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A Means Not an End

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  07 January 2015

Paul M. Muchinsky
Paul M. Muchinsky*
Affiliation:
University of North Carolina at Greensboro
*
E-mail: pmmuchin@uncg.edu, Address: Department of Business Administration, Bryan School of Business and Economics, University of North Carolina at Greensboro, 365 Bryan Building, Greensboro, NC 27402.
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Extract

Ryan and Ford (2010) asserted that the identity of I-O psychology is blurred with other allied disciplines (OB, HRM, IR, ODC, etc.). I agree. They are concerned with identifying what sets I-O psychology apart from these other disciplines and concluded that the science (italics in original) component of I-O psychology is the critical differentiating marker variable. I disagree. Ryan and Ford equate “I-O psychologists” with “I-O psychological knowledge”; therefore, only individuals trained as I-O psychologists can produce I-O psychological knowledge. The less-than-subtle implication that only I-O psychologists are scientists is not born out by the scientific literature. Our top scientific journals (i.e., those that have the P-word in the title) have had editors, associate editors, and members of the editorial review boards whose academic training is not in psychology. Articles published in these journals are also authored by nonpsychologists. The Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology (SIOP) has given awards and granted fellowship status to nonpsychologists whose scholarly work has been deemed to be of special merit and significance. Quite clearly, I-O psychologists do not have a monopoly on I-O psychological research.

Type
Commentaries
Information
Industrial and Organizational Psychology , Volume 3 , Issue 3 , September 2010 , pp. 269 - 271
Copyright
Copyright © Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology 2010 

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References

Campbell, J. P. (1971). Psychology in business schools. Professional Psychology, 2, 6–11.Google Scholar
Cranny, C. J. (1971). Industrial psychology in psychology departments. Professional Psychology, 2, 3–5.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, 241–258.Google Scholar