Return to Home Page

 

PSYCHOLOGY 403: SOCIAL-ORGANIZATIONAL SKILLS
(Fall 2009, section 1)

Catalog Course Description: Organizational behavior from psychological perspective. Job attitudes, motivation to work, leadership, job design, organizational change. Experiential approach: class exercises and self-analysis. [Prereq: PSYC 104.]

 

Instructor:       David Campbell

Office:             444 BSS

Phone:               826-3721

Office Hours:   Wed 8:00-11:00 (drop-in visits usually OK on Wed & Thurs mornings)

E-mail:              dec1@humboldt.edu

Web site:         www.humboldt.edu/~campbell/psyc.htm

 

Text:  (Be sure to purchase the correct edition. Copies will be available in the campus bookstore.)

       Spector, P. E. (2008). Industrial and organizational behavior (5th ed.). Hoboken, NJ: Wiley.  (ISBN-13: 978-0-470-12918-0)

NOTE: You can purchase an e-text copy of the textbook at  http://www.coursesmart.com/9780470129180  (Click on "what are these?" to compare the two e-text versions.) Purchasing a new copy from the bookstore and then selling it after the course is over costs approximately the same as purchasing the e-text version (good for 6 months with no re-sale). Some of you will want the hard copy for your professional library so think ahead. In the past, students who have experienced both online and hardcopy versions have expressed preference for the hardcopy, but it's nice to have choices (and there are ecological considerations as well).

You must have your textbooks at the beginning of the semester. Reading assignments and homework typically begin in the first week. If you cannot afford the required text, ask about the emergency loan program at our Financial Aid Office.

Course Goals:

 

Course Procedure:

            Students in upper-division courses are expected to take an active role in their learning. With that in mind, we will not use a strict lecture format. Instead, we will run this course with a mix of short lectures and group discussion. Accompanying each reading assignment you will have a set of homework questions intended to provoke thought, stimulate discussion, and review key points.  You are expected to actively engage with your reading and come to class with your written responses to the homework questions prepared in advance.
    You can expect an experiential activity associated with each class meeting. These activities will address such topics as active listening, workplace ethics, group dynamics, conflict & negotion, and organizational change.
    Tests will consist of a midterm exam and a comprehensive final exam.
     You will be involved in a research project or term paper. We will work out the details in class.

 

Course Grade:

            Your course grade will be determined by weighting the assignments and activities as follows:

25%  Homework (notes on the reading, other work as assigned)  Homework questions posted at http://www.humboldt.edu/%7Ecampbell/IO_Homework_Questions.htm
20%  Midterm Exam
30%  Final Exam
25%  Term paper (a scholarly analysis on a topic approved by the instuctor, prepared in APA format)

Student Responsibilities:   Both students and instructor will approach this course in a constructive and mature manner. It is expected that you will give this course your full attention and maintain a positive attitude regarding your responsibilities. If you must miss a class or must turn in an assignment late, advise the instructor in advance (e-mail is convenient). But note that missed classes and late work will have consequences. Also, be sure to review the HSU policy on academic honesty . You need to be aware of what constitutes cheating and plagiarism (e.g., is it OK to turn in essentially the same paper in two classes with similar assignments, or is it OK to make use of quizzes provided by your roommate from the same class last semester?)  

 

Note:  There may be occasions when a class activity will involve eating or drinking food—e.g., cookies, popcorn, dairy products, or soft drinks.  If there is a reason why you cannot participate in such activities, whether medical, religious, or cultural, be sure to tell the instructor so that appropriate accommodation can be made.

 

Extra Credit:

            You can earn extra credit in this course by participating in one or two hours of research as a participant (subject).  To sign up for experiments, you need to first create an account in the participation pool system.  Instructions are available at http://www.humboldt.edu/~cla18/partpool.htm

Topics and Assignments

You will find helpful review material and other resources at the publisher's website: http://bcs.wiley.com/he-bcs/Books?action=index&itemId=0470129182&bcsId=4221

Date                 Topics and Assignments 

 

Aug 25             Orientation

 

Sept 1              Ch 1 – Overview of Industrial/Organizational Psychology  (NOTE: Reading & homework must be completed prior to the start of class.)  [Activity: Social contracts]

 

Sept 8             Ch 2 – Research methods in I/O Psychology  Activity  [Activity: Ethical dilemmas]

 

Sept 15             Ch 3 – Job analysis  [Activity: Active listening]

 

Sept 22            Ch 4 – Performance appraisal  [meet at DimDim.com , check email for invite info, 5:00 for Alaba - Lazar, 6:30 for Linn - Wunner]

 

Sept 29            Ch 5 – Assessment methods  [Activity: Learning styles]

 

Oct 6               Ch 6 – Selecting employees  [Activity: Systems approach]

 

Oct 13              Ch 7 – Training  (Midterm Exam on Ch 1-7 in last hour of class)

 

Oct 20              Ch 8 - Theories of employee motivation  [Activity: Conflict & negotiation, Part I]

 

Oct 27              Ch 9 – Feeling about work: Job attitudes and emotions  [meet at DimDim.com , check email for invite info, 5:00 for Alaba - Lazar, 6:30 for Linn - Wunner]

 

Nov 3               Ch 10 – Productive and counterproductive employee behavior  [Activity: Ergonomics]

 

Nov 10              Ch 11 – Occupational health psychology  [Activity: Conflict & negotiation, Part II]

 

Nov 17              Ch 12 – Work groups and work teams  [meet at DimDim.com , check email for invite info, 5:00 for Alaba - Lazar, 6:30 for Linn - Wunner]

  

Nov 23-27             Thanksgiving Vacation!

 

Dec 1               Ch 13 – Leadership and power in organizations  [Activity: Group dynamics]

 

Dec 8              Ch 14 – Organizational development and theory  [Activity: Organizational change]

 

Dec 15               Final Exam (covers Ch 1-14), Term papers due at Turnitin.com with brief in-class oral reports.

 

SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS: In order to receive credit for your term paper, you must submit it by our deadline to the Turnitin.com site (not Moodle and not direct email to the instructor). Well before the deadline, your should:
1. Go to www.turnitin.com and click on "New Users" to set up a user profile.
2. You will need our class ID (2780088) and our password (Munsterberg) to enroll in Psyc 403_F09.
3. If you already have a Turnitin account, then just click on the "enroll in a class" tab and provide our class ID and password.
4. When your paper is ready to submit, logon to Turnitin, select our course and the term paper assignment, then select "file upload" to select and submit your work. Turnitin accepts files in several formats including Microsoft Word, WordPerfect, RTF, PDF, PostScript, plain text, and HTML. (If none of these work, you can also use copy/paste to submit your work.)
5. You should be fine with the above information but note that Turnitin has a handy student guide (just click on the Help button after logging on).