Chapter 18: Applied Psychology

lecture & textbook

applied psychology

• use of psychological principles and theories to solve practical problems

• areas of interest: workplace, environment, law, education, sports

organizational psychology

studies organizations to create structures and cultures that will improve performance

industrial psychology

studies jobs to identify the necessary skills needed for success; finding talent

personnel psychology

using psychology to facilitate testing, selection, placement and promotion at work

job analysis

detailed description of the skills, knowledge, and activities required by a particular job

task oriented job analysis

identifying the duties and tasks required to do a job

worker orientated job analysis

identifying knowledge, expertise, and personality required to do a job

critical incidents

• situations which a competent employee must be able to cope with

• revealing behaviours important for success on a job

• e.g. remaining calm in emergency situations

key methods used by personnel psychologists for selection

biodata, interviews, psychological tests, assessment centers

biodata (personnel psychology)

• collecting biographical data on job candidates

• looking at someone’s past behaviours indicates future behaviour

interviews (personnel psychology)

• conducting each interview in a consistent, standardized way

• standardized questions and procedure

• standardized approach to evaluating candidates answers

psychological tests (personnel psychology)

• aptitude tests: measure person’s potential to learn tasks and skills used in various occupations (they aren’t IQ tests)

• personality tests: (big-5) used to screen people who are high on specific personality dimensions

assessment centers (personnel psychology)

• in depth evaluations of job candidates used to hire for executive positions

• situational judgement tests

situational judgement tests (personnel psychology)

• put people in realistic and difficult work situations to see how they behave

• e.g. in basket test: candidates given basket of work memos and business problems and are told to come up with plan of action

job satisfaction

degree to which someone feels positively towards their place of work

importance of job satisfaction

associated with better employee performance, lower absenteeism, lower turnover, happier customers, more organizational citizenship behaviour

4 things that make work satisfying

1. the work itself

2. coworkers and boss

3. compensation

4. career opportunities

flexible work

• flextime: start and end times are flexible

• flexplace: telecommuting, work is done outside the workplace

job enrichment

building achievement, recognition, responsibility, and advancement into the work

4 ways to increase job enrichment

1. show employees why their work matters - connecting them to customers

2. reduce supervision

3. use small teams

4. increase ownership over tasks

theory x leadership

• workers must be goaded into being productive because they are only motivated by extrinsic factors like money

• improving work efficiency, max output at lowest cost

• task orientation

• based on Fredrick Taylor’s scientific management approach which emphasizes worker efficiency

theory y leadership

• workers enjoy work and accept responsibility; workers are motivated by challenging work

• person orientation rather than task

• maximize psychological efficiency

• originates from maslow’s hierarchy of needs and self-enhancement

transformational leadership

leaders who transform employees to exceed expectations and look beyond self-interest to help the organization to better compete

key dimensions of transformational leadership

idealized influence, inspirational motivation, intellectual stimulation, individualized consideration

social dilemma

• situations in which individuals face a choice between self-interest and the interest of the group

• most beneficial individual action, if chosen by most people, has harmful effects for the collective

• whether you act in interest of yourself or the group

tragedy of the commons

• individuals overuse a scarce group resource out of self-interest

• using punishments and rewards

• punishments: tax, fines → frequency of action goes down

• rewards: cash, tax benefits → frequency of action goes up

social norms marketing

• communicating social norms through marketing materials like flyers and ads

• message documenting the high incidence of some desirable behaviour is disseminated through an ad

• message can be conveyed via publicity events, t-shirts, posters, student newspapers, door hangers, email

personalized normative feedback

persuasion technique that seeks to change behaviour by providing people with personalized information about themselves as well as their peers e.g. energy use

goal

an objective to attain a certain level of performance

4 reasons goals are helpful

1. goals serve a directive function

2. goals have an energizing function

3. goals affect persistence

4. goals impact strategy

4 factors that maximize a goal motivational potential

1. are specific

2. are challenging but not impossible

3. are accompanied by frequent feedback

4. are self-generated

organizational culture

blend of customs, beliefs, values, attitudes, and rituals in an organization

organizational citizenship

making positive contributions to the success of an organization in ways that surpass one’s job description

vocational interests tests

pen and paper test assessing one’s interests and matching them to interests found among successful workers in various occupations

leaderless group discussion

test of leadership that simulates group decision making and problem solving

360 degree feedback

evaluation of employee performance, mainly anonymous numerical ratings, collected from different perspectives

psychological efficiency

maintenance of good morale, labour relations, employee satisfaction, and similar aspects of work behaviour

shared leadership (participative management)

employees at all levels make decisions

management by objectives

employees are given specific goals to meet in their work

self-managed team

group of employees working together toward shared goals

quality cirlces

voluntary discussion groups seeking ways to solve business problems and efficiency

environmental psychology

how environments affect behaviour

social environments

group of people and their activities/interrelationships

physical environments

natural or human built settings

ecological footprint

amount of land and water area required to replenish the resources that a human population consumes

crowding

subjective feeling of being overstimulated by a loss of privacy or by the nearness of others

density

number of people in a given space or, inversely, amount of space available to each person

attentional overload

stressful condition caused when sensory stimulation, info and social contacts make excessive demands on attention

noise pollution

stressful and intrusive noise; usually artificially generated by machinery but also includes sounds made by animals and humans

environmental assessment

measurement and analysis of the effects that environment has on the behavior and perceptions of people within that environment

architectural psychology

study of effects that buildings have on behaviour and the design of buildings using behavioural principles

carbon footprint

volume of greenhouse gases individual consumption adds to atmosphere

legal psychology

study of the psychological and behavioural dimensions of legal system

forensic psychology

study of clinical aspects of law

scientific jury selection

using social science principles to choose members of a jury

mock juries

group that realistically simulates courtroom jury

community psychology

goes beyond individual focus and integrates social, cultural, economic, and empowerment at individual and systemic levels

sports psychology

study of behavioural dimensions of sports performance

task analysis

breaking complex skills into their subparts

motor skill

series of actions molded into a smooth and efficient performance

motor program

mental plan/model that guides a skilled movement

mental practice

imagining a skilled performance to aid learning

peak performance

physical, mental, and emotional states are harmonious and optimal