Selectivity and Selective Perception: An Investigation of Managers' Belief Structures and Information Processing

Abstract

Dearborn and Simon's evidence of departmental bias in problem identification has prompted a scholarly concern about managers' information-processing capabilities. Through measures of managers' entire work histories, their belief structures, and three indexes of information processing in an ill-structured decision situation, the present research conceptually replicated and extended Dearborn and Simon's early work.’ Contrary to prevailing belief about managers' information-processing limitations, the managers in this investigation did not emerge as simple-minded information processors.