Industrial/Organizational Psychology (PhD)

What is An Industrial/Organizational Psychology (PhD) Degree?

Psychology is the scientific study of human behavior and mental processing–the mind.  So, it’s a field that people really enjoy studying because what’s not to like about basically learning about you?!  The field has a very broad application, even though many people think it’s mainly about counseling people and helping them with their problems.

Industrial/Organizational (I/O) Psychology is the subspecialty of psychology that has to do with the behavior and attitudes of people in the workplace.  So, as you might expect, the courses you will take for a PhD in Industrial/Organizational Psychology will take an in-depth look at psychological principles related to human functioning and how to conduct complex research to determine what makes people do what they do at work.  Using the knowledge gained from the research I/O Psychologists conduct leads to improvements in supervision, compensation, hiring, motivating, communicating, and satisfaction of employees.  Most students earn an MA or MS in Psychology before applying to a PhD program. Without the Master’s, the university will require prerequisite courses in psychology, research design, and statistical analysis from the Master’s level to be completed before getting into the higher-level PhD courses.

I/O candidates will focus on subjects like personnel psychology, social systems, consumer behavior, motivation, management, and specific organization interventions, completing a dissertation after conducting an in-depth original research study on workplace behavior.  One or more internships may be part of the program, too.  At the PhD level, the professional is prepared to consult within real-world organizational situations.

The videos below discuss “typical” programs, so they should help regardless of which school you are considering.