APA Handbook of Industrial and Organizational Psychology

I/O Psychology is both a science/practice and an applied/basic research discipline. Appropriately, the APA Handbook of Industrial and Organizational Psychology offers an in-depth examination of the types of behavioral and structural issues that I/O psychologists study every day, from both a theoretical and applied perspective.

It explores a natural progression, from how problems are diagnosed to how research is conducted to generate answers to those problems to how interventions are implemented and, finally, to how they are evaluated. It examines what is currently known--including basic historical reviews--and identifies the most pertinent sources of information in both the core and emerging literatures. It pinpoints practical issues, probes unresolved and controversial topics, and looks at future theoretical, research, and practice trends.

One of the givens in the field is that, when an organization or employer attempts to affect one aspect of behavior--for example, job satisfaction--the organization or employer is likely to affect several other areas, such as compensation, supervision, performance review, and the like. Accordingly, through extensive cross-referencing to other chapters, individual chapters attempt to acknowledge the links with other topics in order to present an integrated approach to the field, both within and across volumes. The reader will thus achieve a clearer understanding of the complexities of each topic, and, more globally, a clearer understanding of the complexities of organizations and of the people within them.

The volume titles indicate a particular sequence that informs content: issues concerned with designing, building, and developing the structure of the organization (Volume 1) flow naturally into issues related to selecting the organization’s members (Volume 2). Once the organization is established and has members with roles, issues that pertain to maintaining and ensuring the viability of the organization are taken up--including those concerned with growing, expanding, and, even, contracting the organization.

The goal of the entire set is to provide the reader with a well-rounded understanding of the complexities and intricacies of trying to study and affect behavior within and between organizations.

Sheldon Zedeck, PhD, is professor of psychology in the Department of Psychology at the University of California at Berkeley and vice provost for academic affairs and faculty welfare. He has been at Berkeley since 1969, when he completed his doctoral degree in industrial and organizational psychology at Bowling Green State University in Ohio. He served as chair of the department from 1993 to 1998 (and as interim chair for the 2003-2004 year); prior to this administrative position, Dr. Zedeck was the director of the campus’ Institute of Industrial Relations from 1988 to 1992. Dr. Zedeck is coauthor of four books on various topics: Foundations of Behavioral Science Research in Organizations (1974, with Milton Blood), Measurement Theory for the Behavioral Sciences (1981, with Edwin E. Ghiselli and John Campbell), Performance Measurement and Theory (1983, with Frank Landy and Jan Cleveland), and Data Analysis for Research Designs (1989, with Geoffrey Keppel). In addition, he has edited a volume titled Work, Family, and Organizations (1992), which is part of the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology Frontiers series. Dr. Zedeck has served on the editorial boards of Journal of Applied Psychology(R) (editor, 2002-2008), Contemporary Psychology(R), and Industrial Relations. He has also served as editor and associate editor of Human Performance, a journal that he and Frank Landy founded in 1988, as well as associate editor of Applied Psychology: An International Review. Dr. Zedeck has been active in of the APA Division 14 (Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology). He has been on the Society’s Educational and Training Committee and its Workshop Committee; has been a member-at-large; has served as editor of the Society’s newsletter, TIP; has served on two ad hoc committees concerned with revising the Society’s ＂Principles for the Validation and Use of Personnel Selection Procedures＂; has represented the Society on the APA Council of Representatives; and in 1986 to 1987 served as the president of the Society. Dr. Zedeck has also served on the executive committees for the Academy of Management’s Personnel/Human Resources Division and for the Society for Organizational Behavior. Dr. Zedeck has written numerous journal articles on the topics of moderator variables, selection and validation, test fairness, banding, performance appraisal, assessment centers, stress, and work and family issues. His most recent research project was a 9-year project on the identification of factors and criteria of lawyering success and the development and validation of tests that can be used as complements to the Law School Admission Test.