SUMMARY

Industrial Psycho logy is a relatively young discipline. In recent years, however, it has been characterised by accelerated development and today covers various areas of application. The most rapid progress in this respect was perhaps experienced in the field of personnel management. Personnel management can be defined as the planning, organising, directing and controlling of the procurement, development, compensation, integration and maintenance of people for the purpose of contributing to organisational goals. In the past some personnel departments rendered merely screening services which included little more than preliminary interviews of applicants, wage and salary administration and other routine administrative work. Personnel management has, however, undergone drastic changes in which the trend has been clearly towards broader and more important assignments. From narrowly prescribed chores, its responsibilities have grown wider and deeper. The personnel manager of the modern organisation is undisputably a participant in top management, where he provides leadership in developing policies and programmes for manpower management. Die produksiemiddele wat in die algemene ekonomiese stelsel aangewend word om goedere en dienste te produseer is kapitaal, grondstof en arbeid. Van hierdie drie produksiemiddele is arbeid seer sekerlik die belangrikste, maar terselfdertyd is dit ook die mees komplekse produksiemiddel daar ons hier met mensemateriaal te doen het. Die sielkunde, en meer spesifiek die bedryfsielkunde, is vir ons hier van nut. Die sielkunde is naamlik 'n studie van menslike gedrag en die bedryfsielkunde is ‘n studie van menslike gedrag in die bedryf. Die kennis op hierdie wyse verkry, stel ons in staat om die produksiemiddel mannekrag meer doeltreffend aan te wend