Work and organizational psychology: a profession with a future.

Psychologists in companies, their functions and their importance for the health of corporations.

Many students begin their Psychology Degree thinking of working in Clinical Psychology, but as they advance in their studies, they realize that it is becoming more and more complicated to work in this area of psychology, they realize that it is becoming more and more complicated to work in this area of psychology.. Currently, one of the fields with the greatest professional opportunities is work and organizational psychology, in which many psychologists become part of the human resources department of a company.

However, human resources and organizational psychology are not exactly the same thing, and it is not a prerequisite to be a human resources professional to be a psychologist.. On the other hand, an organizational psychologist, in addition to the human resources department, can perform his functions at the management level or in the area of commercial research and marketing and even production.

In today's article we are going to review the functions of an organizational psychologist and we are going to go into the differences between the latter and the human resources professional.

What is a work or organizational psychologist?

The work or organizational psychologist, also known as an industrial psychologist o business psychologistis a professional who applies the principles of psychology to the organizational and work environment. To do so, he or she has studied mental processes and human behavior (both individual and group), and puts his or her training into practice in solving problems in the workplace. His general role encompasses the study, diagnosis, coordination, intervention and management of human behavior within organizations..

He or she may work as part of the company, that is, as an employee within the organization's own organizational chart (for example, in the selection and training department), although, on occasions, he or she may work as part of an external company outside the organization, performing functions of performance evaluation, work climate and health of workers or offering coaching services for employees or managers, among other functions. Some organizational psychologists choose to develop their careers as scientists or professors.

On the other hand, this concept is closely related to that of work psychology, although there are some nuances that distinguish them from each other.although there are some nuances that differentiate them. Organizational psychology, as its name indicates, focuses on the interactions between individuals, those who make up a team, a company, a department, etc. On the other hand, work psychology focuses its attention on work dynamics, that is, the application of strategies and behavior patterns to use a series of available resources to obtain a concrete and objectively observable result: a product, a plan, a service, etc.

Functions of the work or organizational psychologist

Basically, the work or organizational psychologist has an important role in three main areas:

• Human Resources (training, qualification, etc.)
• Marketing and Social and Commercial Research.
• Safety and Hygiene at Work (Occupational Health Psychology)

But what are the functions performed? Some of the functions of this professional are the following:

• Plans, organizes, or directs various functions within the organizationsuch as admission, evaluation, compensation, retention and development of people.
• Observes, describes, analyzes, diagnoses and resolves conflicts in human interactions. in human interactions. In this way ensures a good work environment and develops the organizational culture.
• Analyzes and modifies the physical, social and psychological elements that affect work performance and impact that affect work performance and impact employee efficiency.
• Applies questionnaires and interviews for the correct diagnosis of the work climate, productivity and occupational health.He/she applies questionnaires and interviews for the correct diagnosis of work climate, productivity and occupational health, and carries out preventive actions to correct possible misalignments.
• Advises the management team when necessaryHe advises the management team when necessary, e.g. on collective bargaining, possible business strategies, improvement of corporate image, etc.
• Analyzes and implements different psychological techniques. to increase productivity, improve the organizational climate, avoid fatigue and prevent accidents or occupational health problems, such as burnout or boreout.
• He brings his knowledge as an expert in leadership styles, interpersonal relations, emotional controlHe is an expert in leadership styles, interpersonal relationships, emotional control, negotiation techniques, decision making and proper planning.
• He uses tools for the detection of talent and the improvement of organizational development.and carries out studies on consumer needs.
• Recommends, and if possible implements, actions to incentivize, compensate and remunerate staff, as well as to ensure their well-being. and remunerate staff, as well as ensure their welfare, safety and occupational health.
• It is in charge of the training area, and designs training programs for the development of the staff, as well as for the development of personnel, as well as career and promotion plans.
• Directs and executes personnel selection processes.. To do this, it can use various psychological tests and questionnaires to detect the competencies of candidates.
• It analyzes the staffing needs, the job and the organization.the job and the organization.

Differences between an occupational psychologist and a human resources professional

It is common to refer to the organizational psychologist as the human resources professional, when they are different things. The organizational psychologist is a psychologist who has specialized in the field of organizations and work, while the human resources professional may not be trained as a psychologist.

In Spain, for example, there is a university degree called "Grado de Ciencias del Trabajo y de los Recursos Humanos" (which replaces the old "Licenciatura de Relaciones Laborales"), so the professional profile of the latter is different. the professional profile of the latter is different from that of the organizational psychologist.. Among the subjects taught in this career are work psychology subjects, but, in addition, other subjects such as labor and union law or taxation of individuals are also taught.

This is because the human resources department of a company not only performs personnel selection and training functions, but also carries out collective bargaining. collective bargaining or tasks such as payroll management can also be carried out.. The profile of the organizational psychologist fits in some areas of this human resources department, but not all.

Organizational psychologist training

If you are a psychologist and you want to work in organizational psychology, you should know that the organizational psychologist, unlike the human resources professional, has a degree in psychology. Some psychologists finish their degree and then start working as recruiters or selection technicians. and, after learning about the world of human resources, they train to cover other areas of HR, such as personnel administration or labor law.

Others, on the other hand, after finishing their degree in psychology, decide to do a master's degree. If this is your intention, you will have to choose between a Master's Degree in Human Resources Management or a Master's Degree in Organizational and Work Psychology. While the first one trains you in issues such as budgeting, personnel payments and expenses, labor legislation, contracts, labor rights, worker safety systems (avoiding accidents), selection and training. The second allows you to study the behavior of the individual within an organization and everything related to motivation, leadership, stress (and other work-related illnesses), work climate and culture, and the influence of psychological variables on performance.

• If you want to know more about Masters in Psychology, you can visit our post: "The 20 best Masters in Psychology".