What is Industrial-Organizational Psychology?
- Industrial-organizational psychology can be divided into two main categories. First, there is the industrial side, which focuses on finding the most effective ways to match people to particular work tasks. Personnel psychology is another name for this area of I-O psychology.
- Employee traits may be evaluated by those who work in this field, who may then place the employees in positions where they are likely to perform effectively. Other activities that fall under the industrial subset of I-O psychology include employee training, creating performance criteria for the workplace, and assessing workplace performance.
- The executive branch of psychology is mainly concerned with figuring out how organizations influence people’s behavior. Social conventions, management styles, role expectations, and organizational structures can all have an impact on how employees behave.
- I-O psychologists aim to enhance individual performance and wellness while also enhancing the organization as a whole by comprehending such elements.
- Although an applied science, basic theoretical research is equally important in industrial-organizational psychology. I-O psychology, which has roots in experimental psychology, has several diverse subfields, including human-computer interaction, personnel psychology, and human factors.
Topics in Industrial-Organizational Psychology:
The following are some of the specific subjects covered by specialists in industrial-organizational psychology:
Employee motivation: Experts in this industry may also make use of psychological concepts to help maintain employee motivation.
Employee testing: I-O psychologists frequently employ psychological concepts and assessments to assist businesses in choosing applicants who are most qualified for particular job roles.
I-O psychologists may work with leaders to improve their tactics or coach managers to use various leadership techniques to better manage their teams.
Product development: Some I-O psychologists focus on the creation of consumer or business products.
Diversity in the workplace: Within the subject of organizational psychology, specialists in this area may assist companies in creating hiring procedures that promote greater diversity and in providing staff with diversity and inclusion training.
Performance at work: I-O psychologists frequently research workplace behavior to create policies and settings that maximize employee performance.
Careers in IO Psychology:
1. Human Resource Management: Consider a career in human resources management if you enjoy the interpersonal aspects of I/O psychology. Every day, those who work in human resources (HR) come into contact with people from throughout a business. Their duties may include finding new employees and resolving workplace conflicts between staff members. An HR representative may participate in the hiring and interviewing process, employee training programs, workplace conflict resolution, and general representation of people inside the organization.
2. Analyst of Workforce Insights: A workforce insights analyst’s job is more data-driven than an HR career generally is since they interact with people. Your understanding of quantitative research and evaluation techniques, like surveys and reviews, will be put to use when you evaluate employee performance, management procedures, and workflows. The objective of a workforce insights analyst is to leverage employee data to enhance training, productivity, and general business satisfaction.
3. Consultant for Professional Business Development: Leadership training is offered by a professional development consultant to persons looking to build practical workplace abilities that will help them enhance their careers in a range of industries. A professional development consultant may furthermore conduct one-on-one or group professional development workshops. This position might exist within a corporation to assist present employees in realizing their full potential or it might be outsourced to an outside “consultant” position for individuals looking for new jobs within their company or to change careers.
4. Manager of Organizational Effectiveness: To establish organizational goals, improve management procedures, and develop a clear road map for realizing a company’s vision, and organizational effectiveness manager frequently collaborates with senior leadership and management teams. These managers have the option of working full-time for an organization or serving as independent consultants to different customers. An organizational effectiveness manager can gather information from staff members and get a sense of the internal culture and structure of a business using effective evaluation and survey methods. The manager can then use the information gathered in conjunction with I/O and business psychology principles to develop a top-down strategy to increase efficiency and employee satisfaction
5. Corporate Coaching: At the C-Suite level, executive coaches typically assist individuals and teams in enhancing their performance at work. They may be employed to collaborate directly with a single person or the entire business. Executive coaches occasionally work with people who are not executives, despite their titles. These experts offer their clients advice on how to develop their organizational and management skills as well. In this role, coaches are required to regularly review clients’ professional progress and performance while also assigning strategies to aid them. To properly train clients’ performance, executive coaches must examine the circumstances of a given workplace. This is where the concepts of I/O psychology are most evident.
For whom is industrial-organizational psychology appropriate?
Consider industrial-organizational psychology if you want to use psychological principles in a practical situation. This may be the perfect career for you if you have a keen interest in psychology as well as fields like product design, computers, statistics, and engineering.
Here are some of the colleges in India which offer MSc/MA in Organizational Psychology.
- Bharathiar University, Coimbatore (MA Industrial Psychology)
- MS University, Baroda (MA Industrial Psychology)
- Fergusson College, Pune (MA Industrial Psychology)
- Amity Institute of Psychology and Allied Sciences, Noida (MSc Industrial Psychology)
- Utkal University, Bhubaneswar (MA Industrial Psychology)
- Guru Jambheshwar University of Science and Technology (MA Industrial Psychology)
- Awadhesh Pratap Singh University, Rewari (MA Industrial Psychology)
- Modern College of Arts Science And commerce (MA Industrial Psychology)
- Christ University, Bangalore (MSc Industrial Psychology)
- SP college (MA Industrial Psychology)
- Vishwakarma University (MA Industrial Psychology)
- Symbiosis College (MA Industrial Psychology)
Blog By : Saloni Lad
