The Meaning of Work

1
The Meaning of Work

• Employment is a crucial aspect of our lives
• Jobs provide
• Money
• Comfort
• Identity
• 84 of people surveyed would continue working
  after winning the lottery
• Single greatest predictor of longevity is job
  satisfaction

2
Industrial/Organizational Psychology

• Definition applied field that is concerned with
  the development and application of scientific
  principles in the workplace
• Industrial Psychology older branch. Management
  perspective
• Organizational Psychology focuses more on
  individual employees.

3
History

• Walter Dill Scott The Theory and Practice of
  Advertising (1903).
• Hugo Munsterberg The Psychology of Industrial
  Efficiency (1913).
• WWI Testing Army Alpha and Beta intelligence
  tests. Robert Yerkes, Lewis Terman, David
  Wechsler.
• Hawthorne Studies 1924. Importance of social
  factors.
• WWII Engineering Psychology

4
Areas of I/O Psychology

• Recruiting and selecting employees
• Evaluating employee performance
• Employee training
• Leadership
• Motivation and job satisfaction
• Organizational Psych.

• Working conditions
• Employee safety and health
• Stress in the workplace
• Engineering Psychology
• Consumer Psychology

5
Future Challenges

• Continuing loss of jobs
• Changes in the nature of work
• New technology in the workplace
• New skill levels in the workplace
• Diversity

6
Headaches and Pitfalls

• Quacks
• Jargon and Communication
• Fear of Change
• Research versus Application

7
Other important info

• Need at least a masters to join the field
• Salaries are competitive (71k for masters, 97 k
  for Ph.D.)
• More information available at www.siop.org

8
Example of New Challenge Gen X workers

• Generational conflict between Baby Boomers and
  Gen Xers.
• Boomers tend to identify themselves by their job,
  this isnt the case with Xers
• With layoffs the norm, Xers see loyalty to
  company as foolhardy, view flexibility as the key
• Xers often seem less polite and respectful

9
Suggestions for Working with X

• Some Boomers are hesitant to hire Generation
  Xers due to these differences
• Mistake. They are a great resource.
• Suggestions
• Vary their assignments tend to enjoy
  multi-tasking
• Teach new skills worker sees it as tool for
  getting next job, you get a better worker
• Teach manners Tend to see formal manners as an
  unnecessary disguise. Give examples of when this
  is not the case.

10
More Suggestions

• Keep them in the loop involve them in decisions
• Tie praise for a job well done to a concrete
  reward. Some suggest handing out new job titles
  once every 6 months!
• Keep it fun Doubletree Hotels Corp. has workers
  rate each other on items such as plays well with
  others and shares toys
• Gen X believes that work should be fun.