Introduction to Psychology
Fields

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Industrial and organizational psychology

Industrial and organizational psychology studies well-being and performance at work and applies psychological research to tasks such as understanding jobs, selecting employees and designing training.

Also called: I-O psychology, industrial-organizational psychology

Professional specialtyWork and technology

Type of entry
Professional specialtyAn applied area with its own training routes and, in some places, credentials. Types are editorial labels, not an official classification.
Cluster
Work, technology, and performanceOrganizations, design, markets, media, sport and the military.
Sources opened
4 of 42 read as a full page, 2 as selected text or an abstract, 0 not verified.
Independent review
Admitted after correctionsClaude Code reviewer agent, separate from the writer, 2026-10-21. 10 claims checked against 4 sources opened by the reviewer.

What it studies

Industrial and organizational psychology studies human well-being and performance in work settings. A concrete part of that remit is understanding what a job requires before making decisions about employees. SIOP's teaching resource connects job analysis with hiring, training, compensation and performance appraisal; these examples illustrate one area within the broader field.

History and people

SIOP names Hugo Munsterberg's 1913 book Psychology and Industrial Efficiency as a seminal text and describes Frank and Lillian Gilbreth as early pioneers. SIOP's timeline dates the Hawthorne Studies to the 1920s and names Elton Mayo and Fritz Roethlisberger as conducting them. APA Division 14 began as Industrial and Business Psychology in 1945 and became the Division of Industrial and Organizational Psychology in 1973. By 1982 it had incorporated as SIOP.

People and documented roles

  • Hugo Munsterberg. Author of the 1913 book Psychology and Industrial Efficiency
    • Released Psychology and Industrial Efficiency, which SIOP calls the seminal text for I-O psychology. [1]
  • Frank Gilbreth. Early pioneer named in the SIOP history
    • Listed by SIOP among early pioneers of I-O psychology; the page gives no specific work or date. [1]
  • Lillian Gilbreth. Early pioneer named in the SIOP history
    • Listed by SIOP among early pioneers of I-O psychology; the page gives no specific work or date. [1]
  • Elton Mayo. Conducted the Hawthorne Studies, per SIOP
    • Named with Fritz Roethlisberger as conducting the Hawthorne Studies in the 1920s. [1]
  • Fritz Roethlisberger. Conducted the Hawthorne Studies, per SIOP
    • Named with Elton Mayo as conducting the Hawthorne Studies in the 1920s. [1]

The SIOP pages name only a few pre-World War II figures and give each a short role. Lillian Gilbreth is the only woman named, and no scholars outside the United States are documented; the page gives no dates for the Gilbreths' work.

Dated milestones

  • 1913Publication. Year.Publication of Psychology and Industrial Efficiency by Hugo Munsterberg, described by SIOP as a seminal text. [1]
  • 1920sResearch report. Approximate.Hawthorne Studies conducted by Elton Mayo and Fritz Roethlisberger, per SIOP; the decade is the only date given. [1]
  • 1945Society or organization formed. Year.APA Division 14, Industrial and Business Psychology, founded; an event within one American organization. [1]
  • 1973Name adopted. Year.Division 14 became the Division of Industrial and Organizational Psychology. [1]
  • By 1982Society or organization formed. Approximate.Division 14 had incorporated as the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology; SIOP words this as 'by 1982', so the exact year is not given. [3]

Methods

Job analysis collects information through surveys, interviews or focus groups, and direct observation. Sources can include employees, supervisors, customers and written records. SIOP distinguishes work-oriented analysis, which identifies tasks, from worker-oriented analysis, which identifies needed knowledge, skills, abilities and other characteristics. The distinction helps specify what is being studied or assessed.

Training and applications

For a retail sales job, SIOP's example turns tasks such as helping customers and using a register into a job description. Information about required worker qualities can inform applicant screening. Job analysis also supports training, salary structures and performance appraisal. Separately, SIOP's current About page says it partners with the American Psychological Association and the Association for Psychological Science.

Boundaries and limits

The history names early contributors without establishing a single founder, and SIOP's Hawthorne account is not a critical assessment of those studies. The job-analysis resource is a 2018 teaching introduction, not evidence that every organization uses these methods successfully. It also says competency-modeling techniques need refinement. These sources do not establish training or licensing requirements.

Evidence behind the claims

  • SIOP describes industrial and organizational psychology as defined by scientifically studying human well-being and performance in organizational and work settings.

    What it studiesThe organization's own descriptionSource: [2]Where: Opening description of the field on the About SIOP page

  • Hugo Munsterberg released Psychology and Industrial Efficiency in 1913, which SIOP describes as the seminal text for I-O psychology.

    History and peopleThe organization's own descriptionSource: [1]Where: Timeline entry for 1913 and the Hugo Munsterberg section

  • SIOP's early-history timeline dates the Hawthorne Studies to the 1920s and names Elton Mayo and Fritz Roethlisberger as conducting them; the page gives no critique of the studies.

    History and peopleThe organization's own descriptionSource: [1]Where: Timeline entry for the 1920s and the Hawthorne Works section

  • SIOP describes Frank Gilbreth and Lillian Gilbreth as early pioneers in I-O psychology.

    History and peopleThe organization's own descriptionSource: [1]Where: Frank and Lillian Gilbreth section

  • APA Division 14, Industrial and Business Psychology, was founded in 1945 and became the Division of Industrial and Organizational Psychology in 1973.

    History and peopleDocumented in the sourceSource: [1]Where: Timeline entries for 1945 and 1973

  • By 1982, Division 14 of the APA had incorporated as the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology.

    History and peopleThe organization's own descriptionSource: [3]Where: Overview text on the SIOP History page

  • SIOP says it offers membership for students, scientists and practitioners and partners with the American Psychological Association and the Association for Psychological Science.

    Training and applicationsThe organization's own descriptionSource: [2]Where: Company Overview paragraph, directly before Become a SIOP Member

  • In its teaching resource dated August 28, 2018, SIOP describes job-analysis information collection through surveys, interviews or focus groups, and direct observation, drawing on workers, supervisors, written records and customers.

    MethodsDocumented in the sourceSource: [4]Where: Page 1, paragraph beginning The information that goes into a job analysis

  • Work-oriented job analysis identifies tasks; worker-oriented analysis identifies knowledge, skills, abilities and other characteristics needed for a job.

    MethodsDocumented in the sourceSource: [4]Where: Page 1, work-oriented and worker-oriented paragraphs

  • SIOP illustrates using retail-clerk tasks for a job description and worker qualities for screening, and lists salary structures, training and performance appraisal as job-analysis applications.

    Training and applicationsDocumented in the sourceSource: [4]Where: Page 1, retail-clerk examples and paragraph beginning The information

Where it appears

University examples

Professional contexts

Examples show documented structures. They are not a ranking, a census, or a statement about admission or licensing.

In the Psy101 course

This is course relevance only. It is not evidence for the historical or practice claims on this page.See the full course map.

Sources and inspection

4 of 4 sources were opened and read at the level shown. A source marked as not verified supports no claim on this page by itself.

  1. [1]
    Early HistorySociety for Industrial and Organizational Psychology, undated. Society history. Supports the history.Full page readRead the page timeline and the sections on Munsterberg, the Gilbreths and the Hawthorne Works; linked videos and external articles were not opened.
  2. [2]
    About SIOPSociety for Industrial and Organizational Psychology, undated. Professional association. Supports the definition of the area.Selected text readSupplemental writer opened Company Overview and The Impact of I-O Psychology on 21 October 2026. These state partnership with APA and APS, membership categories, and the field definition. The stronger Division 14 representation and APS-affiliate wording recorded by the original reviewer was not reproduced in this opened body; the claim is narrowed to partnership, not declared false.
  3. [3]
    SIOP HistorySociety for Industrial and Organizational Psychology, undated. Society history. Supports the history.Selected text readRead the short overview including the 1892 and 1982 statements; the linked timeline and Koppes history were not opened (the Koppes URL tried returned 404).
  4. [4]
    Job/Task/Work Analysis/Competency Modeling and ClassificationSociety for Industrial and Organizational Psychology, 2018. Professional association. Supports the description of methods.Full page readRead both pages including work-oriented and worker-oriented methods, surveys/interviews/focus groups/observation, retail-clerk example, applications, competency-modeling limitation, O*NET discussion and citation footnote. Footnote gives 28 August 2018; the 2024 upload path is not the publication date. Linked references and O*NET were not opened.

Independent source review: Claude Code reviewer agent, separate from the writer, 2026-10-21. Verdict: Admitted after corrections. Of 10 claims checked, 10 were supported as written, 0 were reworded and 0 were removed.