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A View Into the Future of Organizational Psychology: Our Experiences With an Interdisciplinary Approach to Graduate Education

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  07 January 2015

Linda Rhoades Shanock*
Affiliation:
University of North Carolina at Charlotte
Steven G. Rogelberg
Affiliation:
University of North Carolina at Charlotte
Eric D. Heggestad
Affiliation:
University of North Carolina at Charlotte
*
E-mail: lshanock@uncc.edu, Address: Department of Psychology, University of North Carolina at Charlotte, 9201 University City Blvd, Charlotte, NC 28223

Extract

Of the four possible “futures” for I-O psychology discussed by Ryan and Ford (2010), one (Scenario 2: Identity Merger) struck close to home. In fact, it is not the future for us, it is the present. The three of us are I-O psychologists with appointments in both a psychology department and a fully integrated interdisciplinary organizational science (OS) PhD program. The program, which is now 5 years old, spans two colleges (Liberal Arts & Sciences and Business) and includes individuals from four departments (Psychology, Management, Sociology, and Communication Studies). Although considerable thought was invested in how to structure and operate such an interdisciplinary program well before we accepted our first class of students, our collective thinking has evolved dramatically as we have experienced the program.

Type
Commentaries
Copyright
Copyright © Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology 2010 

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Footnotes

*

Department of Psychology, University of North Carolina at Charlotte.

All authors contributed equally to the development of this article; the order of authorship was determined at random.

We would like to thank Kevin Williams, Anita Blanchard, and David Gilmore for their helpful contributions and comments on this article.

References

March, J. G. (1996). Continuity and change in theories of organizational action. Administrative Science Quarterly, 41, 278287.Google Scholar
Ryan, A. M., & Ford, J. K. (2010). Organizational psychology and the tipping point of professional identity. Industrial and Organizational Psychology: Perspectives on Science and Practice, 3, 241258.Google Scholar