Historical Background to

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Chapter 1 Historical Background to
Industrial/Organizational Psychology INP3004/MAN3
360 Dr. Steve
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General InformationIndustrial/Organizational
Psychology

• APA founded in 1892 - now has 53 divisions
• I/O represented by Division 14 (SIOP)
• Approx. 4 of Psychologists work in I/O
• I/O related organizations
• Society for Industrial / Organizational Psych
• for APA or APS members only
• Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM)
• Link to UWF Student chapter

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What is I/O Psychology?

• Guion (1965) - The scientific study of the
  relationship between man and the world at work
  the study of the adjustment people make to the
  places they go, the people they meet, and the
  things they do in the process of making a
  living.
• Blum Naylor (1968) - The application or
  extension of Psychological principles to the
  problems concerning human beings operating within
  the context of business and industry.

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Where Do I/O Psychologists Work?
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Areas within I/O Psychology

• Personnel Psychology selection, training, and
  assessment of employees
• Organizational Behavior social group
  influences, communication, org structure/hierarchy
  , leadership, motivation issues
• Ergonomics/Human Factors human-machine
  interaction, job design, optimizing human
  abilities
• Vocational/Career Counseling career path,
  retirement prep, Employee Assistance Programs
• Organizational Development diagnosing org
  problems, plan, implement, and assess change
• Industrial Relations - labor issues, management
  -union liaison to resolve conflict

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LicensureShould I/O Psychologists Be Licensed?

• Requirements
• Doctoral degree from accredited university
• 2 yrs supervised practice with licensed
  psychologist
• Pass comprehensive exam

Certification laws title Psychologist Licensin
g laws title and practice of Psych (link to
Florida Licensing Statute)
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History of I/O Psychology

• Wilhelm Wundt (1879) Father of Psychology
• Bryan Harter (1897) first paper describing
  the study and application of psych to work
  activities (Morse code telegraphers)
• Coined the term industrial psychology by mistake

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History of I/O Psychology
Gilbreths
F. Taylor

• Frank Lillian Gilbreth (turn of century) time
  motion studies
• Coined the term therblig
• Walter Dill Scott (1911) Increasing Human
  Efficiency in Business
• Frederick Taylor (1911) The Principles of
  Scientific Management

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History of I/O Psychologycontinued

• Taylors 4 principles of Scientific Management
• Science over rules of thumb
• Scientific selection and training
• Cooperation over individualism
• Equal division of work best suited to management
  and employees

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History of I/O Psychologycontinued

• Hugo Münsterberg (1913) father of I/O
  psychology
• Psychology and Industrial Efficiency
• Application of psych to sales
• Trolley car simulator
• Lie detector using HR, GSR, Free Association,
  Automograph
• German working in U.S. until WWI
• World War I (1914 1918) Army Alpha project -
  Army hires psychologists to screen recruits for
  intelligence, motivation, skill for placement
• Journal of Applied Psychology (1917) first I/O
  journal
• documented Army Alpha Beta projects

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History of I/O Psychologycontinued

• James Cattell (1921) forms Psychological
  Corporation to provide services to industry
• Hawthorne Studies (1924) research by Harvard
  MIT
• led by Elton Mayo
• seek cost effective ways to reduce expenses
• adjusted lighting levels
• Hawthorne effect
• World War II (1941 1946) Army hires I/O
  psychologists to select classify recruits
• Army General Classification Test (AGCT)
• Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery
  (ASVAB)
• Post-WWII Human Factors psych to deal with
  increased technology, Personnel Psych to deal
  with selection and training, Org Behavior Org
  Development for social issues

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History of I/O Psychologycontinued

• Civil Rights Movement (1960s) I/O
  Psychologists accused of being pawns of
  management
• Title VII of Civil Rights Act (1964) forbade
  discrimination on race, color, religion, gender,
  or national origin
• established Equal Employment Opportunity
  Commission
• Supreme Court (1971) Griggs v. Duke Power
• burden of proof for fairness of testing was on
  employer
• test must be job-relevant

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Future of I/O Psychology

• What skills will workers need?
• 25 million illiterate adults in U.S.
• Lack necessary computer skills

• Workplace diversity
• Baby boomers retiring positions to fill
• Most workers will be over 35 yrs
• Minorities will make up 35 of workforce
  (compared to 15 in 1980s) and 50 of all new
  workers will be women.

• Employment opps for I/O psychologists (1994
  stats)
• With masters degree avg salary 71k
• With Ph.D. avg salary 94k