- Describe the field of industrial and organizational psychology
- Describe the history of industrial and organizational psychology
Full-time workers in the U.S. work an average of 8.5 hours per day, spending more time working than performing any other life activity except for sleep (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2016). The workday is a significant portion of workers’ time and energy. It impacts a person’s life and their family’s lives in positive and negative physical and psychological ways. Given that it’s so important, it should come as no surprise that there is an entire field of psychology devoted to studying the dynamics of the workforce, known as industrial-organization psychology.
industrial-organization psychology
Sometimes called workforce psychology, industrial and organizational (I-O) psychology is a branch of psychology that studies how human behavior and psychology affect work, and vice versa. It is the scientific study of working and the application of psychological principles to workplace issues facing individuals, teams, and organizations.[1]
Industrial and organizational psychologists work in four main contexts: academia, government, consulting firms, and business. Most I-O psychologists have a master’s or doctorate degree. The field of I-O psychology can be divided into three broad areas: industrial, organizational, and human factors.
industrial psychology
Industrial psychology, sometimes called personnel psychology, is concerned with describing job requirements and assessing individuals for their ability to meet those requirements. In addition, once employees are hired, industrial psychology studies and develops ways to train, evaluate, and respond to those evaluations. As a consequence of its concern for candidate characteristics, industrial psychology must also consider issues of legality regarding discrimination in hiring.
organizational psychology
Organizational psychology is a discipline interested in how the relationships among employees affect those employees and the performance of a business. This includes studying worker satisfaction, motivation, and commitment. This field also studies management, leadership, and organizational culture, as well as how an organization’s structures, management and leadership styles, social norms, and role expectations affect individual behavior. As a result of its interest in worker well-being and relationships, organizational psychology also considers the subjects of harassment, including sexual harassment, and workplace violence.
There is considerable overlap between the work of industrial-organizational psychologists and that of human resource managers or human resource officers who work for a company and manage the employees (their selection, training, legal concerns, etc.), but the HR manager is more likely to be directly concerned with day-to-day activities within the organization while the industrial-organizational psychologist is more likely to be a researcher or consultant looking at the big picture.
human factors psychology
Human factors psychology is the study of how workers interact with the tools of work and how to design those tools to optimize workers’ productivity, safety, and health. These studies can involve interactions as straightforward as the fit of a desk, chair, and computer to a human having to sit on the chair at the desk using the computer for several hours each day. They can also include the examination of how humans interact with complex displays and their ability to interpret them accurately and quickly. In Europe, this field is referred to as ergonomics.
occupational health psychology
Occupational health psychology (OHP) deals with the stress, diseases, and disorders that can affect employees as a result of the workplace. As such, the field is informed by research from the medical, biological, psychological, organizational, human factors, human resources, and industrial fields. Individuals in this field seek to examine the ways in which the organization affects the quality of work life for an employee and the responses that employees have towards their organization or as a result of their organization’s influence on them.
The responses for employees are not limited to the workplace as there may be some spillover into their personal lives outside of work, especially if there is not good work-life balance. The ultimate goal of an occupational health psychologist is to improve the overall health and well-being of an individual, and, as a result, increase the overall health of the organization (Society for Occupational Health Psychology, 2020).
In 2009, the field of humanitarian work psychology was developed as the brainchild of a small group of I-O psychologists who met at a conference.
humanitarian work psychology
The Humanitarian work psychology group (HWP) seeks to help marginalized members of society, such as low-income individuals, find work. In addition, they help to determine ways to deliver humanitarian aid during major catastrophes.
The Humanitarian Work Psychology group can also reach out to those in the local community who do not have the knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs) to be able to find gainful employment that would enable them to not need to receive aid. In both cases, humanitarian work psychologists try to help underserved individuals develop KSAs that they can use to improve their lives and their current situations. When ensuring these underserved individuals receive training or education, the focus is on skills that that help them maintain favorable employment (APA, 2016).
The table below summarizes the main fields in I-O psychology, their focuses, and jobs within each field.
| Field of I-O Psychology | Description | Types of Jobs |
| Industrial Psychology |
It focuses on the analysis of jobs; recruitment, selection, and training of employees; and evaluation of performance in the workplace. Specializes and focuses on the retention of employees and hiring practices to ensure the least number of firings and the greatest number of hirings relative to the organization’s size. |
Personnel analyst, instructional designer, professor, research analyst; a close partner of human resource managers |
| Organizational Psychology | Works with the relationships that employees develop with their organizations and conversely that their organization develops with them. In addition, studies the relationships that develop between co-workers and how that is influenced by organizational norms.
Major areas of study within organizational psychology include employee attitudes, worker health and safety, motivation, and teamwork and leadership. |
HR research specialist, professor, project consultant, personnel psychologist, test developer, training developer, leadership developer, talent developer |
| Human Factors and Engineering | Researches advances and changes in technology in an effort to improve the way technology is used by consumers, whether with consumer products, technologies, transportation, work environments, or communications. Seeks to be better able to predict the ways in which people can and will utilize technology and products in an effort to provide improved safety and reliability. | Professor, ergonomist, safety scientist, project consultant, inspector, research scientist, marketer, product development |
| Occupational Health Psychology | Concerned with the overall well-being of both employees and organizations. | Occupational therapist, research scientist, consultant, human resources (HR) specialist, professor |
| Humanitarian Work Psychology | Works to improve the conditions of individuals who have faced serious disaster or who are part of an underserved population. Focuses on labor relations, enhancing public health services, effects on populations due to climate change, recession, and diseases. | Professor, instructional designer, research scientist, counselor, consultant, product manager, senior response officer |
- Industrial-Organizational Psychology. (2018, August 28). Retrieved from https://www.siop.org/Events-Education/Educators/Incorporating-I-O ↵