Engineering Psychology

The subject of psychology involves studying the many facets of the human mind and the ways in which the environment and other factors affect it. In that way, psychology is a very vast and interesting subject. Yet it is difficult to fathom the range that this subject can cover because it tends to be all-encompassing.

This is due to the fact that it involves the human mind and behavior. As a result, anything and everything that affects the human mind, or anything that comes up related with human behavior, and can shape or influence it, can be studied as a part of psychology.

In that direction, one of the more recent fields in psychology that has come to exist is engineering psychology.

What exactly does it involve? Engineering psychology is a branch of psychology that deals with formulating machines and operating systems in such a way that it leads to lesser errors and mistakes by people and increases their performance instead. In that way, the machines are adapted to work such that it lends to maximum efficiency of human functions.

In this following article we will do a more in depth study of this subject so that the concept becomes clearer to the readers.

The way in which this subject works is that it takes the knowledge of psychology and applies it to formulating better working systems for humans. These systems are not merely limited to machinery, but also things like technology, energy systems, transportation, consumer products and more.

All these products and systems are formulated after getting a clear understanding of what the user's requirements are. The subject will also get into the depths of the varied ways in which the human body can adapt to machines and produce better results.

For example, how does the human mind process information and what are its varied limitations in that direction. This becomes necessary to learn so that the machines can be designed such that they do not lead to the overloading of the human mind because of the varied functions that need to perform while operating them.

The basic aim of engineering psychology is to make technology accessible to everyone because it eradicates the barriers that make working with machines and operating systems difficult. In that way, it overlaps with varied fields of ergonomics, but is not the same concept.

This field of psychology also studies the varied methods by which one can improve the safety of the machines and the working environment, in order to produce the least amount of human errors.

What exactly does an engineering psychologist do? These professionals are concerned with studying and correcting any element that affects the quality and performance of system operators.

These then include studying the machines and preparing an ergonomic design such that it enhances the performance of human functions, as well as choosing those people who are best suited for the job and can work within machine design limitations to produce the best results.

Engineering psychologists work in several fields and help in designing operating systems that will not only enhance the human performance, but will also prevent errors from happening. There are varied fields that they can work in, which include military, aviation, academics, troubleshooting system problems, consulting agencies and course setting.

Since it is an up and coming field, there are several programs that have been introduced. These provide training in the varied fields of engineering psychology.

An engineering psychologist salary amounts to approximately US$ 80,500. This figure is dictated by the kind of field and area that the engineering psychologist works in. It has been studied that the private field offers the maximum salary figure, while the lowest figures, reportedly, are in the academic field.

This field of psychology binds two very diverse fields of psychology and engineering together to create a subject that is extremely interesting. It is ideal for people who share a keen interest in both these fields. Since it is an up and coming field, the ongoing research in the same provides for several opportunities and fields to study.