Profile

The Work and Organizational Psychology devotes itself to the people´s behavior and experience in the world of work as a key area of life. Prof. Dr. Scheel has been working as a self-employed coach for many years now. It analyzes, assesses and organizes the technical, organizational and social working conditions with the objective that the working people discover experience harmless, practicable and tolerable working conditions without any impairment, see any tasks, work contents and working conditions tailored to the human strengths fulfilled as well as receive an adequate payment, gain any skills in scopes of action and can acquire and develop their personality in cooperation with others (cf. also core definition of work science).

More specifically, the work and organizational psychology deals with the question how the working conditions have an impact on people, but even the individual influences and changes these working conditions. In particular, it is e.g. discussed how work can be analyzed, which positive (opportunities for personal development) and negative (stresses and strains) impacts work has, how work can be organized, how the relationship between work and any other areas of life is (Work-Life-Balance/Life-Domain-Balance), but even basic questions with regard to motivation to work and job satisfaction or human action in general are addressed.

The work and organizational psychology concentrates on the question how main features of (work) organizations have an impact on people and how people influence and change organizations. This involves issues with regard to the selection of personnel and staff development, leadership, working groups, work climate and corporate structure, expatriation (personnel deployment abroad) with a clear focus on international organizations and intercultural skills.

Teaching

The work and organizational psychology is an essential part of the internationally and interdisciplinarily oriented International Institute for Management and Economic Education (IIM).

During the bachelor´s program at the IIM the students obtain an overview of the work and organizational psychology which can be deepened by tutorials and a psychologically-oriented Bachelor thesis.

In the master program at the IIM, teaching sessions are offered within the field of key qualifications (empirical project, leadership skills, interculturality, research seminars) as well as within the specialization "Organizational Behavior & Human Resource Management". In total, the students can attend teaching sessions within a scope of more than 50 CP in the work and organizational psychology which more or less corresponds to the specializations in a psychology major.

The following modules are normally offered in the master program:

  • Leadership skills (5 CP)
  • Organizational Behavior (5 CP)
  • Methods of Analysis and Design (5 CP)
  • Groups in organizations (5 CP)
  • Health and Stress at Work (5 CP)
  • Organizational Behavior & Human Resource Management research seminar (5 CP).

Research

In research, we are interested in the following topics:

  • Human behaviour (at work): psychological regulation and motivation (e.g., procrastination),
  • Readiness for change, change of work (change management and New Ways of Working: Digitalization, Flexibilization) and its consequences,
  • Leadership,
  • Humor in the context of work and organizations (e.g., intercultural),
  • Human Resource Management and psychological contracts,
  • Error culture,
  • Work and health (e.g., psychological risk assessment),
  • Unemployment

With regard to:

  • New ways of work including working online (e.g., microtasking), Coworking,
  • Atypical forms of employment (e.g., temporary contracts, volunteering),
  • Professional Service firms (SME/small and medium-sized enterprises)

Practical relevance

The departmental lecturers are also on the spot in the business practice by way of training sessions, lectures and consulting services. Moreover, a large part of the Bachelor and Master theses are written in cooperation with companies and organizations. In the specialization, the students acquire profound knowledge and skills preparing for a professional (leadership) activity and, in particular, in the personnel segment of international and transnational organizations.