PSY Programmatic Themes

Psychology is more than just one course you are taking in college. Psychology is everywhere! It’s a tool that can help you live a better life, make a bigger impact on the world, and build stronger relationships. As you complete coursework throughout your degree program, you’ll discover and rediscover five key themes. Each one illustrates a way to apply psychology in your life both personally and professionally. By the end of your program, you’ll have the tools to understand yourself more fully, improve your personal and professional connections, and effect positive change in the world.

 Self-care: When you hear the term self-care, you may think of things like bubble baths and dark chocolate. But self-care is about more than just pampering yourself. Engaging in self-care means taking time for personal reflection and developing skills to improve your well-being. You can also take care of yourself by increasing your resilience and self-regulation.

 Social justice: Everyone deserves the same rights and access to opportunities. When you apply psychology ethically and empathetically, you’re supporting social justice. As you work through this program, you’ll see that psychology can do more than just improve your own life—it can help you enhance the lives of others and promote social justice for society as a whole.

 Emotional intelligence (EI): Emotional intelligence is defined as the practice of self-control and the ability to accurately perceive the emotions of self and others, appropriately adapt emotions and actions in daily interactions, and consistently understand and express interest in the well- being of self and others. In short, it’s how you understand and respond to emotions in yourself and the people around you. Emotional intelligence is not just an abstract concept. It’s a set of skills, including self-awareness, self-regulation, ethical judgment, empathy, social awareness, and conflict resolution.

 Career connections: Even if you don’t become a psychologist, studying psychology can help advance your career. Psychology helps explain why people behave in certain ways and how you can work with them more effectively. Whether you major in psychology or use this course as a stepping-stone to other opportunities, the study of psychology can improve your daily life and job prospects.

 Ethics: Modern psychology is guided by ethical principles. While formal ethics are set by governing bodies such as the American Psychological Association, you also have your own set of values and morals that influence your personal ethics. Throughout your coursework, you will apply ethics by citing your sources.

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Creative  Climate   Internal  Conditions  for  Creative  Behavior  &  Performance      

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A  Quick  Look  at…  

  Swedish  researcher  Göran  Ekvall  identified  10  climate  dimensions  (nine  positively  correlated,  and  one  negatively  correlated)  that   affect  creativity  in  organizations.  His  conception  has  been  validated  by  repeated  studies  in  the  United  States  and  internationally.  

Dimension   Description   Your  Rating  

Challenge   The  degree  to  which  members  of  the  organization  are  involved  in  its  daily  operations  and  long  term  goals.   In  a  high  challenge  climate,  people  are  intrinsically  motivated  to  make  contributions,  and  find  joy  and   meaningfulness  in  their  work  and  invest  much  energy.  

Dynamism     and  Liveliness  

The  eventfulness  of  the  life  of  the  organization.  A  highly  dynamic  situation  is  when  new  things  occur   often  and  alternations  between  ways  of  thinking  about  and  handling  issues  often  occur.  The   atmosphere  is  lively  and  full  of  positive  energy,  “full  speed,”  “go.”  

Playfulness     and  Humor  

The  spontaneity  and  ease  that  is  displayed.  A  relaxed  atmosphere  with  jokes  and  laughter  characterize   the  organization  which  is  high  in  the  dimension.  

Freedom   The  independence  of  behavior  exerted  by  the  people  in  an  organization.  In  a  climate  with  much  freedom,   people  are  given  autonomy  to  define  much  of  their  own  work.  People  are  able  to  exercise  discretion  in   their  day-­‐to-­‐day  activities,  and  people  take  the  initiative  to  acquire  and  share  information.  

Risk  Taking   The  tolerance  of  uncertainty  and  ambiguity  exposed  in  the  workplace.  In  the  high  risk-­‐taking  climate,  bold   new  initiatives  can  be  taken  even  when  the  outcomes  are  unknown.  People  feel  as  though  they  can  “take   a  gamble”  on  some  of  their  ideas.  People  will  often  “go  out  on  a  limb”  to  put  ideas  forward.  

Idea  Time   The  amount  of  time  people  can  use  (and  do  use)  for  elaborating  new  ideas.  In  the  high  idea-­‐time  situation,   the  possibilities  exist  to  discuss  and  test  impulses  and  fresh  suggestions  that  are  not  planned  or   included  in  the  task.  

Idea  Support   The  way  new  ideas  are  treated.  In  the  supportive  climate,  ideas  and  suggestions  are  received  in  an   attentive  and  kind  way  by  bosses  and  workmates.  People  listen  to  each  other  and  encourage  initiatives.   Possibilities  for  trying  out  new  ideas  are  created.  The  atmosphere  is  constructive  and  positive.  

Trust  and   Openness  

The  emotional  safety  in  relationships.  When  there  is  a  strong  level  of  trust,  everyone  in  the  organization   dares  to  put  forward  ideas  and  opinions.  Initiatives  can  be  taken  without  fear  of  reprisals  and  ridicule  in   case  of  failure.  The  communication  is  open  and  straightforward.  

Debate   Encounters,  exchanges,  or  clashes  among  viewpoints,  ideas,  and  differing  experiences  and  knowledge.  In   debating  organizations,  many  voices  are  heard  and  people  are  keen  about  putting  their  ideas  forward.   Where  debates  are  missing,  people  follow  authoritarian  patterns  without  questioning.  Debate  focuses   on  issues  and  ideas.  

Conflict   (negatively   correlated)  

The  presence  of  personal,  interpersonal,  or  emotional  tensions  (in  contrast  to  idea  tensions  in  the  debate   dimension)  in  the  organization.  When  a  level  of  conflict  is  high,  groups  and  individuals  dislike  or  hate   each  other  and  the  climate  can  be  characterized  as  “warfare.”  Plots  and  traps  are  common,  gossip  and   back-­‐stabbing  occur.  

Source: Ekvall, G. (1996). Organizational climate for creativity and innovation. European Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology, 5 (1), 105-123.

   How  important  is  creative  behavior  and  performance  in  our  organization?    How  does  my  team  rate  on  the  ten  facets?  (Use  the  right-­‐hand  column,  above)    What  happens  in  our  environment  now  that  is  helpful  and  supportive  to  our  creativity?    What  happens  in  our  environment  now  that  is  hindering  our  creativity?    How  might  we  improve  the  climate  for  creativity?  

What are the dimensions of a creative climate?

Questions to ask about your climate