Introduction to Psychology
The term psychology derives from the greek roots psyche,
meaning “soul” or “mind,” and logos, meaning “word.”
until the early 1900s : psychology is literally the study of the mind
or soul.
beginning in the early 1900s: psychologists defined their field as
the study of behavior.
Psychology define as the systematic study of behavior and
experience 02
Introduction to Psychology
Today psychology is primarily a cognitive science, although it
includes thoughts, emotions, and behavior. In the course of studying,
psychologists seek to describe (for example, describing how shy people
behave differently from people who are not shy), predict (for example,
predicting job performance from a cognitive test), and explain (for
example, explaining why stereotypes are used more under some
circumstances than others). Psychologists in some areas might also be
interested in applying what has been learned to help people to change
(for example, helping people to overcome eating disorders)
Psychology is the study of thoughts (also called cognition),
emotions (also called affect), and behavior.
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Perspectives of Psychology
An orientation toward understanding the neurobiological
Biological
processes that underlie behavior and mental processes -
Perspective
studying brain structures or neurochemicals.
An orientation toward understanding observable behavior
Behavioral
in terms of conditioning and reinforcement - studying
Perspective
behavior.
An orientation toward understanding mental processing
Cognitive such as perceiving, remembering, reasoning, deciding,
Perspective and problem solving and their relationship to behavior -
studying thoughts and feelings.
An orientation toward understanding behavior in terms of
Psychoanalytic
unconscious motives stemming from sexual and
Perspective
aggressive impulses.
An orientation toward understanding behavior and
mental processes in terms of the subjective realities
Subjectivist
people actively construct - subjectivism has been most
Perspective
pervasive within social and personality psychology
(culture, personal history, and current motivational state)
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Brain Activity
PET (positron-emission to-
Mography) scans show
the brain activity of
normal people during
different activities. Red
indicates the highest
activity, followed by
yellow, green, and blue.
Arrows indicate the most
active areas.
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Specialties in Psychology
Specialization General Interest Example of Interest or Research Topic
Biopsychologist Relationship between brain and behavior What body signals indicate hunger and satiety?
Clinical psychologist Emotional difficulties How can people be helped to overcome severe anxiety?
Cognitive
Memory, thinking Do people have several kinds of memory?
psychologist
Community Would improved job opportunities decrease psychological
Organizations and social structures
psychologist distress?
Counseling
Helping people make important decisions Should this person consider changing careers?
psychologist
Developmental At what age can a child first distinguish between appearance and
Changes in behavior over age
psychologist reality?
Educational
Improvement of learning in school What is the best way to test a student’s knowledge?
psychologist
Environmental How factors such as noise, heat, and What building design can maximize the productivity of the people
psychologist crowding affect behavior who use it?
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Specialties in Psychology
Specialization General Interest Example of Interest or Research Topic
How did people evolve their facial
Evolutionary psychologist Evolutionary history of behavior
expressions of emotion?
Communication between person and How can an airplane cockpit be redesigned
Human factors specialist
machine to increase safety?
Should jobs be made simple and foolproof
Industrial/organizational
People at work or interesting
psychologist
and challenging?
Learning and motivation What are the effects of reinforcement and
Learning in humans and other species
specialist punishment?
Why are certain people shy and others
Personality psychologist Personality differences
gregarious?
Measuring intelligence, personality, How fair are current IQ tests? Can we devise
Psychometrician
interests better tests?
How should the school handle a child who
School psychologist Problems that affect schoolchildren
regularly disrupts the classroom?
What methods of persuasion are most
Social psychologist Group behavior, social influences
effective for changing attitudes?
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Specialties in Psychology
Industrial/Organizational: Industrial/organizational psychologists
apply psychology to the workplace. They might help businesses to make
good hiring decisions, help leaders to be more effective, or work to
increase employee productivity and satisfaction.
Human Factors: This is sometimes called engineering psychology or
ergonomics. These psychologists study human performance when
working with machines. For example, they might study how airplane
cockpits (e.g., gauges, levers) should be designed to facilitate the
performance of pilots or how using a cell phone affects driving
performance. 08
Date of Some Important Events in
Psychology
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Date of Some Important Events in
Psychology
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Industrial / Organizational Psychology
Industrial/organizational (I/O) psychology is the application of
psychological principles and theories to the workplace. I/O psychologists
study, among other things, the attitudes and behaviors of employees and
employers; interpersonal relationships at work; the structure of
organizations and organizational policies; the complex processes of
motivation and leadership; both individual and organizational
performance; the context, culture, and climate of organizations; and the
match between people and jobs.
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Industrial / Organizational Psychology
Industrial/organizational (I/O) psychology is the application of
psychological principles and theories to the workplace. I/O psychologists
study, among other things, the attitudes and behaviors of employees and
employers; interpersonal relationships at work; the structure of
organizations and organizational policies; the complex processes of
motivation and leadership; both individual and organizational
performance; the context, culture, and climate of organizations; and the
match between people and jobs.
The purpose of I/O psychology is “to enhance the dignity and
performance of human beings, and the organizations they work in, by
advancing the science and knowledge of human behavior”
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Industrial / Organizational Psychology
According to C.S. Myres, ‘The aim of industrial psychology is primarily not to obtain
greater production or output but to give the worker greater ease at his work’.
According to Thomas W. Harrell, ‘Industrial psychology may be defined as the study
of people as individuals and in groups and of the relationship between individual and
group’.
‘Industrial psychology is simply the application or extension of psychology facts and
principles to the problem concerning human beings operating within the context of
business and industry’, says Blum and Naylor.
According to Tiffin and McCormick, 'Industrial psychology is concerned with the study
of human behaviour in those aspects of life that are related to production, distribution
and use of goods and services of our civilization’.
‘The scientific study of the relationship between man and the world at work: The study of
adjustment people make to the place they go, the people they meet and the things they
do in the process of making a living’, says Guion. 13
Historical Development of Industrial
Psychology
Bryan & Harter (1897) published a first paper describing the study andapplication of
psychology to work activities (Morse code telegraphic) coined the term “industrial
psychology” by mistake.
During the First and Second World War when various industrial organizations and
plants faced a number of problems related to production, efficiency and individual
employees, the help of industrial psychologist are in great demand. At this stage,
industrial psychology received a special status, although it began in America in 1901, and
England soon after.
The first book, “The Psychology of Industrial Efficiency”, written by Hugo Munsterberg in
1913 was dealing with various problems faced by the industries and analysis of such
problem from the psychological point of view. During the war years, the Fatigue Research
Board was organized in Great Britain to discover the problems connected with working
hours, condition of work, problems associated with fatigue and monotony/boredom,
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accident and safety measures and other work related matters
Important Dates in the Evolution of I-O
Psychology
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Characteristics of Industrial Psychology
Systematic study—Industrial psychology is the systematic study of human
behaviour concerned with collecting the information regarding human
behaviour at work. What are the different factors which affect the work of
an individual either they are personal or related to working conditions.
Research—Industrial psychology is not concerned with administration. They
are the part of the research. Whatever information gathered from the work
should be implemented and the personnel administration is the application
of such research.
Functional/Applied—It is concerned with the application of information
about human behaviour to the various problems of industrial human life.
Human engineering—It studies the varied methods of performing manual
operations for the better utilization and the least waste of effort through 16
human engineering
Scopes of Industrial Psychology
Scientific selection of workers’—Industrial psychology offers a whole
arrangement of tests such as systematic depth interviews and psychological
tests of intelligence, aptitude, skills, abilities and interest the personnel
characteristic etc. By these tests candidates are measured and properly
selected and placed on the job.
Proper division of work—One of the scopes of industrial psychology is the
work should be properly divided according to the abilities, skills and
aptitude of the workers so they may feel comfortable and satisfied. It may
also lead higher production.
Minimizing the wastage of human efforts—Industrial psychology tries to
minimize the wastage of human power. It studies psychological factors
causing fatigue or accident and give feasible suggestions to prevent them.
The techniques of motivation and morale are used for this purpose. 17
Scopes of Industrial Psychology
Promoting labour welfare—It promotes the welfare of the labour by
introducing adequate working environment through which job
satisfaction, work efficiency increases and also state the provisions of higher
incentives.
Enhancement of human relations—Human relations are the relation among
individuals in an organization and the group behaviour that emerge from
their relations. Most of problems arise in the industries are connected to
human relation. If workers' feel ease with the surrounding then
automatically they get motivated and productivity will be higher. Industrial
psychology has made significant contribution in framing the techniques of
leadership, worker participation, communication etc. 18
Scopes of Industrial Psychology
Developing industrial relations—Industrial psychology studies the attitude
of the employer and employees. Individuals differ from each others in their
thoughts, thinking, behaviour and other parameters. Therefore, different
measures may be adopted in solving the problem relating to each individual
like transfers, promotions, grievances etc. This helps in developing
industrial relationship among workers' and management.
Increase production—It helps in attaining the major objective of the
organization that to get the best output from the existing resources. The
production is automatically increased if proper selection is made, the work
will be properly distributed, accident prevention and safety measures
suggested. This will improve and promote individual as well as industrial
relations. 19
Common Areas of Concentration for I-O
Psychologists
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Common Job Titles for I-O
Psychologists
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THANK YOU
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