exam 2 Flashcards
Industrial-organizational psychology
application of psychological principles, theory, and research to the work setting
I-O is a science
I-O is psychology
I-) is in a particular context
What do I-O psychologist do
Help employers treat employees fairly
Help make jobs more interesting and satisfying
Help workers be more productive
More specifically
Selection, job design, recruitment, training, employee development, job satisfaction, employee engagement, motivation, compensation, etc
Scientist practitioner model
Scientist– theory and research
Understand individual, group and organizational behavior through research
Focus on generating knowledge
Practitioner– practice
Apply I/O psychology to organization, externally or internally
Consumer of and applier of knowledge
Consulting firms
Ideally, scientists and practitioners work together. Scientists discover new ideas, and practitioners use those ideas in practice. It’s like a cycle of learning and application, where both sides benefit from each other’s work.
Industrial psychology
recruitment, selection, training, performance, appraisal, promotion, transfer, termination
How differences between people can inform business decisions
Who needs more training, who deserves a promotion, who should we prioritize during layoffs
Organizational psychology
attitudes, fairness, motivation, stress, leadership, teams, broader aspects of organizational and work design
Understanding communal experiences of work contexts
Are they satisfied and motivated?
Key historical players of IO psychology
Walter dill scott and walter van dyke bingham
Applied psychology to organization (military)
Helped with testing and placement for the army during WWI
Adapted the stanford-binet for large group testing– one person working with examiner for hours to evaluate level of IQ
Army alpha
normal multiple choice intelligence test
More scalable than the one on one stanford-binet test
Army beta
intelligence test that serves people that are not literate
Showed pictures and asked what’s missing
Scientific management
a movement based on principles developed by Fredrick Taylor, who suggested that there was one best and most efficient way to perform various job– “Taylorism”
How can we collect data to see the most efficient way to do x
Based on that, that’s how we will train employees to do the tasks in that particular way
Time and motion studies
Frank and Lillian Gilbreth
Studies that broke every action into its simplest parts, timed those movement with a stopwatch, and developed more efficient movements to increase productivity
Eventually people started to shift from efficiency to employee consideration
Hawthorne studies
1930s set of studies by Harvard researchers at Western electric company
Interested in the relationship between lighting with employee morale and efficiency
Hawthrone effect– the alteration of behavior by subjects due to awareness of being observed
Human relations movement
conceptual shift toward increased focus on employee emotion and motivation
1980s to present
Continuing demographic changes
Shift from goods to services
Technology
Working from anywhere, working from home
Globalization
Not bounded to be an employee to the companies that around you
Recruitment
raise awareness of openings to reach applicants
Company websites, job boards, social networking, targeted ad placement, employee referrals
Generate organizational attraction
applicant’s overall evaluations of the appeal of working at that organization in that role
Feeling like it would be a positive experience to work for that organization
Benefits, strong pay, opportunities for advancement
Job analysis
systematic study of a job or role to determine the activities, responsibilities, and attributes needed to perform required tasks successfully
Informs what qualities and characteristics employers should look for amongst their pool of applicants
KSAO’s
Knowledge– collection of discrete, related facts and information about a particular domain
Skill– practiced act
More specific, very clearly related to the job
Ability– stable capacity to engage in a specific behavior
More general than skills
Ex– cognitive ability, communication, remaining calm in a crisis
“Other” characteristics– personality, interests, etc
Punctuality, willingness to work long hours
Structured interviews
questions are predetermined and are asked in a set order
Less biased because same questions in the same order are asked to everybody
Clear criteria of what a strong or weak response is
Helps compare candidates more clearly
unstructured interviews
questions are decided on an ad-hoc bases and are asked in no fixed order
Answers are evaluated based on the interviewers subjectivity
Cognitive ability test
Generally, strongest predictor of job performance
That’s an interesting question article hypothesis’s
H1– innovation
Want to signal that they are an innovative company
H2– style
Want to signal that they are a more trendy company, trying something new
Organizational attraction
Being attracted to the organization but new elements make you more or less attracted to the organization
Person organization fit
alignment and compatibility in characteristics between an individual and their work setting
Fit with organization associated with greater job satisfaction, greater organizational commitment, and lowers turnover intentions
That’s an interesting question article moderating variable
applicant personality
Moderator
variable affecting the strength and direction to the relations between two variables
It depends variable
Ex– ice cream making you happy depends on if the person is lactose intolerance
Lactose intolerance is the moderator
That’s an interesting question article method
Time one– big five personality survey
Time two– experiment exposing participants to one of four questions, perceptions of organizational personality and organizational attraction assessed after
That’s an interesting question article results
Hypothesis were supported
Odd interviewer questions lined up with people thinking their company was innovative and stylistic
No differences found based on applicant personality
Went deeper and found that there was some negative effects– people didn’t like the questions and would be upset if their fate was decided on a weird question
Ai selection and examples
Resume screening
Video interview scoring
Layoff recommendations
Perception of fairness in Ai selection
People tended to prefer humans making hiring decisions compared to Ai or Ai–assisted human
Perception of bias in Ai
Easier to point to Ai to be bias, but humans also often are too in making these decisions
Social media and selection article
The authors argue that using social media to source and screen candidates can be associated with both value and risk
Publicly available information
Big 5 personality traits can be assessed through social media
However, social media profiles are not always job-relevant
Social media and selection article questions
Article asked two questions
Are the screening criteria job-relevant
Are the screening criteria consistently applied
Disparate treatment
intentional discrimination based on protected group membership
Not disclosing identity or disability on application, but company finding out through social media and not hiring because of that identity
Disparate impact
inequality in group outcomes regardless of intention
Motivation
a psychological force that energizes, directs, and sustains behavior
Three components
Not a trait– stable characteristic of an individual
Instead, a situationally dependent state– not that one person is inherently more motivated than another, people are more/less motivated depending on their situation
Not stable across all situations
Direction
Where is effort being directed
Task choice
On-task vs. off task
Intensity
How much effort is being devoted to the task
Persistence
Is effort sustained over time
Facing rejection or failure
Tolerating stressors, obstacles
Maslow’s needs hierarchy
Five fundamental needs every human has that guides their behavior choices
Needs are represented in hierarchical order
Physiological needs– food, water air (lower order)
Safety needs
Social needs
Esteem needs–self confidence, respect
Self-actualization– achieving everything you can in your human experience (higher order)
Not many people reach this
Maslows needs hierarchy arrangement
Arranged in pyramid set up because lower order needs need to be accomplished before meeting higher order needs
Maslow criticism
Lack of empirical support
Sequential, stage-based model particular, limiting
Very stage based, people are usually concerned about multiple things at all times
Intrinsic motivation
engaging in behavior due to genuine interest and satisfaction
Extrinsic motivation
engaging in behavior due to external rewards or punishments
Playing sports just for the trophy, showing up for work for money
Self-determination theory
Modern needs based theory focused on fostering intrinsic motivation
Suggest three fundamental human needs
Competence (SDT theory)
we like to feel like we are good at things and can accomplish things
Validation and rewards
Training opportunities when they are struggling so they can become more competent
Autonomy (SDT theory)
we like to feel like we have free will and can make our choices
Ability to work in office or from home
Control over the hours you work
Relatedness (SDT)
human desire for interaction and connection
Team bonding, workshops to promote inclusive environments
Positive and quality connection with management
Goal setting theory
“Most dominant theory in the field”
Types of goals that lead to optimal performance–
Specific
Vs general (“try your best” goals, less ambiguous
challenging/difficult
Yet attainable
Vs. very easy or very difficult goals
SMART goal setting
Specific
Measurable– quantitative way that you are able to track your progress
Achievable
Relevant– should align with your values and long-term objectives
Time–based– could have multiple goals at once so you have to prioritize what’s important to increase motivation
The motivational benefits of goal-setting article
Causal mechanisms of goal-setting
Diverts attention to goal-relevant activities
Facilitating direction of motivation and effort
Energized people, encourages application of greater effort
Intensity of effort being devoted
Prolongs effort over time
Persistence of continuing to put in effort
Hits on all of the elements of motivation
Five different circumstances – motivational benefits of goal-setting article
Helpful circumstances
Relevant knowledge/ability is present
Goal commitment
Opportunities for feedback
Hindering circumstances
Tasks still involve learning
Situational constraints (resources, obstacles)
takeaways– motivational bandits of goal setting article
Goal setting is effective, regardless of job complexity
Participate vs. assigned goals
Some evidence that participative goals may be more challenging that assigned goals, leading to higher performance
Participate goals may lead to greater goal commitment
Don’t want to undercut the benefits of assigned goals as well
Oversall, goal difficulty and commitment are primary drivers of goal-setting effectiveness
Goal conflict
circumstance in which working toward one goals interferes with the likely accomplishment of another goal
Importance of leaders in providing guidance and authority
outcome goals
may lead to anxiety when unsure how to proceed
Consider learning-oriented subgoals
Not knowing how to get there yet, but creating a goal where you learn the necessary steps to be able to eventually get there
Ex– achieving x number of units, something achievable
Occupational health psychology
interdisciplinary study with emphasis on understanding the physical and mental health of workers within organizations
Psychology, public health, engineering, medicine, business, etc
Stress
process that connects stressor and strain
Stressor
source
Physical or psychological demand to which an individual responds
Acute vs chronic
Acute– infrequent
Workplace violence, accidents
Chronic– experiencing stress daily
Abusive customers, unclear expectations
Physical vs. psychosocial
Physical– air quality, temperature/illumination, noise
Psychosocial– job security, difficult coworkers, emotional labor
Strain
outcome, consequence of experiencing stressor
Affective– emotional, exhaustion, irritability
Cognitive– memory impairments, distractions
Physical– fatigue, immunosuppression (bodies becoming less able to fight off sickness)
Role ambiguity
occurs when employees lack clear knowledge of what behavior is expected in their job
Role conflict
stressors that occurs when demand from different sources are incompatible
Caregiving responsibilities outside workplace context
Role overload
occurs when an individual is expected to fill too many roles at once
When turnover happens and you have your own work plus the job of the individual that left
Demand control model– stress theory
Demands– workload or intellectual requirements of a job
Control– combination of autonomy in the job and room for using different skills
High demand and low control leads to job stress
Primary prevention strategies
for stress
Assumption– most effective approach to stress management is to remove stressors
Scope– preventative
Target– work environment, technologies, or organization structures
Examples– job redesign, cognitive reconstructing
Ex– trader joe’s workers taking turns doing cashier role and stocking role to limit amount of negative customer interactions
Secondary prevention strategies
Assumption– when unable to remove stressors, best to focus on individuals reaction to stressors
Scope– preventative/reactive
Target– individual
Examples– relaxation training, stress management training, physical fitness, nutrition
Tertiary prevention strategies
Assumption– addressing the strain once it has occurred
Scope– treatment
Target– individual
Examples– employee assistance programs, medical care
Absenteeism
employee unplanned workplace absences
sick days, childcare issues, car trouble
Presenteeism
they are physically there, but not as present because of external factors like illness or injury
results in loss of producivity
How to foster employee well being
Work hours and job design
Restricted hours, minimal work require during off-hours
Organizational culture– minimize negative norms like “no one leaves until 7pm”
Incentives that encourage balancing work and nonwork domains
Take vacation or the cash pay-out is less
Organizational wellness programs
Services provided by organizations to promote good health or address health issues, either on-site or off-site.
Examples–Weight loss, fitness improvement, quitting smoking.
use tools like health assessments, on-site gyms, and incentives to encourage participation.
Linked to less absenteeism and higher job satisfaction.
Employee health and wellbeing article
Purpose–
enhance understanding of the potential benefits of flexibility for employee health and well-being
Determine fi the association between flexibility and employee wellbeing is mediated by work-family balance
Employee health and wellbeing article– hypothesis’s
H1– improvements in perceived flexibility over time are associated with positive changes in work-related outcomes
Rescues sickness absences, reduced work-related impairment, increased job commitments
H2– work-family balance mediates associations between changes in flexibility and work related outcomes
Employee health and wellbeing article– methods
surveyed employees across two years
Calculated change score in variables of interest (perceived flexibility, perceived flexibility change, sickness absence, work-related impairment, job commitments, work-family balance)
Employee health and wellbeing article– results
Organizations providing increased flexibility may see benefits to employees commitment and reduction to sickness and work impairment
highlights importance of the work-life interface, as supporting employees balancing work and family may be a useful strategy for managing workplace health and wellbeing
Flexibility
Schedule flexibility– focus on the temporal components (employees can adjust timing of work hours)
Flextime– ability to determine when work will start and stop around organizationally established “core hours”
Compressed workweeks– schedule arrangements whereby workers complete work hours across fewer days– Instead of working five 8-hour days, employees work four 10-hour days
Part time work– employed working traditionally less than 30 hours/ week
Location flexibility– focus on physical location components or work arrangements
telework/remote work– allows employees to work from a location other than a primary worksite
Trait approach– traditional theories of leadership
Relatively stable over time and across situations
Innate and relatively immutable
Big 5 personality traits
Other personality traits as well like intelligence, integrity, self-esteem
Demographic characteristics like gender and race
Could be limiting to the extent that we are focusing on these unchanging things about ourselves that make us a leader or not
Behavioral approach
Effective leaderships is a certain pattern of behavior that motivates others toward a common goal
The actions that you take and the behaviors you engage in that make you an effective leader
Identified two primary groups of behaviors in which leaders engage (Ohio state studies)
Consideration– behavior indicating mutual trust, respect, and a certain warmth and rapport between the supervisor and group
Weekly check ins, creating supportive atmosphere
Initiating structure– behavior in which the supervisor organizes and defines group activities and his/her relation to the group
More task focused
two primary groups of behaviors in which leaders engage
Consideration– behavior indicating mutual trust, respect, and a certain warmth and rapport between the supervisor and group
Weekly check ins, creating supportive atmosphere
Initiating structure– behavior in which the supervisor organizes and defines group activities and his/her relation to the group
More task focused
Situational approach
Acknowledging that there are both traits and behaviors associated with leadership effectiveness
Traits and behaviors matter, but effectiveness depends on the situation
Emphasized finding the right leader for the situation, or changing leader behavior to fit the given situation
Leadership development
Definition: The process of enhancing individuals’ ability to perform effectively as leaders.
Best Time to Start: Early in one’s career.
Everyone Can Lead: Being a leader doesn’t always require holding a formal leadership role.
Effective Methods:
Active Learning: Role-playing is highly effective for leadership development, surpassing traditional classroom training.
Mentorship Impact: Training through mentorship significantly influences leadership growth.
What we know about leadership article argument 1
Leadership matters and is important for organizational outcomes
“People don’t leave jobs they leave bosses”
What we know about leadership article argument 2
Leadership is about effectively guiding people and teams to achieve common goals together.
Relevant to understanding distinctions between
Identity vs. reputation
Identity– what does leader understand of themselves
Reputation– how they are seen externally by others
Ideally there is alignment between identity and reputation
Indicator of authentic leadership
Getting along vs. getting ahead
Getting along– consideration type behaviors
Getting ahead– extent you are initiating structure
Leader emergence vs. leader effectiveness
Leader emergence– how we are externally seen to be more or less likely to be identified as leaders
People who are taller are more likely to be seen as leaders
Leader effectiveness- how effective somebody actually is as a leader
What we know about leadership article argument 3
Personality is related to leadership effectiveness
Trait approach to leadership
4 out of the 5 big 5 personality traits are related to leadership effectiveness and leadership emergence
Agreeableness is not related
Diversity and leadership article
Trait approach
Group A– ambitious, confident, assertive, direct, driven
What we expect more of leaders when thinking of stereotypes
More masculine
Group B– warm, friendly, compassionate, helpful, supportive
More feminine
Role congruity theory
suggests that when there’s a mismatch between societal expectations of femininity and leadership roles, people tend to view women less favorably as leaders.
When individual serotypes and role stereotypes don’t align, an underrepresented leader can choose to
Behave in alignment with their stereotyped identities
Behave in alignment with role expectations
Either choice may be associated with negative reactions, causing a double bind
Sandy Sandberg
why we have too few women leaders
We are not evaluating leaders based off of behaviors alone, instead we are based on stereotypes and expectations
Leadership during crisis article–
Women being penalized when not aligning with stereotypical expectations of femininity
Based on communal traits– warmth empathy
Women supervisors are seen much less likable than men supervisors that are exhibiting the exact same qualities
Based on agentic qualities– confidence, drive
Glass ceiling
invisible systemic barrier that prevents certain people from rising to senior-level positions in an organization
Glass cliff
a phenomenon where women are promoted to leadership roles in difficult times, when the risk of failure is high
Possibility of stress, burnout, careers being derailed
More gender oriented, but also people of people of color and ethnic minorities experience this as well
When are underrepresented leaders be particularly effective
Increased multicultural competence based on personal experience negotiating minority and majority cultures
Value in developing quality relationships with a diverse workforce
Better able to capitalize on diverse perspectives/skillsets of team members
