Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-tf8b9 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-28T00:22:29.587Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Gaining Organizational Entry and Developing Partnerships for Applied Research and Experience: A Perspective From Industrial-Organizational Psychology Master's Programs

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 December 2018

Elizabeth L. Shoenfelt ,
Nancy J. Stone  and
Janet L. Kottke
Elizabeth L. Shoenfelt*
Affiliation:
Department of Psychological Sciences, Western Kentucky University
Nancy J. Stone
Affiliation:
Department of Psychological Sciences, Missouri University of Science and Technology
Janet L. Kottke
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, California State University–San Bernardino
*
Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Elizabeth L. Shoenfelt, Department of Psychological Sciences, Western Kentucky University, Bowling Green, KY 42103. E-mail: [email protected]
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Extract

As faculty in master's industrial and organizational (I-O) psychology graduate programs, we read with great interest the focal article on initiating and maintaining partnerships with organizations (Lapierre et al., 2018). We applaud the efforts of the authors to present guidelines and recommendations for successful applied research in organizations. Although Lapierre et al. directed their recommendations primarily to doctoral faculty and their students, there currently are 159 I-O psychology master's programs listed on the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology (SIOP) webpage (http://my.siop.org/GTP). Because of the applied nature of most master's programs, by necessity we work continuously to gain entry into and partner with organizations for internship placements, applied course projects, and applied service opportunities. We, along with other master's faculty colleagues, have published and presented on the topic of partnering with organizations (e.g., Shoenfelt, 2003; Shoenfelt, Kottke, & Stone, 2012; Shoenfelt et al., 2015; Shoenfelt, Stone, & Kottke, 2013; Shoenfelt, Walker, Long, Smith, & Whelan, 2012; Stone, Shoenfelt, Huffcut, Morganson, & Frame, 2018; Stone, Shoenfelt, Morganson, Moffett, & Van Hein, 2017). In this response, we offer an analogous perspective from the master's level based on tacit knowledge garnered from more than a century of combined experience. We note that many of the recommendations in this focal article likewise surfaced in our work. Here we highlight the challenges unique to master's-level and teaching-intensive faculty in implementing these recommendations. In our response, we embrace Lewin's (1946) definition of action research that there is no action without research and no research without action. Thus, we broadly define applied research as asking an important applied question and systematically collecting data to answer that question in a manner in which the results inform organizational action (whether or not it results in a peer-reviewed publication).

Type
Commentaries
Information
Industrial and Organizational Psychology , Volume 11 , Issue 4 , December 2018 , pp. 606 - 612
Copyright
Copyright © Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology 2018 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Cupps, S., & Olmosk, K. E. (2008). Developing effective internships within public sector organizations. Public Personnel Management, 37, 303–311.Google Scholar
Hakel, M. D., Sorcher, M., Beer, M., & Moses, J. L. (1982). Making it happen: Designing research with implementation in mind. Beverly Hills, CA: Sage Publications.Google Scholar
Highhouse, S., & Doverspike, D. (2017). Creating an open-access, practitioner-friendly scientific journal for I-O psychology: The case of Personnel Assessment and Decisions (PAD). The Industrial-Organizational Psychologist, 55 (1). http://www.siop.org/tip/july17/pad.aspxGoogle Scholar
Kottke, J. L., Olson, D. A., & Shultz, K. S. (2016). Use of practicum classes to solidify the scientist-practitioner model in master's level training. In Wankel, L. A., & Wankel, C. (Eds.), Integrating curricular and co-curricular endeavors to enhance student outcomes (pp. 15–41). Bingley, UK: Emerald Group Publishing Limited.Google Scholar
Kottke, J. L., Shoenfelt, E. L., & Stone, N. J. (2014). Educating industrial-organizational psychologists: Lessons learned from master's programs. Industrial and Organizational Psychology: Perspectives on Science and Practice, 7 (1), 26–31.Google Scholar
Lapierre, L. M., Mathews, R. A., Eby, L. T., Truxillo, D. M., Johnson, R. E., & Major, D. A. (2018). Recommended practices for academics to initiate and manage research partnerships. Industrial and Organizational Psychology: Perspectives on Science and Practice, 11 (4), 543–581.Google Scholar
Lewin, K. (1946). Action research and minority problems. Journal of Social Issues, 2, 34–46. doi:10.1111/j.1540-4560.1946.tb02295.xGoogle Scholar
Munson, L. J., Phillips, G., Clark, C.C., & Mueller-Hanson, R. (2004). Everything you need to know about I-O internships: Results from the 2003 SIOP internship survey. The Industrial-Organizational Psychologist, 42 (1), 117–126.Google Scholar
Nadler, D. A. (1977). Feedback and organization development: Using data-based methods. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley Publishing Company.Google Scholar
Ones, D. S., Kaiser, R. B., Chamorro-Premuzic, T., & Svensson, C. (2017). Has industrial-organizational psychology lost its way? The Industrial-Organizational Psychologist, 55 (4). http://www.siop.org/tip/backissues/apriltoc.aspxGoogle Scholar
Schein, E. H. (1988). Process consultation. Volume 1: Its role in organization development (2nd ed.). Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley Publishing Company.Google Scholar
Shoenfelt, E. L. (2003). Utilizing applied projects in industrial/organizational psychology graduate training: A checklist to help ensure successful experiences. The Industrial-Organizational Psychologist, 41 (2), 109–115.Google Scholar
Shoenfelt, E. L., Kottke, J., & Stone, N. J. (2012). Master's and undergraduate I/O internships: Data-based recommendations for successful experiences. Teaching of Psychology, 39, 100–106. doi:10.1177/0098628312437724Google Scholar
Shoenfelt, E. L., Kottke, J. L., Stone, N. J., Dolen, M., Hill-Fotouhi, C., Seibert, J., & Walker, S. A. (2015, April). What employers want in master's hires: Landing the first job. Paper presented at the 30th Annual Conference of the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology, Philadelphia, PA.Google Scholar
Shoenfelt, E. L., Stone, N. J., & Kottke, J. (2013). Internships: An established mechanism for increasing employability. Industrial and Organizational Psychology: Perspectives on Science and Practice, 6 (1), 24–28.Google Scholar
Shoenfelt, E. L., Walker, S. A., Long, S., Smith, M., & Whelan, V. B. (2012, April). Internships: Little mistakes, big consequences, missed opportunities. Paper presented at the 27th Annual Conference of the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology, San Diego, CA.Google Scholar
Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology, Inc. (2016). Guidelines for education and training in industrial-organizational psychology. Bowling Green, OH: Author.Google Scholar
Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology, Inc. (2018). Introducing the new IOP Practice Forum - Call for papers. Retrieved from: http://my.siop.org/journalGoogle Scholar
Stone, N. J., Shoenfelt, E. L., Huffcut, A. I., Morganson, V. J., & Frame, M. C. (2018, April). Maintaining research and consulting activities in teaching intensive institutions. Paper presented at the 33rd Annual Conference of the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology, Chicago, IL.Google Scholar
Stone, N. J., Shoenfelt, E. L., Morganson, V. J., Moffett, R. G., & Van Hein, J. L. (2017, April). Developing employability with master's and undergraduate internships. Paper presented at the 32nd Annual Conference of the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology, Orlando, FL.Google Scholar
Stroh, L. K., & Johnson, H. H. (2006). The basic principles of effective consulting. New York, NY: Psychology Press.Google Scholar
Vodanovich, S. J., Morganson, V. J., & Kass, S. J. (2018). Ranking I-O master's programs using objective data from I-O coordinators. The Industrial-Organizational Psychologist, 55 (4). http://my.siop.org/tip/jan18/editor/ArtMID/13745/ArticleID/333/Ranking-I-O-Masters-Programs-Using-Objective-Data-From-I-O-Coordinators1Google Scholar