What is organisational psychology?
The branch of psychology that deals with the study of work behaviour
What is the scientific and practice goals of organisational psychology?
Scientific goal - increase our knowledge and understanding of work behaviour
Practice goal - use that knowledge to improve the psychological well-being of employees
What advantage do organisational psychologists have over other practitioners of organisational behaviour?
They adopt evidence-based and validated methods to address workplace issues, thanks to their psychology background
What are the 4 different roles an organisational psychologist may have?
- Internal consultant
- External consultant
- Independent practitioner
- Academic or researcher
What are the 5 areas of knowledge required to be an organisational psychologist?
- Learning, Training and Development
- Leadership, Engagement and Motivation
- Well-being and Work
- Work Design, Organisational Development and Change
- Psychological Assessment at Work
What are some of the skills you would need to exercise and cultivate if you were to progress into organisational psychology?
- Critical thinking
- Problem solving
- Consultancy skills (negotiating agreements, evaluating outcomes)
- Communication
- Data management and analysis
- Scientist-practitioner approach
- Working with people
- Planning and organising
- Any other relevant technical skills
When did organisational psychology become an established and recognised subdiscipline within psychology in Australia and the College of Organisational Psychology was founded?
1970
What are some changes in work environments that have been happening over the past few decades that have influenced the work of organisational psychologists?
- Globalisation and technological advances
- Restructuring organisations to increase competitiveness and reduce costs
- Changes in the way work is performed
- New employment relationships, especially the upsurge in contingent working and casual contracts
What were some of the main issues researched in organisational psychology research journals from 1985-2005?
- Career development/management
- Job stress
- Teamwork
- Wellbeing
- Unemployment
- Leadership
What were some of the most popular topics at organisational conferences from 1995-2005?
- Teamwork
- Stress/health
- Personnel selection
- Leadership
What were two of the most prominent themes in the 2005 survey on occupational issues?
1) Occupational stress and wellbeing
2) Diversity issues in organisations
What were some issues raised in the 2005 survey, but not in journal publications?
- Work-life balance
- Contextual performance, including citizenship behaviours
What does the author suggest are some of the things organisational psychology is known for/contributes?
- Psychometric testing and assessment
- Personnel selection
- Organisational climate/culture surveys
- Occupational stress management and health and safety
- Career management, coaching
- Research competency
What are some the current and upcoming challenges facing organisational psychology?
- The changing nature of work (more contractual work)
- Making a more direct contribution to organisational effectiveness and change
- Contributing to public debate and policy formulation
- Developing a more distinctive and visible profile for the profession
- Workforce diversity
- Research-practice integration
What are the main job tasks of an organisational psychologist?
- Working with employees and managers identifying problems or issues relating to human behaviour
- Undertaking individual and organisational assessments
- Writing proposals and reports on assessment outcomes
- Conducting workshops and giving presentations on various topics
- Marketing services to organisations
- Facilitating employee wellbeing
What are some potential places of employment for organisational psychologists?
- Private consultancies
- In house, in HR departments
What is forensic psychology?
The application of psychological principles and methods to the legal and criminal justice system, and to conducting research in related areas
What are some personal attributes that are best suited to a career in forensic psychology?
- Confidence in your own abilities and judgment
- Able to respond positively to supervision and maintain professional boundaries
- Organisational skills
- Emotional resilience
- Willingness to continue learning
What are some specific topics being researched in forensic psychology at the moment?
- Stalking
- Eyewitness testimony
- Offender profiling
- Jury selection
Al-Megrahi: What is hindsight bias?
When people tend to think the current recollection is the one they had before
Al-Megrahi: What is photo-biased identification?
When a person sees a photo of a suspect and then sees them in a police line-up. They will obviously look more familiar, which can result in a positive identification, even if they’re innocent.
What are some places of employment for a forensic psychologist?
- Secure hospital units
- Probation services
- Prison services
- Academia
What is health psychology?
The use of psychological principles to promote changes in people’s attitudes and behaviour about health and illness.
It is one of the newest fields of applied psychology
What are the two areas of work within health psychology?
- Clinical
- Health promotion
