Sunday, May 20, 2012

Industrial Psychology

ALHOSN UNIVERSITY
University General Requirement Unit
Humanities, Arts or Social Sciences Requirement

Course Title: FAS 300 – Industrial Psychology
Lecture Hours: 3 hours per week, fall semester 2010
Lab Hours: 0
Credits: 3
Prerequisite: None


Instructor/Coordinator:

Name: Prof. Gregory Mavrides
Office: MC 207C
Phone: 9712-407-0574
E-mail: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Office Hours: As posted and via email, office visitation and telephone, immediate consultation after class if schedule permits, or by appointments.

Course Description

FAS 300, Industrial Psychology, covers the theories, methods, findings and applications of industrial and organizational psychology including: personnel recruitment and selection; employee training and development; performance appraisal, work attitudes and motivation; leadership and group processes; organizational design.

Course Objectives

  1. Provide students with a better understanding of the complexities inherent in the interactions between employees and organizations.
  2. Familiarize students with aspects of industrial and organizational psychology, such as attitudes and behaviors of employees and employers; interpersonal relationships at work.
  3. Familiarize students with the structure of organizations and organizational policies.
  4. Expose students to the complex processes of motivation and leadership; organizational and individual performance.

Learning Outcomes

Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to:

  • Read and understand professional literature, particularly the research methods that have been used and why.
  • Understand how applied I/O theory and research can improve the productivity and quality of work life.
  • Directly utilize the information covered in the course to affect improvements in one's own workplace.

Course Evaluation

Your final course grade will be based on three measurements:

  • Presentation Proposal: 5%
  • Midterm Exam: 30%
  • Class Presentation (15 to 20 minutes): 25%
  • Final Exam (cumulative: 70% new material; 30% midterm material): 40%

The midterm exam will cover the first six chapters of our textbook. The final exam will emphasize (70%) the material covered during the second half of class (chapters 7 to 12) but, per University policy, will also include some material (30%) from the first six chapters.

Please Note: Exams include material from class lectures. The midterm and final exam will be given during the midterm and final exam periods respectively.

Late Work

No late work will be accepted. If you are absent from class for any reason, it is your responsibility to find out what you have missed and make sure you are up-to-date for the next class. If you fail to give your presentation on your assigned day, you will receive a "0" for the assignment, regardless of the reason (unless you can provide a University exemption signed by the Provost).

Learning Methodologies

  • Spend some time on the course every day, whether you have class or not.
  • Take good notes in class and review them frequently, comparing them to corresponding material in the text.
  • Read the chapter in the textbook (prior to it's being covered in class).
  • Answer and study the review questions in the text.
  • Try to find some intrinsic satisfaction in the process of learning itself instead of being solely preoccupied with the final grade.

Course Textbook

Paul E. Levy, Industrial/Organizational Psychology: Understanding the Workplace (Houghton Mifflin, 2003).

Other Reference

To be announced in class.

Attendance Policy

Attendance is taken for each class. If a student is more than 10 minutes late to a class, he/she will be counted absent for that class. Being out of a class more than 10 minutes during the class period will cause a student to be considered absent for that class Attendance will be reported and students must maintain guidelines for appropriate attendance as determined by ALHOSN University. A student who misses 8 to 11 classes will have 25% deducted from his/her total class average. A student who misses more than 11 class meetings will receive an “F” for the class.

For more information including an explanation as to why I strictly enforce the attendance policy, please see Why I Take Attendance.

Classroom Etiquette

  • You are responsible for six chapters for the midterm exam and an additional six chapters for the final exam. The amount of material that will be covered over 12 weeks of lectures is non-negotiable.
  • Cell phones must be turned off and put away. There is no text-messaging during class.
  • Students should conduct themselves professionally at all times.
  • Class starts promptly at the time indicated on your schedule.
  • It is the student’s responsibility to obtain handouts, notes, and assignments for any classes (s)he missed.

Academic Honesty

Copying, cheating, and plagiarizing are all ways to use other people’s ideas and pretend they are yours. We have no tolerance for these behaviors. Homework, assignments, projects, and exams are all expected to be completed by you and you alone unless a group is specifically assigned, and in that case, you will work only with your group.

Course Calendar

Essentially, we are going to cover one chapter in our textbook per week. We will have six weeks of classes followed by "midterm week," followed by another six weeks of classes, and, then, two remaining weeks in the semester for final exams.

Week

Textbook Chapter and Summary

1
  1. Research Methods in I/O Psychology
    • Research Terminology and Basic Concepts
    • Types of Experimental Designs
    • Data Collection Techniques
    • Measurement and Psychometrics
    • Statistics
2
  1. Job Analysis
    • Job Analytic Methods
    • Defining the Job: Descriptions and Specifications
    • The Many Purposes of Job Analysis
    • Job Evaluation
3
  1. Criterion Measurement
    • Defining Criteria and Their Properties
    • Two Major Components of the Criterion Problem
    • Distinctions Among Performance Criteria
4
  1. Cultural Patterns and Communication: Foundation
    • Components of Cultural Patterns
    • The Functions of Cultural Patterns
    • Cultural Patterns and Intercultural Competence
5
  1. Performance Appraisal
    • Uses of Performance Appraisal
    • The Role of I/O Psychology in Performance Appraisal
    • A Contextual Approach
6
  1. Predictors
    • Classification of Tests
    • Types of Predictors
  • Midterm Exam: Chapters 2 to 7 and class lectures
7
  1. Training
    • Assessing Training Needs
    • Principles of Learning
    • Training Methods and Techniques
    • Training Evaluation
8
  1. Motivation
    • Theoretical Perspectives
    • Applications of Motivational Theories to Organizational Problems
9
  1. Job Attitudes: Antecedents and Consequences
    • Attitudes, Intentions, and Behaviors
    • Job Satisfaction
    • Organizational Commitment
    • Additional Job Attitudes
10
  1. Stress and Worker Well-Being
    • Stress and Strains
    • Environmental Determinants of Well-Being
    • Work-Family Conflict
    • Psychological Effects of Job Loss
    • Workplace Violence
11
  1. Group Processes and Work Teams
    • Group Versus Teams
    • Social Influence in Groups
    • Group Decision Making
    • Work Teams of the 21st Century
12
  1. Leadership
    • What is Leadership?
    • Leadership Theories
    • New Directions in Leadership Research
  • Review
  • Final Exam: Chapters 8 to 13 (70%), 2 to 7 (30%), and class lectures