What is Organizational Psychology?

Flashcards based on Organisational Psychology lecture notes.

Term: Organizational Psychology

The application of psychological principles, theory, and research to the work setting.

Term: Other names for Organisational Psychology

Industrial & Organisational (I/O) Psychology, Work Psychology, Vocational Psychology, Occupational Psychology.

Term: Why is organisational psychology important?

Adults spend the majority of their waking life at work and work is a critical part of our identity.

Term: Aims of Organisational Psychology from a managerial perspective

To increase productivity and improve performance.

Term: Aims of Organisational Psychology from a worker perspective

To improve the quality of working life.

Term: Organisational Psychology practice cycle

Job Analysis, Recruitment, Selection, Training, Job Design & Job Crafting, Performance & Motivation, Career Planning & Succession

Term: Areas of the History of Organisational Psychology

Experimental Psychology, Individual Differences, Classic Management Theory, Scientific Management, WWI & WWII, Human Relations Era

Term: Scientific Management

Using scientific methods to develop efficient production processes to increase productivity

Term: Role the World Wars play in the history of organizational psychology

Development of tests to classify military personnel, improved processes for applied psychology

Term: Hawthorne Effect

Changes to behavior and performance may result from short-term psychological factors, such as awareness of being observed.

Term: What did Title VII of the Civil Rights Act (1964) do?

Protect workers from discrimination; employers are required to justify the use of selection tests. Illegal to use selection tests that cannot be clearly shown to be related to job performance and that disadvantaged “protected” groups

Term: Areas that saw greater understanding, which grew the interest of organisational psychology

Individual differences (from IQ to personality, values etc.) Leadership and interpersonal relationships, Motivation, satisfaction & attitudes

Term: Scientist-Practitioner Model

Trained professional psychologists should be knowledgeable in both research (science) and practice.

Term: Challenges in conducting applied research

Design Problems, Ethical Problems, Practical Problems

Term: Research design problems

Incomplete or biased sample, wrong methods chosen, wrong question asked / inappropriate measure used

Term: Ethical problems when conducting applied research

Recruitment involves coercion, researcher fails to get informed consent from participants, Researcher fails to protect anonymity or privacy of participants, Researcher uses copyrighted methodologies without permission/payment, Researcher overpromises regarding the potential results/implications of the research

Term: Practical problems when conducting applied research

Some stakeholders oppose research project, Organisation pulls plug on project, Findings are not useful to the organisation, Ensuring participants (employees) have sufficient time in their schedule to participate in the research, Difficulty recruiting specialist populations