Psychology 2660A 001 FW25
Introduction to Industrial and Organizational Psychology
WESTERN UNIVERSITY
LONDON CANADA
Department of Psychology
Fall/Winter 2025
Psychology 2660A Section 001
INTRODUCTION TO INDUSTRIAL AND ORGANIZATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY
Welcome to our course, which introduces how psychology is applied to understand and improve workplaces. For some students this course can be a foundation for a career in industrial and organizational psychology. But for the many for whom that is not the case, this course will help you leverage an understanding of psychology to improve your workplaces now (or in the future).
- CALENDAR DESCRIPTION
An introduction to the theories, methods, findings and applications of industrial and organizational psychology. Topics to be covered include: employee recruitment and selection, employee training and development, performance appraisal, work attitudes and motivation, leadership and group processes, and organizational design.
See course in the institutional calendar at:
https://www.registrar.uwo.ca/academics/timetables.html
Antirequisite: Psychology 2060, Psychology 2061A/B.
Prerequisite(s): A mark of at least 60% in 1.0 credits of Psychology at the 1000 level.
2 lecture hours and 1 tutorial hour; Course Weight: 0.5
Unless you have either the prerequisites for this course or written special permission from your Dean to enrol in it, you may be removed from this course and it will be deleted from your record. This decision may not be appealed. You will receive no adjustment to your fees in the event that you are dropped from a course for failing to have the necessary prerequisites.
2 COURSE INFORMATION
Instructor: Dr. M. Blair Evans, Assistant Professor, Industrial/Organizational Unit
Office & Phone: see Brightspace for location, 519-661-2111 x84663
Office Hours: see Brightspace for instructions to book an appointment
Email: mevan3@uwo.ca
Teaching assistants:
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Teaching assistant |
TBD |
TBD |
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Office |
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Office Hours |
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Time and Location of Classes: The course and tutorial sessions will take place in person including two instructional settings
Lecture: see Student Centre for Timetable (Class # 5067)
Tutorial session: see Student Centre for Timetable (Class # 5068)
We will also use the OWL brightspace system (https://westernu.brightspace.com/d2l/login) to coordinate all aspects of this course, and deliver in-course activities like quizzes.
For courses that include an online component, students must have a reliable internet connection and computer that are compatible with online learning system requirements.
3 COURSE MATERIALS
Our readings will involve a combination of chapters, academic articles, and online content that will be available on the OWL brightspace site and through a formal course readings page supported by Western Libraries. The class schedule below identifies weeks with assigned readings, and these readings are provided along with a guide that identifies key messages to derive from each reading. Make sure to regularly access the course readings guide! Our OWL brightspace reading guide and podcasts from Dr. Evans will help you navigate the readings.
ONLINE BOOKS, AVAILABLE THROUGH UWO LIBRARY
Readings will be posted from textbooks and academic articles that are available through our Library. All readings will be made freely available by Library staff. Many of the readings will be online chapters available through:
Dipboye, R. L. (2018). The emerald review of industrial and organizational psychology. Emerald Group Publishing. Doi: 10.1108/9781787437852
Rothmann, S., & Cooper, C. L. (2022) Work and organizational psychology (3rd Edition). Routledge publishing. Doi: 10.4324/b22796
4 COURSE OBJECTIVES & LEARNING OUTCOMES
This course introduces the field of industrial and organizational (I/O) psychology. This course will introduce a spectrum of psychological constructs and theories that help understand people at work. The course also introduces the range of ways that that psychology is used to produce evidence-based tactics to improve the workplace. A focus of this course is also the profession of organizational psychology. People who work within Industrial and Organizational Psychology often make it out of ‘academia’ and into roles with large-scale multinational organizations (e.g., Google), smaller-scale companies, the military, consulting groups (e.g., McKinsey), and hospital systems. The types of tasks that these professionals engage-with include those such as training employees, selecting employees, marketing, team building, and promoting well-being.
Following this course, successful students will have the capacity to:
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Learning Outcome |
Learning Activity |
Assessment |
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Depth and Breadth of Knowledge. |
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-Recognize the traditions and theories that dominate Industrial/Organizational Psychology. -Identify key research findings in Industrial/Organizational psychology - Identify common workplace practices that relate to psychological research (e.g., interviews; job analysis) |
· Online modules · Lectures · Readings |
Exams Graded quizzes |
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Knowledge of Methodologies. |
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-Recognize the key research methods used by researchers in Industrial/Organizational Psychology -Recall effective strategies to select, train, and evaluate employees. |
· Online modules · Lectures · Readings |
Exams Graded quizzes |
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Application of Knowledge. |
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-Reflect on how they can improve their workplaces as employees and/or leaders. |
· Tutorial discussions
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Tutorial activities |
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Communication Skills Critically discuss and write-about contemporary issues within industrial/organizational psychology. |
· Tutorial discussions |
Tutorial activities |
5 EVALUATION
The evaluation and testing formats for this course were created to assess the learning objectives as listed in section 4 and are necessary for meeting these learning objectives.
Mid-term Exam (30%) and Final Exam (45%)
Mid-term and final examinations will comprise most of the course evaluation activities, worth a total of 75% of the final grade. Items will consist of primarily multiple-choice and matching questions based on material from the preceding lectures and readings, while also including some short-answer style items. The final exam will be cumulative, although lectures will have ‘Questions of the day’ (QODs) that will help students recognize key content. Further information about exam content will be provided in class throughout the term, along with exam reviews.
The Mid-term exam will be scheduled during class time (Oct 24th). The final exam will be scheduled with the registrar.
Exam conflicts. Make-up exams will not be offered for mid-terms. Students with an adequate excuse for missing a mid-term, arranged through academic counselling, will be assigned a score based on your grade on the final exam. Students who do not have a documented and excused absence for a missing midterm will receive a grade of 0.
To excuse yourself from the registrar-scheduled final exam, contact academic counselling with our course’s information, the final exam date, and any documentation to validate your excuse. If your accommodation is approved, you and the academic counsellor should contact me via email to schedule you for a make-up exam.
Reviewing exam results. Exam grades will be posted within OWL brightspace. An online video reviewing exam items and response options will be posted within two weeks after the exam is completed. Each student is also permitted to view their midterm responses by scheduling a meeting with a teaching assistant at any point in time during the term.
Quizzes (18%; 6 quizzes, grades derived from top 5 attempts, so each is worth close to 3% of the course grade)
Throughout this semester, students will complete brief quizzes on assigned reading material using OWL brightspace. The purpose of these quizzes is to assess understanding of the reading material and to provide practice at retrieving information. Each quiz will cover the content of the reading or listening assigned for that day only.
Quizzes will take place in person but will be completed using your personal device (i.e., computers) in OWL brightspace. Most quizzes will take place within the tutorial session. At times, quizzes will instead be asynchronous, completed during a one-day window (i.e., 9am EST to 11:59pm EST) as communicated in class. In other words, students will complete their quiz during tutorials, unless they are informed to complete it on their own time during a selected tutorial day. There will be six quizzes ranging from 8-10 items in length in matching, multiple choice, and short-answer format. In any case, we will communicate how and where quizzes will take place on a weekly basis during class.
Quiz grades will be based upon students’ top five (5) quiz grades. This means that students may complete all six quizzes and simply will be graded based on their top 5 quizzes. This also means that students may miss one (1) quiz without accommodations or documentation. All students may miss up to one quiz without any formal accommodation or documentation. In this case, quizzes will be weighted accordingly. If you have formal accommodations to justify missing one or more quizzes, please contact the professor as soon as possible. Quizzes that are missed with appropriate approval will result in: (a) an extension to submit the quiz within the 2 days following the initial due date, or (b) a dropped quiz if you are unable to complete the quiz within 2 days, whereby the quiz grade will be based on the remaining quizzes (i.e., if the student receives one approved quiz absence, that would mean all other quizzes are worth more of the course grade).
Tutorial activities (total of 7%).
During our tutorials, students engage in discussions, written activities, and assessments that will prompt you to reflect more deeply on yourself or how psychology applies to the workplace. Details will be provided in the tutorial session rubric, handed to students on the first tutorial session. The majority of work for these activities will be completed either during the tutorial sessions, or via Brightspace during the week preceding tutorials.
- Your passions? – Reflection (2%). This will be an individual written assignment, as well as an assignment including checkpoints and items within the related OWL Brightspace module. Students will complete these activities relating to their sources of passion relating to work.
- Your strengths? - Reflection (2%). This will be an individual written assignment based on a completed assessment, as well as a paired discussion/reflection. Students will complete a written reflection on experiences with completing a vocational assessment involving one’s personal values and traits, and sharing insights relating to evidence for the effectiveness of such assessments. They will also discuss and provide feedback to a peer.
- Tutorial participation/attendance and discussion completion (3%). Each student will receive a grade derived from tutorial attendance and satisfactory completion of brightspace discussion replies during tutorial sessions.
POLICY ON MISSING COURSEWORK
As a summary of the policies about assignment submission:
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Activity |
Without approved absence |
With approved absence |
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Graded quizzes |
Up to 48hrs late, 20% off grade when completed online within brightspace. After 48hrs, no grade. Every student can miss up to one (1) quiz without any accommodation or documentation required. |
Extension to complete quiz via Brightspace or reweighted quiz grade (onto other quizzes). |
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Tutorial activities and participation/engagement |
Students may miss up to two tutorials without any accommodation or documentation. No grade for additional missed sessions. |
Missed participation or activity grades will be reweighted onto other sessions. |
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Mid-term exam **This mid-term exam requires formal supporting documentation. |
No exam make-up, and grade of zero. |
Exam weight reweighted onto final exam. |
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Final exam |
No exam make-up, and grade of zero. |
Rescheduled final exam. |
Keep in mind that instructors are not permitted to receive documentation directly from the student in relation to accommodation requests. All documentation required for approved absences must be submitted to your Academic Counselling Office
The Psychology Department follows Western’s grading guidelines: https://www.uwo.ca/univsec/pdf/academic_policies/general/grades_undergrad.pdf
The expectation for course grades within the Psychology Department is that they will be distributed around the following averages:
70% 1000-level to 2099-level courses
72% 2100-2999-level courses
75% 3000-level courses
80% 4000-level courses
In the event that course grades are significantly higher or lower than these averages, instructors may be required to make adjustments to course grades. Such adjustment might include the normalization of one or more course components and/or the re-weighting of various course components.
Policy on Grade Rounding
Please note that although course grades within the Psychology Department are rounded to the nearest whole number, no further grade rounding will be done. No additional assignments will be offered to enhance a final grade; nor will requests to change a grade because it is needed for a future program be considered.
6 ASSESSMENT/EVAUATION SCHEDULE
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COURSE COMPONENT (DATE) |
GRADE % |
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1. Quizzes (Sep 26, Oct 17, Oct 24, Nov 14, Nov 28, Dec 5) |
18% |
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2. Mid-term Exam (Oct 28) |
30% |
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3. Final Exam (Final Exam Period) |
45% |
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4. Tutorial assignments, attendance, discussion engagement |
7% |
7 CLASS SCHEDULE
The complete course schedule is provided on the next page. All students will be required to access brightspace for class information and materials and any updates to the course schedule. Slides and supplemental required readings will be posted under the appropriate modules. A more detailed editable course schedule and a reading guide will also be available within OWL brightspace.
Keep in mind that attendance in course and tutorials are both critical to performing well in class. Particularly for tutorials we will keep track of attendance and will integrate that component into grading for the second tutorial assignment. As such, if you need to miss a tutorial you are asked to please contact your TA.
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Lec. Date |
LECTURE TOPIC |
Preparation |
Tutorial activities |
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Sep 9 |
1. Introduction to I/O psychology |
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Sept 5/12 No tutorial |
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Sep 16 |
2. Work Motivation |
Motivation Podcast and module completion pre-class |
Mini-assignment 1 |
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Sep 23 |
3. Work and wellbeing |
Rothmann Ch. 13 |
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Sep 30 |
Sep 30 – Truth and Reconciliation Day – no lecture |
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Discussion |
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Oct 7 |
4. Attitudes and behaviour |
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Discussion |
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Oct 14 |
5. Leadership and teams |
Dipb Ch. 9 |
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Oct 21 |
6. Enhancing teams |
Group dynamics (Evans reading) |
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Oct 28 |
Midterm exam (during class period) |
No tutorial |
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Nov 4 |
Fall reading week |
No tutorial |
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Nov 11 |
8. Job analysis, recruitment, and individual differences |
Rothmann Chs 2 & 7 |
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Nov 18 |
9. Individual assessments in the workplace / Work design |
Module completion pre-class |
Mini-assignment 2 |
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Nov 25 |
10. Personnel, performance, and training |
Dipb. Ch. 11 & 12 |
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Dec 2 |
11. Diversity and Inclusion |
Galinsky et al. 2015. Maximizing the gains |
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Dec 9 |
12. Occupational health / Sustainability and the workplace |
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No tutorial |
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FINAL EXAM PERIOD Dec 11-22 |
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8 ACADEMIC INTEGRITY
Scholastic offences are taken seriously, and students are directed to read the appropriate policy, specifically, the definition of what constitutes a Scholastic Offence, at the following Web site: https://www.uwo.ca/univsec/pdf/academic_policies/appeals/scholastic_discipline_undergrad.pdf
Possible penalties for a scholastic offence include failure of the assignment/exam, failure of the course, suspension from the University, and expulsion from the University.
Statement on Use of Electronic Devices
In-Class Electronics: Electronics are invited into the classroom, both for note-taking and for participating in activities. During class, students may be invited to use their devices to participate in discussion, or to participate in just-in-time readings. Electronic devices are also critical for tutorial sessions, as students in working groups may be invited to use computers, tablets, or phones to search the internet, complete assessments, or participate in writing tasks. It is up to all class members to work and ensure that these devices are used to further your own learning and development – and to prevent distraction of yourself or others. If students have concerns about other’s use of in-class electronics (e.g., distracting peer), then please share any concerns with the instructor.
Out-of-class electronics: Quizzes are conducted online using Brightspace during class, as well as on your own time. These activities are commonly open-book. Considering that a portion of the grade in this class is designated for this activity, all academic integrity principles especially apply to the use of Brightspace quizzes – including the necessity for completing quizzes independently.
Plagiarism Detection Software
All required papers may be subject to submission for textual similarity review to the commercial plagiarism detection software under license to the University for the detection of plagiarism. All papers submitted for such checking will be included as source documents in the reference database for the purpose of detecting plagiarism of papers subsequently submitted to the system. Use of the service is subject to the licensing agreement, currently between Western and Turnitin.com.
Use of AI
The use of generative AI tools such as ChatGPT to produce written work is not permitted unless permission is granted by the instructor for specific circumstances. Any work submitted must be the work of the student in its entirety unless otherwise disclosed. When used, AI tools should be used ethically and responsibly, and students must cite or credit the tools used in line with the expectation to use AI as a tool to learn, not to produce content.
AI Policy for Psychology:
Responsible use of AI is allowed in Psychology. This includes using AI for brainstorming, improving grammar, or doing preliminary/background research on a topic.
AI is not to be used in place of critical thinking.
The misuse of AI undermines the academic values of this course. Relying on AI to create full drafts or fabricate sources is prohibited. You are ultimately responsible for any work submitted, so it is highly advised that you critically review your Generative AI output before incorporating this information into your assignments.
If you use AI, you must clearly explain its role in your work. All written assignments will require an AI Usage Statement, in which you will indicate what tools you have used, what you have used them for, and (broadly) how you have modified this information. Assignments without an AI Usage Statement will not be accepted.
Violations of this policy will be handled according to Western’s scholastic offense policies.
Multiple Choice Exams
Computer-marked multiple-choice tests and/or exams will be subject to submission for similarity review by software that will check for unusual coincidences in answer patterns that may indicate cheating.
Exam Proctoring Software
Tests and examinations for online courses may be conducted using a remote proctoring service. More information about this remote proctoring service, including technical requirements, is available on Western’s Remote
Proctoring website at: https://remoteproctoring.uwo.ca.
Personal Response Systems (“Clickers”)
In classes that involve the use of a personal response system, data collected will only be used in a manner consistent to that described in this outline. It is the instructor’s responsibility to make every effort to ensure that data remain confidential. However, students should be aware that as with all forms of electronic communication, privacy is not guaranteed.
9 Academic Accommodations and Accessible Education
View Western’s policy on academic accommodations for student with disabilities at this link.
Accessible Education provides supports and services to students with disabilities at Western.
If you think you may qualify for ongoing accommodation that will be recognized in all your courses, visit Accessible Education for more information. Email: aew@uwo.ca Phone: 519 661-2147
10 Absence & Academic Consideration
Academic Considerations: https://registrar.uwo.ca/academics/academic_considerations/index.html
11 OTHER INFORMATION
- Office of the Registrar: https://registrar.uwo.ca
- Student Development Services: sdc.uwo.ca
- Psychology Undergraduate Program: https://www.psychology.uwo.ca/undergraduate/index.html
Students who are in emotional/mental distress should refer to Health and Wellness@Western https://www.uwo.ca/health/ for a complete list of options about how to obtain help.
Please contact the course instructor if you require material in an alternate format or if you require any other arrangements to make this course more accessible to you.
If you wish to appeal a grade, please read the policy documentation at: https://www.uwo.ca/univsec/pdf/academic_policies/appeals/appealsundergrad.pdf. Please first contact the course instructor. If your issue is not resolved, you may make your appeal in writing to the Undergraduate Chair in Psychology (psyugrd@uwo.ca).
Copyright Statement
Lectures and course materials, including power point presentations, outlines, videos and similar materials, are protected by copyright. You may take notes and make copies of course materials for your own educational use. You may not record lectures, reproduce (or allow others to reproduce), post or distribute any course materials publicly and/or for commercial purposes without the instructor’s written consent.
