The Psychological Contract under the Spotlight: can it really be applied successfully?

The ABP (Association of Business Psychologists) is running a seminar next week on a subject that is crucially important to anyone managing people. Peter Burton strongly recommend his consultant colleagues (if not so already) to become aware of the ‘Psychological Contract’ and how to deal with its potential pitfalls. The speaker, Neil Conway from Birkbeck College, is a great communicator and probably understands this subject better than anyone else in the western world. two blocks north of Oxford Circus, and close to the tube station. Event Details •What is the psychological contract and why does it matter? •In general, how can organizations, line managers and employees manage psychological contracts? •How can organizations manage psychological contracts during recessions/ tough times? How can organizations prevent violating psychological contracts and what can they do to repair trust when violation occurs? This seminar will consider what the psychological contract means and why it matters. It will evaluate its strengths and weaknesses and how psychological contracts affect crucial employee and organisational outcomes (such as employee engagement and job performance). Alternative strategies for managing psychological contracts will be discussed, and specific ways of managing psychological contracts during tough times, such as the recent (current, forthcoming!?) recession, will be explored. Dr Neil Conway is a leading academic on the psychological contract. He has published academic articles on the psychological contract in international journals, such as the Journal of Applied Psychology, the Journal of Organizational Behavior, and the International Journal of HRM, and he is also a co-author of a recent major text on the psychological contract with Oxford University Press entitled ‘Understanding psychological contracts at work’. He has also published with Professor David Guest, King’s College London, numerous CIPD research reports on the psychological contract. We are fortunate to be able to welcome such an eminent academic to the ABP, and the subject matter should provoke lively discussion. We should like to thank University of Westminster for supporting and hosting this event. Kind regards Richard Taylor ABP Administration