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Lecture 2

Introduction to industrial
psychology(problems faced
by industrial-organizational
psychologists)

1
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 Learning Objectives

Students will be able to:

Define I/O Psychology
• Describe the major activities and problems of I/O Psychologists
• Summarize the history of the I/O field
• Explain the importance of the research and how it relates to practice

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 What is I/O Psychology?

• Definition:
• Application of psychological theory and research methods
(principles) to issues concerned with work

• Domains:
− Cognition (worker perception)
− Affect (worker emotion)
• Influences worker going beyond call of duty
− Behavior (worker action)

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 What is I/O psychology?

• Textbook definition:
− “Application of psychological principles and theories to
the workplace”

• Informally it means:
− “It is a study of how people get along at work and are able
to perform effectively”

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 MCQ
______is the study of work related behavior in
organization.

A. Clinical psychology
B. Education Psychology
C. Industrial Psychology
D. Behaviorism

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 I/O vs Management Program

• Focus:
− I/O – focus on people . Uses psychological theories to
better understand groups and people in organization with
conflict, motivation, emotions and other issues.

− Management – focuses on the running or managing as

aspect of the organization such as marketing, advertising,
costing, etc.
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 I/O vs Management Program

• Approach: Example
− Management uses unstructured interviews for example
as their best way to size-up and understand applicants
or people.

− I/O uses standardized tests and structured interviews

are just part and parcel of the process of
hiring/placement program.

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 MCQ
I/O psychology primarily focuses on people
element in the organization.

a. True
b. False

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What is I/O psychology?

• Industrial or Personnel psychology

• HR stuff: recruitment, job analysis,
selection, training, performance

Sub appraisal, compensation, employment

law (Title VII of CRA)
• KSAsà job performance

areas • Organizational Psychology

• Micro: motivation, leadership, teams,

withi
worker attitudes, safety & well-being,
work-family
• Macro: org theory, culture, org

n I/O
development & change
• Human Factors & Ergonomics
• Modifying equipment & environment
to fit workers

Industrial Psychology
 Industrial vs Organizational Psychology
Industrial Psychology (personnel psychology):

•
− Personnel selection--individual differences of employees
− Prediction of job performance.
− Covers job analysis
• distinguish what a successful worker from unsuccessful
− and selection, training, performance appraisal.
• Job performance = company “bottom line”
− Traditionally, correlational approach used for research
(motivation, interview test)

• Organizational Psychology (social life aspects applied to work):

− Leadership
− Not only job performance, but satisfaction, motivation, etc.
− Traditionally experimental research method

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 The Training of I/O Psychologists (U.S.)
• * Society for Industrial and Organizational
Psychologists (SIOP) is the professional
association with which I/O Psychologists
affiliate.
-https://www.siop.org/
- https://soiop.in/
• Training approach uses the Scientist-
Practitioner Model
− Stresses both the theoretical study of the
field, and its application (in practice) to the
workplace

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 TOP 10 work trends 2021 (SIOP)

Trend #1: Remote Work and Flexible Working Arrangements

Trend #2: Employee Health, Well-Being, Wellness, and Safety
Trend #3: Implementing Strategies and Measuring Progress on Diversity, Equity,
Inclusion, and Belongingness (DEI&B)
Trend #4: Inclusive Practices to Get, Keep and Grow Talent
Trend #5: Social Justice
Trend #6: Team Effectiveness Across Virtual and Distributed Environments
Trend #7: Work-Life Integration
Trend #8: The Changing Nature of Work
Trend #9: Building Cultures of Agility and Adaptability
Trend #10: Virtual Learning
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 Who are I/O psychologists?

Two general groups

• Academics
• Professors in research- and teaching- oriented universities and colleges
• Example departments: psychology, management, industrial relations,
quantitative sciences, occupational health & safety
• Major activities
• Teaching courses, conducting research, writing and presenting research
papers, attending conferences, mentoring students, performing
university and professional service

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 Who are I/O psychologists?

Two general groups

• Practitioners
• HR and organizational specialists in consulting, private, and public organizations
• Major activities
• − Job analysis, diagnosis, surveying employees, designing and administering
selection & performance appraisal systems, training, developing psychological
tests, implementing and evaluating OD & change, data analysis
• “Other” category
• Research institutes, think tanks

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Act ivit ies of I/ O Psychologists

Practice activities involve the use of psychological principles to solve real-world

problems

Research provides principles that can be applied in practice

Some practice activities require research to determine the best approach to solve
the problem at hand

To create and to disseminate knowledge

Enhancing the effectiveness and functioning or organizations

Practice settings include consulting firms, government, the military and private
corporations (or consulting firms)
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 Who are I/O psychologists?

• Scientists AND practitioners

− Understanding and evaluating research necessary for
good practice…
− …and awareness of practical problems necessary for
good research
• I/Oers are thieves!
− We “borrow” from social, cognitive, developmental,
clinical, and other areas of psychology

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 What do I/O Psychologists DO?

• Careers emphasize science and research or

practice.
• 39% are professors employed by universities
• 15% work in private organizations (Human
Resources)
• 15% work in public organizations
• 33% work in consulting firms

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 The science and practice of I/O Psychology

• Primary work areas for I/O work:

• Selection
− Develop, validate, and administer psychological tests to assess
(measure) skills, abilities and interests as aids in selection and
placement and promotion.
• Training
− Analyze: First thing I/O does, is try to understand nature of job--
knowledge & task requirements
− Conduct training programs, and evaluate the effectiveness of
training.
• Organizational
• Development
− Analyze organizations’ culture/climate, develop interventions -->
increase in efficiency.

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 More functions of the I/O
Psychologist
• Performance Appraisal
 Develop rating scales, and other measures of
individual/organizational performance to improve employee
performance.

−
• Quality of Work-life
−
 Previously, human workers were not viewed as human
 Develop surveys that assess employees’ satisfaction with their jobs and
commitment to the organization.
 Satisfaction: one of most common surveys.
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 Job Titles of I/O Psychologist
• I/O Psychologist
• Consultant
• Psychology Professor
• HR Recruiter
• Research psychologist / analyst / scientist
• Staffing Manager
• Trainer, Training Coordinator
• VP – Human Resource
• VP – Organizational Development
• HR Director, Generalist, Representative, Specialist,
Supervisor, Manager
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 I/O AS A PROFESSION

Employment

Little or no unemployment (usually)

4 Main Work Settings:
 Universities
 Consulting Firms
 Industry/Corporations
 Government Agencies
Field expanding and becoming more popular
I/O psychologists often work/consult with
 MBAs
 CEOs,
 VPs,
 HR staff
 Healthcare/Health Science Staff (if in Occupational Health Specialty)
 I/O AS A PROFESSION
Graduate degree NECESSARY
MA or Ph.D.
 M.A. required to get a Ph.D.
Typically Ph.D. takes 4-5 years to complete
Content of graduate training
Basic psychology
Research methods (heavy emphasis)
I/O core content
Thesis
Dissertation
Qualifying Exam
Internship, Practica experiences
Entry requirements
very competitive for PhD (somewhat less competitive for Masters)
 High GRE Scores, High GPA, Prior Research, 3 Letters of Recommendation
 MCQ
The minimum requirement for working as in
I/O psychologist is a _____

A. SSC
B. HSC
C. Under graduation
D. Master's degree

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 History of I/O Psychology: (1900-1916)

• I/O Psych was nameless at first.

− W. L. Bryan…
• Stressed importance of studying “concrete
activities and functions as they appear in daily
life.”

• But not really considered father of I/O Psych

because he was a precursor, before the field was
established

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 When was the nameless named?

• Frank and Lillian Gilbreth

− Interested in improving productivity and efficiency of
industrial engineers.
• Argued for the use of psychology in the work lives of
industrial engineers.
− Led to the merger of psychology with applied interests.

− The nameless was crowned industrial psychology in 1910.

• (The “organizational” bit came in the 1970s).

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 The 3 Founding Fathers

1. Walter Dill Scott (American Psychologist)

2. Hugo Munsterberg (German)

3. Frederick Taylor (American Engineer)

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 Walter Dill Scott

• Walter Dill Scott (American Psychologist)

− First to apply the principles of psychology to
advertising, employee selection, management
issues, motivation and productivity in the
workplace.
− Would later become instrumental in the application
of personnel procedures within the army during
World War I.
• Boosted Industrial Psychology

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 Hugo Munsterberg (German)

• Father of industrial psychology

− 1. Applied psychological method to practical

industrial problems.
− 2. Psychology and Industrial Efficiency (1913)
− * View of I/O psychology:
• 1. People need to fit the organization --
training!
• 2. Applied behavioral sciences should help organizations to
shape people to serve as replacement parts for organizational
machines. Mechanistic.

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 Frederick Taylor (American Engineer)

• Principles of Scientific Management (1911).

• Science over intuition
• The best workers should be selected and trained in the
established “one best method”
• Management and workers should cooperatively share
responsibility for the design and conduct of work.
− Motivation and monetary gain
• Motivation results from monetary gain.
− E.g.: Showed that workers who handle heavy iron ingots were
more productive when allowed work rests.
• Training when to work and when to rest raised productivity from 12.5
to 47.0 tons moved per day.
• Company increase efficiency. Costs dropped from 9.2 to 3.9 cents per
ton.

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 MCQ

The Father of Industrial Psychology is _________________

a. Walter Dill Scott (American Psychologist)

b. Hugo Munsterberg (German)
c. Frederick Taylor (American Engineer)
d. Lilleth Gabriel

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 World War I - I/O field catalyst

• Robert Yerkes and Walter Dill Scott:

Screening recruits for mental deficiency—Army Alpha and
Beta intelligence tests developed. (Army Alpha- Screen
recruits for intelligence, Army Beta – created for those that were
illiterate)
− Classification of selected recruits into jobs
− Performance evaluations of officers
− Job Analysis
− soldier motivation and morale
− Discipline

• *(1917): Journal of Applied Psychology began

publication

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 MCQ
Who was hired for conducting the alpha and
beta test during world war 1, as a screen
tool for the recruits/soldiers?

a. Robert bates
b. Lillian Gillberth
c. Elton mayo
d. Robert Yerkes

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 Between the Wars (1916-1940)

The Hawthorne Studies

• Collaboration b/w Harvard researchers and
Western Electric Co.
− Studied the relation b/w lighting and productivity.
• Productivity went up when lighting was increased…and when light
was decreased

• Hawthorne Effect
− Employees knew they were being watched
• Following onset of novel treatment (new or increased
attention usually)
− If you don’t want more work given to you, purposely perform poorly.

• Human Relations Movement – social factors boost

worker morale.
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 World War II and shortly thereafter
• Selection and classification work continued in the Army:
− Development of Army General Classification Test (AGCT).
• Sorted army recruits into categories based on their abilities to learn
duties of a soldier
− The Office of Strategic Services came about
• Assessed candidates’ ability to deal with stressful situations
− Build a cube with one passive helper and one frustrating ‘helper’
− Pilots trained to fly warplanes.
• Good candidates were selected; also equipment’s HF.

• Henceforth, use of employment tests increased in

industry.
− Industrial psychologists proved useful for selection, training and
machine design.
− Industrial leaders interested in applying social psychology.
− Measures of attitudes and morale, now used in industry
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 I/O Psychology Around the World

• US has had a long tradition of paying somewhat greater

attention to the I side than the O side of the field
− Canada and Europe focuses somewhat more on the
organizational direction
− Scandinavian countries concerned with employee health and stress

− US , employee selection was the most popular topic

• Began the 21 century, the practice is spreading as I/O

techniques gain acceptance in more and more places

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INDUSTRIAL PSYCHOLOGY
 MCQ
The study that led to the understanding of
the impact of “ illumination” on the
productivity of employees.

a. Hawthorne studies
b. General electric studies
c. None of the above

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 A Look Into the Crystal Ball: The Future

• Changing nature of employees:

− Fewer young people entering workforce (baby boom)
− More women
− More minorities
− More temporary workers

• Changing nature of organizations:

− Mergers and acquisitions; failures and downsizing--layoffs--
more work, less manpower.
− Smaller organizations, employing fewer people. Cynical
workers/job security.
− Greater focus on work teams (flatter management hierarchy)

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 MCQ
____________first to apply the principles of
psychology to advertising

a. Robert bates
b. Lillian Gillberth
c. Walter Dill Scott
d. Elton mayo

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 A Look Into the Crystal Ball: The Future

• Growing importance of technology:

− Technology-mediated communication
• 1. Workers can work anywhere (from home, etc)
• 2. Loss of direct human contact--impact on social
relationships, mental health, etc.
− Human-technology interaction
• New jobs in maintenance of technology
− Replace manufacturing operatives as “worker elite”
• Greater focus on decision-making and
coordination of activities by humans
− Because jobs are becoming more technologically complex

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 A Look Into the Crystal Ball: The Future

• Redefinition of “job”:
− less emphasis on job as a fixed bundle of tasks
− emphasis on constantly changing tasks
• 1. Requires constant learning
• 2. More higher-order thinking
• 3. Less “9 to 5”

• Changing nature of pay:

− 1. *Tied less to position or tenure in organization
− 2. Tied more to market value of person’s KSAOs (Knowledge,
Skills, Abilities and Other characteristics).

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 Case Analysis-
Activity 1

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 Thank You

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