Conference Topics
The Best Practices Evaluation and the Student Research competitions are broad in their substantive bases in that they both address one or more of the conference topics relevant to Occupational Health Psychology, including:
Economic Issues and Concerns
Influence of the economy on management and employment practices, the organization of work, job security, and income disparity; Economic consequences of stressful working conditions and stress-related disorders for employers, employees, and society at large, including costs of illness, injury, disability, and organizational productivity and performance losses; Economics of stress prevention and workplace interventions, including economic barriers to their implementation.Best Practices in Creating Healthy Workplaces
Organizational, individual, and multilevel interventions; Policy and legislative developments; Organizational learning; Corporate social responsibility; Program evaluation studies; Model programs; Practitioner toolkits; Evidence-based practice.Collaborative and Participatory Approaches
Labor–management initiatives; Government–labor–business–university community partnerships; National and international collaborations.Workplace Diversity, Minority and Immigrant Workers, Health Disparities
Differential exposures and susceptibilities; Race/ethnicity-related stressors; Stress and immigrant status; Workplace multiculturalism; Culturally-tailored prevention and intervention programs; Cultural competencies.Workplace Mistreatment
Sexual harassment; Violence by customers, clients, patients, coworkers, etc.; Incivility; Violence prevention programs; Personal and organizational responses; Characteristics of perpetrators and victims; Bullying; Discrimination (e.g., gender, age, race/ethnicity, disability).Changing Employment Arrangements
Contract and temporary work; Self-employment; Under- and over-employment; Job insecurity; Psychological contracts; Part-time work.Human Resource Management and Benefits
Health, pension, and other benefits; FMLA [Family Medical Leave Act] issues, disability benefits; Pay equity and discrimination; Workers’ compensation programs; Return to work; Job accommodations.Work Scheduling
Shift work; Overtime/extended hours of work; Flexible/compressed schedules; Schedule design; Telecommuting.Work, Life, and Family
Work-life balance; Work-family conflict; Child and dependent care; Formal and informal family supports; Positive spillover; Intimate partner violence.Organizational Practices
Lean production; Downsizing and resizing; Globalization; Outsourcing; Continuous improvement; Process reengineering; Emerging technologies.Job and Task Design
Worker control; Work pace and work overload; Emotional labor; Physical demands.Social and Organizational Environment
Organizational climate and culture; Social support; Supervision and leadership; Group dynamics; Communication.High Risk Jobs and Populations
Younger and older workers; Hazardous work environments; High-risk occupations (e.g., agriculture, construction, emergency responders, health care, manufacturing, military, mining, transportation).Traumatic Stress and Resilience
Assessment, prevention, mitigation, and treatment of traumatic stress; Resilience; PTSD; Psychological first aid; Essential workers and emergency response; Ability and willingness to report to work.Psychological and Biological Effects of Job Stress
Depression and stress; Musculoskeletal, cardiovascular, and immune system function; Gender-related health concerns; Obesity; Alcohol and substance abuse; Physiological and psychological pathways to health outcomes; Burnout; Suicide.Sleep, Fatigue, and Work
Effects of work schedules on sleep; Sleep disorders and medications; Health and productivity implications of sleep disruptions.Aging and Work Stress
Job design for aging workers; Work capabilities and limitations; Attitudes toward aging workers; Implications of an aging workforce; Job retention and retraining; Disability management and accommodations; Health benefit implications.Health Services and Health and Productivity Management
Health promotion; EAPs [Employee Assistance Programs]; Vocational rehabilitation; Career and work adjustment counseling; Return to work; Disability management; Stress management; Integrated prevention models.Safety Climate, Management, & Training
Management commitment to safety; Safety motivation and leadership; Safety communication; Hazard identification and elimination; Barriers to eliminating or mitigating workplace hazards; Safety climate and culture.Professional and Educational Development
Graduate and undergraduate training in Occupational Health Psychology; Teaching innovations; Employee training programs; Career development programs.Theoretical and Conceptual Issues in Job Stress
Personal, organizational, and cultural antecedents of stress; Moderators of stress-outcome relationships; Measurement of stress; Theoretical developments.Research Methodology
Innovative research designs; Mixed-method research; Multidisciplinary research; Measure development; Case studies; Econometric analysis; Culturally-competent methods.Prevention / Intervention Methods and Processes
Field intervention design; Engaging organizations in safety and health issues; Barriers to safety and health initiatives; Gaining access to organizations; Disseminating research findings to organizations; Intervention evaluation methods and standards; r2p (research-to-practice).Global Concerns and Approaches
Surveillance strategies, methods, and programs; Job stress, risk factors, and interventions; Government and NGO initiatives; National policies and guidelines; International networks and collaborations.Positive Psychology and the Workplace
Engagement; Wellness.Individual Factors
Personality; Coping styles.Job Attitudes, Turnover, & Retention
Attraction; Withdrawal intentions and behaviors; Turnover; Motivation; Presenteeism; Absenteeism; Commitment; Organizational citizenship behaviors.Emerging Risks, Opportunities, and Issues in Work, Stress, and Health
