Industrial-Organizational Psychology Careers
Industrial-organizational (I/O) psychologists study behavior in the workplace. It is increasingly clear that businesses can benefit greatly from the evaluations and assistance of psychologists who specialize in this field. With the help of an I/O psychologist, organizations can ensure that their employees are productive and effective, thereby ensuring the highest financial success. These specialists examine issues like what makes workers happy, how they are most productive, ways to reduce stress, which employees are worthy of promotions, and which aspects of the company need revising.
Topics that interest an industrial-organizational psychologist include motivation, productivity, stress, harassment, intelligence testing, personality, leadership, fit, socialization, and performance. Through research, they gain expertise about marketing, management, and training.
I/O psychologists who work as consultants are called in to a company on a short-term contract basis to conduct a comprehensive evaluation and suggest changes that could be made to improve the quality of work life for the employees.
Skills: People who are successful in the field of I/O psychology are leaders – they work well with other people and are good at delegating tasks and implementing changes. They can pay attention to details while at the same time being able to see the larger picture, and know how to apply their knowledge of psychology to the business environment. They must also be capable of working in high-stress environments, and be both adaptable and innovative.
I/O psychologists usually work as consultants to a number of companies, although they sometimes work for just one. They work as part of human resources departments or directly with management. In order to work as a consultant, most companies require you to have a master's or doctoral degree. With a bachelor's degree, you can work in lower-level human resources but generally cannot consult.
Salary and Job Outlook: Human resources assistants earned $36,810 in 2008, while human resources specialists earned $58,230 and management analysts made $73,760. They face the least competition out of all psychologists and according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics:
“Industrial-organizational psychologists also will be in demand to help to boost worker productivity and retention rates in a wide range of businesses. Industrial-organizational psychologists will help companies deal with issues such as workplace diversity and antidiscrimination policies. Companies also will use psychologists' expertise in survey design, analysis, and research to develop tools for marketing evaluation and statistical analysis.”
This field is experiencing tremendous growth as companies learn about the advantages to be gained from the expertise of an I/O psychologist. In the next decade, the field is expected to grow by 26 percent.
Article Resources:
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: "Human Resources Assistant"
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: "Management Analysts"
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: "Psychologists"
West Chester University of Pennsylvania