While social psychology provides organizations with a framework for managing people, it is cognitive psychology that has made the greatest contribution to improving working conditions. Understanding how we think can help us understand why some people are better suited to certain jobs than others, and understanding the effects of physical and mental stress helps us design workplaces where workforces feel safe and productive. Repetitive and often dangerous work on production lines, in noisy, hot environments, has been shown to be bad for both employees’ health, safety and morale; and productivity.
Donald Broadbent promoted an approach to psychological practice that sought to understand and improve people’s lives through applied research. He argued that the purpose of psychology should be to help individuals live better lives. Manufacturing businesses were not the only industry to take advantage of this new approach; psychologists have looked at the mental skills needed in a wide variety of jobs, and how work environments can be designed and managed so that they are more pleasant and productive for everyone involved.
