IOP1501 – GRADUATENESS AND EMPLOYABILITY NOTES ON LESSON 1

GRADUATENESS

Graduateness is the distinctive qualities and skills that a UNISA graduate should demonstrate,
these include the following:

 Critical Thinking: The ability to think clearly and rationally.

 Problem-Solving: The ability to find solutions to di icult or complex issues.
 Ethical Behaviour: The practice of acting in ways consistent with what society and
individuals typically think are good values.
 Lifelong Learning: The ongoing, voluntary, and self-motivated pursuit of knowledge for
personal or professional reasons.

COLLEGE OF ECONOMIC AND MANAGEMENT SCIENCES(CEMS) FRAMEWORK

The CEMS framework aims to produce graduates who are Responsible, Accountable, Relevant
and Ethical (RARE) citizens in their communities and workplaces.

The framework consists of 3 holistic attributes namely:

 Scholarship: The pursuit of academic knowledge.

 Global Citizenship: Being aware of the wider world and respecting diversity.
 Lifelong Learning: Continuously learning and updating your skills.

Furthermore, the CEMS framework has 8 general transferable skills and personal attributes:

 Interactive Skills: Skills for good communication and teamwork.

 Problem-Solving and Decision-Making Skills: Skills to identify and solve problems.
 Continuous Learning: Always learning new things.
 Enterprising Skills: Skills to find and act on opportunities.
 Presenting and Applying Information Skills: Skills to present information and use
knowledge in real situations.
 Goal-Directed Behavioural Skills: Skills to set and achieve goals.
 Ethical and Responsible Behavioural Skills: Skills to behave ethically and take
responsibility.

CRITICAL READING SKILLS

Critical reading skills is one’s ability to reflect on what a text says, describes and means by
scrutinizing the style, structure, language, and content of the writing. It requires a person to
exercise critical judgment about the text they are reading and not take everything at face value.
Critical thinking entails the following:

 Analyzing
 Evaluating
 Proper Interpretation
 IOP1501 – GRADUATENESS AND EMPLOYABILITY NOTES ON LESSON 1

EMPLOYABILITY IN THE CONTEXT OF GRADUATNESS

Employability is a graduate’s ability to secure and retain a job or form of employment based on
their personal career-related attributes and dispositions. Not only are the technical skills
important but also having the right attitudes, behaviours, and values that employers seek is at
most detrimental.

Graduateness skills and attributes enhance employability by helping graduates better adapt to
the demands of the workplace, perform e ectively in their roles, and contribute positively to
their organizations and society.
 IOP1501 – LESSON 2 NOTES
WHAT IS WORK?

WHAT IS WORK?

Work is a multipurpose function of organized production of products and services. Work is

conducted in systems which influence one another and the individuals within them, depending
on whether they have access to the resources in the various systems. We can also classify work
as activities performed for other in exchange for pay or profit.

Work can take di erent forms:

 Waged or Salaried work.

 Informal work.
 Self-Employment.

Work is also influenced by the technological and social changes in the world and is both
socially and functionally meaningful. Work is not only about fulfilling tasks but also about
contributing to society and funding personal fulfillment.

ECOLOGICAL SYSTEMS MODEL

The ESM is a framework that explains how multiple environmental and external influences
a ect an individual, group, and environment where input and output transform.

The ESM is made up of five levels:

 Microsystems: Includes people and organizations with whom intimate and frequent
contact exists as well as the individual’s inner world, beliefs, and expectations.
 Mesosystems: This level connects microsystems such as schools, churches, and
employers which may exclude certain people based on language or ethnic groups.
 Exosystems: This level encompasses social clubs, professional organizations, and
various institutions such as healthcare facilities which may exert a powerful influence
on individuals in systems through access to education, finance, housing and
employment.
 Macrosystems: This level represents the societal values, habits, laws, and socio-
economic and political systems which may be fluid and change overtime.
 Chronosystems: This level captures changes in the environment over time such as the
e ects of ageing and the historical events of technological development.

GENDER IN EMPLOYMENT

Women face more challenges and inequalities in the labor market than men, this was
particularly true during the pandemic. Women are more likely to work in vulnerable, informal,
lower waged and less access to social protection and rights work.

TEMPORARY WORKERS IN EMPLOYMENT

Temporary workers can be described as individuals who are employed for a short or fixed
duration, such workers are common in low- and middle-income countries. Due to the pandemic
most people have been a ected in di erent ways; some have lost their jobs entirely whilst
others have adopted temporary work as a financial coping strategy.

OPPORTUNITIES AND CHALLENGES IN EMPLOYMENT

The Pandemic has created new risks and uncertainties for the labour market, these include
technology, climate change and geopolitical conflicts:
 IOP1501 – LESSON 2 NOTES
WHAT IS WORK?

 Whilst Technology can o er flexibility and innovation, it can otherwise also exacerbate
inequalities and digital divides.
 Climate change can pose a threat to livelihoods and health but also create opportunities
for green jobs and transitions.
 Geopolitical conflicts can disrupt trade and immigration but also foster cooperation and
solidarity.

LABOUR TRENDS IN AFRICA

The pandemic has impacted Africa hard, reversing some of the progress in poverty reduction
and a ecting the quality of employment. There are regional di erences in labour market
outcomes with Northern Africa facing high levels of labour underutilization and gender gaps,
and sub-Saharan Africa facing high levels of informality and poverty among workers.

The economic recover and growth prospects for Africa are uncertain and depend on various
factors such as commodity prices, external financing, climate change and geopolitical
conflicts.

ENTREPRENEURIAL ECOSYSTEMS

Entrepreneurial ecosystems are regional economic development strategies that support high
growth entrepreneurship by providing various cultural, social, economic, and political
environments. Entrepreneurship is driven by the volatility of the economic environment and the
availability of people with suitable characteristics for entrepreneurial activities.

Entrepreneurs need access to both social and material resources through their networks and
institutions to identify and exploit market opportunities, grow their ventures and overcome
challenges.

SOUTH AFRICAN PERSPECTIVE

South Africa is an upper-middle-income county per capita and despite the country’s wealth
many households experience outright poverty. The rife inequality in the country renders many
households’ inadequate access to education, health care and clean water. The majority of
South African’s become entrepreneurs out of necessity due to the lack of formal employment
opportunities, access to resources and or social inclusion.
 IOP1501 – LESSON 3 NOTES
INDUSTRIAL AND ORGANISATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY

THE PURPOSE OF INDUSTRIAL AND ORGANISATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY

IOP is a subfield of psychology that applies psychological principles and theories to the work
context. IOP aims to assess, utilize, develop, and influence employees, groups, and
organizational processes to achieve the best fit between them and optimize performance and
well-being.

IOP covers the psychological process of work in both formal and informal sectors and various
types of workplaces. IOP is both a scientific field of study and a unique application that has its
origins in the early 20th century.

HISTORY OF INDUSTRIAL AND ORGANISATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY

The field of IOP emerged in the early 20th century, influenced by early psychologists such as
Cattel, Munsterberg, Scott, and Yerkes. They applied psychological principles to employee
selection, training, advertising, and management. World War 1 also stimulated the
development of methods or screening and selecting soldiers and o icers.

The field of IOP began with the Hawthorne studies in the 1920’s, which examined the e ects of
physical and social factors on worker productivity and satisfaction. The Hawthorne e ect refers
to the observed or receive attention from researchers or supervisors. Other researchers such as
Lewin, Freud, and Bion studied group dynamics, leadership styles and interpersonal relations in
work settings.

THE EVOLUTION OF IOP SINCE WORLD WAR 2

World War 2 expanded the scope and applications of IOP, especially in personnel selection,
selection, and performance appraisals. After the war, IOP researchers also addressed issues of
fairness, diversity, motivation and well being in the workplace. IOP became a diverse and deep
field of research and practice with various subfields such as human factors, humanitarian work,
and occupational health.

THE DEVELOPMENT OF IOP ON THE AFRICAN CONTINENT

South Africa is consistently ranked as one of the most unequal countries globally. The
development of IOP in South Africa is the result substantial work and the convergence of several
overlapping national and institutional planning processes.

Kenya like many other African countries has liberated its investment. Planning is dynamic and
di erent mandates are derived from these processes.

INDUSTRIAL AND ORGANISATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY VS HUMAN RESCOURCE MANAGEMENT

IOP – is a subfield of psychology that applies psychological principles and theories to the work
context.

HRM – is a process that involves managing and supervising employment systems.

IOP and HRM share common areas of interest, such as employee selection, training,
development, and performance appraisal. Some IOP professionals also work in or with human
resources functions in organizations. IOP professionals are trained as behavioral experts.
 IOP1501 – LESSON 3 NOTES
INDUSTRIAL AND ORGANISATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY

THE FIELDS OF PRACTICE IN INDUSTRIAL AND ORGANISATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY

1. Personnel Psychology
It is the application of psychological concepts and methods to optimize the selection,
training, performance evaluation, and professional development of employees.
2. Organizational Psychology
Organizational Psychology focuses on understanding how organizational structures,
cultures, and processes impact worker behavior and motivation. It also involves
developing interventions to improve organizational e ectiveness.
3. Human Factors and Economics
This field applies psychological knowledge to the design of systems, tasks and tools in
order to improve usability, safety and productivity.
4. Career Development
Applies psychological principles to help individuals make career choices, plan career
paths, and manage career transitions.
5. Counselling and Clinical Issues in the workplace
Focuses on addressing mental health issues in the workplace, providing counselling to
employee’s well-being.
 IOP1501 – LESSON 4 NOTES
NEUROSCIENCE

NEUROSCIENCE

Relates to any research and study about the nervous system and the brain, including its
anatomical functions and understanding how it produces human behavior, and how it relates to
injuries, diseases, intrapersonal processes and human development.

NEUROANOTOMY

The study of all parts of the nervous system and the brain.

NEUROBIOLOGY

The biological study of the structure of the living brain across animal species.

NEUROCHEMISTRY

The study of all chemicals in the brain and nervous system and their properties and functions.

NEUROENDOCRINOLOGY

The study of interactions between the brain, glands and hormones and the function and e ects
thereof.

INTERPERSONAL NEUROBIOLOGY

The interdisciplinary study of brain processes that acknowledge the central influence of human
relationships on brain development, health and healing.

AFFECTIVE NEUROSCIENCE

The study of brain processes relating to emotion or a ect.

AFFECT

Basic emotive states in the body that can be measured psychologically such as fear and anger.

EMOTIONS

Conventional responses to environmental stimuli, which may be a combination of a ective

states.

COGNITIVE NEUROSCIENCE

The study of how mental processes develop in the brain such as language, problem solving of
information processing, perception, memory, and learning.

THE NERVOUS SYSTEMS

The communication systems of the body that consists of the central nervous system (CNS) and
the peripheral nervous system (PNS) and their functions and subdivisions.

NEURONS AND NEUROTRANSMITTERS

The cells and chemicals of the nervous system that receive, integrate, and transmit information
throughout the body and their types and roles in regulating behavior and mental processes.

THE HUMAN BRAIN

 IOP1501 – LESSON 4 NOTES
NEUROSCIENCE

The human brain is the main organ of the nervous system that controls most of the body’s
activities and its evolution, structure and functions, based on the Triune brain theory and the
basic brain structures of the hindbrain, midbrain, and forebrain.

PRINCIPLES OF NEUROSCIENCE

The findings and implications of neuroscience research on topics such as laterization, brain
plasticity, genetics, life experiences and well-being.

LATERALIZATION

The division of functions between the left and right hemispheres of the brain, such as language,
logic, spatial relations etc.

BRAIN PLASTICIY

The brain’s ability to form new neural pathways and change its structure and function
throughout its lifespan.

NEUROSCIENCE RESEARCH

Some examples of studies that demonstrate the brain’s plasticity and potential for recovery
from damage such as knitting, tissue transplant and nerve growth factor.