Mental Health
120 Industrial-Organizational Psychology and STS
Julia Van Vlake
Introduction
One third of your life is spent at work: this equates to roughly 90,000 hours! How can we make work as rewarding, enjoyable, and seamless as possible? This is the motivation behind I-O psychologist Andrew Naber’s work. In “One Third of Your Life is Spent at Work,” Naber explained to the writers at Gettysburg College that his research in I-O psychology focuses on discovering what impacts life at work and how to improve it (One Third of Your Life is Spent at Work). Ranging from applying scientific methods to improve efficiency and productivity in the workplace to applying psychological research methods to improve employee well-being and job satisfaction, I-O psychologists broadly work to improve the interaction of society with science and technology.
Connection to STS
Industrial-Organizational psychology is a wonderful example of STS. Pitzer College defines STS as “an interdisciplinary field that studies the conditions under which the production, distribution and utilization of scientific knowledge and technological systems occur; the consequences of these activities upon different groups of people” (Science, Technology and Society 2023). The Industrial side of I-O psychology aims to improve the interaction between people and the tools or technology they use at work. For example, Frank and Lillian Gilbreth’s time-motion studies analyzed time spent in completing a work task in order to improve efficiency. The Organizational side of I-O psychology aims to improve the interaction between people in the workplace. For example, many I-O psychologists are called into businesses to give employees personality tests so that they can understand themselves better and understand how to work with people who are different from them. I-O psychology looks directly at the relationship between science, technology, and society.
History of I-O Psychology
Industrial-Organizational (I-O) psychology has a rich historical background that has shaped its development into a distinct field of study today. The Principles of Scientific Management, proposed by Frederick Winslow Taylor in the early 20th century, laid the foundation for the application of scientific principles to improve efficiency and productivity in the workplace (Taylor 1919). Another influential work in the history of I-O psychology is the Hawthorne studies, which highlighted the significance of human factors and social dynamics in the workplace, leading to the emergence of the human relations movement in management (Olson et al. 2004). Throughout the mid-20th century, I-O psychology continued to evolve and expand its focus. The field began to incorporate concepts from other disciplines such as sociology, economics, and organizational behavior. The emergence of World War II also played a significant role in the development of I-O psychology, as psychologists were called upon to assist with personnel selection, training,