News and Updates
Internship Spotlight: Grad Student Josh Pearman interns with Roblox
Josh Pearman, is a nOrganizational Psychology PhD student, interned with Roblox as a People Science Intern where he developed a situational judgement test. Josh shared with us recently about his internship, how his organizational psychology education prepared him for the internship, and more.
Interested in our graduate programs?
Attend a virtual information session to find out more about our areas of focus.
Missed the session? Slides from the presentation can be found here.
Internship Spotlight: Grad Student Rachael Pyram interns with Google
Rachael Pyram is a 4th year Organizational Psychology PhD student. Over the summer, Rachael interned with Google within the People Analytics unit. Rachael shared with us recently about her internship experience and how it helped shape her career path.
How well do career fit tests work? New MSU study compares 5 types of assessments
Career fit assessments are a common tool used to help people know which jobs they are well suited for. But how well do they work? A new study from Michigan State University evaluated five types of assessments and found that not every assessment was equal in its predictions.
"Both organizations and workers are in this sort of exploratory phase where they're really trying to figure out what are the best ways that they can use this to improve productivity and to do the work that they're doing in a better, faster, more efficient way. And so a lot of the ways that they're doing it tends to really be bottom up. It tends to be employees who are really leading this change."
Catch Dr. Christopher Nye discussing the impact of AI on the workforce on The Daily+ Live.
Congratulations to Connor Eichenauer, a 5th year graduate student specializing in Organizational Psychology, on receiving the 2024 Joseph L. White Award for Outstanding Graduate Contributions to JDEI.
A recent study lead by Dr. Kevin Hoff found large gaps between people's career interests and U.S. job demands. These gaps indicate that the interest demands of the U.S. labor market differ drastically from the supply of interested people, revealing how many people have unfulfilled interests at work.
Organizational psychologist Dr. Christopher Nye has been at the forefront of addressing the intersection of AI and workforce dynamics. Recently, he met with two members of the Congressional Task Force on Artificial Intelligence.
MSU Organizational Psychologists joined faculty from across MSU colleges and representatives from community organizations to collaborate and engage on the future of work. Dorothy Carter, Daisy Chang, Kevin Hoff, Ann Marie Ryan and other experts led interactive discussions centered on four topics, including human interaction with artificial intelligence, accessibility changes to technology, new skills in the labor market and government engagement.
Additionally, graduate students, including Nathan Baker, Connor Eichenauer, and Rachael Pyram, presented their research on the future of work at a poster session.
Graduate Student Jo Alanis Receives the Charles P. and Linda A. Thompson Endowment for Social Science Research
Jo Alanis, a 5th year graduate student specializing in Organizational Psychology, received the Charles P. and Linda A. Thompson Endowment for Social Science Research. This endowment supports graduate student research in the College of Social Science. Both graduates of MSU and highly accomplished in their careers, Linda and Charles Thompson are socially conscious philanthropists who provided a generous gift to MSU to establish this endowment in support of research that is rooted in Social Science and crosses academic disciplines to help resolve the world's problems.
Alanis' dissertation focuses on the overqualification experiences of immigrant workers in the United States, one population that is particularly affected by overqualification.
Graduate Student Connor Eichenauer Receives the Kenneth E. Corey Researech Enrichment Fund
Connor Eichenauer, a 5th year graduate student specializing in Organizational Psychology, received the Kenneth E. Corey Research Enrichment Fund. This endowed fund benefits students and faculty of the College of Social Science at Michigan State University. Professor Kenneth E. Corey served as Dean of the MSU College of Social Science from 1989-1999. As a reflection of his deep affection for and continued close relationship with the MSU College of Social Science, and to further nurture the research culture within the College, he established this endowed fund to provide ongoing support for research within the College.
Eichenauer's dissertation investigates how employee selection decision-makers choose to utilize (or not) candidate information from different selection procedures when evaluating candidates.
Graduate Student Jo Alanis Receives J-DEI Research Grant
Jo Alanis, a 5th year graduate student specializing in Organizational Psychology, received the MSU Psychology Department’s Graduate Student J-DEI Research Grant. This grant seeks to encourage and support the department’s graduate students’ exemplary research on topics that examine or advance justice, diversity, equity, and/or inclusion. Jo recently shared about her work researching immigrants in the workplace, why this type of work is important to her, and what she wishes that she had learned earlier.
From interests to employment (or not): New study explores gender gaps in career paths
A recent study, led by Dr. Kevin Hoff, found significant variations in career interests between men and women. Surprisingly, even with these interest differences, gender gaps in career opportunities are more substantial than anticipated. The study also noted that these gender differences are more pronounced at lower education levels. This suggests a pressing need for gender diversity efforts to concentrate on professions that do not require a college degree.
Internship Spotlight: Grad Student Nathan Baker with Honeywell
Nathan Baker is a 4th year PhD student specializing in Organizational Psychology. Over the summer, Nathan began an internship with Honeywell to support the assessment team. Nathan recently shared about his interests, what he's learning through this internship, and how he sees Organizational Psychologists uniquely contributing to companies like Honeywell.
Interested in applying for our graduate program?
Come to our virtual information session on October 3rd at 7PM (ET) to find out more about our area of focus, how to apply, and to meet some of the faculty and students.
*Missed the session? Click here to watch a recording.
Internship Spotlight: Grad Student Connor Eichenauer with Ford Motor Company
Connor Eichenauer is a fifth-year PhD student specializing in Organizational Psychology. In 2023, Connor had the opportunity to intern at Ford Motor Company as a People Analytics intern. He recently shared about his experience and how it aligns with his research interests.
Dr. Neal Schmitt receives MSU College of Social Science Service Award
Congratulations to Dr. Neal Schmitt, University Distinguished Professor emeritus of Psychology and Management at MSU, and Dr. Kara Schmitt, who served as the Director of Testing for the State for 30 years, for receiving the 2023 College of Social Science Service Award. This award is presented to MSU College of Social Science supporters who have demonstrated service to the college or meritorious public service on a local, state, national, or international level.
Congratulations to Dr. Sarah Kuang on earning a Ph.D.! Dr. Kuang specialized in Organizational Psychology with a dissertation that explored how organizations can promote inclusion for new employees, particularly those with minoritized identities, during the socialization process.
Dr. Kuang is now working with Illumina as a Senior Business Data Analyst.
Congratulations to Dr. Jenna Van Fossen on earning her Ph.D.! Dr. Van Fossen specialized in Organizational Psychology with a dissertation titled "Implications of Need Satisfaction in Work and Home Roles for Work-Family Enrichment and Parenting Style Expression."
Dr. Van Fossen will begin as an assistant professor at Clemson this fall.
Congratulations to Dr. Daniel Griffin on earning his Ph.D.! Dr. Griffin specialized in Organizational Psychology with a dissertation that investigated the nature of task work coordination in teams.
Dr. Griffin received a tenure track position at the University of South Florida and will start this fall.
Two MSU Psychologists Elected as Fellows of the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology
Michigan State Psychology is proud to announce that two of its esteemed faculty members in Organizational Psychology, Dr. Nathan Carter and Dr. Christopher Nye, have been elected as fellows of the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology (SIOP). This recognition is a testament to their outstanding contributions to Industrial and Organizational Psychology.
New study: MSU experiment explains mansplaining and its impact
Caitlin Briggs, an organizational psychology graduate student, and her colleagues sought to learn more about the true implications of mansplaining.
"What we found was that women largely had negative outcomes as a result of being mansplained to, whereas it didn’t affect men as much,” said Briggs, whose research was published in the Journal of Business and Psychology. “They [women volunteers] tended to register that their competence was being questioned more than men did, and to attribute this to a gender bias — so, maybe this person doesn’t think highly of me or doesn’t like me because of my gender.”
Congratulations to graduate students Jo Alanis and Connor Eichenauer on their recent awards from the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology. Alanis received the James Outtz Grant for Student Research on Diversity for her research on immigrant employment experiences. Eichenauer received the Leslie W. Joyce and Paul W. Thayer Graduate Fellowship for his work as a scientist and practitioner.
Hey Siri, it's time to understand the stuttering community!
Voice-activated artificial intelligence (AI) has become prevalent in our daily lives—think Alexa, Siri, voice-to-text, and AI-scoring hiring tools. Its increasing use has left the stuttering community, a community of more than 70 million people worldwide, at a disadvantage. A multidisciplinary team from Michigan State University and Western Michigan University, including Dr. Ann Marie Ryan, has received a $750,000 grant through the National Science Foundation’s Convergence Accelerator program to make voice-activated AI accessible and fair to people who stutter.
MSU Psychology helps Michigan State Police retain a more diverse workforce
In early October, a class of Organizational Psychology students pitched ideas to the Michigan State Police to better recruit and retain women and ethnic minorities as Michigan State Troopers. Their task was to persuade a panel within five minutes that their idea was the most useful and innovative.
Emily Gerkin, a fourth-year graduate student, took first place. Jo Alanis, a fourth-year graduate student, took second place.
P&G Business Challenge Invites Org Psych Ph.D. Student
For 18 years, Procter & Gamble (P&G) has invited organizational psychology graduate students to a weeklong challenge to address problems they face as a business. Michigan State University psychology graduate student, Nathan Baker, will be taking part this year.
Starting September 26th, Baker and nine other graduate students will meet at Procter & Gamble’s headquarters in Cincinnati, Ohio. They will be given a real business challenge on the first day, and as a team they will investigate the problem, apply their skills and education, and recommend a solution. Potential challenges could address employee selection, employee experience, diversity and inclusion, leadership development, change management, or any other area that Proctor & Gamble’s organizational psychologists face.
Read more about Nathan and this challenge here.
APA's Early Career Psychologist Achievement Award Names MSU Psychology Alumna
Danielle King has received the American Psychological Association (APA) Achievement Award for Early Career Psychologists. Dr. King, who earned a doctorate in organizational psychology at MSU, is an assistant professor at Rice University and studies resilience and identity.
“I'm excited to receive this award, especially as someone researching resilience and race. Historically in our field, those haven’t been the scholars who have been selected for these awards. So, I'm grateful and I think it's a positive step,” said Dr. King.
New Organizational Psychology Faculty: Dr. Nathan Carter
The Michigan State University psychology department welcomes Nathan T. Carter, Ph.D. as a new professor in the organizational psychology program. Dr. Carter hails from the state of Kentucky and has spent the past 10 years of his career working at the University of Georgia. Dr. Carter’s research focuses on personality and behavior in the workplace.
“MSU’s organizational psychology program has always been an aspirational place for me,” said Dr. Carter. “I’m joining people who I’ve looked up to for a long time.”
Organizational Psychologist Kevin Hoff Joins Faculty
The Michigan State University psychology department welcomes new faculty member Kevin Hoff, Ph.D. to their organizational psychology program. Dr. Hoff, who earned his doctorate from the University of Illinois, comes most recently from the University of Houston. Dr. Hoff’s research specializes in careers, vocational interests, personality, and the future of work.
“The organizational psychology program at MSU has a rich history of doing great research, while also giving back and being a leader in the field,” said Dr. Hoff. “I’ve felt very welcomed already into the program and am excited to be here.”
Read more about Dr. Hoff here.
Quinetta Roberson has been appointed to MSU Federal Credit Union's Board of Directors. Congratulations, Dr. Roberson!
Read more about Dr. Roberson here.
Congratulations to Dr. Ann Marie Ryan, who received the 2022 Graduate School Outstanding Faculty Mentor Award!
The selection committee communicated the following in making their selection:
"Dr. Ryan has a sustained history of more than 25 years of excellence and leadership in improving graduate education and mentoring her own graduate students and those throughout the Michigan State University community. One of her students said that although Dr. Ryan is a world class scholar, she 'talks to her students as if she were learning from us.' Her past and current mentees feel 'a profound sense of kinship': when they meet, they 'often talk about being raised with her ideals of conducting rigorous scholarship, leading with integrity and ethics, and championing values of excellence and inclusion.'"