related to the information.  The more difficult to read, the longer the reader will take to make a decision based on it adn they may not make a decision at all.  Novemsky and colleagues presented the same information about two cordless phones in easy to read or difficult to read formats.  They observed that 17% of their participants deferred choice when it was easy to read whereas 41% did so when the font was difficult to read.  Pretty clear results!  So if you want your reader to act on what you are writing about, you need to ensure the print font is clear and easy to read.

The effect is also evident when the name of a product or offering is difficult to pronounce.  For example, amusement park rides with difficult to pronounce names are perceived as being more adventurous than rides with easy to pronounce names…and are also perceived as more likely to make you sick!  The fluency of the name having a effect on how we understand the product.

Taking this knowledge into the stock market the effect is repeated.  Companies that had difficult to pronounce names were seen as more risky than company names that were easy to say.  In fact Exchange, Alter and Oppenheimer found that companies with easy to pronounce ticker symbols actually performed better than those with difficult to pronounce ticker symbols.

Next time you need to present written information…how much care will you take to make it easy to read…and thus be seen as easy to implement and understand?

PS. If in doubt use Ariel print font…its known to be the easiest to read!

The more vigorous and diverse your mental life, the more you will stimulate the growth of new neurons and new connections between them.  Different cognitive challenges exercise different components of the brain.  Much in the same way as no single exercise machine will make you physically fit, instead you need a balanced and diverse workout.

So here are a few logic and creative puzzles for you today…. to keep your Brain ticking over….

1) Alternate Universe

Mr. Bee Zarro claims to come from a parallel universe where afternoon comes before noon, tomorrow comes before yesterday, and later comes before now.  But you don’t need to go to a parallel universe to see the same things happen.  Where can you see this here on Earth?

2) All Together Now

What letter completes this group of 4?     J, P, G, ?

3) Take 30

Alf was the 93rd caller to a radio-station and was told he would win a car if he could go into a room and come out exactly 30 minutes later.  The room had no clock, and Alf was not allowed to wear a watch or bring in anything else that tells time.  The only thing he could take into the room was a lighter and a candle in a candle holder (supplied by the radio station) that was guaranteed to burn completely in exactly one hour.  Alf was not allowed to use a ruler to measure exactly halfway down the candle.  Alf went into the room and emerged exactly 30 minutes later to win the car.  How did he do it?

Need a hint??  Think creatively, don’t get bogged down in assumptions, question them …  or if you’re really stuck… ask me!

What is your opinion of Daniel O-Donnell?  Like his music?  Find him an appealing songster?

Take a minute to come up with a few adjectives to describe him.

What came to mind?  I speculate that the adjectives were not entirely positive.  Perhaps you used words such as ‘boring’, ‘banal’…perhaps you said he’s only liked by the ‘blue rinse brigade’ and sings ‘old stuff’.  Yet, is this completely fair to him as a person?  To be judged on only a few elements of his persona?  Personally I’m not a fan of his music and find his photo shoots amusing for the simple fact that he has only the one pose but… he makes a special effort for his fans.  He insures that there are rows at the front of his concerts reserved for the disabled, he takes time out of his schedule to meet many of his fans….and has even (upon request) signed a birthday card for my aunt who has Downs Syndrome.  This is all above and beyond the call of duty.  I cannot deny that Daniel O’Donnell has many excellent qualities.

Why am I droning on about Daniel O’Donnell you might ask?  The reason, because he made me think about the way I judge others and question the values on which I rate him.  How many of us presume to know someone based on one small element of their personality?  If someone behaves in an inappropriate manner towards us or others do we jusdge the person on that behaviour?  How would you feel about someone making persumptions about you without understanding the context?

When we are providing feedback to others it is important to concentrate on the behaviour not the person.  It is possible to like the person but not the behaviour.  I’m sure you can think of many examples of this.

How interesting it is to look at people through fresh eyes.  To see someone in a different light.  Take a moment now and think of someone, your colleague, your boss…your partner.  Write down 3 adjectives to describe them.  Now think about their physical characteristics, their hobbies, their interests, their dreams, ambitions…the way they relate to others.  Write down 3 more adjectives.  Refreshing isn’t it?  I wonder how many of us stop seeing the attributes of another because we have already made up our minds about what we think of them as a person.

I might not appreciate Daniel O’Donnell music but I can’t wait to see my aunts face when she opens that card…it’ll make her year…and that it definitely worth appreciating!

Ever ask someone something and been answered ‘Probably’.  Not ‘yes’ or ‘no’ but ‘probably’.  What were your expectations?  What assumptions did you make?  How likely is it that you will get what you asked?  During training sessions I have often asked the group to write down what percentage likelyhood is attached to the word ‘probably’.  I have gotten anything from probably means something is 20% likely to happen (I fear this person has been disappointed often in life!) to 99%.

What is your understanding of the word ‘probably’?  Think it’s the same as your colleagues?  Ever checked?

Our understanding of words is impacted by the society we live in, our families…our workplaces…and ourselves.  Often we use language that seems to be understandable but have elements of flexibility in their meaning.  However, the consequences of this can be wide ranging.  You hear ‘probably’ and you assume that its more likely than not to happen but perhaps the person delivering the message had a different understanding of the word?

What about the line ‘I’m almost finished’? What does that mean?  How close to being finished is the person saying this?  What about ‘Not very often’?  How many times is ‘not very often’?

So much of our everyday language is non-exact.  We believe we know the meaning because they are familiar words but do we understand them int he same way other people do.  When we are providing instructions and giving feedback, it is vital that we are understood, in fact communication of any kind does not exist without understanding.

What happened the last time you misunderstood a message because of the language that was used?  How do you prevent someone misunderstanding what you mean?

WATCH POINT – Do you use ‘As soon as possible’ at the bottom of emails?  What does that mean? As soon as possible to you may not be the same as for the person you are sending it to.  They may prioritise differently to you.  If you need something completed quickly, but a deadline.  That was your communication is clear and expectations are managed!!

Speaking to a group of folk at a recent networking event, the subject of Body Language popped up.  The subject of non-verbal communciation quite often arises in situations where I’m explaining what I do for gainful employment…and helping others see the importance of understanding human behaviour.  How it arises? Normally, when I say I’m an Occupational Psychologist, someone will make a comment such as ’so do you know what I’m thinking then?’.

Such comments are normally quite light-hearted (perhaps folk think I won’t have heard that particular ‘joke’ before!) and I have a range of ’stock’ answers for certain situations….

e.g. being chatted up by unwanted attention?

answer: “Yes, and it’s not pretty”, “No because I am truly not interested” or “No, that would make me a psychic!”

In this particular situation the conversation veered towards ‘reading’ people’s body language.  Immediately upon hearing me say that you can pick up quite a lot of interesting and important extra information by paying attention to the non-verbals…a lady commented that she doesn’t completely think it’s true as she often stands with her arms crossed…and she knows that is seen as ‘closed’ behaviour….but she claimed that she was simply comfortable like that and it was often the stance she took.

Before I continue to explain what might be happening in the circumstance she described…I feel the need to state that the dismissal of any theory or research due to a lack of understanding of one small element…is probably not the most effective way forward…but I’m being minorly pedantic so I’ll stop and get back to body language!

I believed her when she said she was comfortable standing like that…I don’t doubt she was.  I do doubt she knew the exact reason she was standing like that.  As it’s her ‘normal’ stance then the movement is probably involuntary, or habitual.  My first comment to her and the others standing in our group was that ‘crossing your arms’ is an often cited example of body language but one of the most important points to note about reading body language is to never take any one action alone.  It is necessary to read body language as a whole and not place meaning on an individual action.  If someone is facing away from you…but their feet are pointing directly towards you…it is necessary to take these actions together…and pay attention to any other actions happening.

Usually,when someone crosses their arms, it means that they’re closed for arguments.  They have placed a barrier between themselves and the rest of the world as a means of protection from others.  Protection from words, remarks and glances not simply physical attack.

Another possibility for crossing arms may be that they”re feeling vulnerable or insecure. Crossing your arms is like giving yourself a hug, it’s a comforting gesture.

In both of these meanings, the purpose of crossing your arms is that you feel more in control and are protected in your surroundings.  If you have developed a habit of this particular gesture….it is possible that you don’t realise the reason and think that it is simply the way you normally stand.  In fact the one thing I would expect is  that the person crossing their arms do indeed feel much more comfortable, because their body language matches their emotional state.  In fact the whole point to crossing your arms is to feel more comfortable.  How other’s feel in their company however, or why they are performing the action…may vary.

Remember though, that body signals must always be validated by other body signals. So, if the legs are crossed as well, and the person looks away… then its probably safe to make the assumption that the person’s mind is firmly shut!

Oh and don’t forget the context.  It could just be the cold.  Crossing your arms is an action we undertake when we are cold.  Double check for pulled up shoulders…also an indicator of being cold…or take note of the temperature in the area…

What happens when your body language contradicts what you’re saying?  People may not be able to explain why they believe/disbelieve the words because often these ques are completely unconsious…but they WILL believe the body language!

How does this change your understanding of the behaviour of others?  Your reaction to others?  Their reaction to you?

Fancy a challenge?  Need a diversion?  Up for a bit of lateral thinking?

No 1)

“My friend Sarah told me that her Grandmother was younger than her Mother.”   Could this be true?

No 2)

A carrot, a football scarf were found in a field.  If noone placed them there, how did they get there? (a hint? its coming up to that time of year!)

No 3)

On the table is a carton containing 6 eggs.  If six people each take one egg, how can it be that one egg is left in the carton?

No 4)

Add 2 to 171 and make it less than 18.

No 5)

A train was speeding down the track towards a woman who had fallen asleep on the railway line after a particularly rowdy party.  The train had no headlights on, there was no moonlight, and no overhead lighting.  How was the driver able to stop the train before hitting her?

No 6)

A woman has to cut a roll of ribbon into one metre lengths.  If it takes her 2 seconds to measure and sut a length and the whole roll is fifty metres long, how long will it take her to do it?

No 7)

You can use 3 identical digits in a simple addition sum so that the total is 12.  You cannot use the digit 4, so what is the answer?

And one for luck

You are driving down the road in your car on a wild, stormy night, when you pass by a bus stop and you see three people waiting for the bus

a-an old lady who looks as if she is about to die

b-an old friend who once saved your life

c-the perfect partner you have been dreaming about

Knowing that there can only be one passenger in your car, whom would you choose?

Each of the above take a little creativity to solve…and each need you to think about the puzzle in a slightly different way…from a different perspective… with unclear reasoning… so if you are having problems, check any assumptions you might have made…

How did you do?  Need the answers?  Want more puzzles?  Like to see an article on how to improve your lateral thinking skills?

Discussing relatively recently with a local poet, a compromise of conversation was highlighted to me.  Having delivered some vibrant and thought provoking poetry he explained that he uses poetry to protray his thoughts and observations about life.  Out conversation swayed into the topic of relativity and how generalisations can never be taken as fact as all things are relative.  Happiness, success, good bad, all things are varying shades of grey.

I fervently agreed and we chatted about human nature, Richard Dawkins, life atheists (as opposed to religious ones) and Robert Anton Wilson’s desire to remove the word ‘is’ from the English Language.  It was an interesting and engaging conversation.  It was when he said, due to the extreme nature of his views, he now found it almost impossible to engage in one-to-one conversation because he could not accept generalisations.  That made me double check my own view point.

Without generalisations and probabilities, we would be unable to have reasoned, intelligent debate.  We would be unable to make decisions or maintain some control over our surroundings.  Without a ‘flexible’ understanding we would lose the ability to engage in many of our normal conversations.  Ok, we need to ensure that we understand a particular word or emotion the way the person delivering it intends. But we also need to use probability to gage what is likely to happen, in order to plan and engage.

So, I accept that to understand behaviour we must assign probability…all things being relative, of course!

Were you at a Halloween Party?  Was it a costume party? Did you wear a mask?

Personally I can’t stand masks.  I’ve always had a bit of a fear of someone in a mask.  Very disconcerting I think.   Not being able to see the facial expression.  Or work out what the person is thinking or feeling.  My friends thought me highly amusing as I cringed and switched the TV programme over when Bo Selecta came on.  I just didn’t find him funny.  And it wasn’t the humour, it was the mask.  I just couldn’t get past the fact that I couldnt see what his face was saying.

How did you feel in your mask for Halloween?  Did you feel like a different person?  Did you enjoy having a different persona for the evening?  How did you feel speaking to people who were wearing masks?

In actual fact, we all wear masks everyday.  Not plastic physical masks but the ’social mask’ that hides our true feelings or thoughts.  We have the ‘professional mask’ we wear at work….not wanting to provide many clues as to how we are feeling in case our colleagues think less of us, or believe that we cannot be competent due to other factors.  We put up a pretense that all is good so that others will not get the ‘wrong’ idea.  In the Johari window our facade is a section of ourselves that we know but other’s don’t.  This is the section, which encourages us to engage in games-playing, trickery, and the like.  The larger this section, the less chance we have of developing truly meaningful and open relationships with others because such relationships are usually based heavily on trust.  Here, the hidden agenda resides.

Do other people’s masks work or do you instinctively know they are hiding something or telling ‘white lies’?

Obviously we need to provide a certain level of professionalism in our work life but if we continuously hide behind a mask then how are others to know anything real about us.  We know that understanding each others stresses and strains can make for a more beneficial relationship yet we are scared to reveal this side of us.  We cry ‘Noone understands!’.  We dislike the assumptions people make about us.  Does wearing our professionalism mask prevent others from correctly dealing with us?

Are there people in your life who you would really love to know better?  Do you ever wish that someone would drop the mask so that you knew what was really going on?  How would our behaviour change if we all dropped our masks?

Ever noticed an opticians with the name ‘Glass’ above the door?

Has it made you smile that Amy Winehouse is a famous alcoholic?

Ever wondered if it’s a coincidence that the name often suits the profession?

The New Scientist magazine coined the term “nominative determinism” to suggest that the name had an influencial role in what role the person plays.  It was first introduced in 1994 when it was remarked that a paper on incontinence in the British Journal of Urology was authored by j.w. Splatt and D. Weedon.  The suggestion is that you consciously or subconsciously are influenced into a particular career or activity simply because your name suits it.

Do we end up ‘doing what it says on the tin’ or is it just more noticable when someone is aptly named? Otherwise would Edwina Curry not be the proud owner of a takeaway?

At a more general level what effect does your name have on your actions? Recent research shows that women who have a masculine name are more likely to be successful in the legal profession.  It is understood that those given names that are readily associated with something else may well have to develop a thick skin in the playground.  Importantly names can also have an effect on how other people see that person.  Would you make the same assumptions introduced to ‘Wayne’ as opposed to being introduced to ‘Hubert’?

Richard Wiseman, a psychologist, conducted research that demonstrated the strong perceptions we have about names and how we associate them with success, luck and attractiveness.  Results included; Elizabeth and James being considered the most successful sounding first names, Lucy and Jack the luckiest and Sophie and Ryan the most attractive.

Does this perception actually influence our behaviour?