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Date: 05/18/2026

Industrial-Organizational Psychologists

Apply principles of psychology to human resources, administration, management, sales, and marketing problems. Activities may include policy planning; employee testing and selection, training, and development; and organizational development and analysis. May work with management to organize the work setting to improve worker productivity.

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    Work Activities

    Work Activities

    • Observe and interview workers to obtain information about the physical, mental, and educational requirements of jobs, as well as information about aspects such as job satisfaction.
    • Counsel workers about job and career-related issues.
    • Write articles, white papers, or reports to share research findings and educate others.
    • Facilitate organizational development and change.
    • Advise management concerning personnel, managerial, and marketing policies and practices and their potential effects on organizational effectiveness and efficiency.
    • Identify training and development needs.
    • Write reports on research findings and implications to contribute to general knowledge or to suggest potential changes in organizational functioning.
    • Develop new business by contacting potential clients, making sales presentations, and writing proposals.
    • Facilitate organizational development and change.
    • Develop interview techniques, rating scales, and psychological tests used to assess skills, abilities, and interests for the purpose of employee selection, placement, or promotion.
    • Formulate and implement training programs, applying principles of learning and individual differences.
    • Develop and implement employee selection or placement programs.
    • Analyze data, using statistical methods and applications, to evaluate the outcomes and effectiveness of workplace programs.
    • Identify training and development needs.
    • Assess employee performance.
    • Conduct research studies of physical work environments, organizational structures, communication systems, group interactions, morale, or motivation to assess organizational functioning.
    • Study consumers' reactions to new products and package designs, and to advertising efforts, using surveys and tests.
    • Study organizational effectiveness, productivity, and efficiency, including the nature of workplace supervision and leadership.
    • Provide expert testimony in employment lawsuits.
    • Participate in mediation and dispute resolution.
    • Provide advice on best practices and implementation for selection.
    • Assess employee performance.
    • Conduct individual assessments, including interpreting measures and providing feedback for selection, placement, or promotion.
    • Train clients to administer human resources functions, including testing, selection, and performance management.
    • Coach senior executives and managers on leadership and performance.
    • Review research literature to remain current on psychological science issues.
    • Conduct presentations on research findings for clients or at research meetings.
    • Analyze job requirements and content to establish criteria for classification, selection, training, and other related personnel functions.

    Skills

    • Equipment Selection

      Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.

    • Technology Design

      Making equipment and technology useful for customers.

    • Social Perceptiveness

      Understanding people's reactions.

    • Time Management

      Managing your time and the time of other people.

    • Speaking

      Talking to others.

    • Mathematics

      Using math to solve problems.

    • Service Orientation

      Looking for ways to help people.

    • Operations Monitoring

      Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.

    • Active Listening

      Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.

    • Management of Personnel Resources

      Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.

    • Operation and Control

      Using equipment or systems.

    • Repairing

      Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.

    • Management of Material Resources

      Managing equipment and materials.

    • Coordination

      Changing what is done based on other people's actions.

    • Management of Financial Resources

      Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.

    • Writing

      Writing things for co-workers or customers.

    • Critical Thinking

      Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.

    • Active Learning

      Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.

    • Instructing

      Teaching people how to do something.

    • Programming

      Writing computer programs.

    • Judgment and Decision Making

      Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.

    • Learning Strategies

      Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.

    • Systems Analysis

      Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.

    • Reading Comprehension

      Reading work-related information.

    • Installation

      Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.

    • Monitoring

      Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.

    • Complex Problem Solving

      Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.

    • Negotiation

      Bringing people together to solve differences.

    • Quality Control Analysis

      Testing how well a product or service works.

    • Troubleshooting

      Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.

    • Persuasion

      Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.

    • Operations Analysis

      Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.

    • Equipment Maintenance

      Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.

    • Science

      Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.

    • Systems Evaluation

      Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.

    WorkKeys®

    Applied Math
    5
    Workplace Documents
    5
    Graphic Literacy
    5

    Abilities

    • Gross Body Equilibrium

      Keeping your balance or staying upright.

    • Auditory Attention

      Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.

    • Oral Expression

      Communicating by speaking.

    • Information Ordering

      Ordering or arranging things.

    • Dynamic Flexibility

      Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.

    • Hearing Sensitivity

      Telling the difference between sounds.

    • Sound Localization

      Noticing the direction that a sound came from.

    • Selective Attention

      Paying attention to something without being distracted.

    • Rate Control

      Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.

    • Wrist-Finger Speed

      Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.

    • Oral Comprehension

      Listening and understanding what people say.

    • Speed of Closure

      Quickly knowing what you are looking at.

    • Static Strength

      Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.

    • Fluency of Ideas

      Coming up with lots of ideas.

    • Flexibility of Closure

      Seeing hidden patterns.

    • Originality

      Creating new and original ideas.

    • Control Precision

      Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.

    • Arm-Hand Steadiness

      Keeping your arm or hand steady.

    • Speed of Limb Movement

      Quickly moving your arms and legs.

    • Deductive Reasoning

      Using rules to solve problems.

    • Dynamic Strength

      Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.

    • Problem Sensitivity

      Noticing when problems happen.

    • Category Flexibility

      Grouping things in different ways.

    • Explosive Strength

      Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.

    • Number Facility

      Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.

    • Far Vision

      Seeing details that are far away.

    • Night Vision

      Seeing at night or under low light.

    • Multilimb Coordination

      Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.

    • Mathematical Reasoning

      Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.

    • Visual Color Discrimination

      Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.

    • Depth Perception

      Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.

    • Finger Dexterity

      Putting together small parts with your fingers.

    • Written Comprehension

      Reading and understanding what is written.

    • Gross Body Coordination

      Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.

    • Visualization

      Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.

    • Response Orientation

      Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.

    • Manual Dexterity

      Holding or moving items with your hands.

    • Memorization

      Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.

    • Stamina

      Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.

    • Inductive Reasoning

      Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.

    • Near Vision

      Seeing details up close.

    • Extent Flexibility

      Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.

    • Time Sharing

      Doing two or more things at the same time.

    • Reaction Time

      Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.

    • Spatial Orientation

      Knowing where things are around you.

    • Perceptual Speed

      Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.

    • Trunk Strength

      Using your lower back and stomach.

    • Peripheral Vision

      Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.

    • Speech Recognition

      Recognizing spoken words.

    • Speech Clarity

      Speaking clearly.

    • Glare Sensitivity

      Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.

    • Written Expression

      Communicating by writing.

    Knowledge

    • Administration and Management

      Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.

    • Economics and Accounting

      Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.

    • Fine Arts

      Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.

    • Food Production

      Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.

    • Personnel and Human Resources

      Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.

    • Design

      Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.

    • Building and Construction

      Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.

    • Sales and Marketing

      Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.

    • Philosophy and Theology

      Knowledge of different philosophical systems and religions. This includes their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and their impact on human culture.

    • Transportation

      Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.

    • Mechanical

      Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.

    • Physics

      Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub-atomic structures and processes.

    • Chemistry

      Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.

    • Biology

      Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.

    • Sociology and Anthropology

      Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.

    • Production and Processing

      Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.

    • Communications and Media

      Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.

    • English Language

      Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, and rules of composition and grammar.

    • History and Archeology

      Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.

    • Telecommunications

      Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.

    • Public Safety and Security

      Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.

    • Education and Training

      Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.

    • Computers and Electronics

      Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.

    • Administrative

      Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.

    • Foreign Language

      Knowledge of the structure and content of a foreign (non-English) language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition and grammar, and pronunciation.

    • Engineering and Technology

      Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.

    • Mathematics

      Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.

    • Psychology

      Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.

    • Customer and Personal Service

      Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.

    • Law and Government

      Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.

    • Geography

      Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.

    • Medicine and Dentistry

      Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.

    • Therapy and Counseling

      Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.

    Career Video

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    Pay

    • US Annual Salary 109840/yr
    • US Typical Salary
    • US Hourly Wage 52.81/hr
    • US Typical Hourly Wage

    Ohio Employment Trends

    • Currently Employed 210
    • Yearly Projected Openings 10

    Typical Education

    Personality

    Investigative: People interested in this work like activities that include ideas, thinking, and figuring things out.They do well at jobs that need:
    • Initiative
    • Self-Confidence
    • Innovation
    • Adaptability
    • Achievement Orientation
    • Cooperation

    Tools

    • Desktop computers
    • High capacity removable media drives
    • Liquid crystal display projector
    • Notebook computers
    • Personal computers
    • Scanners

    Technology

    • Analytical or scientific software
    • Computer based training software
    • Data base user interface and query software
    • Document management software
    • Electronic mail software
    • Enterprise resource planning ERP software
    • Human resources software
    • Internet browser software
    • Office suite software
    • Presentation software
    • Process mapping and design software
    • Project management software
    • Spreadsheet software
    • Web platform development software
    • Word processing software

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