2025
Dr. Alicia Grandey
Managing an Emotionally Charged Workplace
Abstract Leaders today face unprecedented changes and uncertainty alongside expectations to support worker wellbeing in our diverse and divided society. Yet, leader development and training often ignore the inherent emotional labor of the job and how leaders can support their people - and themselves - in these new conditions. Drawing on her recent book on this topic, emotional labor expert Dr. Grandey will discuss evidence-based strategies for leaders to thrive in the complex emotional landscape at work, and to foster healthy and productive work environments in the 21st century.
2023
Dr. Fred Oswald
The Future and Fairness of Employment Testing: AI, Machine Learning, and Beyond
Abstract Employment tests and hiring systems that incorporate AI technologies and machine-learning algorithms are viewed by—and sold to—some organizations as highly advantageous. Yet are they, and are they advantageous to the millions of job applicants subjected to these tests? Asynchronous video interviews, game-based assessments, and the screening of resumes using natural-language processing are among the many types of assessments already developed, with future technologically advanced assessments sure to follow. In recent years, the promises of these AI/ML-based assessments are being tempered by a range of scientific, legal, and ethical issues, such as job-relevance, unbiasedness, and applicant privacy. This talk will detail these types of concerns further, and then it will raise more general questions about the purpose of employment testing. In short, the value of professional standards for employment test development, and the job analysis wisdom of Dr. Ernest McCormick, remains important in the AI era — perhaps more important than ever before.
2022
Dr. Lillian T. Eby
Mindfulness as a Strategy for Improving Relationships and Reducing Stress
Abstract Research on the application of mindfulness to organizational settings has exploded in recent years. Most of this research takes an intrapersonal perspective, examining how mindfulness can improve individual outcomes. However, other disciplines document the potential interpersonal benefits of mindfulness. A recent conceptual model of the relational aspects of mindfulness will be presented, along with a program of research aimed at examining the relational benefits of mindfulness. Intervention research on mindfulness training as a strategy for reducing workaholism will also be discussed.