Psychology 310:
Industrial/Organizational Psychology
Exam 1 Questions and Answers
Industrial/Organizational psychology - ANS-A branch of psychology that applies the
principles of psychology to the workplace
First goal I/O psychologists strive to accomplish? - ANS-To apply psychological theories
to explain/enhance the effectiveness of human behavior in the workplace
Experimental group - ANS-In an experiment, the group that is subject to the change in
the independent variable
Control group - ANS-In an experiment, the group that receives no treatment or the
standard treatment and is not exposed to the experimental manipulation of the
independent variable, the group that serves as a baseline
Random sample - ANS-A sample in which every member of the relevant population had
an equal chance of being chosen to participate in the study
Representative sample - ANS-Small quantity of a targeted group whose characteristics
represent as accurately as possible the entire population
Random selection - ANS-Participants are selected on the basis of chance alone from a
larger population of subjects
Convenience selection - ANS-A nonrandom research sample that is used because it is
easily available
Random assignment - ANS-The random, unbiased assignment of subjects in a research
sample to the various experimental and control conditions
Steps to running a study - ANS-Informed consent, instructions, task completion, and
debriefing
P value - ANS-The probability of obtaining significant results when the null hypothesis is
true and no significant differences exist
P value < 0.5 - ANS-Results are statistically significant
, Practical significance - ANS-The extent to which the results of a study have actual
impact on human behavior
Types of statistics - ANS-Descriptive and inferential
Descriptive statistics - ANS-Summarizing data; mean, median, mode, frequencies, and
standard deviation
Inferential statistics - ANS-T-tests, analysis of variance, and chi-square
Correlation coefficient - ANS-Numerical indication of magnitude and direction of the
relationship between two variables; represents how closely and in what way two
variables correlate
Job analysis - ANS-Gathering, analyzing, and structuring information about a job's
components, characteristics, and requirements
Writing job descriptions - ANS-Allows for the writing of a brief summary of the tasks and
job requirements
Employee selections - ANS-Allows for the selection or development of selection tests or
interview questions that will permit the identification of qualified applicants
Training - ANS-Allows for the creation of systematic training programs
Personpower planning - ANS-Allows for the determination of an employee's mobility
within the company
Performance appraisal - ANS-Allows for the construction of a performance appraisal
instrument
Job classification - ANS-Allows for the grouping of jobs according to similarities in
requirements and duties
Job classification uses - ANS-Determining pay levels, transfers and promotions
Job evaluation - ANS-Allows for the determination of a job's worth
Job worth - ANS-Based on level of responsibility, physical demands, mental demands,
education requirements, training and experience requirements, and work conditions
Job design - ANS-Allows for the determination of the optimal way to do a job
Compliance with legal guidelines - ANS-Allows for the determination of the job
relatedness of a job's requirements
Industrial/Organizational Psychology
Exam 1 Questions and Answers
Industrial/Organizational psychology - ANS-A branch of psychology that applies the
principles of psychology to the workplace
First goal I/O psychologists strive to accomplish? - ANS-To apply psychological theories
to explain/enhance the effectiveness of human behavior in the workplace
Experimental group - ANS-In an experiment, the group that is subject to the change in
the independent variable
Control group - ANS-In an experiment, the group that receives no treatment or the
standard treatment and is not exposed to the experimental manipulation of the
independent variable, the group that serves as a baseline
Random sample - ANS-A sample in which every member of the relevant population had
an equal chance of being chosen to participate in the study
Representative sample - ANS-Small quantity of a targeted group whose characteristics
represent as accurately as possible the entire population
Random selection - ANS-Participants are selected on the basis of chance alone from a
larger population of subjects
Convenience selection - ANS-A nonrandom research sample that is used because it is
easily available
Random assignment - ANS-The random, unbiased assignment of subjects in a research
sample to the various experimental and control conditions
Steps to running a study - ANS-Informed consent, instructions, task completion, and
debriefing
P value - ANS-The probability of obtaining significant results when the null hypothesis is
true and no significant differences exist
P value < 0.5 - ANS-Results are statistically significant
, Practical significance - ANS-The extent to which the results of a study have actual
impact on human behavior
Types of statistics - ANS-Descriptive and inferential
Descriptive statistics - ANS-Summarizing data; mean, median, mode, frequencies, and
standard deviation
Inferential statistics - ANS-T-tests, analysis of variance, and chi-square
Correlation coefficient - ANS-Numerical indication of magnitude and direction of the
relationship between two variables; represents how closely and in what way two
variables correlate
Job analysis - ANS-Gathering, analyzing, and structuring information about a job's
components, characteristics, and requirements
Writing job descriptions - ANS-Allows for the writing of a brief summary of the tasks and
job requirements
Employee selections - ANS-Allows for the selection or development of selection tests or
interview questions that will permit the identification of qualified applicants
Training - ANS-Allows for the creation of systematic training programs
Personpower planning - ANS-Allows for the determination of an employee's mobility
within the company
Performance appraisal - ANS-Allows for the construction of a performance appraisal
instrument
Job classification - ANS-Allows for the grouping of jobs according to similarities in
requirements and duties
Job classification uses - ANS-Determining pay levels, transfers and promotions
Job evaluation - ANS-Allows for the determination of a job's worth
Job worth - ANS-Based on level of responsibility, physical demands, mental demands,
education requirements, training and experience requirements, and work conditions
Job design - ANS-Allows for the determination of the optimal way to do a job
Compliance with legal guidelines - ANS-Allows for the determination of the job
relatedness of a job's requirements
