Psych - Industrial/Organizational Psychology

industrial psychology

describing job requirements, assessing individuals for ability to meet requirements

organizational psychology

factors influencing employee happiness, factors influencing business performance

when did I/O psychology originate?

originated in early 1900s, focused on selecting and training employees, advertising

when did I/O psychology expand?

expanded in 1930s and 1940s, included supervisory styles and productivity

WWII further expanded field, military wanted to place personnel in best fitting job

→ ‘Person-Job Fit’

what is the Hawthorne effect?

a phenomenon where individuals modify or improve their behavior because they know they’re being observed

what is the modern focus of I/O psychology?

to reduce bias,expand diversity in the workplace, and adapt to the increasingly digital world

what are the topics of interest in industrial psychology?

selecting, training, and evaluating employees

human factors psychology

a scientific field that studies human behaviors, abilities, and limitations to design safer, more efficient, and comfortable products, systems, and workplaces

organizational culture

values, hierarchies, norms, interactions

can be influenced by company’s industry

current focus is diversity (race, ethnicity, gender identity, age)

what is the strengths-based management theory

that focuses on the strengths of individual employees and assigns tasks according to these strengths

transactional leadership style

focus on supervision and organizational goals

employees are rewarded when goals are met

transformational leadership style

leaders are charismatic, inspirational, intellectually stimulating, considerate

rewards are not as necessary to motivate employees

what is management theory x

that employees dislike work, prefer to be led, and the supervisor holds more power

what is management theory y?

that employees like work and prefer to set their own goals, there’s more equality in power among employees

job satisfaction

thoughts and feelings about your job

‘Work-Content’ is important → need variety, challenge, and clear role

Financial compensation not as important

topics of interest in organizational psychology

job satisfaction, management, and organizational culture

hiring criteria for selecting employees

task-oriented: list of tasks performed in the job

worker-oriented: characteristics of successful worker

*Criteria based on ‘Job Analysis’

candidate analysis

the process of screening/evaluating candidates. is often an interview and can include psychological testing or work samples

training employees

‘Onboarding’ → orientation to company and job, important for learning job tasks and skills and introduction to company culture

mentorship found to be effective → increased job satisfaction, more promotions, can reduce disparities in workplace

evaluating employees

performance-appraisal systems → evaluates job performance, promotes feedback and growth can also be used for firing decisions

work-life balance

very important, if neglected/unstable it can lead to challenges in daily life due to…

time devoted to work, strain/stress from work, work activities interfering with non-work activity