How Psychology Works - The Facts Visually Explained

148 149PSYCHOLOGY IN THE REAL WORLD
Psychology of self-identity

Adolescent years

During this crucial stage of identity formation, 65–DEATH
adolescents explore who they are and often INTEGRITY VS.
experiment with different roles, activities, and
behaviors. This may lead to confusion—an DESPAIR
identity crisis—as they work through different “WISDOM”
choices. Resolving this crisis helps adolescents
to establish a strong sense of self as adults.

26–64 YEARS People may become
GENERATIVITY VS. depressed if they feel
that they have not
STAGNATION achieved their goals.
“CARE”

20–25 YEARS Adults feel
INTIMACY VS. unproductive if they
are not contributing
ISOLATION to wider society.
“LOVE”

12–19 YEARS Young adults start to
IDENTITY VS. worry about finding
CONFUSION the right partner,
fearing isolation.
“FIDELITY”

6–12 YEARS Adolescents search
INDUSTRY VS. for a sense of self,
INFERIORITY exploring a range of
“COMPETENCE” beliefs and values.

Children compare their IDENTITY STATUS THEORY ❯❯Identity foreclosure They commit
abilities to those of to an identity prematurely, adopting
their peers, and may Building on Erikson’s theories about traditional or imposed values without
feel inadequate. adolescence, psychologist James Marcia exploring their own views.
proposed that identity develops when
young people resolve crises (evaluate ❯❯Identity moratorium Young people
their choices) in domains such as school, actively explore different roles and
relationships, and values, and when they options but have not yet committed
commit (choose specific roles or values). to a particular identity.
Marcia envisaged four statuses along the
continuum of identity development: ❯❯Identity achievement Adolescents
explore a range of choices and solve
❯❯Identity diffusion Adolescents have their identity issues by committing to
not committed to a particular identity a set of goals, values, and beliefs.
or set a life direction or goals.

Personality

Psychologists have long sought to understand how personality—
how someone expresses their identity—develops. Genetics, life
experiences, and environment are just some of the factors involved.

What is it? them. It drives how people feel, how they think,
what they want, and how they behave. Personality
Personality is the characteristic patterns of thoughts, is what makes each person unique and it influences
everything from relationships to careers.
feelings, motivations, and behaviors that impact how

people see themselves, others, and the world around

Major approaches to personality

These approaches attempt to understand and explain the complex issues
around personality. Some focus on how personality develops, whereas
others are concerned with explaining individual differences in personality.

Biological Evolutionary

Psychologists such as Hans Eysenck have This approach takes the line that different
emphasized the role of genetic and biological personality traits evolve at the genetic level
factors in the formation of personality. This approach in response to environmental factors. Different traits
suggests that characteristics and traits are determined are therefore evolved adaptations as a result of natural
by brain structure and function, and that they can be selection or sexual selection. These are traits that in a
inherited—that nature plays more of a role than nurture. particular environment increase the chances of
reproduction and survival.
Behaviorist
Social learning
According to this approach, personality
develops through a person’s interaction with Related to behaviorist theory, the social
the environment, and continues to evolve throughout learning view is that social interaction
their lives. New experiences, meeting new people, and and environment mold personality. Traits develop
new situations all influence responses and traits. from observing behavior modeled by others and
through conditioning. People internalize actions
Psychodynamic and responses that feed into their personality. For
example, a child who is consistently told that they
Encompassing the theories of Freud and are naughty internalizes this message and gradually
Erik Erikson, this approach indicates that an assumes this personality.
individual’s personality is shaped by unconscious drives
and how successfully they resolve a series of psycho- Dispositional (trait)
social conflicts that occur at defined stages of life.
Trait theory proposes that personality is
Humanistic made up of different broad dispositions
or traits. How these traits combine and interact is
Humanists believe that people’s innate desire unique to each person (their “central traits”),
to realize their potential by exercising free will, although common traits (such as extroversion)
and the personal experiences they accrue as a result of may be shared by many people from the same
free will, shape personality. Their view suggests that culture. “Cardinal” traits are those that are so
people can take responsibility for who they want to be. dominant that they come to define a person—for
example, altruism and Nelson Mandela.

150 151PSYCHOLOGY IN THE REAL WORLD
Psychology of self-identity

A number of prevailing theories attempt to (environmental) play a role in personality. The Big Five
understand how people’s individual personalities personality theory (below) is now widely used to
develop, and to classify personality traits or types. categorize and measure the different characteristics
Whereas the biological outlook implies that personality or traits that make up an individual’s personality.
traits are fixed, other approaches, such as the It implies that personality can be malleable—while
humanistic and behaviorist theories, indicate that some traits remain stable and consistent, others may
environmental factors and experiences modify change how they manifest themselves or take greater
personality over time. Research using studies of twins prominence, depending on the type of situation the
suggests that both nature (biological) and nurture individual finds themselves in.

The Big Five personality theory

The most popular and widely accepted model of personality, the Big Five
suggests that personality comprises five broad dimensions. Each individual’s
personality lies somewhere along the spectrum of these five traits.

LOW SCORE TRAIT HIGH SCORE
Practical; inflexible; Curious; creative;
O Openness adventurous; open to
prefers routine; Includes imagination, insight, abstract concepts
conventional feelings, and ideas Dependable; hard-
working; organized;
Impulsive; C Conscientiousness
disorganized; dislikes Includes thoughtfulness, competence, detail-driven
impulse control, and goal setting Outgoing; articulate;
structure; careless affectionate; friendly;

Quiet; withdrawn; E Extroversion talkative
reserved; prefers Includes sociability, assertiveness, Helpful; empathetic;
and expressiveness trusting; caring; polite;
solitude
amiable
Critical; suspicious; A Agreeableness Anxious; easily upset;
uncooperative; Includes cooperativeness, trustworthiness,
altruism, and kindheartedness unhappy; stressed;
insulting; manipulative moody

Calm; secure; N Neuroticism
emotionally stable; Includes levels of calmness and
emotional stability
relaxed

CASE STUDY: STANFORD PRISON EXPERIMENT

In 1971 at Stanford University, “I practicallybrutally and the prisoners took their
psychologists set up a simulation of
prison life. A group of young men took extreme suffering so submissively.
on the roles of guards; others, those The study implies not only that all
of prisoners. The experiment was
terminated after six days because the considered thepeople harbor ugly traits, but also that
guards behaved so abusively and
environment and circumstances can

prisoners cattle.”shape behavior and attitudes—

effectively altering personality. Stanford University “prison guard”

Self-actualization

This concept attempts to describe what motivates people. Self-actualization
It explains the different goals in life that shape behavior,
and how individuals can realize their full potential.

What is it? Fulfillment

Associated with the theories of humanist psychology When a person achieves
(pp.18–19), self-actualization means an individual’s a self-actualized state, they
desire to realize their full potential. In 1943 are doing all that they are
psychologist Abraham Maslow proposed that self- capable of.
actualization formed the pinnacle of a “hierarchy of
needs” that all people strive to fulfill. At the bottom LOSS OF STANDING
of the hierarchy are basic survival needs; once these
are satisfied, individuals aspire to fulfill more abstract Esteem
concrete goals. These include social needs (for love
and belonging), the need for esteem and respect, and The individual strives for recognition
finally a sense of purpose that is achieved only when from others, prestige, and a sense of
people fulfill their true potential—creatively, achievement, which gives them confidence
spiritually, professionally—in whatever realm is in their abilities and boosts self-esteem.
meaningful to them.
Psychological DIVORCE

Hierarchy of needs Belonging and love FAMILY

An individual strives to satisfy

Maslow thought that people’s their psychological need for love
behavior is motivated by their desire and belonging through close
to fulfill a set of needs. Once lower relationships, family, friends,
needs have been met, people are and within their community.

motivated not by deficiencies, JOB LOSS

but by a desire for fulfillment

and growth. “Peak” Safety
experiences are possible
A person’s need for ENOUGH MONEY HOME
when people have
stability, physical security,
reached the highest
foreseeable employment,
state of personal
resources, health, and property
growth.
must be met in order for them to
Basic
feel safe and free of fear.

Physiological FOOD/WATER SLEEP
zzz
A person must satisfy their basic needs
for air, food, drink, shelter, warmth, and
rest. These needs are usually met in
childhood, and must be a given in adulthood
before an individual can start seeking higher
needs that make life meaningful.

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Psychology of self-identity

Barriers to personal growth STEPS TOWARD
SELF-ACTUALIZATION
Maslow believed that every person desires and is
❯❯Do not compare Instead of measuring yourself against
capable of self-actualization, but only 1 percent others, concentrate on your own personal progress.

of people ever achieve it. Lower-level needs often ❯❯Accept Rather than being self-critical, accept and
understand your strengths and weaknesses.
resurface throughout life, which make progression
❯❯Let go of defense mechanisms Denying unpleasant
to self-actualization impossible. Life experiences such facts or feelings or regressing into childlike behavior are
examples of mechanisms that hold you back. Find new
as divorce, bereavement, or losing a job mean that and more creative ways to react to situations.

people struggle to meet their needs for financial ❯❯Make honest choices Examine your true motives so
you make genuine choices and act with integrity.
security, safety, love, or esteem, and cannot fulfill
❯❯Experience life fully Immerse yourself in the moment
their psychological, creative, and personal to truly enjoy experiences.

potential. The pressures of today’s ❯❯Trust your personal abilities Adopt a positive outlook
so you feel in control and can deal with life’s challenges.
hypercompetitive, information-driven
❯❯Keep growing Self-actualization is a continuous
PR society also mitigate against self- process, so seek new challenges.
actualization. People receive constant
ESTIGE/RESPECT
messages that they should be doing

more, working harder, earning

more, or socializing more,

depriving them of the quiet

reflection time necessary

BEREAVEMENT for personal growth.

ITYFRIENDS/COMMUN “What a man can be, he
must be. This need we call
ILLNESS self-actualization.”
S
Abraham Maslow, American psychologist

FUTURE SECURITY HEALTH NEED TO KNOW

❯❯Peak experience Moment of
transcendence or true fulfillment
that reflects self-actualization.

❯❯Purpose A sense of meaning that
self-actualization brings.

❯❯“Deficit” needs Lower-hierarchy

C survival needs that are missing.
❯❯“Being”/growth needs Needs
HELTER/WARMTH LOTHING
linked to personal development.

The psychology
of relationships

Psychologists who specialize in relationships are primarily concerned with how
relationships work and why they either flourish or break down. The modern
approach to relationship psychology is based on the premise that people choose
their partners through a combination of biological, social, and environmental
factors, and that a key impetus for individuals to build romantic liaisons and
families is their genetic drive to form and maintain relationships.

Theories of attachment COUPLES THERAPY

Psychologist John Bowlby first developed attachment When it emerged as a psychological tool in the 1990s,
theory in 1958, backed by research into both human couples therapy was aimed at getting two individuals
relationships and those of other species. According to to agree to bury their differences. However, based on
Bowlby, a child’s earliest experiences dictate what extensive research by John Gottman at the University
kind of relationships they form as adults. Multiple of Seattle, therapists now recognize that conflict in a
studies support this theory, including Harry Harlow’s relationship is inevitable. Couples therefore should try to:
experiments with rhesus monkeys in the 1950s and
1960s. His findings showed that monkeys who were ❯❯Accept conflict and repair rifts.
denied the affection of their own mother grew up to
be more timid, less sure of how to behave with other ❯❯Improve communication rather than burying their
monkeys, and less able to mate. In the 1970s, Mary feelings and growing emotionally distant.
Ainsworth built on previous experiments, observing
interactions between human mothers and infants ❯❯Be emotionally open and overcome fears of
through a one-way mirror. She concluded that children expressing a need for closeness.
with mothers who were highly responsive to their
needs developed a sense of security in their
attachment that children with less sensitive mothers
lacked. This security, or lack of it, forms the foundation
of adult relationships (pp.156–157).

“The quality of your COUPLES THAT PLAY TOGETHER STAY TOGETHER by
life is … the quality of enjoying small moments of daily life together, which helps
your relationships.” to build a strong relationship.

Anthony Robbins, American author and life coach

154 155PSYCHOLOGY IN THE REAL WORLD
The psychology of relationships

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The stages of love

Psychologists have explanations
for what happens at every stage of a
relationship, from the emotional perils
of dating through the initial heady feeling of
falling in love to either fulfillment or heartbreak.
The skills required to negotiate and maintain
a relationship are established early on in life
when a person forms an attachment to a parent
or caregiver, although they can still be refined and
built on in adulthood.

Psychology
and attachment

One of the dominant theories in relationship psychology is that a person’s
childhood experience of attachment, and in particular, that formed with
a caregiver, influences how they behave with a partner as an adult.

Bonding as a baby instinctive need to form attachments in order to
survive; that everyone needs to have one close,
The principle that the way in which a person bonds continuous bond for the first two years of their life;
as a baby can dictate how they bond as an adult grew and that failure in this process may cause depression,
out of the pioneering work of John Bowlby. Like heightened aggression, suppressed intelligence, and
psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud, he was interested difficulty showing affection as a child and later in life.
in how early childhood experience affects later life.
Bowlby, whose theories were published in the 1950s Over the ensuing decades, psychologists expanded
and 1960s, believed that everyone is born with an and refined Bowlby’s hypothesis, creating experiments

ATTACHMENT STYLES

Childhood attachment Adulthood attachment

SECURE LEADS TO SECURE
When a child feels sure that their needs are met, As an adult, they feel confident in relationships
they develop a secure attachment. The caregiver and are willing to ask for help from a partner, as
is sensitive to the child’s needs, responding well as offer support and comfort to their partner
quickly and regularly. The child is happy enough when necessary. They retain independence but
to explore their environment and feels secure. are loving toward their partner.

AMBIVALENT LEADS TO ANXIOUS‑PREOCCUPIED
The child does not believe the caregiver can be Constant fear of rejection drives this adult to be
relied on to meet their needs. The caregiver’s clingy, demanding, and bordering on obsessive,
behavior is inconsistent—they are sometimes not wanting to be separated from their partner
sensitive but other times neglectful. The child at all. Their relationships are driven by emotional
becomes anxious, insecure, and angry. hunger rather than real love and trust.

AVOIDANT LEADS TO DISMISSIVE‑AVOIDANT
If the caregiver is distant and somewhat Emotionally distant, the adult appears self-
unresponsive to the child’s needs, that child also focused and independent. The independence is
becomes emotionally distant, subconsciously an illusion, a result of denying the importance of
detecting that their needs are unlikely to be met. loved ones. If their partner is upset and threatens
The child does not develop a secure attachment. to end the relationship, they appear not to care.

DISORGANIZED LEADS TO FEARFUL‑AVOIDANT
The unpredictable caregiver scares the child, The adult swings from one extreme to another,
either by being abusive or because of their own is emotionally unpredictable, and may end up
passive, frightened state. The distressed child in an abusive relationship. They are torn between
grows withdrawn, unresponsive, and confused, seeking comfort from their partner and being
with no strategy for having their needs met. afraid to get too close for fear of being hurt.

156 157PSYCHOLOGY IN THE REAL WORLD
The psychology of relationships

to observe how infants behave with their mothers or attaching to other people. These styles of attachment
other caregivers. This research revealed that the key in emerge during early childhood and go on to shape
developing attachment is not who feeds or changes the relationship choices and behavior in adulthood. Today
infant but who communicates and plays with them. It psychologists have recognized four attachment styles
also showed that individuals develop different ways of in childhood and four linked attachments in adulthood.

ROMANTIC ATTACHMENTS

To form a successful romantic relationship, it helps to the original three attachment styles that psychologist
understand how the different adult attachment styles Mary Ainsworth’s 1970s psychological experiments
work in partnerships. People with secure attachment (p.154) revealed. A minority of people can have both
styles generally have the most stable relationships; those anxious and avoidant qualities, in which case they
with less secure styles need to work harder at cementing should learn about how both anxious-preoccupied and
a romantic partnership. The pairings below are based on dismissive-avoidant types behave in different pairings.

ANXIOUS- ANXIOUS- ANXIOUS- DISMISSIVE- ANXIOUS- SECURE
PREOCCUPIED PREOCCUPIED PREOCCUPIED AVOIDANT PREOCCUPIED

This coupling may have a passionate This difficult pairing reinforces the In this partnership the secure partner
relationship but, given the emotional couple’s self-images. The anxious can help the anxious one become
intensity of both partners, there may person fears rejection so has to grow less so, since each party seeks
also be extreme highs and lows that stronger for the relationship to last. intimacy, and the secure person
ultimately pull the couple apart. The avoidant fears intimacy so needs is able to calm their partner’s
to grow closer to their partner. anxieties and meet their needs.

DISMISSIVE- DISMISSIVE- DISMISSIVE- SECURE SECURE SECURE
AVOIDANT AVOIDANT AVOIDANT

This pairing rarely results in a A potentially strong coupling, the With both partners easily able to
long-term relationship since neither secure person can help the avoidant share intimacy and communicate
person can commit. Most avoidant feel less trapped by giving them their needs and concerns, this should
individuals desire to connect with space, which in turn encourages be a perfect match, providing
someone, but another avoidant is the avoidant to relax, enjoy, and learn fulfillment to both parties.
unlikely to bridge the gap. to be intimate in the relationship.

The science of love

Psychologists have carried out numerous scientific studies as they
attempt to understand the process of falling in love and analyze how
a person’s mind works when they are in love.

The rewards of romance The theory proposed that one of the main reasons
one person becomes attracted to another is due to
A scientific approach to the reason that people fall in regular close physical proximity. In another study in
love or commit to a relationship may seem contrary to the 1980s, Caryl Rusbult observed the relationships
the idea of romance, but psychologists have proposed of college students and came up with a mathematical
some interesting explanations. explanation as to why people chose to commit or not,
and why they may stay in an unhappy relationship.
In the 1960s Robert Zajonc put forward a theory Her Investment Model put forward an equation that
called the Mere Exposure Effect, which was based on
observations of people in the same apartment building.

Sternberg’s Triangular Commitment Fatuous
Theory of Love Love
A short-term decision to
According to psychologist Robert Sternberg, love a particular person and Passion
the ideal form of love combines intimacy,
passion, and commitment to create a long-term promise to The physical
consummate love. Sternberg imagined maintain that love are key attraction that may
the three components as the interactive to fulfilling a partner, but
sides of a triangle. For example, greater commitment by itself is an have ignited the
commitment may lead to greater relationship is a
intimacy, while greater intimacy empty form of love. prime component
may lead to greater passion. in keeping love alive,
Relationships can have a Companionate but on its own is just
combination of any of the Love
three components, resulting infatuation.
in one of eight different Consummate Love
types of love.

Intimacy The ideal love has all
three components:
intimacy, commitment,

and passion.

Nonlove Feeling close and Romantic
connected is part of Love
No components a loving relationship,
are present. but if this is the only
component it results
in liking rather than

true intimacy.

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suggested that Commitment = Investment + CHEMICAL ATTRACTION
(Rewards – Costs) – Attractive Alternatives.
By taking blood samples from research subjects in
More recently, anthropologist Helen Fisher and different stages of a relationship, scientists have
her colleagues identified three stages of falling measured the changes that take place in hormone levels
in love—lust, attraction, and attachment—which at each stage of a relationship, from the first rush of
are in part governed by humans’ innate need to desire through deep attraction to commitment.
reproduce for species survival, though people are
usually unaware of this deep-seated urge. Each ❯❯Lust The sex hormones—testosterone in men and
stage of love is driven by chemicals that affect estrogen in women—drive this first stage of love.
both emotions and behavior.
❯❯Attraction Adrenaline provides a rush of excitement,
The chemistry of love quickening the pulse; dopamine gives more energy
and less need for sleep and food; and serotonin fuels
Many studies point to the role played by the brain’s a happy feeling as well as sexual desire.
chemical reactions when a person falls in love.
Scientists believe that neurotransmitters flood the ❯❯Attachment Oxytocin, which is released during
brain with chemicals, such as adrenaline, dopamine, orgasm, makes a person feel closer to their partner
and serotonin, that make the person feel on a high, and after sex; vasopressin is also released after sex and is
cause them to constantly think about their partner. thought to promote an individual’s sense of devotion
This physical reaction is reflected in their behavior. to their partner.
According to research, desire in the first few minutes
of meeting is displayed through body language and
the tone and speed of voice rather than what is said.

In a study in Italy, psychologists took blood samples
from newly infatuated couples and revealed that their
serotonin levels were similar to those found in people
with OCD (pp.56–57). Scent plays a part, too—a Swiss
study found that women preferred the smell of men
whose immune systems were genetically different
from their own. Though not a conscious preference,
their choice of men who had genetically different
immune systems would, if translated into a real-life
pairing, produce the healthiest offspring.

“Romantic love is … a drive. THE SENSE OF SMELL and chemical reactions in the brain are
It comes from the motor two invisible factors in the mating game and can start a rapid
of the mind, the wanting reaction—it takes between 90 seconds and 4 minutes for a
part of the mind, the person to decide whether they are attracted to someone.
craving part of the mind.”

Helen Fisher, American anthropologist and researcher

How dating works

Most relationships begin with a date, but this process can often be
an anxious one. Understanding the psychology behind dating can
help people succeed and help them determine a good match.

The quest for love start to bloom around the second- observe how the date responds and
or third-date stage. While there behaves in order to evaluate how
Advice on dating may seem is no fail-safe formula for dating good a potential match they would
the domain of pop psychology, success, psychologists emphasize make. However, miscommunication
but research into the science of the importance of keeping an open and heightened sensitivity can
relationships has yielded useful mind. Physical attraction is usually undermine the dating process by
insights into how people behave apparent within the first few causing people to jump to incorrect
during dates, and how to improve minutes of meeting someone, yet conclusions—for example, that a
the chances of romance. according to research, around 20 delayed response to a text signals
percent of spouses did not wholly a lack of interest, or the fact that
Psychologists advise adopting like their partners at first, and only someone who is not ready to say
the same approach whether finding warmed to them on later dates. “I love you” means that they do not
a partner through traditional or wish to continue the relationship.
online dating. Dating is a numbers For a person who is looking for
game, and so the chances of a serious relationship, there is a
finding a compatible partner are simple psychological strategy to
slim. The first date should therefore employ: a person should gradually
be short—an initial screening— reveal their likes and hopes, and
since most serious relationships

Signs that dates like each other

There are some obvious cues to look for on a first date, while
others are so unconscious that they may go unnoticed. As well
as body language and speech, there are various theories about
what draws people to one partner rather than another.

THE BODY LANGUAGE OF ATTRACTION

❯❯Dilating pupils ❯❯Leaning in toward date
❯❯Tilting the head slightly ❯❯Pulling sleeves up to show wrist

❯❯Looking at eyes-lips-eyes (the ❯❯Touching accidentally
“flirty triangle”)
❯❯Pointing feet at date
❯❯Smiling to project positive vibes
❯❯Changing the volume or pitch
❯❯Mirroring body language of voice (women)

❯❯Stroking hair, fiddling with ❯❯Laughing, interrupting, and
necklace, blushing varying volume of speech (men)

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The psychology of relationships

Matching hypothesis Filter modeling

According to the matching According to Alan Kerckhoff and Keith Davis, relationships go
theory developed by Elaine through three filtering stages. The first involves assessing similarities
Hatfield and her colleagues,
in background, education, and location; the second, looking for
people are likely to form similar beliefs and attitudes; and the third, complementing each
relationships with those
who resemble them and other’s needs. People who are too different are filtered out.
hold a similar social position
and level of intelligence. Reward/need theory Social exchange
Such individuals are more
attainable than someone Donn Byrne and Gerald Caryl Rusbult’s theory (p.158)
“out of a person’s league.” Clore’s theory shows that indicates that people stay in
people are most attracted to a relationship if the benefits,
potential partners who meet such as gifts, outweigh costs,
their needs for friendship, including time and money
sex, love, and feeling good.
invested in it.

First-date self-disclosure

People expect that when they reveal information about themselves
on a first date it will be reciprocated. If their date does not follow
suit, the person may be revealing too much, or their date may not
be interested. If a date does like the person who discloses first,
however, they will probably like them even more for sharing.

DATING COACHING

For those who are having trouble presentation, and how to pace the
attracting a long-term partner or feel rate of self-disclosure. A dating coach
they are attracting the wrong kind of can also explore any psychological
person, a psychologically qualified barriers that a client may be putting
dating coach may be able to help. up; can help the client to develop a
Dating coaches train their clients to realistic profile of the kind of person
communicate more confidently and they want to meet; and can advise
to hone important dating skills such them on strategies for meeting more
as flirting, body language, personal compatible prospects.

Psychology and the
stages of relationships

Psychologists have developed frameworks that explain
how relationships grow and break down, and help people
recognize the phases and navigate between them.

The stages of a relationship Tools for maintaining

After decades of study, psychologists have determined what ❯❯Forgive minor transgressions,
most people experience in life but are often too blinded by downplay faults, and emphasize
love to see. Relationships are built in stages, and each stage each other’s virtues to keep
brings its own developments, along with challenges that closeness in the relationship.
both parties have to meet before moving on to the next level.
❯❯Spend time together as a couple.
One of the most cited relationship models is that of
psychologist Mark Knapp, who visualized a flight of stairs Bonding
going up to explain how a partnership builds, a plateau
where the two maintain the bond, and a flight of stairs down The couple’s lives are fully
intertwined. They make their love
Knapp’s relationship model public and may discuss marriage
or some other permanent bond.
Envisaged as a metaphor for relationships building and breaking
down, Knapp’s staircase has five steps up as a relationship builds Integrating
step by step—and five steps back down in the event of a couple
breaking up. His model provides an insight into where things can The relationship becomes much closer,
go wrong and the different challenges that couples may face. and the couple integrates aspects of their
lives. Both are willing to be vulnerable,
including making declarations of love.

Intensifying

Both parties start to reveal more personal
information and let their guard down. Feelings
intensify as they nurture the relationship, and
both sides start to expect commitment.

COMING TOGETHER ROMANTIC Experimenting
RELATIONSHIPS
The two parties discover more about each other,
probing for information and common interests
so that they can make a decision as to whether
to continue in the relationship.

Initiating

Usually a very short stage, this is when first
impressions count. Dates express an interest
and size each other up, taking into account
appearance, dress, body language, and voice.

162 163PSYCHOLOGY IN THE REAL WORLD
The psychology of relationships

if a relationship deteriorates. By segmenting these may also skip whole steps if the relationship is either
processes into clear steps, Knapp’s model offers progressing or unraveling rapidly.
couples the tools to work out where they are in a
relationship at any given time, predict where it may Progress and decline
be going, and make necessary changes. The speed at
which partners negotiate these steps may vary. They After analyzing her own marriage, psychologist Anne
Levinson developed a simple five-stage model for how
the relationship relationships progress and decline. She applied this
not only to romantic partnerships but also to consumer
❯❯Merge friendship networks. relationships, and likened the rapport between sexual
❯❯Do favors for one another; partners as similar to that between a brand and
shoppers, who are seduced, are won over, commit for a
be willing to put own needs time, and then either stay committed or move on for
on hold to help partner. a range of reasons. The first stage of her model is
❯❯Maintain mutual affection levels. Attraction, followed by Build-up and Commitment,

Differing before Deterioration if the
partnership is not working,
As the pressures of life cause stress, and finally Ending.
both people see themselves less as
a couple and more as individuals.
Their bond seems to be broken.

Circumscribing 48% COMING APART

Brewing resentment creates barriers of men fall in
and reduces levels of communication. love at first sight
The couple may even stop meaningful compared to
communication for fear of an argument. 28% of women

Stagnating

The relationship declines rapidly and
is unlikely to improve. Communication
is even more limited. But some couples
may stay together for their children.

Avoiding

Communication is nonexistent and the pair
lead separate lives, even if under the same roof.
They may be tempted to get back together to
avoid the painful reality of a permanent split.

Terminating

The relationship is over. Married couples finalize
divorce. Both parties move to separate homes,
if they have not already done so, and lead their
own separate lives.

PSYCHOLOGY AND THE STAGES OF RELATIONSHIPS

Talking to each other than the other, they may feel that “sudden death” due to a violation
the other is less invested in the of trust. Relationship expert John
The way in which a couple relationship. Revealing intimate Gottman also explains breakups
communicates can have a dramatic information too early on can also as a direct consequence of poor
effect on their relationship, and be intimidating when neither communication (below and right).
awareness of conversational person feels ready to commit.
patterns can make the difference The finish line
between a relationship growing Good communication is crucial to
and falling apart. Psychologists keep a relationship from declining, Negative communication can kill a
maintain that a person can improve but sometimes this is still not couple’s love in four stages, according
their partner choices from the enough. Social psychologist Steve to research by John Gottman and
outset as well as the quality of their Duck identifies four ways in which fellow psychologists Coan, Carrere,
relationships by understanding the a relationship breaks down: and Swanson. Their explanation for
mechanisms of communication and “preexisting doom” due to a basic how this happens is called The Four
looking for warning signs. mismatch; “mechanical failure” Horsemen of the Apocalypse after the
because of poor communication; biblical harbingers of doom because
From the opening moments of “process loss” from not reaching each stage is an omen of the death
meeting a potential partner, how its full potential, again because of of a relationship.
much an individual reveals about a lack of communication; and
themselves—what psychologists call
self-disclosure—has a significant 65%
impact on what happens next. Early of divorces stem from
on, most couples share as much communication problems
information as possible with each
other, starting with superficial
topics and moving on to more
personal details such as hopes for
the future. However, if one partner
reveals much more information

COMMUNICATION IN RELATIONSHIPS

American professor of psychology Reactive listening Active listening
John Gottman is renowned for his
research into family systems and Taking things personally and feeling The person should focus on
marriage. His ideas have been defensive about what a partner is expressing how they feel about
hugely influential in relationship saying is almost guaranteed to inflame a situation rather than making
psychology and in couples therapy, the conversation. Instead of instantly sweeping statements. When
and form the basis of The Gottman denying what is being said, with replies responding, Gottman recommends
Method Couple’s Therapy. After such as “That’s not true” and “No, I starting sentences with “I” instead
observing thousands of couples, don’t,” the key, according to Gottman, of “You”—for example, “I feel you
Gottman maintains that a gentle is for a person to be realistic and reflect are not listening to me,” rather than
communication style—which involves on whether their own behavior may “You’re not listening”—to diffuse a
active, not reactive, listening—enables have been annoying. Turning the potentially volatile conversation.
couples to recover and repair the tables on a partner to deflect self- Controlling tone of voice and
damage after a serious argument. indignation, with comments along the volume reinforces this conciliatory
lines of “At least I’m not …” or “You’re and constructive approach to
overreacting,” is to be avoided. resolving differences.

CRITICISM 164 165PSYCHOLOGY IN THE REAL WORLD BREAKUP
DEFENSIVENESS The psychology of relationships
CONTEMPT
STONEWALLING

CRITICISM DEFENSIVENESS CONTEMPT STONEWALLING

Stage 1 Verbally Stage 2 Reacting Stage 3 Being Stage 4 Withdrawing
attacking a partner’s negatively to criticism rude and showing by cutting off physical
character or by making excuses open disrespect and emotional contact
personality rather and blaming the through facial with a partner, who
than tackling the other person, expressions such feels abandoned
annoying behavior rather than taking as rolling the eyes. and rejected.
together. This can responsibility for a Both parties have Stonewalling can
make the other person part in the conflict. to work hard to happen when the
feel negatively about This increases feelings regain respect from first three stages are
themselves. of dissatisfaction. one another. overwhelming.

Constructive Constructive Constructive Constructive
alternative alternative alternative alternative

Actively listen to your Be prepared to Think about causes of Let your partner know
partner, and express apologize for your your own behavior when you need time to
your feelings about own behavior and to and why it is hard to yourself to think, and
them rather than take responsibility for express upset feelings resume conversation
attacking them directly. it if appropriate. Listen in a constructive way. when you are ready.
Focus on explaining to your partner and Focus on your partner’s This way, your partner
why their behavior try to understand their positive attributes will understand that
annoys you rather than dissatisfaction; try not instead of keeping your aim is not to
their personal qualities. to take it personally. score of their flaws. reject them.

Psychology
in education

The primary aim of educational psychology is to identify the most effective
ways of learning. Educational psychologists research and observe how the
brain processes information and solves problems, how memory works, and how
external factors such as peers and even classroom layouts can affect learners.
Their research can then be applied to help children and adults as they learn
and to help those with behavioral and learning issues, too.

Strategies to
improve learning

Educational psychologists can suggest a range
of strategies to help learners improve how they
acquire and retain information. Encouraging
students to work alone to achieve their own goals
can be beneficial, but it is also important to share
knowledge and work together to improve group
solidarity and foster confidence.

“The principal goal HOW WE LEARN
of education in the
schools should be Individuals retain information best
creating men and when they are motivated to learn and
women … capable of are committed to improving their skills.
doing new things.” Working alone fosters independence
and a sense of individual achievement.
Jean Piaget, Swiss clinical psychologist

166 167PSYCHOLOGY IN THE REAL WORLD
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WHERE EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGISTS WORK

❯❯Schools The most common ❯❯Businesses In the corporate ❯❯Government Here psychologists
employment settings for educational setting, educational psychologists provide vital support as they advise
psychologists are schools and may work in-house or as consultants on educational policy. They develop
educational institutions. Here they for companies wanting to improve curriculums and learning strategies
advise on how to improve teaching the effectiveness of their staff. for teachers in the state school
effectiveness by offering analysis They develop and administer system, advise on ways to help
and programs. They instruct on psychometric testing to screen children with learning difficulties, and
better ways to manage classrooms, new recruits for ability and honesty, train the staff who provide such
train teachers, and identify problem and run specialist training for staff support. Their role also involves
learners and instigate special to improve employee motivation helping to train specialist personnel,
education when needed. and performance. especially for military roles.

CLASSROOM STRUCTURE TEACHING METHODS

Activities in small groups encourage Teachers can use a range of tools to
questions and build confidence. If reinforce learning, such as using more
a learning environment is emotionally than one way to explain each concept,
and physically safe, individuals are breaking down information into chunks,
and encouraging active participation.
more likely to test ideas.

Educational theories

The complex methods by which people process, memorize, and retrieve
information—and then develop independent thought—can be interpreted
through a range of theories.

In the classroom the classroom can be beneficial. An early, but still
dominant, idea is cognitive learning theory (CLT),
As science and research techniques have advanced, based on the work of influential psychologist Jean
Piaget. CLT proposes that learning is the result
so have ideas about how the mind receives new

information and retains it. Applying these ideas in

Piaget’s theory of
cognitive development

Jean Piaget believed that as SENSORIMOTOR STAGE PREOPERATIONAL STAGE
people develop from babies to (0−2 YEARS) (2−7 YEARS)
adults, they build a vast series of
knowledge units that shape the The first knowledge to develop is Children begin to develop language abilities
way they understand the world. understanding that an object can exist even but do not yet grasp logic. However, they are
Every time they encounter starting to use symbols and understand that
something new, they draw on when it cannot be seen, known as object
their previous knowledge to permanence—for example, knowing that an object can represent something else—
assimilate it. When they cannot, a toy is simply hidden under a blanket. pretending a doll is a person, for example.
they are forced to learn and
accommodate new information.

TESTING IDEAS IN PRACTICE EXPERIENCE Race’s ripple theory
Devised by Professor Phil Race, the ripple model offers
Kolb’s experiential learning cycle an alternative to Kolb’s cycle. It involves four integrated
David Kolb built on Piaget’s work, processes that intersect like ripples on a pond, with a
publishing his four-part theory in 1984. His basic need or desire at its core.
cycle of learning has four connected stages
that form a continuing process. Initially, OBSERVATIONS/REPETITIONS ❯❯1. Motivation Learning 4-FEEDBACK
concrete experiences lead to reflective starts with an aspiration. 3-DIGESTING
observations about what has been
experienced. These observations are then ❯❯2. Practice Trial and 2-DOING
translated into abstract concepts—in other error drives action
words, ideas are developed. The fourth and discovery.
stage is putting these ideas into practice,
which Kolb called “active experimentation.” ❯❯3. Making sense 1-NEEDING/
Discoveries are WANTING
DEVELOPMENT OF IDEAS digested.

❯❯4. Seeing results
Feedback affects
motivation.

168 169PSYCHOLOGY IN THE REAL WORLD
Psychology in education

of mental processes, which are influenced by internal Under these influences, an individual learns through a
and external factors. An example of an internal factor number of mechanisms. One is observing and copying
would be a person’s belief about their own ability— other people. Another is being encouraged by teachers
students who believe they can improve their or parents to put what they have learned into action,
capability will be more likely to progress in their which reinforces it. Practice or repetition is also a
learning, whereas those who believe they are stuck critical part of learning, as is reproduction—the
with a certain level of intellect are unlikely to learn replication of newly learned behavior and adjustment,
as effectively. External factors might be a teacher if necessary, based on the
who is supportive or a safe learning environment.
feedback given by others.

CONCRETE OPERATIONAL STAGE FORMAL OPERATIONAL STAGE ADULTS CONTINUE TO LEARN
(7−11 YEARS) (ADOLESCENCE−ADULTHOOD) Using everything they have acquired
As young teenagers progress to adulthood, during the development stages, adults go
Now children start to think logically. For they acquire the ability to think abstractly on to expand their learning. Moving
example, they understand that a portion and to logically test hypotheses. They can beyond Piaget's theory and continuing to
remains the same even though it may change imagine potential outcomes to situations, learn new skills throughout adulthood
in appearance, such as a quantity of water which allows them to problem solve and plan. can strengthen cognition and memory.
poured from one glass into two glasses.

SOCIAL LEARNING THEORY

Developed by Albert Bandura, social learning theory centers on how behavior is learned, and combines the cognitive
approach (where internal mental processes influence learning) and the behavioral approach (where learning is a result of
environmental stimuli). It argues that children learn by copying other people who serve as models, and who can influence
a child’s behavior positively or negatively. The theory posits four requirements for learning positive behavior:

Attention Retention Reproduction Motivation

The individual A memory Mental and The individual
must take of the behavior physical practice must have a
notice of the behaviors or attitude that has been of what has been observed reason to reproduce what
they are exposed to. If observed needs to form so is key to improving and they observe. If they know
the behavior is novel that it can be referred to changing behavior. With that they will be punished
or different in some way and acted on later in a practice, an individual or rewarded for acting in a
it is more likely to focus situation similar to that in can reproduce learned certain way, they are more
an individual's attention. which it was learned. behavior when required. likely to alter their conduct.

EDUCATIONAL THEORIES

How learning works change brain structure. The area performance of the brain, and the
of the brain required for paying way in which people learn can
The field of neuroscience has close attention is used when significantly enhance the brain’s
increasingly overlapped with learning something new (the ability to absorb and retain new
psychology as discoveries about conscious area), but with repeated information, too (right).
the chemistry of the brain have training of a particular task, activity
helped psychologists understand switches to the unconscious area Exercise
how we process information. of the brain. Neurons also begin
New technologies such as fMRI to fire more frequently when a skill
(functional magnetic resonance is repeatedly practiced correctly,
imaging) have enabled scientists to thus making the messages passing
map brain activity, revealing how between them stronger.
it changes when we learn.
Studies have also shown that
Research pioneered by lifestyle changes, such as diet
neuroscientist Nathan Spreng has and stress control, affect the
revealed that practicing a task can

“… imagining particular behaviors Physical activity stimulates the
can change brain structure.” production of neurotransmitter chemicals
(pp.28−29), such as dopamine, which the
John B. Arden, American author and director of mental health programs brain uses to make, interpret, and transfer
signals within it and the body.

GAGNE’S HIERARCHY OF LEARNING

American educational psychologist 1 SIGNAL LEARNING 2 STIMULUS RESPONSE LEARNING
Robert Gagne devised a classification Individuals can be conditioned to A system of rewards and
system for different types of learning, punishments is used to reinforce a
increasing in complexity from 1 to 8. respond in a desired way to a stimulus that desired response. For example, a child
If each step is completed in order, would not normally produce that
learners build on their skills and their response. For example, on seeing a hot learns to say thank you when prompted
engagement and retention increase. by their mother, and is praised in reward
object they automatically withdraw their (see operant conditioning, pp.16−17).
hand (see classical conditioning, pp.16−17).

3 CHAINING 4 VERBAL ASSOCIATION 5 DISCRIMINATION LEARNING
People learn to string together The next step in Gagne’s system Individuals learn to differentiate,
several previously learned nonverbal is being able to put together separate, or discriminate, among chains of
stimulus response actions—for example, previously learned verbal skills—for information, both physical and
picking up a ruler, lining it up against two example, a child describing “my fluffy conceptual. An example of this is a
points on a piece of paper, and drawing teddy bear” instead of just “bear.” This Spanish speaker learning Italian, which
a line between them. is key for developing language skills. has many similar words.

6 CONCEPT LEARNING 7 RULE LEARNING 8 PROBLEM-SOLVING
In this stage, people learn The main type of learning required The most complex learning task,
this requires individuals to select and
relationships between different concepts for basic day-to-day functioning, rule organize previously learned sets of rules,
and learn to differentiate between them. learning shapes behavior so that people
Individuals grasp the skills of learning by can speak, write, and carry out routine chain them into a new set of rules, test
them, and decide on the best solution to
example and by being able to generalize activities, all of which are governed by a new challenge.
and categorize. basic rules.

170 171PSYCHOLOGY IN THE REAL WORLD
Psychology in education

Plenty of sleep Research has shown a etition and prac Neuroscience has shown
direct link between hours that the more a person
slept and grades achieved practices something—with
at school. For teenagers the feedback to correct their
optimum number is 9 hours practice—the stronger
15 minutes, according to and faster their nerve
sleep expert Dr. James Maas. impulses become due to
Slow in tice increased production of
Repaterial a special neuron coating
called myelin.

troduction of m

Visualization

New material should be learned The more senses that are
in small chunks to maximize the used for remembering
ability to process and retain it— information, the better the
15 minutes of learning content is brain can absorb it. For
advised, followed by a short example, imagining your
period of resting time before hands on a piano while
introducing the next chunk. reading the notes when
learning a new composition
can enhance memorization.

Changing the brain

Psychologists with a special interest in education have
researched how the brain can be reprogrammed to improve
the outcomes of learning. A few simple strategies can make
a big difference, but it is only in the past few decades that
hypotheses have been backed by experiments.

The psychology
of teaching

An important niche for educational psychologists is teacher training,
and a large body of research has resulted from developing and testing
ideas to help teachers become more effective in the classroom.

What teachers can do not set themselves high aspirations going forward.
This in turn leads to poor academic performance,
Teachers can help their students fundamentally which continues the student’s cycle of self-doubt.
improve how they learn by refocusing them on the If teachers can help students to grasp that success
idea of competence instead of a belief in innate or failure in a task is not related to ability but to the
intelligence. By increasing a student’s belief in their amount of practice and effort applied, then it keeps
ability to do well, known as self-efficacy, educational students motivated rather than feeling demoralized.
psychologists believe that a student’s cognitive
functioning and motivation improve. Students with Learning goals
high self-efficacy are more likely to take on challenges
and make an effort to perform well at these if they There are two types of learning goals that
believe they can succeed. With low self-efficacy, teachers can set: performance goals and mastery
students see any failure as a setback and will therefore goals. Performance goals rely on the student’s own
competence in order to achieve a specific level—for
THE LEARNING PYRAMID example, getting an A in French. Mastery goals
emphasize the student’s perseverance and desire
Research from the US National Training Laboratories to learn—for example, becoming fluent in French.
Institute has shown that some teaching methods are Mastery goals are better than performance goals
more effective than others. A learning activity that in that learners focus on honing and improving
requires students to actively participate results in their skills, whereas performance goals emphasize
better retention levels, whereas activities requiring less competition as a motivator for performing well
involvement result in lower retention levels. and rely on an individual’s level of intelligence.

TEACHI PNAGSSMIEVTEHODS LECTURE INCIRNEFAOSRIMNGATPIEORNCERNETTAAIGNEEODF Building blocks for
5% successful teaching
TEAPCAHIRTNIGCIMPEATTHOROYDS
READING 10% There are a number of practical tools that teachers can use
AUDIO VISUAL 20% to encourage student confidence and a love of learning.
DEMONSTRATION 30% Teachers should ensure that these methods are working
GROUP DISCUSSION 50% together to create a progressive learning environment.

PRACTICE BY DOING 75% “People’s beliefs about
their abilities have … [an]
TEACHING OTHERS 90% effect on those abilities.”

Albert Bandura, Canadian social cognitive psychologist

172 173PSYCHOLOGY IN THE REAL WORLD
Psychology in education

Make positive connections

Offer support for students; nurture
personal relationships and encourage
positive relations with other
students and teachers; and
set clear expectations about
appropriate classroom conduct.

Teach specific skills Foster student creativity

Help students understand how to transfer Ask students to design their own
one learned idea to another context, and research projects, demonstrate tasks,
give them practice activities such as sample and build models to explain concepts.
tests, activities, and problems to encode Allow them to explore and struggle
learning into long-term memory. while providing support.

Give students Set students Control student
timely feedback short-term goals stress level

Monitor students in every lesson Instead of overwhelming students Run an organized classroom with
and redirect them when they with a big task, give them a daily schedule; have enough
need it. Ensure that praise and incremental goals, allowing them breaks for students to process
constructive criticism are related to to successfully complete each each chunk of learning; and
their degree of practice and effort. stage of the task. maintain a safe environment.

Promote group teaching Encourage motivation
and discussion
Set high but realistic
Encourage other students to expectations for your students;
voice their concerns, questions, reinforce the value of practice
and ideas to give the group a and effort over innate
sense of solidarity and allow intelligence; encourage
individuals to feel confident in self-evaluation; and adopt
expressing themselves. a caring attitude.

Assessing problems

In order to help people learn more effectively, educational psychologists
must first identify any problems a person is facing, how these have
developed, and the ways in which they are affecting the learning process.

How it works educational psychologist at this stage. However,
a learning problem may not emerge until the child
Through their research, educational psychologists is in preschool, in which case teachers play a key
understand that the learning process is affected by role in noticing any difficulties in how the child plays
a variety of factors, including emotional and social and undertakes basic tasks. In some cases, problems
issues and specific physiological disorders. It can may not be identified until adulthood, often because
be clear from an early age if a child has learning they were missed when the individual was at school.
problems, and parents may seek the help of an

Uncovering HOW PSYCHOLOGISTS ASSESS PROBLEMS
difficulties
Talk to teachers Talk to parents
Identifying a learning problem early
on often originates with the teacher Those with concrete, firsthand Talking with a child's parents
who suspects issues after daily experience of a student’s can shed light on how the child
observation of the student. An difficulties are usually current performs certain tasks at home
educational psychologist can then or previous teachers. Talking to and how the child relates to
make a full assessment and develop teachers is normally a first step. family members.
a plan for helping the student.

Learning problems Observe child in classroom Talk to child

It is difficult to pinpoint the exact This can flag key indicators The child does not always need
cause of a learning disability, whether such as how the child controls to be involved in the assessment,
it is environmental, biological, or a implements such as pens, how but talking to them might reveal
combination of both, but it is possible they cope with buttons, and how they comprehend and
to identify it by its symptoms. The four how well they follow directions. pronounce words, for example.
examples outlined here all begin with
the Latin prefix “dys,” meaning difficulty. DYSLEXIA DYSGRAPHIA DYSCALCULIA
Difficulties with reading, Trouble with writing and Impairments in basic
writing, and spelling. Often processing letters in words, arithmetic and making
good at creative thinking. and difficulty coordinating. calculations.

DYSPRAXIA
Poor coordination causing clumsy movements, and a lack
of the basic ability needed to coordinate daily activities.

174 175PSYCHOLOGY IN THE REAL WORLD
Psychology in education

Taking action Educational psychologists often work together with
psychiatrists, social workers, speech therapists, and
It is crucial for psychologists to fully understand the teachers, applying ideas of behavioral, cognitive, and
nature of an individual’s problem, so they employ a social psychology to the classroom. These applications
variety of strategies to build up an accurate picture are integral to understanding why a student may
of how the person behaves and processes information behave in a certain way in a classroom setting, how
in an educational setting. Previously, this would have their brain processes and retains information, and how
involved a written or oral intelligence test. Today, family and peers may affect learning. Psychologists
although formal testing can still play a part when can apply these approaches to any educational
educational psychologists assess a student—especially environment, from preschools and primary schools to
when a particular disability such as dyslexia is adult learning centers and corporate training schemes.
suspected—the current approach is more holistic.

Analyze schoolwork 6.6million

A selection of the child’s schoolwork children in the US have a
may uncover patterns in the way a child special education need
writes their answers, and whether their
problem is in one particular area, such National Center for Education Statistics, 2015
as mathematics, or several areas.
ASSESSMENT TYPES
Questionnaire or specific assessment
By utilizing different types of tests, psychologists can get
There are a number of standardized tests a well-balanced view of a student’s problems and begin
for measuring different aspects of learning to implement ways to address these.
problems, from those that are rooted in ❯❯Cognitive and developmental tests measure a pupil's
social or emotional issues to those that
are neurological or developmental. ability to process and interpret information, and
compare results against the norms for that age group.
Behavioral problems ❯❯Social, emotional, and behavioral tests identify
problems that stem from underlying social and
Psychologists can help teachers emotional issues. They reveal an individual’s stress level,
deal with disruption in the sense of self-esteem, and ability to overcome adversity.
classroom by assessing a child ❯❯Motivational tests measure a student's incentive to
with behavior issues to try to learn—a vital element. Such tests include the Motivation
uncover the triggers and how to Assessment Scale for Learning (EMAPRE) in higher
resolve them. This often means education, which uses a questionnaire format.
getting parents on board and ❯❯Academic tests are more formal types of testing that
examining lifestyle issues such as can identify whether a student is in the appropriate class
diet, stress, and social pressure. for their academic level, and flag learning disabilities. IQ
testing can also be undertaken, but results are limited.

Psychology in
the workplace

Industrial/organizational psychology explores the behavior of people in the
workplace, and applies psychological principles to understanding organizations
and improving the lives of employees. It addresses the human elements underlying
the structures and processes of professional life, and can advise on hiring, goal
setting, team development, motivation, performance appraisal, organizational
change, and effective leadership.

Making organizations great

Organizations require the shared vision and coordinated efforts of many
people. Psychology plays a big role in helping managers to hire effective
employees, set appropriate goals, develop successful teams, ensure good
leadership, and cope with the challenges of organizational change.

Appraisal

Hiring Offering regular feedback
allows employees to
Choosing the right person
for the job is a vitally develop their strengths
and address areas that
important process as the
success of an organization need improvement
and growth.
is directly related
to the success of Motivation
its employees.

Interview Promoting enthusiasm
helps companies achieve
Assessing potential
employees through success, as employees
interviews is a widely used must be motivated (both
method because they within themselves and by
allow for lengthy, open- external rewards) to reach
ended responses.
their goals.

176 177PSYCHOLOGY IN THE REAL WORLD
Psychology in the workplace

90,000 BRANCHES OF
PSYCHOLOGY
the approximate number
of hours an average person Industrial and organizational
spends at work in a lifetime psychology both cover psychology
in the workplace. Industrial
Team psychology is the older of the two
development branches and is concerned with
how to manage people in order to
Encouraging employees to achieve maximum organizational
work together increases efficiency. It looks at job design,
team coordination and talent selection, employee training,
benefits company and performance appraisal, trying
performance. to tap the potential of people
working within an organization.
Goal setting
The second branch,
Setting goals that are organizational psychology,
challenging but realistic developed from the human
relations movement and
strongly influences concentrates on enhancing the
motivation, which in turn experience and well-being of
influences effectiveness employees. It is focused on
understanding and managing
and achievement. employee attitudes and behavior,
reducing job stress, and designing
POSITIVE WORKPLACE effective supervisory practices.
PSYCHOLOGY
Leadership

Defining an organization’s
culture and goals gives
leaders the responsibility
of motivating their
employees to meet
those goals.

The humanitarian work psychology movement Change
encourages industrial/organizational (I/O)
psychologists to apply their skills, talents, and Achieving goals often
training with the mission of reducing poverty necessitates a change
and promoting well-being in workplaces to an organization’s
around the world. I/O psychologists can help structures and policies,
people develop marketable skills, design and psychologists can
programs to train the unemployed to return to help companies do
the workforce, promote humanitarian aid for
the communities most in need, and devise this well.
environmental sustainability initiatives.

Selecting the
best candidate

Employee performance determines an organization’s success, so it is
vital to choose the right person for the job. Psychologists have come up
with various tools to analyze job requirements and assess applicants.

Job analysis tasks performed on the job, and person-oriented
analysis, which focuses on the personal characteristics
Before assessing applicants for selection, an analysis required. Person-oriented job analysis provides a list of
of the job to be filled is completed. This analysis the KSAOs (knowledge, skills, abilities, and other
consists of a comprehensive job description, including characteristics) necessary to perform a job successfully.
the experience and attributes necessary to fulfill the A list of KSAOs for a particular job will usually include
required tasks and responsibilities. Industrial/ characteristics that applicants are expected to have
organizational psychologists and human resources already, and others that they will be expected to
specialists collect information from various sources, develop on the job through training.
including job analysts, job incumbents, supervisors,
and trained observers. They watch people performing Job analysis is also helpful for mapping out career
the job (or even perform the job themselves), conduct development by identifying key competencies on every
interviews, and use questionnaires. rung of the career ladder. It can also serve as the basis
for performance evaluation, setting standards against
There are two general categories of job analyses: which to measure employee performance.
job-oriented analysis, which focuses on the specific

BEST JOBS FOR DIFFERENT PERSONALITY TYPES

The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI), based on PERCEIVERS EXTROVERTS
Carl Jung’s theories of personality, is a personality Spontaneous; Fast-paced; enjoy
test widely used in the hiring process, but it can also flexible; like to
be used by students to choose a suitable career. keep options multitasking;
The MBTI evaluates people according to four sets energized by
of opposite traits: extroversion or introversion, sensing open.
or intuition, thinking or feeling, and judgment or people.
perception. This results in 16 possible personality
types, each with general tendencies, strengths, and JUDGERS P E INTROVERTS
weaknesses that lend themselves to specific jobs. Organized; plan- J I Prefer working
alone or in small
oriented; groups; focused on
comfortable a single task.
following rules.

FEELERS FS SENSORS
Make decisions TN Fact- and detail-
based on personal oriented; realistic
SPECIFIC OCCUPATION values; sensitive; and practical; apply
common sense.
An ESTJ might make cooperative.
a successful lawyer or
pharmacist, whereas an THINKERS INTUITIVES
ISFP could be a great Logical when Creative and
fashion designer making decisions; innovative;
or physical therapist. value fairness. focused on
possibilities.
ESTJ I S FP

178 179PSYCHOLOGY IN THE REAL WORLD
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Talent selection which they are working. Talent selection involves a set
of procedures to determine how well job applicants
The ability to attract and retain the right people helps fit the job requirements. These are used alongside a
to make an organization great. If employees are well standard job application, which asks questions about
matched to their positions, they are more likely to be education, job skills, characteristics, and work history.
excited by what they are doing and the environment in

Assessment types WORK SAMPLE

Five main techniques are commonly used for evaluating A work sample is a simulation in which candidates
candidates, and often several of these are used together. perform part of a job, showing how well they can do
These procedures reveal an applicant’s strengths and relevant tasks under standardized conditions. They
weaknesses in different areas, giving an organization receive the necessary materials and tools, and instructions
valuable information about how a person might perform on how to complete the task. Work samples are good
once employed. predictors of future performance because of the
similarities between the assessment situation and the job.

BIOGRAPHICAL INTERVIEW
INFORMATION
The candidate’s answers and
A biographical questionnaire asks behavior in an interview both
for information about relevant provide important information
prior professional and educational about their suitability for the job, as
experiences. The questions are well as their ability to communicate
more detailed than those in a and relate. Even eye contact or the
standard job application, and may firmness of a handshake can affect
include questions about specific ratings. Most organizations use
experiences at school or work. interviews because they allow
There may also be questions about candidates to give detailed
verifiable facts and subjective responses and indicate their
experiences. interpersonal skills.

ASSESSMENT PSYCHOMETRIC INTERVIEW
CENTERS TESTS RELIABILITY

In an assessment center, exercises Candidates are often asked to Psychologists have found that
and task simulations are used to take psychometric tests (pp.246– interview accuracy is subject to
measure how well a person can 247) under controlled conditions, the biases of the interviewer. Race,
perform the job. Exercises are involving problem-solving, gender, and likability can all affect
varied and can take several days to answering questions, or tests of interview assessments and hiring
complete. Assessment centers manual dexterity. They can decisions. Interviewers should:
evaluate candidates on the basis of evaluate personality, cognitive
oral and written communication, ability, knowledge and skills, ❯❯Be trained to conduct interviews.
problem-solving, interpersonal emotional intelligence, or
relations, and planning. Candidates vocational interests. Questions can ❯❯Ask standardized questions.
are scored on various dimensions be closed-ended, with several
and then given an overall score, possible responses to choose from, ❯❯Not evaluate the candidate until
which is useful for hiring decisions. or open-ended, in which test takers after the interview has ended.
must generate their own responses.
❯❯Rate candidates on individual
elements, such as qualifications.

Managing talent

It is crucial for organizations to manage employee performance
effectively to reach success. This can be achieved by implementing
practices that increase motivation and regular feedback cycles.

Motivation HAVING A CAREER PATH is more likely to performance. Need hierarchy
motivate an employee to perform well due theories hold that a person’s
Often concerned with the desire to to feeling their efforts will be rewarded. behavior is directed toward
achieve a specific goal, motivation fulfilling their needs, and that their
is an internal state that drives a motivation is generated internally.
person to carry out particular Reinforcement theory assumes that
behaviors or tasks. People are behavior arises from the desire to
motivated by many different things earn rewards and reinforcements,
at work, including acquiring money, and so is generated externally.
benefiting a social cause, and Self-efficacy theory examines how
winning admiration. Employee people’s belief in their own abilities
motivation has been shown to be can affect performance, and
directly correlated with job goal-setting theory explains how
satisfaction and job performance, people’s goals and the ways in
and indirectly correlated with which they are set can affect their
organizational success. If a person motivation and performance.
has the appropriate skill set, high
levels of motivation generally lead GOAL GOAL
to great performance at work, and
this is essential to meeting an
organization’s major goals.

Psychological theories of
work motivation are concerned
with the reasons why some
people are motivated to
perform their jobs better
than others, and they allow
management to see what
they need to provide to
maximize motivation and

Setting goals Clarity Challenge Commitment
Goals must be Tougher goals Goals must be
In the 1960s, Dr. Edwin Locke clear, specific, and are often more understood and
pioneered the goal-setting measurable, with motivating agreed upon by
theory of motivation, which unambiguous because people both employer
states that working toward a deadlines, so anticipate greater and employee.
goal increases motivation employees know rewards. However, This makes an
and performance. He found what is expected the goal must not employee more
that specific and challenging of them and when. be so challenging committed to
goals work most effectively. that it is unrealistic. achieving them.

180 181PSYCHOLOGY IN THE REAL WORLD
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Performance appraisal appraisal procedure. It can benefit OVERCOMING RATING
the organization as well as the BIASES AND ERRORS
Offering employees feedback on employee, providing information
their performance helps motivate that contributes to administrative Human judgment is imperfect,
them to achieve their goals, allows decisions (such as hiring and firing) and when supervisors make
for the acknowledgment of good and employee development, which performance ratings, they often
work, and provides an opportunity is necessary for improving and unintentionally exhibit biases and
to give them constructive criticism maintaining job performance over errors. Studies have found that
and guidance if their performance time. Organizations often have an ratings can be affected by how
is low. A performance appraisal is annual appraisal structure that well a supervisor knows and likes
a two-step process that includes includes goal setting and periodic an employee, by the employee’s
first defining the criteria for feedback sessions between the overall mood, and by cultural and
good performance, and then employee and the supervisor. racial factors. Supervisors can also
implementing a performance be subject to the halo effect, in
which they give an individual the
GOAL GOAL same rating across all appraisal
ACHIEVED dimensions, as well as the
EYE distributional error, in which they
CONTACT give the same ratings across all
BODY their supervisees. To overcome
LANGUAGE these problems, organizations can
DELIVERY give supervisors rater training
SPEED designed to show them the typical
errors to avoid. In 360-degree
feedback, more than one person
rates an employee, to reduce the
effects of individual biases.

Feedback Task complexity Achievement 60%
Regular progress Success depends The conditions for
reports are crucial on whether the success are met of employees
for clarifying goals can be when a goal is would like
expectations, completed in the clear, challenging, their work
adjusting the time frame agreed and appropriately to be praised
difficulty of goals, upon. Employees complex; more often
and recognizing need time to learn commitment is
employee the skills required high; and feedback
achievement. to meet their goals. is regular.

Team development

Work teams can be dynamic and powerful and help organizations thrive.
There are many ways of developing the strengths, effectiveness, and
potential of people working in groups and of groups as a whole.

How it works member are coordinated and well as they should, an outcome
oriented toward achieving a that is called process loss. This may
Teamwork offers the advantages of common goal. Each member has a occur due to social loafing, when
group performance, which is often specific role, but all members are people expend less effort as part of
better than individual performance interdependent, relying on each a team than they would if working
because the strengths of every other to perform their jobs well. alone (pp.240−241), and impaired
team member combine to create This level of cooperation requires brainstorming, when a group
something more effective than can trust, which can be built through generates fewer ideas than are
be achieved alone. In a successful good communication, competence, produced by the same
team—a group of surgeons commitment, and collaboration. number of people
performing a complex operation, However, not all teams perform as on their own.
for example—the actions of every

KEY CONCEPTS Five-stage model
FOR TEAMS
Psychologist Bruce Tuckman
❯❯Role Every team member has
a distinctive and discrete job presented five stages of team
within the team.
development necessary
❯❯Norms Certain unwritten rules
of behavior (such as how late for growth. Progressing The birds take
people work) are accepted by through these stages off and establish
team members and strongly allows teams to face their flying
affect individual behavior.
challenges and positions. 2. Storming
❯❯Group cohesiveness A sense
of unity and trust, among other find solutions In the early stages of working
variables, brings team members together, team members
together and enables them to together. compete with each other
continue working together. for status. Differing opinions
about what should be done,
❯❯Team commitment An and how, can cause conflict.
individual’s acceptance of team
goals and willingness to work Migrating birds
hard reflect the strength of their must work as a
involvement with the team. team to ensure
they survive their
❯❯Mental model A good team has long journey.
a shared understanding about the
task, equipment, and situation. 1. Forming

❯❯Team conflict Whether teams The team members meet each other. They
are cooperative or competitive as share information about themselves, learn
they attempt to deal with clashes about the project and their roles in it, and
determines how effective they are. establish ground rules for working together.

182 183PSYCHOLOGY IN THE REAL WORLD
Psychology in the workplace

Improving teams deeper insight into issues facing GROUPTHINK

Several techniques can be used the group. Colleagues can also take When people work together in
groups, their decision-making
to improve teamwork. Creating part in team-building activities, process can be compromised by
groupthink, a phenomenon in
autonomous work teams that are which are often led by an expert which groups make decisions that
individual members know are bad.
responsible for a particular product consultant. Some activities aim to Groupthink is likely to occur in
highly cohesive groups with strong
or process can improve efficiency. strengthen the team’s ability to leaders and a strong pressure to
conform. People put aside their
Some companies create quality perform a task, while others focus own perceptions and rationalize
their doubts in order to fit in with
circles, where groups of employees on interpersonal skills, helping to other members. If the group is
isolated from outside influences,
meet to discuss problems and improve trust, communication, and and no one in the room is willing to
challenge the leader, the chance of
propose solutions, giving them interaction. Team building aims to groupthink increases. To prevent
this, leaders should act as impartial
result in better team coordination moderators in group meetings.

and performance, enhanced skills On arrival, the
birds scatter in
for individual team members, and search of food.

The birds fly in a more positive attitudes
V formation with within the team as
those at the top a whole.
working hardest.

3. Norming

Members begin to The birds swap places
feel part of the team. regularly, taking turns
They are less focused at the front.
on individual goals
and more focused 4. Performing
on working together
effectively, creating
processes and
procedures.

The team is functioning at a high
level, with members collaborating
and creating an open and trusting
atmosphere. They rely on
each other and are focused
on achieving group goals.

5−9
is the ideal
number of 5. Adjourning
members for a
successful team As a project nears completion, the team conducts
an assessment of its work, celebrating successes
and seeing what can be improved. Team members
say goodbye and go on to new projects.

Leadership

Leaders are highly influential within their organization, and their
approach can affect productivity and success. Good leaders use
their knowledge and authority to inspire and motivate employees.

Types of leader Path-goal theory

Leaders influence the attitudes, beliefs, behaviors, and Developed by Robert House, this model is designed to help
feelings of other people, and their leadership style supervisors enhance their employees’ job performance by
forms the basis of team dynamics. There are two main making it easier for them to complete tasks and achieve
types of leader in the workplace: formal leaders who goals. Leaders can adopt one of four different styles to
occupy supervisory roles, and informal leaders—often match the employee, the environment, and the goal.
the more influential type—who emerge from groups
through interactions with colleagues. SETTING A CHALLENGE
Achievement-oriented
Informal leaders can possess expert power, based leadership is the best
on perceived expertise, and referent power, which is approach for high-
granted because subordinates like and identify with performing subordinates
the leader. Formal leaders may have additional types of facing complex tasks.
powers. Legitimate power is inherent in a supervisor’s
job title, while reward power allows leaders to praise Achievement
employees and grant pay increases and promotions.
When leaders discipline employees through salary Achievement-oriented leaders set challenging goals,
reduction or firing, they are using coercive power. and both demonstrate and expect high standards.
They show faith in their subordinates.
Good leaders use power appropriately, showing
concern for the welfare of subordinates, and providing
structure by setting clear expectations. They can be
identified by psychologists and companies using the
trait approach (pp.150–151) (specific traits make them
natural leaders), the leader emergence approach (they
are singled out from within groups for their leadership
potential), or the leader behavior approach (what
matters is not who they are, but what they do).

QUALITIES OF GREAT LEADERS

Strong ethics Empowering Fostering a sense Openness to Nurturing growth
others of belonging new ideas
An ethical leader People are most
models and expects No leader can do People spend a lot of Progress requires motivated when they
honesty across the everything alone, and time at work, so need innovation and a are encouraged to
company, and their having external input to feel connected to willingness to solve develop. Leaders
strong ethics create is highly valuable; the organization and problems. A leader who commit to
a safe and trusting so it is important for to coworkers in order who is open to new fostering growth
environment in which leaders to delegate to improve emotional ideas creates an end up with more
employees can do work and to well-being and environment in which motivated and
their best work. distribute power. productivity. progress is possible. loyal employees.

Supportive 184 185PSYCHOLOGY IN THE REAL WORLD
Psychology in the workplace
Supportive leadership is characterized by
considering employees’ needs, showing HAND-HOLDING
concern, and creating an encouraging Supportive leadership is the
work environment. best approach when the task is
dangerous, tedious, stressful,
or boring.

“The key to successful
leadership today is
influence, not authority.”

Ken Blanchard, American management expert

ASKING ADVICE
Participative
leadership is the
best approach to
use when advice
from experienced
subordinates
is needed.

Directive GIVING ORDERS Participative
Directive leadership
Directive leaders tell is the best approach Participative leaders consult with subordinates,
subordinates what for inexperienced and take their ideas and suggestions into
must be done and subordinates, account when making decisions.
offer appropriate especially if they
guidance, such as are carrying out TRANSFORMATIONAL LEADERSHIP
schedules and unstructured tasks.
deadlines for them Some leaders are unusually effective at motivating others
to work toward. to join a cause, adopt a set of goals, and work persistently
toward high achievement. These leaders are charismatic
and capable of great influence. They inspire others with
their creativity, power, innovative spirit, trustworthiness,
and shared vision. They earn trust by prioritizing employees’
development and well-being, and in this way, they build
a loyal, motivated, and high-performing team. As with
political leaders and activists such as Martin Luther King Jr.,
charisma and vision are important qualities that an
individual needs to become a transformational leader.

Organizational
culture and change

One of the most important building blocks for a thriving organization,
culture consists of shared beliefs and behavior. To be productive it may
need to change to accommodate new people, ideas, and technologies.

Culture decisions, and ensure commitment to projects. Culture
is also shaped by leadership, and the incentive and
Organizational culture is how employees make sense compensation structures that are in place.
of their workplace and one another, and it contributes
to the organization’s unique social and psychological Organizational change is not easy to implement
environment. Culture is defined by the values and because of people’s ties to culture, but it becomes
rituals that unite work teams, and by consistent necessary when existing structures and processes no
and observable patterns of behavior. It encompasses longer effectively meet requirements or achieve goals.
the organization’s norms, systems, language, Attachments to psychological contracts (the unspoken
assumptions, visions, and beliefs, and directly expectations of employees) can also cause resistance
influences how organizations treat people, make to change because it remolds these expectations.

Making changes

Successful change takes place in several stages and needs to be presented with compelling
arguments. Helping anxious employees understand why change is needed can reduce their
resistance during implementation and speed their acceptance of the new structure and processes.

1. Evaluate 2. Assess

Carrying out an evaluation An assessment will examine
of the organization’s current the overall scope of the
status is the first step toward change, such as how many
change. This will help employees will be affected,
determine which systems as well as the type of change
and processes are not that is needed. Success relies
performing well, and so on the participation of the
establish the main areas for people whose daily work
improvement. lives will change.

THE PROBLEM
Assessment is vital
in planning change.
A new bridge must
be strong enough to
withstand both the
river and the traffic.

186 187

AFTER CHANGE
Managers should assess
continually how well a new
structure is working, and
make repairs as necessary.

TOOLS 5. Manage change GUIDELINES TO
The right tools are needed to FACILITATE CHANGE
build a new structure. Training Leaders should be attuned to
programs, financial incentives, how employees react to change, Various steps can be taken to
and even threats can be used to addressing issues as they arise help employees cope with
get employees to cooperate. and assessing how successful organizational change.
implementation has been.
3. Design ❯❯Strong leadership Managers
4. Implement should show their support for
A structure that meets the change to bolster the
the requirements of the Applying change in stages will enthusiasm of subordinates.
organization’s new make the transition smoother for
strategies and goals will employees who will often resist ❯❯Employee involvement
be designed. This design change. An organization should Members of staff should be
will identify key activities, communicate well and make included in the decision
create new departments, people feel involved so that the process to feel a greater sense
and establish inter- new ways of operating will of ownership.
departmental eventually become accepted.
relationships. ❯❯Communication The specific
nature of the change should be
PROCESS communicated in a systematic
It takes time to design a new and structured way, as should
structure, and change does its implementation and timeline.
not happen all at once. The
process takes place in several ❯❯Celebration Every success
stages, usually with the help should be celebrated throughout
of an external change agent. the process to build positivity.

NEED TO KNOW

❯❯Kaizen A common organizational
goal is to establish kaizen, a
system that originated in Japan,
in which continuous improvement
is possible. Employees at all levels
are asked on a daily basis to
suggest improvements, the aim
being to get rid of unnecessary
tasks and increase productivity.

HFE psychology

HFE (human factors and engineering) psychology is devoted to helping people
cope better in their work environment, making it safer, more productive, and more
user-friendly. At its essence is the study of how people interact with machines
and technology, and the formulation of ways to improve these interactions by
designing better systems, products, and devices. Positioned at the crossroads
of psychology and technology, HFE psychology is primarily focused on safety.

HFE in practice

On a practical level, HFE psychologists use their

knowledge of how people interact with machines

to design more effective work practices and

products. This entails studying how a person’s

mind, reflexes, vision, and other senses function

in particular settings, from the factory floor to

a hospital operating theater. By studying people’s REAL-LIFE FACTORS
workplace behaviors, HFE psychologists can

advise business decision-makers, industrialists,

and governments on strategies for avoiding HUMAN EQUIPMENT
TRAITS DESIGN
accidents and enhancing productivity. Assessing people’s
One key application of this psychology physical, Engineering
perceptual, and technology to fit
is commercial aviation, an industry that psychological
has been using HFE since the 1960s to abilities varying body
heights and
improve airline safety statistics. proportions
Eliminating mortality due to human

error in hospitals is another focus, as SOCIAL WORKING
is reducing risk in critical operations ORGANIZATION ENVIRONMENT

such as the supply of nuclear power. Strengthening relations Safety awareness;
among workers to controlling lighting
Even the humble bicycle has enhance cooperation and temperature to
benefited, becoming faster, easier to optimize alertness
use, and more comfortable thanks and productivity

to HFE psychology. TASKS AND TRAINING AND

FUNCTIONS DEVELOPMENT
Studying people’s Training people to
work activities and get the most from
their interactions the equipment and
with technology systems they use

70% 188 189PSYCHOLOGY IN THE REAL WORLD
HFE psychology
or more of aircraft
accidents are due MEASUREMENTS AND
to human error PRODUCT DESIGN

Two important fields within HFE are anthropometry—
the science of measuring the human body and its
proportions—and ergonomics—engineering products to
fit the human body. Both are essential in creating
user-friendly technology. Products such as office chairs
designed with a full set of measurements, taking
proportions into account, promote worker efficiency
and protect from short- and long-term physical harm.
Measurements include both obvious ones, such as eye
height when sitting, and proportional distances, for
instance, between the sitter’s buttocks and toes.

PSYCHOLOGICAL FACT ORS STRESS AND ERGONOMIC SEATING takes into account the sitter’s elbow
DECISION-MAKING ANXIETY height, seat height, thigh clearance, eye level, and back support.
Addressing each step in
the decision-making Using well-designed
process to fix operator equipment to avoid
glitches workers’ frustration

SITUATION WORKLOAD Two-way process
AWARENESS Balancing employees’
Training staff to assess workload so that they HFE psychologists apply a scientific approach
work situations are alert, are focused, to understanding how humans behave in their
interactions with technology. This is a two-way
objectively and exercise good process—people’s efficiency can be undermined
HUMAN ERROR judgment by poorly designed equipment, and flaws in
AND SAFETY
Analyzing the TEAMWORK people’s behavior undermine the efficiency of the
causes of mistakes Fostering work technology they use. To confront these issues and
relations to ensure predict future performance, psychologists study
and making changes team members how individuals perceive stimuli and events,
to improve safety assess these to determine a course of action, and
cooperate

make an appropriate response.

Engineering
displays

Drawing on their understanding of how people’s ABILITY TO
minds process information, psychologists work DISCRIMINATE
with product designers to engineer better machines. Signals should be very
different from one
User-friendly technology industrial and office equipment, another to avoid confusion.
traffic signs, aviation controls, Warning signs, for instance,
A key role of HFE psychologists is and medical devices. normally appear in a triangle.
designing machines, signs, and AVOIDING ABSOLUTE
systems that can be operated more Display perception JUDGMENT LIMITS
effectively by their human users. Several sensory dimensions—
Three interlinked considerations Psychologists provide valuable such as pitch, volume, or
are vital in technology design: how input during the design process, color—should be offered
easy the displays are to see and using their in-depth knowledge to aid the user’s judgment.
understand; how easy the controls of exactly how the mind sees
are to use; and how to reduce or and interprets color, outlines, MINIMIZING INFORMATION
eliminate room for error. background and foreground, sound, ACCESS COST
and touch. The aim is to achieve
Displays are a prime component a “natural design” that makes Information that is accessed most
of technology because they are the use of perceptual cues instantly often should be at hand so that the
interface between machines and recognizable by the human brain,
their human users. People receive without the need for further user does not have to spend too
the information they need to explanation. Using the color red much time finding it.
operate any particular machine, to indicate “stop” is a classic MOVING PARTS
and also get feedback, via dials, example, since humans associate
lights, or screens. This applies to it with danger because it is the Any parts that move should
a vast array of technological color of fire and blood. synchronize with the user’s
products and systems, including expectation—a forward button, for
instance, should move in the same
ALERTING DISPLAYS Organizing controls direction as the moving part.

Within display design,psychologists Well-engineered displays take into
have developed a hierarchy of account the way in which people
color and sound combinations to see, hear, and touch stimuli and
convey clear priorities to users. process them as information. These
These are based on research into stimuli—lights, colors, contrast,
how the eyes, ears, and brain sound, touch, and so on—should be
respond to specific cues. They are arranged to ensure that the brain can
also based on the knowledge that react quickly and respond accurately.
people pay more attention to Four principles govern display
messages communicated via more engineering: perception, mental
than one sense. For warnings, red mode, attention, and memory.
is used alongside an audible alert,
whereas advisory messages may
be signaled with only a visual cue.

190 191PSYCHOLOGY IN THE REAL WORLD
HFE psychology

Perception Mental model ! Attention Memory

How users first perceive How the design aligns How accessible and How it reinforces a user’s
the information in front with the mental model of easy to process the preexisting memory,
of them—it must be its user—people usually information is, even in a acting as an aid to recall
presented in an interpret a display based distracting environment. rather than forcing the
unambiguous way. on their experience of user to store information
similar systems. within reach in their
working memory.

REDUNDANCY GAIN CONSISTENCY
Presenting a message in more Information should be
than one way (such as an extra presented consistently to
brake light) enhances its impact. ensure a user knows how to
PROXIMITY COMPATIBILITY interpret it—for example, on
Relevant or linked information, traffic lights, red always
like three brake lights, should be
means “stop.”
displayed close together.

PICTORIAL REALISM LEGIBLE DISPLAY MULTIPLE RESOURCES
A display should convey Dials and backlit information Information should be
information graphically—for must be clear, with contrasting delivered through more
example, if the level of fuel colors and a large enough font than one medium—satellite
has gone down, the fuel gauge navigation systems use a
size for the information voice as well as a screen.
should also go down. to be read easily.
KNOWLEDGE OF PREDICTIVE AIDING
THE WORLD Users should be helped
to predict a course of
Showing information movement, such as where a
means the user does not traffic jam is expected to be,
so they can be proactive.
have to rely as much
on memory.

TOP-DOWN PROCESSING
The expectations of the user
based on past experience

should be met—for
example, a user expects
to press a button to turn

something on.

Human error
and prevention

The most important aspect of HFE psychology is minimizing the role
of human error to improve safety in the workplace and reduce the
risk of accidents and fatalities.

What is it? and the way in which people What went wrong?
handle information. Error reduction
Eliminating human error may be is especially relevant for situations Most accidents in these industries
an impossible goal, but HFE in which the risk of death is high, result from human error. In
psychology is dedicated to reducing such as road-traffic control centers, commercial aviation, for example,
it as much as possible through nuclear power facilities, hospitals, failure to load the aircraft correctly,
strategic changes to the design of airplane flights, and war zones. air traffic control mistakes, and
workplace machines and displays errors pilots make in operating the

Inadvertent error

Skill-based error (action error) Mistake

Trained worker who loses concentration or is distracted Worker inadequately trained for the situation making
making an unintentional error during a routine task a poor decision: doing the wrong thing while believing
carried out perfectly many times before it to be right

Slip of action Memory lapse Rule-based mistake

❯❯Executes steps in the wrong order ❯❯Forgets to do something ❯❯Uses the wrong set of rules
❯❯Mistimes an action ❯❯Skips an important step ❯❯Ignores a genuine alarm after
❯❯Transposes digits—0.56, not 0.65 ❯❯Repeats a step
❯❯Presses the wrong button ❯❯Fails to switch off a machine numerous false ones
❯❯Turns a control the wrong way ❯❯Gets distracted; loses their place ❯❯Fails to initiate a rule in time
❯❯Applies a poorly conceived rule

Control measures

❯❯Improve the design of equipment to reduce skill-based errors
❯❯Analyze error incidents and update work conditions accordingly

192 193PSYCHOLOGY IN THE REAL WORLD
HFE psychology

airplane’s controls or assessing TRAFFIC PSYCHOLOGY TRAFFIC SAFETY TRAINING and
weather conditions are the most education helps to keep people
likely causes of accidents. Some HFE psychologists specialize safe on the roads.
in the study of how drivers behave
In studying past errors and the on the road and respond to traffic
sequence of human action leading management. The areas this covers
up to them, psychologists have include behavior and accident
concluded that wrong decision- research, which looks at age and
making is usually because of a lack personality as accident risk factors;
of situation awareness. Therefore, traffic enforcement strategies; and
a primary aim of HFE psychologists driver rehabilitation programs.
is to enhance such awareness. Studying the role played by stress,
This includes a person’s ability to tiredness, phone use, alcohol, and
perceive his or her environment other factors helps psychologists
accurately, comprehend what is understand what causes accidents.
happening, and predict an outcome.

HUMAN ERROR Deliberate noncompliant violation

Routine Situational Exceptional

Commonplace rule Rule breaking due to Rule breaking with
breaking, such as time pressure, poor little choice in a rare
using the fire escape equipment, or work- situation, such as a
stairs instead of the place design, such as bus driver letting
elevator between using untrained staff off a frail passenger
office levels to help meet an between stops when
urgent deadline paths are icy
Knowledge-based mistake
Preventing violations
❯❯Lacks the knowledge to deal
with the task ❯❯Ensure rules are relevant; explain reasons behind them
❯❯Offer adequate supervision and training for emergencies
❯❯Develops a solution that does ❯❯Encourage open communication
not work

❯❯Applies trial and error to a task

Control measures

❯❯Train staff to be prepared for nonroutine, high-risk tasks
❯❯Supervise inexperienced staff and provide them with diagrams

to explain procedures

Forensic
psychology

This rapidly expanding field concerns the application of psychology within a
legal context. Its primary goals are the collection, examination, and presentation
of evidence for judicial purposes, and the treatment and rehabilitation of criminals
once they have entered the prison system. Psychologists are becoming
increasingly influential in court proceedings across the world, bringing
their expertise to a wide range of criminal, family, and civil cases.

IN THE POLICE FORCE IFhpNcoGePrroorSolisiPepmfTpuvtycTpnjthrhwicuceiOiihrnTonsneHndehhaeeriideihltvfcayyeoboepdgtjneofuehlcEicglpnoiacsefedopynaadieeeearasssursnsgigiiexCnlilhynnsccitnaeeoidspncedpeosiainhcnOaagohiitsrlagucnentdupsdlcsonoinairgropamvUvccbcasoiltjnttnosuinriuraeosylscpdaeonotgtR’dneueicaaneobueicodidfgdornnsnrpolefmTsemtbeaiatepufdnrs,irtshgesweforerRsnbib.gecraercltmh,asTnieyeuiscnosvatnfennOa.eha.rraetisdunnoevgodortteoaralsittsiOfnrmbyyottolfjnoonsohuateyrtnwictohr,otMorefnhsjasaiarauie.tqfteelrnoanlonhyavjusduldueupsfdeeaiweemgxnvsgitirissnnrbtnhpiyvehsytsacgstyioeaiioskbsohepnealrsttteiuuoenrgetnheantltastheiecotgefandfhebtaigdeeampbahgrclacujielpveoontiulftctzesorufsioaereor.rttdydtneiinsdcgt.

Real-world contributions from forensic psychologists
who help track down criminals are less dramatic than
they appear on TV, but they have helped open the
door to a kind of investigative psychology that serves
many aspects of the criminal investigation process.

Selecting police candidates

Psychologists perform evaluations of prospective
police officers to see if they have the qualities needed
for the job. They use psychological tests and
interviews and can offer recommendations.

Managing information systems

They help to establish effective systems for collecting,
organizing, and making sense of the vast quantities
of information and paperwork associated with
a criminal case.

Conducting interviews

They use their expert knowledge of the human
mind and patterns of behavior to refine interview
processes. They can detect when people are lying or
hiding the truth by analyzing and interpreting words,
facial expressions, intonation, and body language.

Linking crimes to suspects

Their analysis of police evidence can be used to
identify patterns that link offenses to culprits.

194 195PSYCHOLOGY IN THE REAL WORLD
Forensic psychology

IPNrreewinthsoWohvTaPinaobarsiHornsooiiywidelrlrinncalttaEekomhshremaWemaetirTote-faanocPkeeofhpoilofneftdosdngnfteulinRtrcdahveg.tyi-tgktyniswaHaieuoncsIskstiltrportntoleSneiohenaeyshrtmedew.fagi.eOheavcsp,TtbTcmeeioiofpwmhtophoedvetNnaruhreuiereefrlieneoeneitefrytnlrrporg,isefhicoSnsspcprieattnneliiogarfriennYrrdslorietdsoalisrtteeeeinpnaetoSnvaoemnqigtdraaiionfrfsmtTduwi.lliasinfsbiraTfteeftohnEeeoyaeruynonacenyecitMwthfnttt,ahtilmchlhlycewgythitohetmeaoliiliprhdwaxyceresierleteethaspirlaieutnerheedahfiradernntishuesrelsupgeoccmaiptwhncoeahsaolbeeaefanhsrfiaioclvorlnigidttnisrtsacitlhoiromshhedazhlgoesloetotrbeoaeureohdarofennodpiefnioaspdnfdcaakotentfpoerrvethfnufdeos.erordoetndaytsnflrh.frs.vcuneiftda.efTehehmraepeihsnoret,mryauedaliapsorsirisrneraatagereairtdanelgisi’rssesldsaedatsniltsoepiioitfsnsnesstfsig’rtsnmeputagnrshenotendgtress, “Punishment is
not for revenge,
cdatarovhIirTetnsogvrtchteeuni1honeree8erSagd9dwcguft6ehreitoiis,hdrramhaGeaslenntteobexdcwrnfe“pmkaw.teie-twVNarnxmhtoneeapowanestptnesnzitSsethirwyncpnsetcherghcy”hersoobestohwurnelwhaiolaccddiahglkatd-pinesmnsNenromteeeeotAhsunsttslehrs.zbdieteneerfgrstiertisdftied but to lessen
crime and reform
ASSESSING OFFENDERS ❯❯What level of education did the the criminal.”
offender achieve, and how did they
A psychologist studies an offender’s perform at school? What is their Elizabeth Fry, British prison reformer
background for sentencing and general level of intelligence?
rehabilitation purposes, and to CYBERCRIME
garner their profile for future cases. ❯❯Are they in a relationship or
have they ever been in one? In recent decades, psychologists
❯❯Is there a family history of have had to extend their expertise
abuse or criminality? ❯❯Are they employed, or have they to cover the increasing occurrence
ever been financially responsible? of Internet-based crime.
❯❯What types of crimes are they Who is involved?
thought to have committed, and ❯❯Do they show signs of Terrorists, hackers, and malware
who were their victims? mental illness or personality developers thrive on the anonymity
disorder? of the Internet. However, forensic
❯❯What is their attitude toward the psychologists are specifically
crime: do they justify or deny it? trained to search for individuals
whose identities are not known.
To do so, they use psychological
profiles of known perpetrators to
narrow down their list of suspects—
because certain crimes attract
certain kinds of criminals.
❯❯Phishers, who fake e-mail

messages to access personal
information, tend to be motivated
by money only.
❯❯Political/religious hackers
are less interested in money than
in disrupting the computers of
their enemies.
❯❯Insiders are typically individuals
who have been fired from or
demoted within an organization.

Psychology and
criminal investigations

The process of investigating crimes and identifying offenders is often
long and painstaking. Psychologists can help police during this process,
chiefly in data analysis and victim and suspect interviews.

How are psychologists involved? use their understanding of human behavior and
the fallibility of human memory to help ascertain
Books and films rarely depict the labor-intensive work whether a person is telling the truth or is
involved in most criminal investigations. If there is no covering for someone.
obvious suspect, detectives must review a vast amount
of information from records of previous crimes or A LIE DETECTOR, OR POLYGRAPH, can detect an individual’s
criminals to surveillance recordings; photographs of responses to questioning and can be effective in supporting the
crime scenes; and interviews with victims, witnesses, case of an innocent person.
and suspects. A forensic psychologist’s understanding
of criminal behavior and the motivation behind it can
be invaluable in collating and analyzing this material.

If a crime scene does not yield specific evidence,
psychologists can create a profile from the forensic
data that is collected, which may link a person or
their behavior to the crime (p.198). Their knowledge
of psychological disorders and the behavior patterns
associated with them can also assist in the
identification of suspects. They can use incisive
interview techniques to ascertain as much as possible
from a witness or suspect. A psychologist can also

COGNITIVE INTERVIEW TECHNIQUE

Interviews—whether of victims, eyewitnesses, or suspects— and feelings that day, the interviewee will relax and trust
are central to criminal investigations and are an area the interviewer enough to talk freely.
where the expertise of a forensic psychologist is
invaluable. The cognitive interview uses a specific method ❯❯Free-form recollection is encouraged by posing
of questioning that in the hands of a skilled psychologist open-ended questions rather than ones that require
can actually help improve a person’s memory of an event. yes/no answers. The interviewer must not interrupt
The person needs to feel safe, and the interviewer must the interviewee’s response, and allow for plenty of breaks
be patient, pose the questions in the right way, and allow to give them the time to remember events more clearly.
sufficient time for a response. Some people do not respond
to this type of interview, in which case the investigators may ❯❯A conducive context is created, for example by
need to try a different approach. describing the background of the event(s) being recalled,
which can strengthen an interviewee’s memory.
❯❯A safe environment for the witness is established to
ensure a sense of mutual understanding. If the interviewer ❯❯Patience is maintained throughout, especially if the
actively and attentively listens to what the interviewee is interviewee is uncooperative. It is essential for an
saying, even asking them about their general activities interviewer to keep frustration and feelings of coercion in
check to avoid the interviewee making a false confession.

196 197PSYCHOLOGY IN THE REAL WORLD
Forensic psychology

At the crime scene
DISTANCE FROM
RACE, GENDER, OFFENDER USE OF A WEAPON
AND AGE If a crime involves a
The greater the distance knife or gun, witnesses
If a witness is of a between the witness and often remember fewer
different age, gender, details as the weapon
or race than the suspect, the suspect/event, the
they are more inclined less accurate their holds their focus.
to misidentify them. memory will be.

OFFENDER’S FACTORS AFFECTING STRESS LEVELS
BEHAVIOR EYEWITNESS MEMORY OF WITNESS
Witnesses are more
likely to remember Accounts from eyewitnesses play Experiencing a very
distinctive aspects a key role in police investigations, stressful crime alters
of an offender’s and a number of factors—both at
appearance, speech, the crime scene and afterward— perceptions and
or behavior. affect their accuracy. Erroneous memory, and can
AGE OF WITNESS lead to inaccurate
Children, the frail, eyewitness evidence and/or
and the elderly are identification have often led identifications.
vulnerable to the FATIGUE OF
pressure of being to false convictions. WITNESS
interviewed. Older
children remember Tiredness affects
more details than memory. Allowing
younger ones. adequate rest before
questioning protects

memory from
interference and

enables more
accurate recall.

RETENTION SUSCEPTIBILITY
INTERVAL OF WITNESS
If a police interview
takes place a long time When viewing a lineup,
after an event, the law enforcement officers
witness will recall it in
far less detail. can unintentionally
indicate to witnesses
VIEWING A LINEUP PROVIDING LINEUP
who they should
choose.

Suspects are displayed INSTRUCTIONS
Witnesses who are clearly
in a group or one at informed that they do not
a time. The latter requires
the witness to compare have to choose a suspect
from a lineup are less
the suspects with likely to make a false
their memory of the
offender only. identification.
During questioning

PSYCHOLOGY AND CRIMINAL INVESTIGATIONS

Is there a “criminal type”? especially when it comes to violent crimes. Those
who have been convicted are more likely to have had
There is no specific set of attributes that conclusively a chaotic or disruptive childhood—but not all such
determines criminal behavior, but some are more upbringings lead to criminality.
commonly associated with criminality. These include
low intelligence, hyperactivity, difficulty concentrating, Among the young, the cycle of negative behavior can
a poor education, antisocial behavior, having siblings often be broken by intervention with protective factors,
or friends who are in trouble with the law, and habitual such as positive relationships outside the family,
drug or alcohol abuse. In addition, males of any age are academic achievement, positive attitudes toward
significantly more likely to offend than females— authority, and effective use of leisure time.

Offender profiling Top-down profiling

This is the process of using ❯❯Aims to test reliability of
evidence and information from organized/disorganized
both the victim and the crime criminal behavior and
scene, as well as the characteristics motivation, or typologies.
of the crime, to form hypotheses
about the type of person who ❯❯Matches a general type
might have committed it. Some of criminal to features of
crime scenes offer few significant a particular crime.
clues, which forces detectives to
make imaginative leaps. This is ❯❯Aims to detect signature
where the developing science of aspects of the crime and
investigative psychology can be patterns of the criminal.
utilized. There are two ways of
looking at profiling: the top-down ❯❯Relies on the behaviorist
method (used mainly in the US) perspective (pp.16–17).
and the bottom-up approach
(used in the UK). ❯❯Is best applied to crimes
such as rape and murder.
“Psychology
often presents Bottom-up profiling
individuals as if
they are frozen in ❯❯Aims to identify a behavior
time and space.” pattern from similarities
between offenses.
Professor David Canter,
British psychologist ❯❯Is data-driven and based on
clear psychological principles.

❯❯Uses forensic evidence and
data to build patterns of
behavior piece by piece.

❯❯Produces measured, specific
associations between crimes
and offenders.

❯❯Makes no initial assumptions
about offenders.

❯❯Seeks consistencies in
offender behavior, from both
crime scene evidence and
eyewitness accounts.