Freud maintained that all defense mechanisms have two characteristics in common. One is that they deny falsify or distort reality and secondly they operate unconsciously so that the person is not aware of what is taking place. (Hall, 1954) (2) Projection allows individuals to protect themselves from recognizing their own undesirable qualities by assigning them in exaggerated amounts to other people or in the case of managers, to subordinates or other work colleagues.
Similarly, we also have positive traits, which we like in ourselves, which can also be projected. An example of this is a manager attributing future success to an interview applicant due to his or her resume indicating particular attention to spelling, presentation and neatness. (Tosi, Mero & Rizzo, 2000) (6) In this case the manager sees a resume reflecting qualities that the manager believes he or she possesses and extrapolates that to the applicant achieving similar heights within the organization as the manager has achieved. .
Another example of projection in organizational behavior is the manager who assumes that the needs of subordinates are the same as his or her own. The manager may enjoy responsibility and achievement in the work place but have subordinates whose work is viewed by the manager as dull and routine. There may be a strong desire in this case for the manager to redesign these jobs and help the subordinates achieve higher-level satisfactions in order that they experience things that the manager personally values in work.
This may be viewed as detrimental because, with the manager projecting his or her needs on the subordinates, individual differences evaporate. Individual differences are important in maintaining a competent and harmonious work force. In this example the subordinates may be perfectly happy and satisfied doing jobs that the manager sees as dull and routine.
Another shortcut used by managers that can result in significant distortions being made is the halo effect.