lOMoARcPSD|4339232
Study notes (whole book) IOP 1501
Psychological Processes in Work Context (University of South
Africa)
, lOMoARcPSD|4339232
PSYCHOLOGICAL PROCESSES IN THE WORK CONTEXT
IOP 1501
Figure 1: Systems Model for studying psychological processes in the work context
Historical Background
General psychology
• Wilhelm Wundt (“father of psychology”) – first psychological laboratory
founded in Leipzig, Germany in 1879.
th
• 19 Century - psychology viewed more as a natural science (observation and
experimentation)
1
, lOMoARcPSD|4339232
Industrial psychology
• Industrial psychology is the study of the behaviour of people in the workplace.
• Focus on individual differences in the work context and the measurement of such
differences.
Major contributions:
1. Frederick W Taylor (Taylorism)
• Man viewed as a rational-economic being
• Mechanistic approach
2. WWI (1914-1918) & WWII (1939-1945)
• Screening and selecting of Army recruits
3. Hawthorne studies (1924)
• Humanistic approach
SA Today:
Two bodies that regulate the field of psychology
• Psychological Society of South Africa (PsySSA)
• Professional Board for Psychology under the auspices of the HPCSA O
Sets requirements for professional training and conduct
Schools of thought:
Different theoretical and methodological propositions / assumptions for studying
human behaviour
Structuralism
Theorists
• Wilhelm Wundt
• Edward Bradford Titchener
Focus
• Consciousness
• Structural elements that underlie direct conscious experience
Methodology
• Introspection (self-observation)
Functionalism
Theorists & Focus
• Functioning of the psyche (mind)
• Charles Darwin
O Individual differences through natural selection
O Adaptation to environment
• Sir Francis Galton
O Role of genetics
2
, lOMoARcPSD|4339232
Methodology
• Animal experiments to understand human behaviour
• Used tests and questionnaires to ascertain the functioning of the mind
Behaviourism
Theorists and Focus
• John B Watson -
O Behaviour could be predetermined by controlling certain environmental
factors and measuring observable behaviour
O Stimulus-response relationship
• Neo-behaviourists (Tolman, Guthrie, Hull and Skinner)
O Stimulus –organism – response approach
Methodology
• Study of observable behaviour by influencing and controlling stimulus-
response relationships
Gestalt Psychology (“form / configuration”)
Theorists
• Max Wertheimer; Kurt Koffka; Wolfgang Köhler
Focus
• Wholeness of experience
• Re-organisation of stimulus field into a meaningful whole O
Phi phenomenon
O Chimpanzee problem solving study
Method
• Experimentation to interpret the whole of the individual’s experience
Psychoanalytical school
Theorist
• Sigmund Freud
Focus
• All behaviour has a psychic content of unconscious origin that motivates
behaviour
O Id, ego and superego
• Childhood experiences
Method:
• Clinical observation (“one-on-one”)
• One can gain access to the unconscious through analysis of
dreams, hypnosis and free association (“talking therapy”)
3
Study notes (whole book) IOP 1501
Psychological Processes in Work Context (University of South
Africa)
, lOMoARcPSD|4339232
PSYCHOLOGICAL PROCESSES IN THE WORK CONTEXT
IOP 1501
Figure 1: Systems Model for studying psychological processes in the work context
Historical Background
General psychology
• Wilhelm Wundt (“father of psychology”) – first psychological laboratory
founded in Leipzig, Germany in 1879.
th
• 19 Century - psychology viewed more as a natural science (observation and
experimentation)
1
, lOMoARcPSD|4339232
Industrial psychology
• Industrial psychology is the study of the behaviour of people in the workplace.
• Focus on individual differences in the work context and the measurement of such
differences.
Major contributions:
1. Frederick W Taylor (Taylorism)
• Man viewed as a rational-economic being
• Mechanistic approach
2. WWI (1914-1918) & WWII (1939-1945)
• Screening and selecting of Army recruits
3. Hawthorne studies (1924)
• Humanistic approach
SA Today:
Two bodies that regulate the field of psychology
• Psychological Society of South Africa (PsySSA)
• Professional Board for Psychology under the auspices of the HPCSA O
Sets requirements for professional training and conduct
Schools of thought:
Different theoretical and methodological propositions / assumptions for studying
human behaviour
Structuralism
Theorists
• Wilhelm Wundt
• Edward Bradford Titchener
Focus
• Consciousness
• Structural elements that underlie direct conscious experience
Methodology
• Introspection (self-observation)
Functionalism
Theorists & Focus
• Functioning of the psyche (mind)
• Charles Darwin
O Individual differences through natural selection
O Adaptation to environment
• Sir Francis Galton
O Role of genetics
2
, lOMoARcPSD|4339232
Methodology
• Animal experiments to understand human behaviour
• Used tests and questionnaires to ascertain the functioning of the mind
Behaviourism
Theorists and Focus
• John B Watson -
O Behaviour could be predetermined by controlling certain environmental
factors and measuring observable behaviour
O Stimulus-response relationship
• Neo-behaviourists (Tolman, Guthrie, Hull and Skinner)
O Stimulus –organism – response approach
Methodology
• Study of observable behaviour by influencing and controlling stimulus-
response relationships
Gestalt Psychology (“form / configuration”)
Theorists
• Max Wertheimer; Kurt Koffka; Wolfgang Köhler
Focus
• Wholeness of experience
• Re-organisation of stimulus field into a meaningful whole O
Phi phenomenon
O Chimpanzee problem solving study
Method
• Experimentation to interpret the whole of the individual’s experience
Psychoanalytical school
Theorist
• Sigmund Freud
Focus
• All behaviour has a psychic content of unconscious origin that motivates
behaviour
O Id, ego and superego
• Childhood experiences
Method:
• Clinical observation (“one-on-one”)
• One can gain access to the unconscious through analysis of
dreams, hypnosis and free association (“talking therapy”)
3
