Intro to Psych: Industrial Psychology

Americans with Disabilities Act

Employers cannot discriminate against any individual based on a disability.

Bona fide occupational qualification (BFOQ)

A requirement of certain occupations for which denying an individual employment would otherwise violate the law, such as requirements concerning religion or sex.

Checklist

A method used to reduce workplace accidents.

Diversity training

Training employees about cultural differences with the goal of improving teamwork.

Downsizing

A process in which an organization tries to achieve greater overall efficiency by reducing the number of employees.

Hawthorne effect

An increase in performance of individuals who are noticed, watched, and paid attention to by researchers or supervisors.

Human factors

A psychology branch that studies how workers interact with the tools of work and designs those tools to optimize productivity, safety, and health.

Immutable characteristic

Traits that employers cannot use to discriminate in hiring, benefits, promotions, or termination; these traits are fundamental to one’s personal identity (e.g. skin color and hair texture).

Industrial and organizational (I-O) psychology

A field that applies scientific principles to the study of work and the workplace.

Industrial psychology

A branch that studies job characteristics, applicant characteristics, and how to match them; also studies employee training and performance appraisal.

Job analysis

Determining and listing tasks associated with a particular job.

Job satisfaction

The degree of pleasure that employees derive from their job.

Organizational culture

Values, visions, hierarchies, norms, and interactions between employees; how an organization is run, operates, and makes decisions.

Organizational psychology

A branch that studies the interactions between people working in organizations and the effects of those interactions on productivity.

Performance appraisal

Evaluation of an employee’s success or lack of success at performing the duties of the job.

Procedural justice

Fairness by which means are used to achieve results in an organization

Scientific management theory

Management approach that analyzes and synthesizes workflows to improve economic efficiency and labor productivity.

Sexual harassment

Sexually-based behavior that is knowingly unwanted and adversely affects a person's employment or creates a hostile work environment.

Telecommuting

Employees' ability to set their own hours and work from home at various times during the day.

Theory X

Assumes workers are inherently lazy and unproductive; managers must exert control and use punishment.

Theory Y

Assumes workers seek to work hard and productively; managers and workers can collaboratively find solutions.

Transactional leadership style

Leadership approach focusing on supervision and organizational goals through a system of rewards and punishments.

Transformational leadership style

Leadership characterized by charismatic role models who are inspirational and seek to change the organization.

U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC)

Federal agency responsible for enforcing laws against workplace discrimination based on race, color, religion