Industrial/Organizational Psychology Flashcards
Fields of I/O Psychology
- Personnel Psychology
- Organizational Psychology
- Human Factors/Ergonomics
- Occupational Health and Safety
Hypotheses vs Theories
- Hypotheses - well thought-out suggestions or ideas
* Theories - systematic sets of assumptions regarding the nature and cause of particular events
Different Research Methods
- Experiment
- Quasi-experiment
- Case study
- Survey
- Interview
- Natural observation
- Independent and Dependent Variables
Difference between mail, email and phone surveys?
Mail Surveys
•Pre-contact participants
•Personalize the survey (e.g., original signature)
•Ensure survey responses will be anonymous by using identification numbers
•Use a first-class stamp (15% more likely to be opened)
•Increasing Response Rates
Email Surveys
•Compared to regular mail, email - faster, cheaper (5-20% of regular mail cost), results in longer, more candid open-ended responses and have similar response rates (about 30%)
•Survey length does not affect response rates - Increasing Response Rates
Phone Surveys
•Immediately identify self and affiliation
•Provide a phone number if participant is suspicious
•Stress the importance of the information
•Keep the interview short
•Limit the number of response options
•Speak clearly
Meta-analysis Steps
- Obtain relevant studies
- Convert test statistics into effect sizes
- Compute mean effect size
- Correct effect sizes for sources of error
- Determine if effect size is significant
- Determine if effect can be generalized or if there are moderators
- Finding Studies
- Establish time frame for studies
Deciding which studies to use
- Must be empirical
- Must have the appropriate statistic to convert to an ‘r’ or a ‘d’
- Must have complete set of information
- Must be accurate
Importance of Job Analysis
- Writing job descriptions
- Employee selection
- Training
- Person power planning
- Performance appraisal
- Job classification
- Job evaluation
- Job design
- Compliance with legal guidelines
- Organizational analysis
JD Sections
- Job Title
- Brief summary
- Work activities
- Tools and equipment used
- Work context
- Work performance
- Compensation information
- Job Competencies
What composes a Job Title
Describes the nature of the job
What composes a Brief Summary
Job description; easy to understand
What composes work activities
-List only one activity per statement
–Statements should be able to “stand alone”
–Should be written in an easy to understand style
–Use precise rather than general words
What composes a work context?
- Work schedule
- Degree of supervision
- Ergonomic information (Physical and Psychological Stress; Indoors v. outdoors; Lighting/heat/noise/physical space; Clean v. dirty environment; Standing/sitting/bending/lifting)
What composes Work performance?
Describes how performance is evaluated
What should a work perfomance include?
–Standards used
–Frequency of evaluation
–Evaluation dimensions
–Evaluator
What composes compensation information?
- Job evaluation dimensions
- Exempt status
- Pay grade
- Job group
- EEO-1 Category
What composes job competencies?
–Knowledge, skill, ability, and other characteristics (KSAOs)
–Job specifications
Who can conduct job analysis?
• Internal Department – Human resources – Compensation – Training – Engineering • Internal task force • Supervisors • Employees • Consultants • Interns/class projects
How do you conduct a job analysis?
Step 1: Identify tasks performed Step 2: Write task statements Step 3: Rate task statements Step 4: Determine essential KSAOs Step 5: Select tests to tap KSAOs
Characteristics of well-written task statements
-One action and one object
-Appropriate reading level
–The statement should make sense by itself
–All statements should be written in the same tense
–Should include the tools and equipment used to complete the task
–Task statements should not be competencies
–Task statements should not be policies
Tasks can be rated on a variety of scales
–Importance* –Part-of-the-job –Frequency of performance* –Time spent –Relative time spent –Complexity –Criticality
What can be used to determine Essential KSAO (General Information about Worker Activities)?
- Positional Analysis Questionnaire
- Structured Job Analysis Methods
- Job Structure Profile
- Job Elements Inventory
- Functional Job Analysis
What are the 6 main dimensions assessed in Positional Analysis Questionnaire?
- Information input
- Mental processes
- Work output
- Relationships with others
- Job context
- Other
What can be used to determine Essential KSAO (Method information about KSAOs)?
- Job components inventory
- Job Adaptability inventory
- Personality-related position requirements form
- Fleishman Job Analysis
- Critical Incident Technique
5 main categories of job components inventory
- Tools and equipment used
- Perceptual and physical requirements
- Mathematical requirements
- Communication requirements
- Decision making and responsibility
8 dimensions of adaptability inventory
- Handling emergencies
- Handling work stress
- Solving problems creatively
- Dealing with uncertainty
- Learning
- Interpersonal adaptability
- Cultural adaptability
- Physically orienting adaptability
KSAO: Knowledge?
A body of information needed to perform a task
KSAO: Skill?
proficiency to perform a certain task
KSAO: Ability?
basic capacity for performing a wide range if different tasks, acquiring a knowledge, or developing a skill
KSAO: Other characteristics?
Personal factors such as personality, willingness, interest, and motivation and such tangible factors as licenses, degrees, and years of experience
Employee Complaint Process
• Alleged discriminatory act • Internal investigation • Internal resolution process – Essential to have a formal policy – Options • Dictate a decision • Mediate a solution • Arbitrate a decision – Appeal procedure is important • External resolution process – State agencies in deferral states – EEOC – Law suit
Alternative Dispute Resolution
• Mediation – Neutral third party – Disputants reach agreement • Arbitration – Neutral third party – Arbitrator makes decision • Binding • Nonbinding • Dictation – Third party makes decision
EEOC Complaint Process
- Alleged discriminatory act
- Complaint filed
a. 180 days for nondeferral states
b. 300 days for deferral states - Employer notified within 10 days
- Investigation (goal is to complete in 120 days)
a. Reasonable cause found
1) attempt to reach agreement
2) if no agreement, EEOC can file suit
b. Reasonable cause not found
1) right to sue letter issued to employee
2) employee has 90 days to file suit
What is content validity?
method of rationally matching tasks with the necessary knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics (KSAOs) to perform the job
What is a criterion validity?
Correlate test scores with relevant criteria
What is validity generalization?
- Based on meta-analysis
* Borrows validity from other studies or organizations
Type of Harassment
- Quid Pro Quo
* Hostile Environment
Quid Pro Quo Harassment Claims
- Granting of sexual favors is tied to employment decisions
- Single incident is enough
- Organization is always liable
Hostile Environment
Harassment Claims
- Pattern of conduct
- Related to gender
- Is unwanted
- Is negative to the “reasonable person”
- Affects a term, condition, or privilege of employment
Behaviors That Could Be Sexual Harassment
- Sexual comments
- Undue attention
- Verbal sexual abuse
- Verbal sexual displays
- Body language
- Invitations
- Physical advances
- Explicit sexual invitations
Behaviors are offensive if they:
- Perpetuate stereotypes
- Degrade another group
- Build-up own group
- Make others feel uncomfortable
What is disability?
A physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities
What is an effective recruitment method should be?
- Get the attention of the public
- Screen unqualified applicants
- Motivate qualified people to apply
- Be cost effective
- Be timely
What are formal/direct recruitment methods?
- Media advertisements
- Point of purchase
- Direct mail
- Employment agencies
- College recruiters
- Computer databases
- Special events
- Employee referral programs
What are informal/indirect recruitment methods?
- Situation-wanted ads
- Direct applications
- Employee referrals
5 Major Types of Newspaper Employment Ads
- Apply in person
- Call
- Send resume
- Blink box
- Employment agency
How do interviews differ?
•Structure oUnstructured oStructured •Style oOne-on-one oSerial oReturn oPanel oGroup •Medium oFace-to-face oTelephone oVideoconference oWritten
Goals of a structuredinterview
•Understand the Applicant
oClarify and confirm resume information
oObtain new information
•Predict Job Performance
oAsk questions focused on past behavior
oAsk questions focused on knowledge and skills
oAsk questions focused on future behavior
•Predict Organizational Fit
oUse several interviewers
oCombine interview impression with test scores
•Sell the Organization to the Applicant
oProvide information about the position/organization
oAnswer the applicant’s questions
How do you create a structured interview
- Conduct a thorough job analysis
- Determine best way to measure each KSAO
- Construct Questions
- Determine rating anchors for each question
- Choose two or more members for the interview panel
How do you conduct a structured interview?
- Build rapport
- Explain the process and the agenda
- Ask the questions
- Score the answer and take notes after each question
- Provide information about the job and the organization (e.g., salary, benefits, climate)
- Answer interviewee’s questions
- End the interview on a pleasant note
General considerations in resumes
• Length • Paper color and type • How it will be sent o mailed o faxed o scanned • Job objectives
What are important psychological principles?
- Primacy
- Priming
- Short-term memory
- Relevancy
- Negative information bias
- Unusualness
- Anderson’s adding versus averaging principle
What are types of resumes?
- Chronological
- Functional
- Psychological
Importance of References in Resumes
- Check for resume fraud
- Find new information about the applicant
- Check for potential discipline problems
- Predict future performance
Personnel Selection Methods (Real meaning of recommendations)
- Training & Education
- Experience
- Knowledge
- Ability
- Skills
- Personality & Character
- Medical
Assessment Centers
A selection technique that uses multiple job-related assessment exercises and multiple assessors to observe and record behaviors of candidates performing job-related tasks
Guidelines for Assessment Center Practices
Joiner (2000)
- Based on job analysis
- Behavioral classification
- Assessment techniques
- Use multiple assessment exercises
- Simulations
- Use multiple assessors
- Assessor training
- Recording behavior
- Reports
- Overall judgment based on integration of information
Assessment Center Exercises
- Leaderless group discussions
- In-basket technique
- Simulations
- Role plays
- Case analyses and business games
What is personality?
collection of traits that persist across time and situations and differentiate one person from another
Five Factor Model (The Big 5)
- Openness to Experience
- Conscientiousness
- Extraversion
- Agreeableness
- Neuroticism (emotional stability)
What is a polygraph testing?
a machine that measures the physiological responses that accompany the verbal responses an individual makes to a direct questions asked by polygraph operator.
Limitation of the Polygraph
- Emotions other than guilt can trigger responses
- Countermeasures used to avoid detection
- Frequency of false positives
- Frequency of false negatives
Differentiate the paper and pencil integrity test
- Overt integrity tests: Directly ask for attitudes about theft and occurrences of theft behavior
- Personality based measures: measure traits linked to several theft related employee behaviors that are detrimental to the organization
What is a conditional reasoning test?
• Applicants are given a series of statements and asked to select the reason that justifies each statement
Optimal employee selection systems
Reliable
Valid
Reduce the chance of a legal challenge
Cost effective
What is a reliability?
extent to which a score from a test is consistent and free from errors of measurement
Methods of determining reliability
–Test-retest (temporal stability)
–Alternate forms (form stability)
–Internal reliability (item stability)
–Scorer reliability
What is internal reliability?
measurement error strictly in terms of consistency or inconsistency in the content of the test.
How do you determine internal reliability?
- Split-Half Method*
- Spearman-Brown Formula
Common Methods for Correlating Split-half Methods
• Cronbach’s Coefficient Alpha
– Used with ratio or interval data.
• Kuder-Richardson Formula
– Used for test with dichotomous items (yes-no true-false)
When is interrater reliability used?
• Used when human judgment of performance is involved in the selection proces
What is Validity?
degree to which inferences from scores on tests or assessments are justified by the evidence
Differentiate different ways to measure validity
Content Validity the extent to which test items sample the content that they are supposed to measure
Criterion validity refers to the extent to which a test score is related to some measure of job performance called a criterion
Construct Validity -extent to which a test actually measures the construct that it purports to measure
Common Utility Methods
- Taylor-Russell Tables
- Proportion of Correct Decisions
- The Brogden-Cronbach-Gleser Model
Measurement bias?
– A test is biased if there are group differences in test scores (e.g., race, gender) that are unrelated to the construct being measured (e.g., integrity)
Predictive bias
– A test is fair if people of equal probability of success on a job have an equal chance of being hired
Linear Approaches to Making the Selection Decision
- Unadjusted Top-down Selection
- Passing Scores
- Banding
Steps in Developing the System
- Create a task-force that includes all levels in the organization
- Determine why you are evaluating performance (your goal)
- Identify environmental and cultural variables that could affect the system
- Determine the sources to be used in appraising performance.
Training Step
• Determine training needs • Develop training program – Establish goals and objectives – Choose best training method – Prepare the training – Motivate employees – Conduct the training • Evaluate training success
What is Pygmalion effect or Rosenthal effect?
higher expectations lead to an increase in performance
What is Golem effect?
lower expectations placed upon individuals either by supervisors or the individual themselves lead to poorer performance by the individual.
Equity vs Expectancy Theory
Equity Theory - motivated by fairness, and if they identify inequities in the input or output ratios of themselves and their referent group, they will seek to adjust their input to reach their perceived equity
Expectancy Theory - behave or act in a certain way because they are motivated to select a specific behavior over other behaviors due to what they expect the result of that selected behavior will be.
Types of Org Communication
- Upward
- Downward
- Business
- Informal
- Interpersonal
