Psychological Perspectives on Work & Organisations Course
Psychology as a body of knowledge is used by a large proportion of industrial, business & commercial organisations in the private sector & also many areas of the public sector. The application of psychology in organisations can range from situations where large overall programmes are in place to smaller departmental initiatives where psychological techniques, such as aids to selection & promotion procedures, are used.
Within the discipline of psychology, personality is a field of study rather than a particular aspect of the individual. No other area of psychology covers as much ground as the field of personality, which overlaps extensively with neighbouring areas.
Many theories support our current understanding of personality. In this session, you examine five broad theoretical areas. Theorists conceptualise personality in a variety of different ways & it is important for you to appreciate these in order that you can find ways that you think about yourself & others.
Theories provide an orientation & perspective that stimulate different types of research. They also lead to different approaches for assessing personality, testing & to thinking about people in organisations. Trait & biological theories have provided the basis for many modern psychometric tests for personality in organisations.
Perception is another field of study within psychology. This overlaps with personality. We examine the processes involved in perception & the importance of social perception in organisations.
Characteristics of individuals explained by personality theories can be used in selection procedures & in post-selection situations (promotion & appraisal) Ensuring the right people are selected for organisations is vital to their success, therefore you will examine approaches to selection processes & associated methods that can be used to aid rational selection of candidates for jobs in organisations.
The approaches to selection are linked to general & psychometric testing, & we pay particular attention to the rationale for tests in areas of personality & intelligence.
At the end of this course, you should be able to:
explain & describe five theoretical approaches to personality.
give examples of a range of different types of personality traits which may be exhibited by individuals.
outline the processes involved in perception.
explain the importance of social perception in organisations.
describe why it is important to assess certain personality traits for the work place.
explain the organisational processes involved in selecting an interview candidate for employment.
use & describe methods for the rational selection of interview candidates for employment.
demonstrate familiarity with certain
Dimensions of personality & how they may be quantified.
explain & describe a range of tests & testing procedures employed in organisations & the selection of suitable candidates for employment & clinical evaluations.