M.Com. (Industrial Psychology) / Orientation: Professional industrial-organisational (I-O) psychology practitioners function and register under one title with the Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA) yet in practice the work is done under various other titles and in various fields and industries. I-O psychology professionals identify with the broader title, yet also identify with the subfield in which they work (e.g. Coach, Consultant [internal or external], Generalist, Talent Manager, Recruiter etc.). For many young aspiring I-O professionals the question lingers, “what is an I-O psychologist?”. This is the question of professional identity and shared mental models, “who are we?”. A professional identity is a social identity, yet there no obvious shared overarching identities across the profession, besides the title. The extent to which the professional identity is shared and whether there is a strong sense of it is what I am questioning. Research purpose: The aim of this study was to explore the mental models held by professional I-O psychologists to gain richer insight into the possible shared mental models within the profession and thus facilitate a better understanding of the professional identity. Motivation for the study: I am personally attached to the topic of the study in that I am an I-O psychology master’s student, and therefore the study looks into my own future profession. The world of practice for the registered I-O psychologist is wide and varied. For young students in the field the exact meaning, and purpose of I-O psychology is not always clear neither is the profession's contribution. The study not only feeds my curiosity, but also assists those who are interested in mental models that make up the profession. As a student I believe it is important to have an understanding of the profession to which one is committing oneself, as you will soon no longer be representing yourself only but also the profession. For a profession to be considered a legitimate community of practice, standards, governance and guiding principles are essential. Thus the idea of understanding the underlying mental models within the I-O psychology profession is both interesting and useful to the individual and also the larger professional body. Research design: Applying a qualitative case-study design I conducted interviews with eleven locally practicing I-O psychologists from varying backgrounds. They were registered with the Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA) for at least five years. Main findings: From the data gained from the I-O psychologists I derived fourteen different mental models. I categorised the models into the following five themes, namely: philosophies, events, social/relational, personal and regulation. I classified the themes further as either internal or external experiences. External experiences refer to mental models that aid the individual in linking with the broader community, while internal experiences entail mental models which individual professionals manage within themselves in ways particularly unique to themselves, aiding the maintenance of their personal identity. These two classifications, the internal and external experiences, help the professional balance the need for the sense of self with the need of belonging to the social community of practice. In applying theory when I analysed the research findings it became clear that individuals carry both shared and individual senses of their identity. Persons' perceptions were greatly dependent on their work experiences, and regardless of these being positive or negative they were incorporated into the manner in which the individual made sense of the profession identity and their personal identity. Accomplished professionals often possessed mental models which strengthened a sense of a collective professional identity (such as the mental models themed under philosophies) rather than a personal individual identity (such as the mental models themed under personal). Mental models which apply to the whole profession are associated with guiding principles such as ethics, collaboration and being people centred. While the others which are less shared, such as personal validation, point to a deep internal and personal experience of the profession. I-O psychologists carry both the unique and the shared sense of the profession, various mental models are used to aid in the balancing of the two. Contribution: The study’s theoretical contribution lies in (i) providing a better understanding of the level at which I-O psychologists' mental models are shared vs. individual, and (ii) demonstrating how common themes influence the identity work of I-O psychologists, and that identity work entails an ongoing process found throughout the professional lives of the I-O psychologist...

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Syracuse University, 2009. / "Publication number: AAT 3385826."

M.Phil. (Industrial Psychology) / Industrial psychology is a profession that provides behaviour focused services to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of businesses. Industrial psychologists implement interventions at an individual, group and organisational level to improve productivity and well-being as well as reaffirming strengths and organisational flourishing. It can be said that the industrial psychology profession has been subjected to identity challenges as the profession has evolved. Orientation: The study explored the dynamics of the challenges relating to the identity of the industrial psychology profession as well as its members and further explores the creation of professional identity through social interaction. Research purpose: The aim of this study was to report on the outcomes of the social construction process and the co-creation of the identity of the industrial psychology profession and professional. Motivation for the study: This study was aimed at acquiring an understanding on the outcomes of the process of socially constructing the professional identity of industrial psychology. Research design, approach and method: This study used social construction in the context of a qualitative field research. The researcher used social media as a data collection method and asked seven industrial psychology related questions to a sample of 80 participants who contributed to a total of 627 responses. Main findings: Findings apply to areas of the industrial psychology as a science, as a profession, and the industrial psychologist as a practitioner. A unifying industrial psychology identity should be established that may assist in the maintenance of the profession’s relevance and reduce professional identity challenges. Practical/managerial implications: There are many stakeholders of the industrial psychology profession that may be affected by the services provided by members of the profession. These stakeholders include: industrial psychologists themselves, industrial psychology academics and institutions, organisations, clients and internship providers as well as regulatory boards and associations. The recommendations made in this study have been specifically applied to all stakeholders. Contribution/value-add: This study may assist in the a) elimination of role ambiguity and b) the promotion of using social media as a data collection method.

M.A. (Industrial Psychology) / The object of this study is to explore the first-time work experiences of industrial psychologists. This phenomenon occurs during the entry phase of one’s career life cycle, and is associated with a reality shock, role transitions and socialisation. Ten participants were interviewed by making use of the Repertory Grid Technique to discover their mental models and personal constructs, which they created through their experiences. This information was interpreted from an interpretivist stance by using a case study and modernistic qualitative approach. Seven main themes were identified from the participant’s experiences. Four of these were considered to be enhancing and three were limiting. The three limiting themes that were regarded as negative relationships that were formed were the lack of knowledge of the industrial psychology profession, negative relationships formed and unmet expectations. The four enhancing themes were professional development, personal development, identifying the role of the industrial psychologist and identifying the value of the industrial psychologist. Recommendations were made on how to alleviate the negative experiences and a contracting model and industrial psychology career entry model were formed.

M.Phil. (Industrial Psychology) / The objective of this study was to determine the psychologist-lawyer dynamics, prevalent in the psycho-legal activities of industrial psychologists. In order to reach this objective, repertory grid interviews were conducted with 10 participants, all of whom were industrial psychologists experienced in psycho-legal activities. During the interviews, the participants were asked to contrast their experiences in terms of the psychologist-lawyer dynamics, by eliciting similarities and differences between the psycho-legal cases which they identified. From the contrasts obtained in the interviews, the data were analysed in three consecutive stages, namely eyeball analysis, bootstrapping analysis, and the interpretation and sense-making of the themes. In the first stage of analysis, the repertory grids of the participants were scanned holistically to identify personal constructs. In the second stage of analysis, the personal constructs were categorised into themes, based on a process of continual scrutiny for similarities. During the final stage of analysis, the seven themes, categorised from the personal constructs of the participants, were interpreted and made sense of by using relevant literature on forensic psychology. The seven themes categorised from the data were: differing scientific worldviews of industrial psychologists and lawyers, the power differential in the psychologist-lawyer relationship, motives of the instructing lawyer, structure of the psychologist-lawyer relationship, the industrial psychologist's fees, objectivity of the industrial psychologist, and ethical principles in psycho-legal activities. Based on the seven themes, recommendations are made to important stakeholders such as industrial psychologists, the Professional Board for Psychology, lawyers instructing industrial psychologists, and universities. Furthermore, important limitations of this study are noted, from where recommendations for future research are made. Recommendations for stakeholders and future research in terms of the psychologist-lawyer dynamics in industrial psychologists’ psycho-legal activities are aimed at mediating the interdisciplinary and inter-professional dynamics between industrial psychologists and lawyers, in order to aid the sustained practice of industrial psychologists’ psycho-legal activities.