psyc

applied psychology

the use of psychological principles and research methods to solve practical problems

industrial/organizational psychology

a field that focuses on the psychology of work and on the behavior within organizations

organizational culture

the blend of customs, beliefs, values, attitudes, and rituals within an organization

organizational citizenship

making positive contributions to the success of an organization in ways that go beyond ones job description

personnel psychology

a branch of industrial/organizational psychology concerned with testing, selection, placement, and promotion of employees

job analysis

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

critical incidents

situation that arise in a job with which a competent worker must be able to cope

biodata

detailed biogrpahical information about a job applicant

personal interview

formal or informal questioning of a job applicant to learn their qualification and to gain an impression of their personalities

vocational interest test

a paper and pencil test that assesses a persons interests and matches them to interests found among successful workers in various occupations

aptitude test

an evaluation that rates a person’s potential to learn skills required by various job candidates

assessment center

a program set up within an organization to conduct in-depth evaluations of job candidates

situational judgement test

presenting realistic work situations to applicants in order to observe their skill and reactions

in-basket test

a testing procedure that simulates the individual decision-making challenges that executives face

leaderless group discussion

a test of leadership that simulates group decision making and problem solving

360 feedback

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

job satisfaction

the degree to which a person is comfortable with or satisfied with his or her work

job enrichment

making a job more personally rewarding, interesting or intrinsically motivating; typically involves increasing worker knowledge

flextime

a work schedule that allows flexible starting and quitting times

flexplace

an approach to flexible work that involves working a t a location away from the office, but using a computer to stay connected throughout the work day

theory X leadership (scientific management)

an approach to leadership that emphasizes work efficiency efficiency

work efficiency

maximum output (productivity) at lower cost

psychological efficiency

maintenance of good morale, labor relations, employee satisfaction, and similar aspects of work behavior

theory Y leadership

a leadership style that emphasizes human relations at work and that views people as industrious, responsible, and interested in challenging work

transformational leadership

leadership aimed at transforming employees to exceed expectations and look beyond self- interest to help the organization better compete

shared leadership (participative management)

a leadership approach that allows employees at all levels to participate in decision-making

management by objectives

a managment technique in which employees are given specific goals to meet in their work

self-managed team

a workgroup that has a high degree of freedom with respect to how it achieves its goals

quality circle

an employee discussion group that makes suggestions for improving quality and solving business problems

environmental psychology

the formal study of how environments affect behavior

social environment

an environment defined by a group of people and their activities or interrelationships

physical environments

natural settings, such as forests and beaches, as well as environments built by humans, such as buildings, ships, and cities

behavioral setting

a smaller area within an environment whose use is well defined, such as a bus depot, waiting room, or lounge

ecological footprint

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

crowding

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

density

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

attentional overload

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

environmental assessment

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

architectural psychology

the study of the effects that buildings have on behavior and the designs of buildings using behavioral principles

social dilemma

a social situation that tends to provide immediate rewards for actions that will have undesired effects in the long run

tragedy of the commons

a social dilemma in which individuals, each acting in his or her immediate self-interest, overuse a scarce group resource

social norms marketing

a persuasion technique that seeks to change attitudes by making explicit relevant social norms in order to foster compliance

personalized normative feedback

a persuasion technique that seeks to change attitudes by comparing feedback about individual performance with relevant social norms in order to foster compliance

legal psychology

the study of the psychological and behavioral dimensions of the legal systems

forensic psychology

the study of clinical aspects of the law

scientific jury selection

using social science principles to chose members of a jury

mock jury

a group that realistically simulates a courtroom jury

community psychology

a branch of psychology that goes beyond an individual focus and integrates social, cultural, economic, political, environmental, and international influences to promote positive changes, health, and empowerment at individual and systemic levels

sports psychology

the study of the psychological and behavioral dimensions of sports performance

task analysis

breaking complex skills into their subparts

motor skill

a series of actions molded into a smooth and efficent performance

motor program

a mental plan or model that guides skilled movement

mental practice

imagining a skilled performance to aid learning

peak performance

a performance during which physical, mental, and emotional states are harmonious and optimal

portfolio and e portfolio

portfolio is a collection of printed examples of a persons accomplishments and work, e-portfolio is a digital collection

four key dimensions to transformational leadership

idealized influenceinspirational motivationintellectual stimulationindividualized consideration

psychotherapy

any psychological technique used to facilitate positive changes in a persons personality, behavior, or adjustment

psychoanalysis

Freudian approach to psychotherapy emphasizes exploration of the unconscious using free association, dream interpretation, resistances, and transference to uncover unconscious conflicts

free association

the psychoanalytic technique of encouraging a patient to say whatever comes to mind without censoring

resistance

package in the flow of free association around topics the client avoids thinking or talking about

transference

the tendency of patients to transfer to therapist feelings that correspond to those the patient had for important persons in his or her past

insight therapy

any therapy that stresses the importance of understanding the origins of a psychological disorder, usually unresolved unconscious conflicts

action therapy

any therapy that stresses directly changing troublesome thoughts and/or behaviors without regard for their origins, unconscious or otherwise

directive therapy

any therapy that stresses the need for the therapist to lead the patient toward a resolution of his or her psychological trauma

group therapy

psychological treatment involving several untreated clients

psychodrama

a therapy in which the client acts out personal conflicts and feelings in the presence of others who play supporting roles

role reversal

taking the role of another person to learn how one’s own behavior appears from the other persons perspective

mirror technique

observing another person reenacts ones own behavior, like a character in a play; designed to help persons see themselves more clearly

family therapy

treatment of a group of related individuals that focuses on interpersonal dynamics and communication

nondirective therapy

any therapy in which the therapist supports the client while the client gains insight into his or her own problems and their resolution

therapeutic alliance

a caring relationship that unites a therapist and a client in working to solve the clients problems

culturally skilled therapist

a therapist who has the awareness, knowledge, and skills necessary to treat clients from diverse cultural backgrounds

spontaneous remission

improvement of symptoms due to mere passage of time

therapy placebo effect

improvement caused not by the actual process of therapy but by the clients expectation that therapy will help

behavior therapy

any therapy to actively change behavior

behavior modification (applied behavior analysis)

the application of learning principles to change human behavior, especially maladaptive behavior

aversion therapy

treatment to reduce unwanted behavior by pairing it with an unpleasant stimulus

exposure therapy

alleviating fears and phobias by using classical conditioning extinction

flooding

a form of exposure therapy in which clients are exposed to the object of their fears beginning with examples that provoke the most extreme responses

systemic desensitization

a reduction in fear, anxiety, or aversion brought about planned exposure to averse stimuli

reciprocal inhibition

the presence of one emotional state can inhibit the occurrence of another, such as joy preventing fear or anxiety inhibiting pleasure

tension release model

a procedure for systemically achieving deep relaxation of the body

fear hierarchy

a list of fears, arranged from least fearful to most fearful, for use in systemic desensitization

virtual reality exposure

use of computer-generated images to present fear stimuli while responding to a viewers head movement and other input

modelling

a form of exposure therapy in which clients observe models displaying adaptive behavior toward their feared object

token economy

behavior modification in which desired behaviors earn objects that can be exchanged for positive reinforcers

cognitive therapy

treatment of emotional and behavioral problems by changing maladaptive thoughts, beliefs and a feeling

selective perception

perceiving only certain stimuli among a larger array of possibilities

overgeneralization

blowing a single event out of proportion by extending it to a larger number of unrelated situations

all-or-nothing thinking

classifying objects or events as absolutely right or wrong, good or bad, acceptable or unacceptable, and so forth

cognitive behavior therapy (CBT)

any therapy that combines elements of cognitive therapy and behavior therapy

rational- emotive behavior therapy (REBT)

type of treatment designed to identify and change self-defeating thoughts

thought stopping

the use of aversive stimuli to interrupt or prevent upsetting thoughts

humanistic techniques

insight-oriented therapies that help clients better understand themselves with the foal of maximizing their potential

client-centered (person-centered) therapy

individual being treated talks without direction, judgment, or interpretation from the therapist

unconditioned positive regard

complete unqualified acceptance of another person as he or she is

empathy

a capacity for taking another’s point of view; the ability to feel what another is feeling

authenticity

in Carl Rogers terms, the ability of a therapist to be genuine and honest about his or her own feelings

reflection

in client-centered therapy, the process of rephrasing or repeating thoughts and feelings expressed by clients so that they can become aware of what they’re saying

existential therapy

an insight therapy that focuses on the elemental problems of existence; such as death, meaning, choice, and responsibility