SOL1 Psychology in Organisation and Leadership

• Topics

  SOL1 provides a psychological perspective on leadership and organizations. What motivates us? How do we make decisions? And what does a good workplace really look like?

  The purpose of the course is to provide insight into the human factor in organizations and work life, and what can be done to create a better workplace. From the individual to the group level, the course will provide a research-based introduction to key theories of human behavior in organizations. The overall goal is for students to acquire a scientific perspective on which factors create well-being, motivation, and high performance -- and conversely, which factors can be detrimental to an organization. The academic basis for this course is research in psychology, organizational behavior, and leadership.

   

  SOL1 consists of two main parts.

  - Part 1 focuses on how we can understand the individual in organizations and work life. Specific topics include: Personality, ability and value-orientation; self-concept and perception; attitudes, job satisfaction and stress; motivation and performance; and decision-making.

  - Part 2 applies a more social perspective, and will focus on how we can understand the interaction between individuals, groups, and leaders. Specific topics include: Group processes and cooperation in teams; social relations, morality and conflict in organizations; and general characteristics of good and bad leadership. In addition, the course will provide a brief introduction to academic writing and scientific thinking.

• Learning outcome

  Knowledge

  The candidate:

  • Has a scientific understanding of what characterizes the individual's functioning in organizations and work life.
  • Has a scientific understanding of the interaction between the individual and social processes at the group and organizational level.
  • Has knowledge of the role that individuals and the interplay of individuals play in sustainable organizations.

  Skills

  The candidate:

  • Is able to identify challenges related to the interplay between individuals and groups in an organizational context.
  • Can assess which measures that can be implemented to deal with key challenges related to leadership, cooperation, and motivation.
  • Has the ability to present relevant academic insights in a reflected and systematic way, in the form of written case reports. 

  General competence

  The candidate:

  • Has insight into the relevance of psychology for leadership and organizations, both at the individual and group level.
  • Can communicate one's own insights and discuss key issues in psychology and leadership.
  • Master academic writing, independent search for scientific literature, and source criticism.