I/O Psychology: Functionalism, Technology, Training, and Cognitive Psychology
Industrial Organizational (I/O) psychology is a product of its time. The emergence and continuation of I/O psychology is a reflection of society, trends, and culture. There are several factors accredited to the emergence of I/O psychology: "scientific study of mind and behavior,
Darwinism and its psychological reflection in functionalism, the spirit of capitalism and growing industrialization—combined to create the scientific and practical field of industrial psychology, a child of its time" (Katzell & Austin, 1992, p. 805) because "industrial and organizational psychology was peculiarly American at its inception" (Landy, 1997). However, without capitalism and functionalism the field of I/O psychology would cease to exist.
The appearance of functionalism allowed for additional means of empirical research on mental process and behavior grew as functionalists departed from the current schools of thought such as structuralism through the exploration of why of humanity adaptive ability to its environment and sought to understand the role individual differences play in how organisms successfully adapted to the environments (Hergenhanh & Henley, 2014; Katzell & Austin, 1992, Koppes & Pickren, 2007). As result, functionalism looked at external factors, such as societal trends and technology and their relationship to the individual's adaptive ability. Functionalists unlike structuralists believed that "the solution to the riddle of behavior by understanding the function of behavior and articulated the precepts of functionalism with a greater interest in individual differences and teleology by studying variations in "subjects" as a way of mapping the mind"...
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Behaviorist identify mental states with dispositions. A mental state is identical when, given the same inputs the disposition toward a particular output in the same. Unlike functionalism, behaviorism recognizes dispositions according to merely outward behavior. Alternatively, a functional system includes a typical behavioral outputs given a range of inputs, as well as a tendency to experience a property of a mental state. Functionalists want to individuate mental states causally, but since mental states have mental effects, functionalist advance on behaviorism by acknowledging some similar input and output systems have similar descriptions without entailing similar mental effects. Functionalism, as an advancement of behaviorism, also describes the function of the mental state.
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...nated in order to have production, psychologists needed to find ways to identify human qualities; this was done through Methodological Individualism. Psychologists have formed tests, and the education system, as well as employment assessments; this has been used in society to identify specific traits which can then be used by the capitalist society to identify the people that will fit in to their system. Furthermore, psychology deducts individuals with mental illnesses to allow pharmaceutical companies to market “cures”. In essence, Methodological Individualism was created by psychologists in an alienated society run by capitalism, in order to enhance capitalism as it was the only way that a new discipline of study could have grown in that society. The capitalist economy supports the field of psychology if the research from psychologists supports the market economy.
Shaughnessy, M. F., & Wakefield, J. F. (2003). Creativity: Assessment. In N. Piotrowski & T. Irons-Georges (Eds.), Magill's encyclopedia of social science:Psychology (pp. 459-463). Pasadena, CA: Salem Press.
Wiley Backe, A. (2001). John Dewey and early Chicago functionalism. History of Psychology. 4(4), 323-340. Retrieved from PsycARTICLES 3, February 2010.
Although Piaget and his famed clinical method started within the realm of cognitive psychology, in the 1920’s, Piaget became a prime influence toward the beginning of organizational psychology. In the United States during the industrial revolution, there was a series of experiments with about 20,000 workers at Western Electric Company in Hawthorne, Illinois. A company who was already known for caring about the welfare of their employees wanted to run a trial of two sets of offices: one room as the control group, and the other to run experiments. The goal of the experiments was to see how the illumination of the light fixtures would increase or reduce work productivity. What made the research so interesting was that no matter how the lights
...were not accepted by modern Psychology, modern psychology will not be known as it is today if structuralism and functionalism were not founded as schools of thought.
Effective communication in an organization is one of the components of its success. Managers are charged with navigating communication obstacles while making every effort to harness its benefits. This onus placed on managers is compounded by organizational advancements and the application of new technologies. One relatively new organizational technology being applied is the use of social media. Social media creates communication issues yet conversely alleviates specific communication barriers by playing several roles within organizations today.
Social media is pertinent in use of communication throughout today’s organizations. There are many social media platforms that allow organizations to convey communication to potential consumers, stakeholders and the public. “It is essential for leaders to integrate these technologies and seek the best way to use social media and networks to the advantage of the business” (Billington, 2012, p.1). Business owners find that keeping up with current technology trends is essential in having a competitive advantage in the market place and having a strict set of standards and strategy is important in quickly adapting to social media trends.
Functionalism, an early school of psychology, focuses on the acts and functions of the mind rather than its internal contents. Its most prominent American advocate is William James. William James is the author of ?The Principles of Psychology? a book that is considered to be one of the most important texts in modern psychology.
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Before discussing the American functionalist school of psychology it is important to analyse the early roots of psychology . From approximately 600 to 300 BC in the ancient civilizations of Egypt and Greece there has been philosophical interest in the mind and behaviour. The Egyptians, despite their experience believed that the heart was the seat of consciousness however Greek philosophers such as Aristotle believed that the heart was the seat of the mind and that the brain did not have a role in sensation and movement, he argued that “the brain is not responsible for any of the sensations at all. The correct view is that the seat and sources of sensation is the region of the heart” (Gross, C. G., 1995). Greek philosophers such as Socrates and Plato speculated on issues seen in modern psychology such as pleasure, pain, knowledge and mental illness.
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Hendersern and Stern 2000, ‘Untangling the origins of competitive advantage’,Strategic Management Journal, Vol. 21, pp. 1123-1145.