COURSE APPROVAL GUIDELINES APS COLLEGE OF ORGANISATIONAL PSYCHOLOGISTS

Transcription

1 COURSE APPROVAL GUIDELINES APS COLLEGE OF ORGANISATIONAL PSYCHOLOGISTS Updated January 2007

2 1. General Introduction and Principles These Guidelines have been developed for use by tertiary institutions when preparing post-graduate courses in organisational psychology. The Guidelines are also for use by the APS College of Organisational Psychologists when evaluating submissions for approval for eligibility for membership of the College. Eligibility for membership also requires additional supervised professional experience. These Guidelines must be read in conjunction with the APAC Standards, especially Section 4. The APS College of Organisational Psychologists Guidelines provide additional criteria and specific requirements for College membership. The College s criteria and requirements are based on the model of a two-year Masters degree involving fourth-year entry standards. However the College wishes to be flexible in applying the criteria and requirements (while being firm about the underlying objectives and standards), and encourages a variety of approaches to course development. The College will thus consider other models including mixed models (e.g., professional doctorate either free-standing or in combination with a Masters degree, where APAC and the APS through the Program Development and Accreditation Advisory Group - PDAAG - have approved that pattern of studies as meeting the fifth and sixth year requirement for membership of the APS). Organisational psychologists specialise in the delivery of professional psychological services in regard to the world of work. They are concerned with the development of effective procedures and structures in organisations and with the development of productive, effective, resourceful and committed organisational members, teams and units, within the context of the goals and values of the society in which those organisations function. Organisational psychologists share competencies with other psychologists such as counselling, sport, educational and developmental psychologists, with many similar competencies being basic. However, germane to Organisational psychologists is the capacity for integrated multi-level (individual, group and organisational) analysis of human behaviour and related action, and an appreciation of the organisation s functioning as a dynamic and complex system in interaction with other organisations and with its broader social, economic and political environments. 2. General Program Requirements The APS College of Organisational Psychologists considers that the preparation for professional Organisational psychologists should include:

3 (i) (ii) scientific training in the discipline of psychology (in general and in Organisational psychology especially) and in supporting studies, and professional training, encompassing knowledge about and skills relating to, and supervised experience in, the practice of organisational psychology. A breadth and depth of training in both the academic discipline of psychology and the most significant areas of practice in the profession of Organisational psychology in applied settings should be reflected in the preparatory courses for membership of the College. Coursework (especially at post-graduate fifth and sixth year level) is a significant part of the direct professional training pathway leading to membership of the College, and should equip candidates with the necessary knowledge (multi-level conceptual frameworks about the psychological functioning of people at work, individually and in the context of groups, organisations, industries and other external environments) and skills to undertake a range of tasks across that variety of settings, with a broad range of individuals, teams and organisational units. The training provided should ensure awareness of wider organisational and community issues (including cross-cultural and ethnic group issues) and professional standards. It should also develop effective networking and teamwork competencies (including those involved in multidisciplinary teamwork and relationships with other professions) basic to delivery of services within organisations and the community. Of prime importance in the College s evaluation of courses for Organisational psychologists, therefore, are the teachings and learning objectives of the course. These should be explicit and clear, and should include the following: understanding of multi-level psychological theory as it pertains to the successful functioning of organisations; skill-development; awareness of the conditions for effective intervention; knowledge and skills in evaluation; evaluation of the reliability and validity of the various forms of psychological assessment; knowledge of various organisational contexts in which theoretical concepts and interventions are to be applied; and appreciation of associated ethical, professional and legal issues (such as occupational health and safety, and equal opportunity legislation).

4 These areas must be addressed from theoretical and practical standpoints in the preparatory studies leading to membership of the College. Supervised practical experience during training is essential. Because they are scientists as well as practitioners, organisational psychologists must be broadly trained in the formal and the empirical aspects of research and theory-building, in the various forms of experimental and ex post facto research, and in multivariate as well as univariate data analysis, so as to be effective in carrying out applied research (including evaluating policies, programs and interventions) which adds to the body of systematic knowledge within the discipline. They also need sufficient methodological and technical expertise to allow them to keep abreast of the research literature within their field. 3. Resourcing the Program The APAC Standards specify levels of staffing and resources within the institution. Three members of staff who teach courses in organisational psychology for College purposes should be members of the College. The Coordinator of the course should be at least a Level C appointment. A Level D/E should have sufficient time available and relevant expertise to provide academic leadership for the program. For the purpose of site visits, staff members proposing APS College of Organisational Psychologists eligibility should detail the basis of their claims. Program Structure: For Masters level programs, the three components should be weighted according to content and University unit weightings, so that each falls within the following specified ranges: Coursework 40-50% Research 20-33% Practical placement 25-30% 4. Content of Coursework Core topics: Approved courses at fifth and sixth year level should include the following core topics, in an integrated treatment of the individual, group, organisational and broader contextual levels of analysis and action. These core topics, studied to an advanced level, should make up at least 80% of the coursework. Core coursework refers to topics which must be

5 covered; it does not refer to courses, subjects or units. The treatment of these core topics must be orientated to the work environment and organisational context. 4.1 Theory, research and interventions at the individual level: Please note interventions includes assessment, intervention and evaluation 1. job analysis 2. recruitment and selection 3. training and development 4. worker motivation 5. work performance 6. employee psychological reactions and behaviours at work e.g., work attitudes, health and well-being 7. interpersonal skills in the workplace: counselling, interviewing and feedback 8. career development 4.2 Theory, research and interventions at the group level: 1. group processes 2. group facilitation 3. teams 4. leadership 5. cross-cultural and diversity issues (could be covered at the individual &/or organisational level) 4.3 Theory, research and interventions at the organisational level: 1. job design 2. organisational change 3. organisational culture and climate 4.4 Research design, methods and statistics (including both quantitative and qualitative techniques) 4.5 Psychological assessment and evaluation, including report writing for the workplace 4.6 Professional practice as an organisational psychologist: 1. professional issues and practice: standards, behaviour, and identity 2. legal issues

6 Elective topics: 3. ethical issues Approved courses may include a range of allied or related elective topics, which must be conducted at higher degree standard. They may make up to 20% of the course content. However, the College expects that, wherever possible, the topics are integrated with the core topics and with the other components of the course. Examples of suitable elective topics, which are not intended to preclude other relevant topics, are: conflict resolution strategic planning human resource management history and development of organisational psychology Occupational Health and Safety and industrial relations human factors DPsych Coursework: The DPsych coursework will be no less than the Masters and will contain additional Organisational psychology coursework of greater depth or breadth, that is, students should undertake studies that: advance their understanding of research and statistics skills advance their understanding of Organisational psychology topics advance their ability to implement Organisational psychology theory and research to the workplace 5. Research In addition to the APAC Standards (Section 4), the APS College of Organisational Psychologists expects that the research: 5.1 Focuses on a significant applied problem or theoretical issue in Organisational psychology. 5.2 Has a strong theoretical referent, either as the basis for the theoretical issue being explored, or as an a priori or post hoc framework for understanding an important problem. 5.3 Will be empirical, but this requirement must not be interpreted to exclude qualitative approaches such as case studies where those approaches are appropriate to the problem or issue and are properly handled.

7 5.4 Is reported in a way which demonstrates some level of originality, critical insight and capacity for independent research. More specifically the literature review is expected to demonstrate a familiarity with and understanding of the relevant literature. The levels of methodology and procedural sophistication and rigour are expected to be appropriate to the type of study undertaken, and the discussion should display an ability to interpret and integrate the results critically. 5.5 Is supervised by a member of staff who is, or is eligible to be, a member of the APS College of Organisational Psychologists. Where such a staff member is unavailable to supervise a particular thesis, research may be supervised by other acceptable persons whose research expertise is in area relevant to the domain of organisational psychology. 5.6 A least one of the examiners is, or is eligible to be, a member of the APS College of Organisational Psychologists or (if the examiner resides in another country) an equivalent professional body. 6. Practicum In addition to the APAC Standards, the following specialist issues should be noted: The practicum coordinator must be a member of staff from the AOU and either be a member or eligible for membership of the APS College of Organisational Psychologists. Students may undertake practicum at their current place of employment provided the work is relevant to organisational psychology. Students may undertake a maximum of one of the three practicums at their current job. The practicum must enable opportunities for new learning and/ or extend current KSAs and be supervised appropriately. 6.1 Where no member of staff with specialist qualifications is available in the practicum agency, the practicum agency will provide an on-site supervisor and external college psychological supervision will be undertaken. This may be provided by a College member or the training institution. If supervision is provided by the training institution this should not usually be a member of staff who is responsible to teaching a large proportion of the coursework. An alternative arrangement is to have an on-site supervisor and external supervision either paid for by the student or provided as an honorarium. The on-site supervisor should be familiar with students work and provide one hour of direct supervision for each full day of practicum. The equivalent of one hour of external supervisor is required for every 40 hours of work. Occasional contact should be made between the external supervisor and the on-site supervisor to validate the experiences the student is experiencing.

8 6.2 In areas of Organisational psychology where there is a limited number of practicum agencies, a practicum may be undertaken internally, however, it must involve either simulated or real work place organisational psychological activities. 6.3 It is desirable that during their practicum experience, students are supervised by at least 3 different supervisors. DPsych Practicum: Students should undertake 1500 hours of practicum. The additional 500 hours of practicum should involve supervision that emphasises higher level integration of theory and practice. 7. Assessment 7.1 Students are required to successfully complete all three components of the course (coursework, practicum and research) in order to complete the degree. 7.2 The specific type of assessment conducted should be determined by the objectives of the various components of the course, with a minimum standard of performance set of all components of the degree program. 7.3 Where a student does not meet minimum standards in any aspect of the course, mechanisms should be in place to ensure that the student does not obtain formal qualifications in Organisational psychology. 7.4 Where a student fails to meet the performance criteria for a pass in practicum, procedures should be established for a repeat practicum to be available so that the student may be fairly assessed on this component of the course. 7.5 Grievance procedures for students should be established by the institution.