The purpose of this study was to replicate and expand upon the survey research by Erffmeyer and Mendel (1990) on the perceived relevance of graduate training in industrial-organizational (I-O) psychology at the terminal master’s level. A review of the literature discussed core competencies, as well as the advantages of internship experiences and thesis requirements. Results indicated that graduates view their training as well targeted towards knowledge and skills they regard as useful at their internship, first job, and current position. Results also indicated that graduates viewed their internship experiences as highly beneficial and worthwhile experiences, regardless of their supervisor. Results additionally indicated that graduates value the thesis requirement significantly more than current students and view the knowledge, skills, and abilities associated with completing a thesis as high in usefulness. Implications and limitations of these findings are discussed, and directions for future research on master’s level I-O training are discussed.
","abstract_html":"<p>The purpose of this study was to replicate and expand upon the survey research by Erffmeyer and Mendel (1990) on the perceived relevance of graduate training in industrial-organizational (I-O) psychology at the terminal master’s level. A review of the literature discussed core competencies, as well as the advantages of internship experiences and thesis requirements. Results indicated that graduates view their training as well targeted towards knowledge and skills they regard as useful at their internship, first job, and current position. Results also indicated that graduates viewed their internship experiences as highly beneficial and worthwhile experiences, regardless of their supervisor. Results additionally indicated that graduates value the thesis requirement significantly more than current students and view the knowledge, skills, and abilities associated with completing a thesis as high in usefulness. Implications and limitations of these findings are discussed, and directions for future research on master’s level I-O training are discussed.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Kline, Seth A."],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Master of Arts","degree_level":null,"degree_discipline":"Department of Psychology","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Elizabeth Shoenfelt (Director), Reagan D. Brown, Amber N. Schroeder"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2014,"date_issued":"2014-05-01T07:00:00Z","date_published":"2014-05-01T07:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T06:08:39Z","subjects":["Competencies","Industrial Psychology","Interpersonal Communication","Business Administration","Communication in Management","Business Administration, Management, and Operations","Industrial and Organizational Psychology","Interpersonal and Small Group Communication","Psychology"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://digitalcommons.wku.edu/theses/1369","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Elizabeth Shoenfelt (Director), Reagan D. Brown, Amber N. Schroeder"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Kline, Seth A."]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:type","label":"Dc Type","values":["Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Department of Psychology"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Master of Arts"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Competencies","Industrial Psychology","Interpersonal Communication","Business Administration","Communication in Management","Business Administration, Management, and Operations","Industrial and Organizational Psychology","Interpersonal and Small Group Communication","Psychology"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://digitalcommons.wku.edu/theses/1369"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["The purpose of this study was to replicate and expand upon the survey research by Erffmeyer and Mendel (1990) on the perceived relevance of graduate training in industrial-organizational (I-O) psychology at the terminal master’s level. A review of the literature discussed core competencies, as well as the advantages of internship experiences and thesis requirements. Results indicated that graduates view their training as well targeted towards knowledge and skills they regard as useful at their internship, first job, and current position. Results also indicated that graduates viewed their internship experiences as highly beneficial and worthwhile experiences, regardless of their supervisor. Results additionally indicated that graduates value the thesis requirement significantly more than current students and view the knowledge, skills, and abilities associated with completing a thesis as high in usefulness. Implications and limitations of these findings are discussed, and directions for future research on master’s level I-O training are discussed.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["The Perceived Relevance of Training in Industrial/Organizational Psychology at the Terminal Master's Level"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Elizabeth Shoenfelt (Director), Reagan D. Brown, Amber N. Schroeder"],"dc:creator":["Kline, Seth A."],"dc:description.abstract":["The purpose of this study was to replicate and expand upon the survey research by Erffmeyer and Mendel (1990) on the perceived relevance of graduate training in industrial-organizational (I-O) psychology at the terminal master’s level. A review of the literature discussed core competencies, as well as the advantages of internship experiences and thesis requirements. Results indicated that graduates view their training as well targeted towards knowledge and skills they regard as useful at their internship, first job, and current position. Results also indicated that graduates viewed their internship experiences as highly beneficial and worthwhile experiences, regardless of their supervisor. Results additionally indicated that graduates value the thesis requirement significantly more than current students and view the knowledge, skills, and abilities associated with completing a thesis as high in usefulness. Implications and limitations of these findings are discussed, and directions for future research on master’s level I-O training are discussed.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://digitalcommons.wku.edu/theses/1369"],"dc:subject":["Competencies","Industrial Psychology","Interpersonal Communication","Business Administration","Communication in Management","Business Administration, Management, and Operations","Industrial and Organizational Psychology","Interpersonal and Small Group Communication","Psychology"],"dc:title":["The Perceived Relevance of Training in Industrial/Organizational Psychology at the Terminal Master's Level"],"dc:type":["Thesis"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Department of Psychology"],"thesis:degree_name":["Master of Arts"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T06:08:39Z"}