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2021/2022

Psychology of Organizations

Code: 102559 ECTS Credits: 6
Degree Type Year Semester
2502443 Psychology OB 3 2
The proposed teaching and assessment methodology that appear in the guide may be subject to changes as a result of the restrictions to face-to-face class attendance imposed by the health authorities.

Contact

Name:
Francisco Javier Tirado Serrano
Email:
FranciscoJavier.Tirado@uab.cat

Use of Languages

Principal working language:
catalan (cat)
Some groups entirely in English:
No
Some groups entirely in Catalan:
Yes
Some groups entirely in Spanish:
No

Other comments on languages

The 9 conferences are given in Spanish. The practice classes are given in Catalan

Teachers

Ingeborg Porcar Becker
Joan Moyà Köhler
Beatriz San Román Sobrino

Prerequisites

There are no strict prerequisites for studying "Psychology of Organizations". However, students are recommended to have knowledge about subjects such as Social Psychology, Groups Dynamics and Work Psychology.

Objectives and Contextualisation

Psychology of Organizacions is a subject taught in the second semester of the third year of the Psychology Degree. Its main aim is to introduce students in the world of organizations in the 21st Century.

Objectives:

- This subject provides students with a general description of the basic characteristics of modern organizations.

-This subject offers a list of the main topics, approaches and applications in Psychology of Organizations.

-This subject analysis the suppositions and the propositions of the most important theories in the discipline.

-This subject reflects on the theoretical and research limitations of the discipline.

Competences

  • Analyse the demands and needs of people, groups and organisations in different contexts.
  • Apply techniques to collect and produce information about the functioning of individuals, groups and organisations in context.
  • Distinguish and relate the principles of psychosocial functioning of groups and organizations.
  • Evaluate, contrast and take decision on the choice of adequate methods and instruments for each situation and evaluation context.
  • Prepare and write technical reports on the results of the evaluation, research or services requested.
  • Recognise personal limitations and limitations of the discipline in the different areas of professional practice.
  • Students must be capable of applying their knowledge to their work or vocation in a professional way and they should have building arguments and problem resolution skills within their area of study.
  • Students must be capable of collecting and interpreting relevant data (usually within their area of study) in order to make statements that reflect social, scientific or ethical relevant issues.
  • Students must be capable of communicating information, ideas, problems and solutions to both specialised and non-specialised audiences.
  • Use different ICTs for different purposes.
  • Work in a team.

Learning Outcomes

  1. Apply models of organizational analysis such as SWOT (weaknesses, threats, strengths and opportunities).
  2. Ask viable and relevant objectives or goals from the analysis of the demands of groups and organizations.
  3. Describe the characteristics of the main theoretical models of the discipline.
  4. Design the structure of a report or presentation of the contents depending communicate and characteristics of the recipients.
  5. Identify significant issues and disciplinary knowledge relevant to the demands and needs of groups and organizations.
  6. Identify the different levels of analysis and intervention (individual, group and organizational).
  7. Identify the dimensions of organizational phenomena.
  8. Interpret information gathered from questionnaires and individual and group interviews consistent with the conceptual models used.
  9. Plan the different steps in the diagnosis of an organization taking into account the particular case.
  10. Produce diagrams, tables and conceptual maps that promote the communication of the results of evaluation, research or intervention to the actors involved.
  11. Recognise personal limitations and limitations of the discipline in the different areas of professional practice.
  12. Recognise the basic elements of an organization.
  13. Select relevant concepts for the analysis of information gathered.
  14. Select the appropriate techniques and instruments diagnosis in each case.
  15. Students must be capable of applying their knowledge to their work or vocation in a professional way and they should have building arguments and problem resolution skills within their area of study.
  16. Students must be capable of collecting and interpreting relevant data (usually within their area of study) in order to make statements that reflect social, scientific or ethical relevant issues.
  17. Students must be capable of communicating information, ideas, problems and solutions to both specialised and non-specialised audiences.
  18. Use different ICTs for different purposes.
  19. Work in a team.
  20. Write reports that argue clearly and in detail the critical aspects of the evaluation, investigation or intervention process.

Content

This subject is structured into the following units:

1. Introduction: Why is it so interesting to study organizations?

2. Role Theory and Organizations

3. The phenomenon of leadership in organizations

4. Communication and organizations

5. Relationships of power

6. Conflict in organizations

7. Culture and anthropology of organizations

8. Gender and organizations 

9. Subjectivity and organizations

Methodology

This subject includes two different types of activities: a set of lectures, linked to the content of the subject and a series of work sessions carried out in small groups and made up of by combinations of activities such as: seminars (reading and discussion of previously selected texts), workshops and presentation of lines of research, projection and discussion of audio-visual materials, etc.

N.B. The proposed teaching and assessment methodologies may experience some modifications as a result of the restrictions on face-to-face learning imposed by the health authorities. The teaching staff will use the Moodle classroom or the usual communication channel to specify whether the different directed and assessment activities are to be carried out on site or online, as instructed by the Faculty.

Annotation: Within the schedule set by the centre or degree programme, 15 minutes of one class will be reserved for students to evaluate their lecturers and their courses or modules through questionnaires.

Activities

Title Hours ECTS Learning Outcomes
Type: Directed      
D1. Lectures 13.5 0.54 3, 7, 5, 17, 15, 16
D2. Group work 22 0.88 1, 6, 8, 9, 2, 17, 15, 16, 12, 13
Type: Supervised      
S1. Individual Assessment 1 0.04 4, 17, 16, 13, 14
S2. Case analysis in moodle 2.5 0.1 7, 17, 16, 12, 13
Type: Autonomous      
A1. Bibliography search 14 0.56 16, 13, 14, 18
A2. Essays 18 0.72 4, 10, 17, 15, 16, 20
A3. Reading texts 22 0.88 3, 7, 16, 12
A4. Analysis of data 25 1 1, 8, 16, 11, 13
A5. Collecting data in organizations 30 1.2 6, 9, 15, 16, 14, 19

Assessment

Assessable activities are as follows:

1. Participation (30%). It would last from the week 5 until the 13. This is an individual evidencie. It is considered that the student has passed the evidence if he/she has attended to the 80% of the programmed working sessions. if this is not the case, the evidence will not be qualified. It is worth noting that this evidence will count in the  2/3 of the necessary activities to be reassessed if the student has attended in 5 of the programmed activities.

2. Group work. (40%). It would be deliverd through moodle the week 12

3. A test (30%). It would be carried out at the end of the semester (second assessment period).

Student are considered to have passed the subject when the sum of their marks in the different assessable activities is greater or equal to 5. 

Students are considered not assessable when they have given learning evidences with a weight lower than 4 points.

Students are considered assessable but not to have passed the subject when they do not obtain a grade of 5. 

Students can be reassessed if their grade is  3.5. The reassessment will be a global text of the whole subject and its mark will be the final mark of the subject.

No unique final synthesis test for students who enrole for the second time or more is anticipated.

THE GENERAL ASSESSMENT GUIDELINES OF THE FACULTY CAN BE CONSULTED AT THE FOLLOWING LINK: https://www.uab.cat/web/estudiar/graus/graus/avaluacions-1345722525858.html

Assessment Activities

Title Weighting Hours ECTS Learning Outcomes
EV1. Participation 30% 0 0 1, 17, 15, 16, 12, 18
EV2. Group work 40% 0 0 4, 10, 6, 7, 5, 8, 9, 2, 17, 16, 20, 13, 14, 19
EV3. Test 30% 2 0.08 3, 6, 11

Bibliography

All the books are introductions to the topics refered in this subject. However, the reference handbook in the classes is:

Tirado, F.; Gálvez, A. y Baleriola,E. (2017). Las organizaciones en el siglo XXI. Un enfoque psicosocial y político. Barcelona: Editorial UOC.

 

Anderson, N., Ones, D.S. y Viswesvaran, C. (Eds.), (2001). Handbook of Industrial, Work and Organizational Psychology (Vols. 1 y 2). London: Sage.

Brown, S. D y Lent, R. W. (Eds.). (2005). Career development and counseling: putting theory and research to work. Hoboken N.J.: John Wiley and Sons.

Cooper, G. L. (Ed.). (2000). Classics in management thought. Cheltenham: Edward Elgar Publishing.

Denison, D. R. (1996). What is the difference between Organizational Culture and Organizational Climate? A native's point of view on a decade of paradigm wars. Academy of Management Review, 21(3), 619-654.

Grey, C. (2005). A very short, fairly interesting and reasonably cheap book about studying organizations. London: Sage.

Hatch, M. (2006). Organization theory: modern, symbolic, and postmodern perspectives (2da ed.). New York: Oxford University Press.

Jex, S.M. (2002). Organizational Psychology a Scientist-Practitioner Approach (2da ed.). New York: Wiley.

Mintzberg, H. (1993). Structures in fives. Englewood Cliffs: Prentice-Hall.

Peiró, J. M. (1991). Psicología de la organización (Vols. 1 y 2). Madrid: UNED.

Perrow, C. (1973). The short and glorious history of organizational theory. Organizational Dynamics, 2(1), 3-15.

Quijano de Arana, S. D. (1993). La psicología social en las organizaciones: fundamentos. Barcelona: PPU.

Rodríguez, A. (1992). Psicología de las organizaciones: teoría y método. Barcelona: PPU.

Rodríguez, A. (Coord.), (1998). Introducción a la psicología del trabajo y de las organizaciones. Madrid: Pirámide.

Rodríguez, A. (Coord.), (2003). Psicología de las organizaciones. Barcelona: Editorial UOC.

Tirado, F.; Gálvez, A. y Baleriola,E. (2017). Las organizacionesen el siglo XXI. Un enfoque psicosocial y político. Barcelona: Editorial UOC.

Tirado, F.; Baleriola, E. y Gálvez, A. (2017). Critical Management Studies. Hacia unas organizaciones más éticas y sostenibles. Barcelona: Editorial UOC.

 

Web links

European Associaton of Work and Organizational Psychology:http://www.eawop.org/web/

European Network of Work and Organizational Psychologists:http://www.enop.ee/

Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology:http://www.siop.org/

Software

It is not used any kind of special software