Psychology 2061A-650 (Online)

Psychology at Work

If there is a discrepancy between the outline posted below and the outline posted on the OWL course website, the latter shall prevail.

1.0    CALENDAR DESCRIPTION

This course introduces students to the field of industrial and organizational (I/O) psychology and its contributions to enhanced organizational effectiveness and quality of work life. I/O psychology offers an evidence-based approach to hiring, training, performance management, and leadership, and provides insight into the motivation and behaviour of individuals and teams. 

ANTIREQUISITES: Psychology 2660A/B, Psychology 2060 

Antirequisites are courses that overlap sufficiently in content that only one can be taken for credit. So if you take a course that is an antirequisite to a course previously taken, you will lose credit for the earlier course, regardless of the grade achieved in the most recent course.

0.5 course 

2.0    COURSE INFORMATION

       Instructor:                                                               Dr. Alex Benson

       Virtual office hours:                                                Virtual office hours via Zoom will be held between 3:00pm and 4:00pm every Wednesday. In OWL, please use the “sign-up” function to schedule a time slot and then register for the meeting using the “Zoom” function.

       Email:                                                                    abenson3@uwo.ca

 

       Teaching Assistant:                                                Noelle Baird

       Email:                                                                    nbaird3@uwo.ca

       Virtual office hours:                                                Virtual office hours via Zoom will be held between 11:30am and 12:30pm every Tuesday. In OWL, please use the “sign-up” function to schedule a time slot and then register for the meeting using the “Zoom” function

 

       Time and Location of Classes:                                Lectures will be provided asynchronously via short videos and posted on a weekly basis the OWL course website.

 

 

This course is being offered online this year, with some required synchronous components, that will use Western’s learning platform, OWL (Sakai), and other educational resources based on the needs of the course. Weekly videos will be posted on OWL. The lecture videos will be offered with subtitles for those who require it.

 

The exams for this course have a synchronous component, meaning they must be completed at a specific date and time that you will be required to visually confirm your attendance. The majority of the course, however, involves asynchronous components, meaning the course will be done on your schedule at the time most convenient to you.

 

I’ll respond within 24-48 hours to e-mails received between Monday at 7:00am and Friday at 5:00pm. Please note that I do not adjust marks on the basis of need (e.g., because a certain mark is needed to get into a particular academic program) or round grades. If a detailed explanation of a concept/material is required, please schedule a virtual office appointment.

 

Technology Requirements

This course will require the following:

  • Desktop or laptop computer
  • Stable high-speed Internet connection

Webcam                                                                                   

Students who are in emotional/mental distress should refer to Mental Health@Western

http://www.uwo.ca/uwocom/mentalhealth/ 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. You may also wish to contact Student Accessibility Services (formerly known as Services for Students with Disabilities) at 519-661-2147.

3.0  TEXTBOOK

This class uses a select number of assigned readings instead of a textbook. Assigned readings will be posted to OWL. Please see the class schedule below for which weeks have assigned readings. The content of these readings is testable material. It is strongly encouraged that you read each assigned paper before coming to class each week 

4.0    COURSE OBJECTIVES

Industrial/organizational (I/O) psychology broadly refers to the application of psychology to the workplace, and the study of human behaviour in organizational settings. This course provides an introduction to the theories, methods, findings, and applications of I/O psychology. The goal of this course is to provide students with an overview of the main topics and issues relevant to the study of I/O psychology.

   4.1    STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES 

Outcome

Learning Activities

Assessment

Identify and describe major concepts, theories, and topics in I/O psychology

Weekly lectures and assigned readings

 

Multiple choice exams and bi-weekly quizzes

Recognize methodological and theoretical issues important to the study of I/O psychology.

Weekly lectures and assigned readings

Multiple choice exams and bi-weekly quizzes

Apply concepts and theories in I/O psychology to real workplace problems.

Weekly lectures, assigned readings, and writing critical appraisal paper

 

Multiple choice exams and bi-weekly quizzes; evaluation of critical appraisal paper

 

 

5.0     EVALUATION

Please note that department policy prohibits the practice of rounding “close” grades to the next number up. For example, if you receive 89.2%, your grade will register as 89%.

 

Multiple Choice Exams                                                              65%

Bi-Weekly Quizzes                                                                    10%

Critical Appraisal Paper                                                             25%

 

Although the Psychology Department does not require instructors to adjust their course grades to conform to specific targets, the expectation is that course marks will be distributed around the following averages:

70%     1000-level and 2000-level courses
72%     2190-2990 level courses
75%     3000-level courses
80%     4000-level courses
   
The Psychology Department follows Western's grading guidelines, which are as follows (see http://www.uwo.ca/univsec/pdf/academic_policies/general/grades_undergrad.pdf):

A+  90-100      One could scarcely expect better from a student at this level
A    80-89        Superior work that is clearly above average
B    70-79        Good work, meeting all requirements, and eminently satisfactory
C    60-69        Competent work, meeting requirements
D    50-59        Fair work, minimally acceptable
F    below 50    Fail


6.0  ASSESSMENT/EVALUATION SCHEDULE

            6.1        EXAM COMPONENT (65%)

 

Both the midterm and the final exam will be administered synchronously via OWL and will require you to attend a Zoom meeting for the duration of the exam. The exams are an open book format, meaning you are allowed to consult your notes throughout the exam. Nonetheless, you must work independently.

 

Examinations in this course will be conducted using Zoom. You will be required to keep your camera on for the entire session, hold up your student card for identification purposes, and share your screen with the invigilator if asked to do so at any time during the exam. The exam session will not be recorded. More information about the use of Zoom for exam invigilation is available in the Online Proctoring Guidelines at the following link:

https://www.uwo.ca/univsec/pdf/onlineproctorguidelines.pdf

 

Completion of this course will require you to have a reliable internet connection and a device that meets the system requirements for Zoom. Information about the system requirements are available at the following link:

https://support.zoom.us/hc/en-us

 

* Please note that Zoom servers are located outside Canada. If you would prefer to use only your first name or a nickname to login to Zoom, please provide this information to the instructor in advance of the test or examination.

 

If you have an excused absence and are unable to write the midterm exam, then you will write an alternative version of the exam (i.e., short answer format) on November 11th with the precise time to be determined. The exam schedule will be as follows:

 

Exam

Date

Time:

Location

Will Cover:

Midterm

Wed, October 21

9am-10:20am ET

OWL

Lectures and readings up to October 18. It will worth 30% of your final mark. Multiple choice format.

Make-up Midterm

Wed, November 11

TBD

OWL

Lectures and readings up to October 18. It will worth 30% of your final mark. Please note the make-up midterm will be entirely short-answer format.

Final Exam

TBA

Exam Period, 2 hours in length (Dec 11-22)

OWL

Testable content includes all material covered throughout the term (i.e., the final exam is cumulative). However, there will be an emphasis on the material covered after the midterm. It will be worth 35% of your final mark. Multiple choice format.

 

 

6.2        BI-WEEKLY QUIZZES (10%)

 

Five short quizzes will be administered asynchronously via OWL throughout the term. Each quiz is timed and you will have 10 minutes to complete the quiz once you begin. The quizzes employ the principles

of Universal Instructional Design, meaning the quizzes are expected to take no more than 4 minutes to complete. All students will be allotted 10 minutes. Consequently, most students who typically require extra time accommodation will not need any special arrangement for this assessment.

 

The quizzes are considered “open book” format, meaning that you may consult course material. However, you must complete the quizzes individually. In addition, please note that the quiz is delivered in a linear format with randomized questions (i.e., once an answer is submitted, you will not be able to go back to this question). Quiz grades will only be posted at the end of the week once everyone has completed the quiz.  

 

Your lowest mark will be dropped, which means the four quizzes with the highest marks will count toward your final grade (i.e., each quiz is worth 2.5% of your total mark).

 

 

Date Quiz Posted

Date Quiz Closes

Sep. 24 (Thur.), 9am

Sep. 25 (Fri), 11:59pm

Oct. 8 (Thur.), 9am

Oct. 9 (Fri), 11:59pm

Oct. 29 (Thur.), 9am

Oct. 30 (Fri), 6:00pm***

Please note this week’s quiz closes early

Nov. 19 (Thur.), 9am

Nov. 20 (Fri), 11:59pm

Dec. 3 (Thur.), 9am

Dec. 4 (Fri), 11:59pm

 

6.3        CRITICAL APPRAISAL (25%)

 

Students are required to submit a two-page critical appraisal of a written article from a media outlet that covers material relevant to the course. The article you choose must be freely accessible online and an active link to the article must be included as part of the submission. Example articles and outlets from which you may draw from will be discussed in an online video module several weeks before the submission is due. Each critical appraisal paper should begin by providing a brief summary of the main point(s) conveyed in your chosen article and describe how these points relate to material covered in the course. Next, the majority of the paper should be dedicated to address any of the following questions: Does the media article advance existing knowledge or offer a new perspective on the material covered in class? Which assumptions are made by the article, and to what extent are they valid assumptions? If your chosen article provides practical recommendations for organizations and/or employees, do you consider these to be grounded in evidence based on what we have covered in class? Why do you think the article is either valuable or harmful based on its message? When reflecting on the chosen article, please use specific examples from the course to support each of your points.

 

Each paper must be two pages (double-spaced; 12-point Times New Roman; 1 inch margins on all sides) and is to be submitted through OWL under “Assignments” by Nov. 25, 11:59pm. Any submissions that exceed the two-page limit or are incorrectly formatted will lose marks. Critical appraisal papers will be evaluated on the basis of insightfulness of the connections drawn between the chosen article and course material, prose quality, an accurate understanding of the material covered in the course, and the strength of the points made regarding the article. There will be a 10% per day penalty for late submission of the critical appraisal papers. 

7.0   CLASS SCHEDULE

Dates

Topics Covered

Readings

Assignment

Sep. 9 – 13

1. Course Orientation

---

 

Sep. 14 - 20

2: History of I/O and Research Methods

---

 

Sep 21 – 27

2: Job Analysis, Recruitment, and Selection

---

Quiz 1 (see 6.2 for more details)

Sep. 28 – Oct. 4

3: Performance Management

Article: “Why we hate performance management—And why we should love it”

 

Oct. 5 - 11

4: Onboarding, Mentoring, and Training

Article: “The Kirkpatrick model: Past, present, and future.”

Quiz 2 (see 6.2 for more details)

Oct. 13 - 18

5: Workplace Diversity and Artificial Intelligence in the Workplace

Article: “Developing & delivering effective anti-bias training: Challenges & recommendations”

 

MIDTERM (Oct. 21, 9am-10:30am ET, SYNCHRONOUS VIA OWL)

Oct. 26 – Nov. 1

6: Attitudes and Emotions

---

Quiz 3 (see 6.2 for more details)

READING WEEK (Nov. 2 - 8)

Nov. 9 - 15

7: Motivation and Stress

---

 

Nov. 16 - 22

8: Power and Status

Article: Status dynamics

Quiz 4 (see 6.2 for more details)

Nov. 23 – 29

9: Leadership and Followership

Article: “Followership theory: A review and research agenda”

Critical Appraisal (see 6.3 for more details)

Nov. 30 - Dec. 6

10: Group Dynamics

---

Quiz 5 (see 6.2 for more details

EXAM PERIOD (Dec. 11 - 22)

8.0     STATEMENT ON ACADEMIC OFFENCES

Students are responsible for understanding the nature and avoiding the occurrence of plagiarism and other scholastic offenses. Plagiarism and cheating are considered very serious offenses because they undermine the integrity of research and education. Actions constituting a scholastic offense are described at the following link:  http://www.uwo.ca/univsec/pdf/academic_policies/appeals/scholastic_discipline_undergrad.pdf

As of Sept. 1, 2009, the Department of Psychology will take the following steps to detect scholastic offenses. All multiple-choice tests and exams will be checked for similarities in the pattern of responses using reliable software, and records will be made of student seating locations in all tests and exams. All written assignments will be submitted to TurnItIn, a service designed to detect and deter plagiarism by comparing written material to over 5 billion pages of content located on the Internet or in TurnItIn’s databases. 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 http://www.turnitin.com

Computer-marked multiple-choice tests and/or exams may be subject to submission for similarity review by software that will check for unusual coincidences in answer patterns that may indicate cheating.

Possible penalties for a scholastic offense include failure of the assignment, failure of the course, suspension from the University, and expulsion from the University.



9.0    POLICY ON ACCOMMODATION FOR MEDICAL ILLNESS

Western’s policy on Accommodation for Medical Illness can be found at:
http://www.westerncalendar.uwo.ca/PolicyPages.cfm?PolicyCategoryID=1&Command=showCategory&SelectedCalendar=Live&ArchiveID=#Page_12

 

The full policy for consideration for absences can be accessed at: https://www.uwo.ca/univsec/pdf/academic_policies/appeals/Academic_Consideration_for_absences.pdf


Students must see the Academic Counsellor and submit all required documentation in order to be approved for certain accommodation:
http://counselling.ssc.uwo.ca/procedures/medical_accommodation.html

 

If you experience an extenuating circumstance (e.g., illness, injury) sufficiently significant to temporarily make you unable to meet academic requirements, you may request accommodation through the following routes:

  1. Submitting a Self-Reported Absence form (for circumstances that are expected to resolve within 48 hours);
  2. For medical absences, submitting a Student Medical Certificate (SMC) signed by a licensed medical or mental health practitioner in order to be eligible for Academic Consideration;

For non-medical absences, submitting appropriate documentation (e.g., obituary, police report, accident report, court order, etc.) to Academic Counselling in their Faculty of registration in order to be eligible for academic consideration. Students are encouraged to contact their Academic Counselling unit to clarify what documentation is appropriate.

Students must see the Academic Counsellor and submit all required documentation in order to be approved for certain accommodation. The self-reported absence form may NOT be used for absences longer than 48 hours; coursework/tests/exams/etc., worth more than 30% of the final grade; or exams scheduled in the December or April final-exam periods: http://counselling.ssc.uwo.ca/procedures/medical_accommodation.html

Students seeking academic consideration:

  • are advised to consider carefully the implications of postponing tests or midterm exams or delaying handing in work;  
  • are encouraged to make appropriate decisions based on their specific circumstances, recognizing that minor ailments (upset stomach) or upsets (argument with a friend) are not normally an appropriate basis for a self-reported absence;

must communicate with their instructors no later than 24 hours after the end of the period covered by either the self-reported absence or SMC, or immediately upon their return following a documented absence



10.0        OTHER INFORMATION

Office of the Registrar web site:  http://registrar.uwo.ca

Student Development Services web site: http://www.sdc.uwo.ca

Please see the Psychology Undergraduate web site for information on the following:

    http://psychology.uwo.ca/undergraduate/student_responsibilities/index.html

- Policy on Cheating and Academic Misconduct
- Procedures for Appealing Academic Evaluations
- Policy on Attendance
- Policy Regarding Makeup Exams and Extensions of Deadlines
- Policy for Assignments
- Short Absences
- Extended Absences
- Documentation
- Academic Concerns
- 2020-2021 Calendar References

No electronic devices, including cell phones and smart watches, will be allowed during exams.

Copyright Statement: Lectures and course materials, including power point presentations, outlines, 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 lecture notes, wiki material, and other course materials publicly and/or for commercial purposes without the instructor’s written consent.