Psychology and Work Today, 10th Edition

Duane P. Schultz, Sydney Ellen Schultz

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2020
• ISBN:
  9781000156225
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Psychology
• Subtopic: History & Theory in Psychology
• Index: Psychology

For undergraduate-level courses in Industrial and Organizational Psychology, Business Psychology, Personnel Psychology and Applied Psychology. Psychology and Work Today provides an invaluable foundation for anyone entering today's global business and industrial world. This informative, sophisticated, and entertaining text teaches students about the nature of work in modern society. By focusing on the practical and applied rather than the scientific ideal, the authors demonstrate how industrial-organizational psychology directly impacts our lives as job applicants, trainees, employees, managers, and consumers.

PART ONE

The Practice of Industrial-Organizational Psychology

The work of industrial-organizational (I-O) psychologists will affect your behavior and your physical and emotional well-being, both on and off the job, whether you are applying for your first job, advancing in your career, or planning for your retirement. In chapter 1 we describe the scope of I-O psychology. In chapter 2 we review the research methods I-O psychologists use to collect data, draw conclusions, and make recommendations to management, thus applying their findings to all facets of organizational life.

CHAPTER 1

Principles, Practices, and Problems

CHAPTER OUTLINE

1. WOULD YOU WORK IF YOU DIDN'T HAVE TO?
2. I-O PSYCHOLOGY ON THE JOB
   1. Newsbreak: You've Got to Find What You Love
3. I-O PSYCHOLOGY IN EVERYDAY LIFE
   1. Newsbreak: How Not to Get Hired, Part 1: What Not to Say in Your Interview
4. WHAT I-O PSYCHOLOGY MEANS TO EMPLOYERS
5. AN OVERVIEW OF THE DEVELOPMENT OF I-O PSYCHOLOGY
   1. Pioneers in Personnel Selection
   2. World War I and the Testing Movement
   3. The Hawthorne Studies and Motivational Issues
   4. Newsbreak: First Jobs: We All Have to Start Somewhere
   5. World War II and Engineering Psychology
   6. Later Developments in I-O Psychology
6. CHALLENGES FOR I-O PSYCHOLOGY
   1. The Virtual Workplace
   2. Virtual Employees
   3. Newsbreak: Temporarily Yours
   4. Worker Involvement
   5. New Technology Requires New Skills
   6. The Global Workplace
   7. Ethnic Diversity in the Workplace
   8. Newsbreak: Will There Be Jobs for You? The Hottest Careers for College Graduates
   9. Different Generations—Different Values
7. CAREERS IN I-O PSYCHOLOGY
   1. Newsbreak: But What Can I Do With a BA in Psychology?
8. PRACTICAL PROBLEMS FOR I-O PSYCHOLOGISTS
   1. Fraudulent Practitioners
   2. Newsbreak: What I Did Last Summer
   3. Credentials and Certification
   4. Communicating with Management
   5. Worker Resistance to New Ideas
   6. Research or Application?
9. AREAS OF I-O PSYCHOLOGY
10. SUMMARY
11. KEY TERMS
12. REVIEW QUESTIONS
13. ADDITIONAL READING

WOULD YOU WORK IF YOU DIDN'T HAVE TO?

Suppose you won $10 million in a lottery. Would you still keep your job? It may surprise you to know that many people do keep working, even when they don’t need the money. We’re not talking about movie stars or athletes or superstar musicians. No, we’re talking about people in traditional jobs who continue to work hard even though they have more than enough money to live comfortably for the rest of their days. Why do they keep working? Because they love what they do.

Think about the CEOs of large corporations, many of whom receive multimillion dollar salaries. Yet they keep working. Or consider wealthy Wall Street traders who rarely take vacations and who regularly put in long hours, driven by the same intensity they had before they became so successful. Many surveys have been taken of the rest of us, the people working at less glamorous jobs such as teacher, computer programmer, lab technician, or auto mechanic. Results consistently show that approximately three fourths of the people questioned would continue to work even if they suddenly became financially secure and no longer needed the salary from their job.

Some people get so much more from their jobs than just a paycheck. Those who are fortunate enough to have found the type of work that suits their abilities experience a high degree of personal satisfaction, fulfillment, and the pride of accomplishment. These feelings provide their own reward, distinct from income. Thus, work is related not only to economic well-being but also to emotional security, self-esteem, and contentment. Your job can give you a sense of identity and status, defining for you and for others who and what you are. Your work can give you the chance to learn new skills and master new challenges. It can bring positive social experiences, satisfying your need to belong to a group and providing the security that comes from being an accepted and valued member of a team. A job can furnish the opportunity to form friendships and to meet people of diverse backgrounds.

On the other hand, if you are not one of the lucky ones who love what they do, your job can be tedious, monotonous, and even hazardous to your health. Some work environments pose physical dangers; others produce stress, anxiety, and dissatisfaction. If you are bored with your job, thwarted in your plans for advancement, or angry with your boss, you may bring your discontent home at the end of the workday and take out these negative feelings on your family and friends.

Long-term research has linked work-related stressors with physical and emotional health. Studies conducted in workplaces show that positive social interactions at work are associated with improved cardiovascular functioning and strengthened immune systems (Heaphy & Dutton, 2008). Other research indicates that work is central to psychological health, feelings of satisfaction and accomplishment, and emotional wellbeing (Brustein, 2008). The single most reliable predictor of a long life is satisfaction with one’s job. People who are satisfied with their work tend to live longer than people who are dissatisfied with their work.

Finding the kind of work that is compatible with your interests, skills, and temperament is among the most significant endeavors you will ever undertake. For that reason, this course in industrial-organizational (I-O) psychology may be the most personally relevant course of your college career. You will find that I-O psychology will have an impact on your future from the day you apply for your first job until the day you announce your retirement. The findings and practices of I-O psychologists, in conjunction with your own skills and motivation, will determine the positions for which you are hired, the way you are expected to perform your job duties, your rank and compensation, your ultimate level of responsibility, and the personal happiness you derive from your work.

I-O PSYCHOLOGY ON THE JOB

I-O psychologists working in the area of human resources, or employee selection, help initially with the difficult task of choosing a job. Your first formal contacts with I-O psychology outside the classroom are likely to be with recruitment Web sites, application forms, interviews, psychological tests, and other employee selection measures. I-O psychologists have devised these selection measures to help employers determine whether you are the right person for their job and whether that job is the most suitable one for you.

Your work helps to define your identity and contributes to your sense of self-esteem.

After you have satisfied yourself and the organization that the position is appropriate, your advancement will depend on your performance in training programs and on the job. Your employer will use assessment criteria developed by I-O psychologists.

Because of your college training, you will likely qualify for management positions within the corporate hierarchy. These jobs require you to be aware of and sensitive to the diverse motivational factors and personal concerns that affect the people who work for you. To learn how to lead and to motivate your subordinates to put forth their best efforts, you will need to understand the findings of I-O psychologists on these factors.

Even if you have no direct subordinates—if, for example, you are an engineer, information technology specialist, or accountant or if you are self-employed—you will benefit from a knowledge of human relations skills. Knowing how to get along with others can mean the difference between failure and success.

Ideally, you will feel some commitment to your employer and will want to see the organization prosper so that it continues to provide opportunities for your own advancement. The company’s output must be produced efficiently and at a high level of quality. The physical plant, equipment, and working conditions should foster a productive working climate. I-O psychologists help design manufacturing

Newsbreak

You've Got to Find What You Love

That's what Steve Jobs told the graduating class at Stanford University a few years ago, and he was talking from his own experience. "I was lucky," he said. "I found what I loved to do early in life." When he was 20 years old, Steve Jobs, along with Steve Wozniak, founded Apple Computers in his parents' garage. Ten years later the company had more than 4,000 employees and Steve Jobs was a billionaire. Then he was fired by the new president and board of directors he helped put in place. He was 30 years old and worth more money than he ever dreamed of earning in his life. And he was absolutely miserable.

"What had been the focus of my entire adult life was gone, and it was devastating." Jobs could have done anything he desired—gone anywhere, bought anything—and never work again. Instead, he started a new software company and then developed Pixar, which quickly became the most successful film animation studio in the world.

"Sometimes life hits you with a brick," he said, describing being fired from Apple. "I'm convinced that the only thing that kept me going was that I loved what I did. You've got to find what you love. And that is as true for your work as it is for your lovers. Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven't found it yet, keep looking. Don't settle. As with all matters of the heart, you'll know when you find it. And like all great relationships, it just gets better and better as the years roll on. So keep looking until you find it."

Source: Steve Jobs, commencement address, Stanford University, June 14, 2005.

and office environments to maximize productivity. In addition, a company’s output must be effectively packaged, advertised, and marketed. Psychologists play a role in all these activities.

Thus, at all levels of modern organizational life, psychologists provide essential services to both employees and employers. I-O psychology serves these two masters—you and your company. As it benefits one, it automatically benefits the other.

We offer a note of caution, however. As vital as I-O psychology is, as influential as it will be throughout your working career, it is primarily a tool. And any tool is only as valuable as the skill of the person using it. If the methods and findings of I-O psychology are used improperly by management or are misunderstood by employees, they can do more harm than good. Therefore, it is important for you to know something about I-O psychology, if only for self-defense.

I-O PSYCHOLOGY IN EVERYDAY LIFE

There is more to I-O psychology than its application to the workday world. It also affects attitudes and behavior in other areas of life. Consider how you started your day. What governed your choice of toothpaste or bath soap? Why did you choose a particular brand of breakfast cereal this morning? Most likely your decisions were influenced by the psychological image created for the product, by the perceived attractiveness of the package, or by the emotional need a particular brand was intended to satisfy. Did an ad or a slogan tell yo...