Organisational Psychology Flashcards
Definition of organisational psychology
: is the scientific study of behaviour in the workplace that uses scientific knowledge to facilitate the organisations and workplace performance as well as the job satisfaction of its members
What are the focus areas in organisational behaviour
Individual Level
Group Level
Organisational Level
What is the aim of organisational psychologists
The aim of organisational psychologists is to enhance the organisations performance alongside employee satisfaction.
What is the purpose of roles in organisational psychology
There are a range of roles that organisational psychologists fulfill and provide support in terms of employee and organisation management. Organisational Psychologists can be employed as a short-term consultant for a particular project or full-time staff members within the organisation.
What are the roles of organisational psychology
- Recruitment and selection.
- Learning and development.
- Leadership and talent management.
- Coaching, mentoring and career development.
- Measuring employee opinions and other work-place research.
- Change management.
- Occupational health and safety.
- Performance management.
- Wellbeing, stress, and work-life balance.
What are the types of organisations
Not for profit
Government
Commercial
What is a non profit organisation
organisation that provides services to the community and do not operate to make a profit for its members.
What is a government organisation
a government appointed group can be permanent or semi-permanent organisations and is funded by the government.
What is a commercial organisation
a business that sells goods or services for the purpose of making profit.
What is objective data
data that can be verified by other researchers, it increases the reliability and validity of the data.
what is subjective data
data that is collected or obtained via personal observations.
what is qualitative data
data that is often expressed in words or sentences to describe the quality of behaviour.
what is quantitative data
data that is represented by numbers and can be statistically analysed and presented in table, or graph format to make the interpretating of results simpler for the end reader of the research.
what are the different tools used to assess employee performance and satisfaction
- Trackers to measure individual employee and team performance.
- Appraisals and ratings of performance.
- 360 degree and upward appraisal.
- Critical incident method of analysing performance (CIT).
what are the 8 major criteria embedded in measures for organisational performance
Theft
accidents
productivity
sales
counterproductive work behaviour
absenteeism
customer service
staff turnover
what is vocational guidance
the process of helping an individual choose an appropriate vocation through such means as:
a) In-depth interviews.
b) Administration of aptitude, interest, and personality tests.
c) Discussion of the nature and requirements of specific types of work in which the individual expresses an interest.
why is vocational guidance important
Personality traits, abilities and interest are all factors that may influence the individual lives people play attention to when making decisions in regard to their career. Thus, this involves assessing a person’s vocational interest and personality to match them to available jobs, working conditions, remuneration and future prospects.
What is holland’s theory of vocational choice
Holland’s theory of vocational choice is a theory of personality that focuses on career and vocational choice. It groups people based of their suitability for six different categories (RIASEC) of occupational.
what are the advantages of holland’s theory of vocational choice
- Individuals and counsellors easily understand them.
- Most widely used models for organising career interest assessments.
what are the disadvantages of holland’s theory of vocational choice
- Self-directed search does not assess the skills and knowledge needed for the particular job.
- Other considerations also include availability of the jobs (now and future), working conditions and renumeration would need to also be considered.
What is Jurgensen’s job preference study
- Jurgensen’s job preference study is a list that considers what working conditions are most important to an individual, understands that one person’s value may be different to another and explored what people believe other values.
What is motivation
a force determining the direction, intensity and persistence of behaviour; it causes one to act with it being a critical factor influencing decision making, behaviour and performance in the workplace
how is Maslow’s hierarchy of needs used to describe motivation
The hierarchical nature of this model reflects the basic assumption that the strongest motivational drives come from needing to meet the lowest levels.
* A satisfied need is not a motivator of behaviour.
* A need at one level does not become activated until the nest lower level is satisfied.
What is vrooms theory of expectancy
a cognitive theory of motivation, suggesting that employees are rational decision makers who will put effort into activities that lead to rewards they desire.
(see notes for diagram)
effort + performance + rewards
what are the factors that develop and optimizing teamwork and performance goals
- Collaboration over competition
o Employees working towards on a common goal means that success and failure are attributed to the team rater than to an individual - Complementary Skills
o Utilising the diversity of knowledge and skills that each member brings ensures that the team goals are more likely to be achieved and acknowledge for contribution - Collective identify
o A shift from individual manager decisions making to team decisions making opportunities for employees - Communication and cohesion
o Group cohesion can result in greater individual and greater group performances - Group norms rather than rules
o Norms are stabiles and reinforced by the group encourage engagement in the behaviours expected whilst working to achieve a common goal.
What is the tool 360 degree and upward appraisal
it is a process that considers an employees strength and weaknesses through a feedback system, where the employer, coworkers, peers subordinates provide feedback to the employer. It allows the employer to understand their weakness and strengths about their work performance and see areas for improvement.