70014 - Psychology of Human Resources

Academic Year 2022/2023

  • Moduli: Cristian Balducci (Modulo 1) Marco Giovanni Mariani (Modulo 2)
  • Teaching Mode: Traditional lectures (Modulo 1) Traditional lectures (Modulo 2)
  • Campus: Bologna
  • Corso: Second cycle degree programme (LM) in Politics Administration and Organization (cod. 9085)

Learning outcomes

At the end of the course the student will have an advanced knowledge of the main research and applied themes of work and organizational psychology, particularly as related to the sub-area of human resource management. The student will specifically develop knowledge in the following areas: work motivation, job satisfaction and engagement, recruitment and selection, performance appraisal and management, health and well-being at work.

Course contents

The course is divided in two modules, the first one taught by prof. C. Balducci, the second one taught by prof. M. Mariani.

Module 1:

This module will focus on the following main topics:

-The approach adopted by work, organizational and personnel psychology to the management of human resources in organizations.

-Job analysis, recruitment and selection.

-Work motivation, job satisfaction and work engagement.

-Job-related well-being: theories, regulatory aspects, assessment and interventions.

Module 2.

The module will focus on the following aspects:

-Learning and training in organizations.

-Employability and careers in the modern world of work.

-Job performance and its domains and management.

-Safety behavior in organizations and how to promote it.

The course content can change slightly following a preliminary discussion with students at the beginning of the course. The students new to the area of work, organizational and personnel psychology can read the first chapter of the following handbook to get an idea of the focus of the discipline [not mandatory]:

-Sarchielli G., Fraccaroli, F. (2017). Introduzione alla psicologia del lavoro. Bologna: Il Mulino.

Readings/Bibliography

Foreign students are assumed to attend all (or most of) the lectures.

Readings/material for the final examination are the following:

1) Powerpont slides of the lectures.

2) Readings assigned by the lecturers at the beginning of the course.

3) One of the following two books:

- Cortese, C. G., Del Carlo A. (2017). La selezione del personale. Milano: Cortina Editore.

- M.G. Mariani (2011) Valutare le prestazioni. Bologna: Il Mulino.

Students who will not attend lectures must contact the lecturers to agree on the readings for the final examination.

Teaching methods

Traditional lectures, in class discussions, group exercises based on materials and readings made available by the lecturers at the beginning of the course.

Assessment methods

Written examination based on open-ended and multiple choice questions. There will be 21 questions in all, of which 7 will be open-ended. Multiple choice questions are composed of five different response alternatives, of which only one is right. Open-ended questions require to write a text within the available space. The answers to open ended questions will be assessed based on the following criteria: relevance, completeness, and clarity. The written examination will assing a maximum of 32 points. The time available for the examination will be 60 minutes. Students can repeat a passed exam no more than two times.

Students with disabilities (e.g., learning disablities) are invited to contact the lecturer to explore the possibility of a different assessment method that considers their personal needs.

Teaching tools

Powerpoint slides and papers from scientific journals and material for exercises. Everything will be available for download from the platform Virtuale at the beginning of the course.

Office hours

See the website of Cristian Balducci

See the website of Marco Giovanni Mariani

SDGs

Good health and well-being Decent work and economic growth

This teaching activity contributes to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals of the UN 2030 Agenda.