Industrial and Organizational Psychology - Overview

Overview

In classic overviews of the field, Guion (1965) defines I–O psychology as "the scientific study of the relationship between man and the world of work: ... in the process of making a living" (p. 817). Blum & Naylor (1968) define it as "simply the application or extension of psychological facts and principles to the problems concerning human beings operating within the context of business and industry" (p. 4). As evident by its name, I–O psychology has historically subsumed two broad areas of study that investigate the nature of the person (individual-differences psychology) and the nature of the situation or context (social psychology), although this distinction is artificial, as many topics in I-O psychology are informed by both of these general areas. Sometimes, I–O psychology is considered a sister field or branch of organizational studies, organizational science, organizational behavior, human resources, and/or management, but there is no universally accepted classification system for these related fields.

Common research and practice areas for I–O psychologists include:

• Job performance
• Job analysis/competency modeling
• Personnel recruitment and selection
• Student/educational selection (admissions) and assessment (testing)
• Judgment and decision making
• Performance appraisal/management
• Individual assessment (knowledge, skills, and ability testing, personality assessment, work sample tests, assessment centers)
• Psychometrics
• Compensation
• Training and training evaluation
• Employment law
• Work motivation
• Job attitudes (e.g., job satisfaction, commitment, organizational citizenship, and retaliation)
• Occupational health and safety
• Work/life balance
• Human factors and decision making
• Organizational culture/climate
• Organizational surveys
• Leadership and executive coaching
• Ethics
• Diversity
• Job design
• Human resources
• Organizational development (OD)
• Organizational Research Methods
• Technology in the workplace
• Group/team performance
• Team composition

I–O psychologists are trained in the "scientist-practitioner" model. The expertise of I–O psychologists allows them to employ scientific principles and research-based designs to generate new knowledge and applications for improving organizations. I–O psychologists are employed as professors, researchers, and consultants. They also work within organizations, often as part of a human resources department where they develop, coordinate, and evaluate hiring and organizational development initiatives from an evidence-based perspective.