Myers’ EXPLORING
PSYCHOLOGY
(6th Ed)
Appendix B
Psychology at Work
Modified from:
James A. McCubbin, PhD
Clemson University
Worth Publishers
Psychology at Work
Psychology at Work
 Flow
 Completely, involved, focused state
of consciousness, with diminished
awareness of self & time, resulting
from optimal engagement of one’s
skills
Industrial/Organizational
(I/O) Psychology
 Application of psychological concepts &
methods to optimizing behavior in workplaces
 Personnel Psychology
 Focuses on employee recruitment, selection,
placement, training, appraisal & development
 Organizational Psychology
 Examines organizational influences on worker
satisfaction & productivity & facilitates
organizational change
 Human Factors Psychology
Personnel Psychology
 Personnel psychologists’ tasks
 Strength-based selection system
Personnel Psychology
 Unstructured interviewing & the
interviewer illusion
 Why the interviewer illusion exists?
 Interviews disclose good intentions
 Interviewers more often follow successful
careers of those hired
 Interviewers presume people are what they
seem in interview
 Interviewers’ preconceptions & moods color
how they perceive interviewees’ responses.
Personnel Psychology
 Structured Interview (reliability/validity)
 Asks same job-relevant questions of all
applicants
 Rated on established scales
 Performance Appraisal
 Who to retain
 How to reward & pay
 How to better harness strengths
 Affirms strengths & helps motivate
improvements
Performance Appraisal
 360-degree feedback
Organizational
Psychology
 Seek ways to engage & motivate
ordinary people doing ordinary
jobs
 Employee satisfaction
 Effective leadership
Harness job-relevant strengths
Set specific, challenging goals
Choose appropriate leadership
style
Leadership Styles
 Task Leadership
 Goal-oriented leadership that sets
standards, organizes work, & focuses
attention on goals
 Social Leadership
 Group-oriented leadership that builds
teamwork, mediates conflict, & offers
support
Motivation Theories
 Theory X
 Assumes workers basically lazy, error-prone,
& extrinsically motivated by money
 Workers should be directed from above
 Theory Y
 Assumes that, given challenge & freedom,
workers motivated to achieve self-esteem &
demonstrate competence & creativity
Human Factors
 Human Factors Psychology
 Explores how people & machines interact
 Explores how machines & physical environments can
be adapted to human behaviors
THE END