Study level: Graduate study programme in psychology
Lecturers: Zvonimir Galić, Ph.D., Maja Parmač Kovačić, Ph.D.
ECTS: 6
Language: Croatian
Semester: 1st (winter)
Status: mandatory
Form of instruction with class hours: 30 hours of lectures, 15 hours of exercises, 15 hours of seminars
Prerequisites: none
Course description
Selection and training – complementary approaches to fitting individuals to their jobs. Jobs and related concepts of organizational structure. Job analysis. Employee recruiting, initial screening and selection. Predictors: tests of cognitive, sensory, and psychomotor abilities; personality measures; references; biographical information; interview; work samples, assessments centres. Validation of selection programs. Validity of predictors for various occupations: the question of validity generalization. Strategies in making personnel decisions. Legal and ethical issues in selection. Training and organizational functioning. Psychological principles of skill development. Specifying training needs and developing training programs. Training methods and techniques. The training staff. Evaluation of training. Current emphasis: creating knowledge-based organizations. Appraising employee performance: goals and methods. Sources of errors in performance appraisals. Improving performance appraisals. Employee responses to performance appraisal feedback. Contribution of personnel psychology to human resources management.
Course objective
To familiarize students with personnel psychology methods used in selecting, training, and appraising personnel. By the end of this course the student will be able conduct a job analysis, write job description and specifications, understand advantages and limitations of various assessment methods, plan and implement a selection program. Student will also grasp basic principles of training, including methodology for training needs assessment and training evaluation. Finally, student will be able to devise and implement appropriate method of personnel appraisal.
Required readings
- Jex, S. M. & Britt, T. W. (2008). Organizational psychology: A scientist-practitioner approach. New Jersey: John Wiley and Sons
- Landy, F. J. & Conte, J. M. (2007). Work in the 21st Century: An introduction to industrial and organizational psychology. Oxford: Blackwell Publishing
- Latham, G. (2006). Work motivation: History, theory, research and practice. Sage
- Pinder, C. G. (2008). Work motivation in organizational behavior. New York: Psychology Press
- Yukl, G. (2008). Rukovođenje u organizacijama: Teorijske spoznaje, pojmovi i praktične smjernice. Jastrebarsko: Naklada Slap