PERSONNEL AND INDUSTRIAL PSYCHOLOGY (PSY 320)
COURSE SYLLABUS
Fall Semester (2013)
MEETING TIME:
MEETING PLACE:
INSTRUCTOR:
OFFICE HOURS:
Thursday 3:30-6:10 p.m.
P-145
B. Charles Tatum
(619) 226-7726 (Home Voice)
ctatum13@cox.net (email)
Before and after class or by appointment
TEXT: Berry, L. M. (2003). Employee Selection. Belmont, CA, Wadsworth/Thompson Learning
COURSE OBJECTIVES: This course is designed to expose the undergraduate student to the exciting world
of personnel and industrial psychology. The field is a large and active part of psychology that includes research
and applications in human resources, job analysis, performance evaluation, employee selection, training, and
much more. Students interested in careers in management, human resources, training, or employment law, will
find this a valuable introduction to these fields. Other students, who are not interested in careers in these areas,
will still find the course relevant to their current or future employment. At the end of the course, students will
have a greater appreciation and understanding of how psychology has contributed to the world of work and
helped create more productive and satisfying organizations.
LEARNING OBJECTIVES:
1. Master the content areas in personnel psychology, which include job analysis, employment law, recruitment,
the job market, employee selection, compensation and reward structures, motivation, performance
evaluation, employment testing, and training.
2. Understand personnel psychology as a scientific discipline and how it attempts to describe, understand,
predict, and control work-related behavior and is different from personal opinion.
3. Identify and describe applications of personnel psychology and the use of psychological tests and
measurements.
4. Explain and use descriptive statistics (e.g., mean, median, standard deviation, correlation) and inferential
tools (e.g., sampling, regression analysis).
5. Understand the basic concepts, terminology, and theories of personnel psychology.
6. Recognize and articulate ethical behaviors and the importance for human diversity.
7. Describe how personnel psychology applies to different jobs and can be relevant to achieving career goals.
Additional learning objectives for this course that overlap with learning objectives identified as important across
the Psychology curriculum are:
1. Identify notable individuals together with their contributions to psychology (SLO 1.1).
2. Characterize the nature of psychology as a scientific discipline and identify its primary objectives: to
describe, understand, predict, and control behavior and mental processes (SLO 1.7).
3. Use the concepts, language, and major theories of the field to account for psychological phenomena (SLO
2.1).
4. Define, explain, and identify appropriate use of reliability and validity (SLO 3.6).
5. Explain correctly such terms as mean, median, standard deviation, and statistical significance (SLO 3.8).
6. Describe descriptive and experimental research methods (SLO 4.1).
7. Explain the similarities and differences among the research methods used by psychologists (SLO 4.2).
8. Evaluate the appropriateness of conclusions derived from psychological research and the parameters of
particular research methods (SLO 4.3).
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9. Recognize the necessity of and identify specific ethical behavior in all aspects of the science and practice of
psychology (SLO 5.1).
10. Understand that research findings may not generalize to all people (SLO 6.7).
11. Articulate (in writing or orally) a respect for human diversity (SLO 6.10).
12. Distinguish between scientific findings and opinions (SLO 7.2).
13. Describe how psychology is applied in different jobs (SLO 10.2).
14. Identify and develop skills and experiences relevant to achieving selected career goals (SLO 10.7).
COURSE REQUIREMENTS: Your grade in the class will be determined by your performance on three, noncumulative examinations and occasional in-class written exercises to be turned in at the end of selected class
sessions.
Exams: The exams are worth 150 points (50 points per exam). The exams will draw on material from
both the text and class. The exams will consist of objective style questions (multiple choice, true/false)
graded electronically. Each exam will be weighted equally and the final exam (EXAM # 3) will only
cover the material since the previous exam (EXAM # 2).
In-Class Exercises: Most classes will include an exercise that integrates the material covered in that
session. Student will often work in groups to address the questions and issues posed in the exercise. As
an incentive to come to class and stay to the end, some of these exercises (but not all) will be turned in at
the end of class for bonus points to be added to your final grade total.
COURSE POLICIES:
(1). Make-Up Exams: If you cannot take the exam when scheduled, please make arrangements for a make-up
exam before the regularly scheduled exam. Only in rare cases (e.g., unexpected illness or emergency) will
you be allowed to do a make-up exam after the scheduled exam date.
(2). Extra Credit: Your grade is determined by your performance on the three exams and in-class exercises only.
Extra credit assignments are not an option and cannot be used as a substitute for poor performance in
the class.
(3). Office Hours and How to Contact your Instructor: I am a part-time instructor and have very restricted office
hours (Before and after class). If you cannot meet at this time, fell free to contact me outside of class by
email (ctatum13@cox.net) or phone (619-226-7726. If you have questions about the exams, please contact
me at least 48 hours before the exam is scheduled to allow time to receive your question and provide a
thoughtful response. Keep in mind that I will only answer questions that cannot be easily answered by
referring to the book or your notes.
(4). Class Attendance: I will not take attendance and so your presence in class is strictly voluntary. Fifty percent
of the material on the exams will come from the class sessions, and this information cannot be obtained
from the textbook. In addition, there will be in-class exercises that sometimes will provide extra points
toward your grade. Therefore, the incentive to come to class is not only to experience my brilliant class
presentations, but also get better test performance and additional points from class exercises.
(5). Blackboard: The syllabus and handouts are posted on Blackboard. Your exam scores will also be posted on
Blackboard. Important class notices will appear occasionally, so logon to Blackboard at least weekly.
(6). Study Aids:. A study guide is available on Blackboard under the Exam number in Course Documents .
(7). Textbook: It is library policy not to carry textbooks in their holdings, and I do not have an extra textbook
that I can put on reserve. The textbook is a vital part of this course and I urge you to obtain one. If you
cannot afford a new book, you can buy one used, borrow one from another student, or form a collective and
purchase a group book.
(8). Grading Scale: Grades are based on a standard percentage scale shown below. Each of the three exams is
worth 50 points. Your final grade for the class will be based on the percentage of the total 150 points you
earn. I sometimes curve the grades downward (i.e., lower the cut-off points to make it easier to get a higher
grade) if I feel that the class is having difficulty with the material. However, I do not do this until all of the
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grades are in at the end of the semester, so please do not ask if I will curve the grades prior to the final
exam because I will not know. The grading scale below will apply unless I decide to curve the scores at the
end of the term.
Percent
Grade Final Point Total
93-100
A
140-150
90-92
A135-139
87-89
B+
131-134
83-86
B
125-130
80-82
B120-124
77-79
C+
116-119
73-76
C
110-115
70-72
C105-109
67-69
D+
101-104
63-66
D
95-100
60-62
D90- 94
Below 60
F
Below 90
(9). Requests for Grade Changes: Once grades are posted, they are final. Do not ask me to change your grade
unless there has clearly been an error in the calculation of your grade. In the interest of fairness to all
students, I must assign grades based on class performance and cannot make exceptions regardless of the
circumstance.
Additional Course Information:
Pre-Requisites: PSY101 (Introductory Psychology), PSY319 (I/O Psychology). and PSY270 (Statistics) or an
equivalent statistics course in another department. In addition, you must not currently be enrolled in PSY319 or
PSY321.
Students with Special Needs:
Students who need accommodation of their disabilities should contact me privately to discuss specific
accommodations for which they have received authorization. If you have a disability, but have not contacted
Student Disability Services at 594-6473 (SS-1661), please do so before making an appointment to see me.
Students should contact me as soon as possible (and certainly before the first exam).
Cell Phones:
As a courtesy to your fellow students, if you need to take a phone call during class, please configure your phone
to vibrate and not ring and then leave the room to take the call. If you need to text message, please leave the
room to do so.
Plagiarism, Cheating, and Academic Integrity:
To minimize the possibility of plagiarism occurring, it is worth clarifying the definition of plagiarism: Stealing
others’ work (for example, copying others’ test answers, projects, or assignments) and passing it off as your
own is an example of plagiarism. Plagiarism and cheating in any form will not be tolerated, and will be dealt
with through the appropriate university channels. If you are caught cheating in an exam or plagiarizing an
assignment, you will receive a zero, and you may receive an F in the course. In addition, the event will be
reported to campus authorities and may lead to probation, suspension or even expulsion from the University.
Please see me if you have any questions about what constitutes plagiarism or other violations of the academic
integrity policy.
Emergency Preparation: To be prepared for emergencies, each student is responsible for becoming familiar
with the evacuation plan specific to each classroom. The evacuation plan is posted within each classroom and
should be examined during the first few class meetings.
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Websites Related to Personnel Psychology:
Several websites related to Personnel Psychology can be used to explore additional information about the field
and to help in obtaining information for written projects.
SIOP homepage: http://www.siop.org
American Psychological Association (APA) homepage: http://www.apa.org/
Association for Psychological Science (APS) homepage: http://psychologicalscience.org/
Academy of Management: http://www.aomonline.org/
International Personnel Mgmt. Association Assessment Council: http://www.ipmaac.org/
Job Analysis and Personality Research: http://harvey.psyc.vt.edu/
Dictionary of Occupational Titles (DOT): http://www.wave.net/upg/immigration/dot_index.html
O-NET: Occupational Information Network: http://online.onetcenter.org
The Dilbert Zone provides a less serious view on work: http://www.unitedmedia.com/comics/dilbert/
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Class Schedule
Week
Date
Topic
Assignment
1
2
3
4
Aug 28
Sep 4
Sep 11
Sep 18
Introduction
Work & Job Analysis
Employment Law
Recruitment & Employment Market
Chapter 1
Chapter 2 & 3
Chapter 6
Chapter 5
5
Sep 25
EXAM # 1
ParScore Student Enrollment
Sheet (Form No. F-288, PAR-L)
Wide Red Form
6
7
8
9
Oct 2
Oct 9
Oct 16
Oct 23
Compensation & Rewards
Selection Statistics & Measurement
Performance Appraisal
Motivation & Performance
Chapter 4
Chapter 7
Chapter 14 & 15
Chapter 13 (pp. 343-347, 353-364)
10
Oct 30
EXAM # 2
ParScore Test Form
(Form No. F-289 PAR-L)
Narrow Red Form
11
12
13
Nov 6
Nov 13
Nov 20
Ability and Knowledge Tests
Personality and Character Tests
Applications, Assessment Centers & Simulations
Chapter 8
Chapter 9 & 11
Chapter 10 & 12
Nov 27 No class (Thanksgiving Break)
14
Dec 4
Training & Development I
Chapter 16
15
Dec 11
EXAM # 3 (FINAL) Thursday, 4:00-6:00 p.m.
ParScore Test Form
(Form No. F-289 PAR-L)
Narrow Red Form
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