Job Design

Learning Objective:

1. To provide students with the foundations of the research process and applications in human factors, human-computer interaction, operations management and multivariate data analysis.
2. Students should be able to identify and justify product and process evaluations considering modern aspects of job design, work design, and various computer-based consumer products.
3. Supplementary readings will have applications of engineering, computer sciences, information sciences and psychological principles and methods to the analysis and design of human work systems.

Description:

Task analysis, personnel selection and training, job and organization design, and criteria development and use. Human factors related to job design in order to increase job satisfaction and productivity.

Spring 2024 Syllabus

Topics Covered:

Computing applications, vehicle design, rail, truck and air transportation, mining, manufacturing, healthcare. 

Applied/Theory:

70/30

Web Address:

https://purdue.brightspace.com

Two additional online systems will support participation and homework:

https://openhotseat.org

https://openreplay.org

Homework:

Homework will be uploaded to Brightspace and Packback. There will be two presentation-related assignments that will be explained in lesson recordings. One presentation will be 5-6 minutes, recorded and based on a chapter of interest selected by the students from the supplementary course text (Handbook of Human Factors and Ergonomics, 5th ed.). The second presentation will be 5-6 minutes, recorded and based on a research article of interest selected by students from a supplementary reading list that will be available in Brightspace as part of lesson materials. There will also be a weekly post in the Packback discussion board based on lesson recordings. 

Exams:

There will be a midterm and final exam that will be available in Brightspace (quizzes) along with two 'low stakes evaluations' that are intended to support students in preparation for the exams. The exams will be open book, open notes. The low stakes evaluations, midterm and final will allow multiple attempts. Highest attempt will count. 

Textbooks:

Required:

1. Essentials of Business Research Methods, 4th Ed. Hair, Jr., et al. Routledge, New York, 2019
2. Quality Management for Organizational Excellence (Goetsch and Davis, 2021, 9th ed. Pearson)
3. Handbook of Human Factors and Ergonomics, 5th Ed. Editor: G. Salvendy and W. Karwowski, Wiley 2021.

Two of the three books are available through Purdue Libraries.  The 3rd is in Vial Source.

Supplementary reading:

A list of articles will be provided. Those can be downloaded through e-journals using Purdue ID & Password within Purdue Libraries. Those articles will be reviewed in class in the context of a "List of 10 Ways to Analyze New and Existing Research". 

Computer Requirements:

Packback; subscription required. For a brief introduction to Packback Questions and why we are using it in class, watch this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OV7QmikrD68