Personality and Work is Newest I-O Psychology Module in Guide Series
Clif Boutelle
The role of personality in the workplace is the latest addition to the Instructor Guide Series that was initiated by the Education and Training Committee in 1998.
The series provides teachers of introductory psychology courses assistance in finding custom-made material that integrates industrial-organizational psychology into their curricula.
It was begun as an effort to expose more undergraduate psychology students to I-O psychology and is intended to complement many of the topics typically covered in introductory psychology courses. There was a general feeling that many of the instructors had no background in I-O and the series was designed to be of assistance to them, said
Todd Harris of PI Worldwide in Wellesley, MA, who is helping to coordinate production of the series.
The newest module, Personality and Work, was put on the SIOP Web site in late August. Written by
James Martin of the University of Missouri at Rolla, it covers such areas as how personality impacts job performance and other work-related outcomes and how managers use personality assessment as a hiring and developmental tool. It brings to 15 the number of learning modules that the Education and Training Committee has created.
Each module is a downloadable Powerpoint file that contains approximately 40 minutes of lecture material, along with 10-minute small-group classroom exercises. Also included are background information and key references for each topic, materials intended to make it easier for the instructor to prepare for the unit.
The instructors guide can be accessed on the Internet at www.siop.org
by clicking on Publications and then going to Instructors Guide for Introducing I-O Psychology in Introductory Psychology.
Other modules cover such areas as leadership and gender stereotypes, workplace diversity, evaluating work performance, sexual harassment, and work teams.
These are self-contained courses and easy to use, said Harris, adding that nearly every psychology department chair in the country, SIOP student affiliates, and professional publications such as APA Monitor have been informed about the Instructor Guide Series.
The Education and Training Committee, which is chaired by Dawn Riddle of the University of South Florida, has focused on three guiding themes in developing the instructors guide series. Those include I-O psychologists helping employers deal with employees fairly, making jobs more interesting and satisfying, and helping workers to be more productive.
The committee is currently considering a module on ethics and I-O and is seeking to identify SIOP members to write the model. Interested persons should contact Harris at 781-235-8872 ext. 113 or
toddh22@hotmail.com.
All of the modules have been written by SIOP members and we are grateful for their interest and willingness to work on this important project, which not only results in a quality educational tool for teachers and students but also expands awareness and the brand of I-O psychology, Harris said.
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