What is I-O?

Industrial-organizational (I-O) psychology is the scientific study of the workplace. Rigor and methods of psychology are applied to issues of critical relevance to business, including talent management, coaching, assessment, selection, training, organizational development, performance, and work-life balance.

Facing the Obligation and Challenges of Professional Development

Mort McPhail
Jeanneret & Associates, Inc.

Deborah Ford
CPS Human Resource Services

Joan Glaman
The Boeing Company

Ted Hayes
Transportation Security Administration

Nancy Tippins
Personnel Research Associates, Inc.

For those of you who missed our exhilarating article in the last TIP, the Ad Hoc Committee on Professional Development (formerly the Ad Hoc Committee on Professional Development Workshops) has been working to offer SIOP members learning experiences to help them remain abreast of advances in the field. This objective usually translates into coordinating opportunities for earning continuing education (CE) credits, such as those offered through the Master Tutorials at the SIOP conference in April. 

Our Ethical Obligation to Develop Professionally

In our last article, we described the widespread need for many SIOP members to earn CE credits in order to maintain their license. The committee appreciates the practical importance of having enough appropriate opportunities to earn a sufficient number of CE units. However, the importance of professional development exceeds CE credits. APAs Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct (APA, 1992, 2002), to which SIOP members are committed, underscores this point. APAs Principles highlight the importance of professional development beyond the need to maintain licensure. The 1992 Code addresses professional development in two placesGeneral Principle A and General Standard 1.05. Both the principle and the standard reinforce the need for ongoing education and maintaining competence. The 2002 Ethics Code, slated to become effective on June 1, 2003, is less verbose on the subject of professional development, but Standard 2.03 clearly and simply states, Psychologists undertake ongoing efforts to develop [emphasis added] and maintain their competence. The Ethics Code calls us not to be content with our current knowledge and skills but to continue to grow professionally as part of our ethical obligation. 

The Growing Challenge

In the October 2002 issue of TIP, Thomas Becker from the University of Delaware submitted A Mostly Informal Analysis of Our Marketplace for Ideas. This article highlighted the constant progression and development within the field of I-O psychology, which necessitates a certain degree of dedication, diligence, and commitment to continuous learning. Taking a cue from Becker, we conducted our own informal review of the proliferation of I-O literature published over the years. 

Using PsycINFO, the APA electronic literature search engine, we found that between 1990 and 2001, over 200 articles were published in Leadership Quarterly, nearly 400 in Journal of Business and Psychology, and over 300 in Personnel Psychology. We also performed a simple search for general terms, to demonstrate the growth of our body of knowledge, the results of which are displayed in Table 1. The number of hits for key topics between 1990 and 2001 vastly exceeds those for the years 1978 to 1989. Researchers are refining techniques, developing new solutions, publishing more than ever, and enhancing the overall profession. It is our challenge and obligation to keep abreast of these developments.

Table 1

Keyword Search in PsycINFO

  
One Possible Avenue of Development & CE Units: 
Local Organizations

Considering the growth in our profession, a considerable challenge exists to meet this responsibility. One avenue for professional development opportunitiesand CE unitsthat many of you may be able to pursue is participation in local and regional applied psychology organizations. These organizations serve a vital role for I-O psychologists. These local organizationsincluding city or regionally based I-O groups and the regional Personnel Testing Councils (PTC)provide both professional development and social networking opportunities for their memberships. Like the larger professional societies (APA, SIOP, IPMAAC, etc.), local organizations are nonprofit and rely on volunteers to provide and maintain the professional activities for their memberships. However, because these organizations are smaller, they often lack both staff and budgetary resources. Coupled with their independence from APA, this lack of resources may afford little opportunity for local groups to start or maintain the level of certification necessary to offer continuing education credits through APA. In a 2002 survey of regional PTCs, it was found that some (e.g., Atlantas) offer state-accepted continuing education credits. However, most do not. 

A potential solution is for SIOP to join with these organizations to co-sponsor workshops outside of SIOPs annual conference. By carefully following the requirements imposed by APA, such cosponsored workshops would be CE eligible and carry APAs certification. Such cosponsored programs might include one that has already been presented as a SIOP tutorial or workshop. In order to avoid possible conflicts with our annual conference, the cosponsored events would occur by agreement at times other than April. We recommend that those of you who are involved in such local or regional groups to contact SIOP about arranging such events.

In keeping with SIOPs commitment to lean and efficient administration, the Ad Hoc Committee was reviewed for sunset this year. Because the original purpose of this committee has been fulfilled, it was our recommendation that the ongoing responsibilities of the committee be assigned to the existing standing committees for Program and Continuing Education. The Executive Committee agreed, and as of this April, the Ad Hoc Committee on Professional Development has been dissolved. SIOP continues to be committed to providing and enhancing professional development opportunities to its members. Please continue to share your ideas with any member of SIOPs Executive Committee and the chairs of the Program and Continuing Education and Workshops Committees to ensure SIOPs members have access to meaningful developmental opportunities.

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