What Is I-O Psychology?
Industrial-Organizational psychologists apply psychological principles to the workplace to improve productivity, performance, and employee well-being by conducting research, developing training programs, designing effective work systems, and assessing human behavior in organizations. They focus on optimizing the relationship between people and work by addressing issues such as employee selection and training, leadership effectiveness, organizational development, and workplace safety.
About I-O Psychology
The field of Industrial-Organizational psychology is defined by scientifically studying human well-being and performance in organizational and work settings.
Outcomes of studies are implemented to improve core workplace functions including performance measurement and coaching, talent selection and recruitment, remote working best practices, and employee leadership development. Research and guidance are valuable to workplaces across all industries, including teaching, technology, military, corporate, and government organizations.
According to the recently updated O*Net Online site, the key knowledge required to perform work within this field include a blend of personnel and human resources, psychology, education and training, administration and management, and mathematics knowledge. Main skills required include active listening, reading comprehension, writing, critical thinking, and judgement and decision making. For nearly all roles within the field, a Master’s degree is the minimum requirement, with a Doctoral degree begin preferred.
The field is further defined by its unique scientist-practitioner makeup, where the study of problems and the accompanying solutions are continually evolving due to the academic and scientific rigor underlying the inputs and outcomes. A cornerstone of the field is to share best practices and current research to move the field forward and make a positive impact on businesses, their employees, and their bottom lines.
Resources
- To learn more about the Industrial-Organizational psychology field, please watch the Science for A Smarter Workplace video.
- If you’re in need of information to share with an employer regarding the importance of the field, this information is available as a PDF.
- SIOP provides career path information and job titles on the Career Center pages.
- To learn more about careers within the field of I-O psychology, these companies have brief introductions to a variety of roles.
