Course coordinator
Alex Haslam
Course overview
- Study period
- Semester 1, 2025 (24/02/2025 - 21/06/2025)
- Study level
- Postgraduate Coursework
- Location
- St Lucia
- Attendance mode
- In Person
- Units
- 2
- Administrative campus
- St Lucia
- Coordinating unit
- Psychology School
This course develops knowledge of motivation and leadership in organisational settings. It covers traditional and contemporary theories of motivation and leadership, as well as new developments and applications of these topics. There is an emphasis on links between leadership and motivation and on using case studies and exercises to apply theory to organisational situations and problems.
The purpose of this course is to give you an in-depth knowledge of leadership theories with a focus on understanding the psychology of leader effectiveness — as established through their ability to motivate followers to work towards group goals. The course will be conducted in a seminar format, with active participation and presentations from students. We will normally cover one key theme in each seminar. The first hour will involve presentations of short case studies (by students), and a discussion in which students who give presentations are expert panellists. This will be followed by discussion of the topic under investigation, focusing on issues raised by the pre-recorded lectures which students should have watched before class.
The course adopts a problem-based learning approach and students will be required to use theoretical knowledge to understand and address everyday organizational challenges.
It also has an ‘inverted’ or ‘flipped’ format. This means that lectures are pre-recorded and made available to students before coming to class. This format has format has three key advantages:
1. Recording the lectures allows students to access (and re-access) them at a time of their choosing.
2. In the class time, we can actively discuss and elaborate upon the course content, answering questions and exploring examples.
3. In the class we can devote time to student presentations and the issues that the lectures raise.
Time in each class will be allocated to:
1. Student presentations. Students should engage closely with the presentations, and be ready to ask the presenters at least one probing question about the topic that week.
2. Discussion of lecture content. Students should come to class ready to discuss and debate the issues raised in the recorded lectures. Everyone should be ready to make insightful observations and ask probing questions.
Course requirements
Restrictions
MPsychOrg, MPsychBus or with permission of Director of Organisational Psychology programs
Course contact
Course staff
Lecturer
Alex Haslam
Timetable
The timetable for this course is available on the UQ Public Timetable.
Aims and outcomes
At the completion of this course, you should be:
- Familiar with key leadership theories
- Able to identify the key ways in which different types of leadership motivate followers
- Able to review and systematically apply the theoretical content to everyday organisational leadership and motivation problems
- Able to review and integrate content from theoretical and applied research papers in the field to arrive at conclusions regarding appropriate theory -based approaches to adopt to solve leadership and motivational problems in organisations
- Able to communicate with an audience regarding the theoretical bases of solutions to applied leadership and motivation problems
- Able to write a report on a leadership and motivational problems, including the development of a problem statement, review of relevant research, outlining and critically evaluation the knowledge base and proposing a solution to the problem
Learning outcomes
After successfully completing this course you should be able to:
LO1.
Be familiar with key leadership theories
LO2.
Identify how leaders can motivate followers in the workplace and the influence of the context on the effectiveness of these approaches
LO3.
Apply theory to everyday organisational problems
LO4.
Review and integrate theoretical material critically so as to arrive at your own informed understanding of the material
LO5.
Write a theoretically informed report analysing the motivation or leadership of an individual or group and develop an intervention plan to address identified problems.
Assessment
Assessment summary
| Category | Assessment task | Weight | Due date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Presentation | Individual Class presentation and infographic | 40% |
11/03/2025 - 1/04/2025
Thursday Week 3 to Thursday Week 6, during class |
| Presentation | Group Class presentation | 30% |
16/04/2025
Wednesday Week 8 during class |
| Essay/ Critique | Written Assignment: Leadership report/article | 30% |
28/04/2025 1:00 pm
Submit via Turnitin |
Assessment details
Individual Class presentation and infographic
- Mode
- Activity/ Performance
- Category
- Presentation
- Weight
- 40%
- Due date
11/03/2025 - 1/04/2025
Thursday Week 3 to Thursday Week 6, during class
Task description
You will be required to give two presentations in this class. The first presentation will be on your own; the second will be with other classmates (in a team of around 5 people).
The aim of this presentation — which you will do on your own — is to present a one-slide infographic on an applied leadership issue or case study related to the topic for that week (e.g., leadership development). This should be submitted to the course tutor before the class and it will be projected to the class along with other students’ presentations for one-minute, during which time you should outline its key features. This will also allow you to practice developing and presenting this specific type of high-impact presentation to organisational decision makers. A couple of examples will provided in the first class, but these should not be taken as definitive models of how to do this exercise. Models of infographic design (and free samples of programmes to help create these) can be found on the internet (e.g., at canva.com).
Time allowed: 4 minutes
Submission guidelines
Deferral or extension
You cannot defer or apply for an extension for this assessment.
If you are unable to complete your presentation, you should discuss this with your tutor and/or course coordinator.
Group Class presentation
- Mode
- Activity/ Performance
- Category
- Presentation
- Weight
- 30%
- Due date
16/04/2025
Wednesday Week 8 during class
Task description
The aim of this presentation — which you will do with 4 or 5 other members of the class (depending on the size of the class) — is to communicate with a professional audience (e.g., HR practitioners, Organisational Psychologists) regarding the theoretical and empirical bases of solutions to an applied leadership issue or challenge (e.g., in the form of a case study). This assessment will allow you to practice working in a team to develop and present a more expansive and dynamic presentation to organisational stakeholders who are content experts/practitioners.
You can do this presentation live to the class or pre-record it and show it in class. Whichever format you use, your presentation will be followed by a 10-minute live Q & A session in which you will need to respond to questions from the class.
Time allowed: 20 minutes
Submission guidelines
Deferral or extension
You cannot defer or apply for an extension for this assessment.
If you are unable to complete your presentation you should discuss this your tutor and/or course coordinator.
Written Assignment: Leadership report/article
- Mode
- Written
- Category
- Essay/ Critique
- Weight
- 30%
- Due date
28/04/2025 1:00 pm
Submit via Turnitin
Task description
The aim of this assignment is to address a leadership issue relevant to a contemporary (i.e., circa-2024) work context and to write a report that includes a review of the relevant theoretical and empirical literature as well as make practical recommendations. It can take the form of either a formal report or an article for a professional magazine or blog (e.g., in the form of an article for The Conversation)
First, choose a leadership issue as the focus of this assignment. For example, you might assess the leadership problems faced by a particular organization or in a particular sector. This should be an issue that you have, or can acquire, some distinctive knowledge about (either through personal experience, or research).
Second, you need to discuss some data relevant to the issue you are focusing on, analyse it, and draw appropriate conclusions — e.g., regarding practical ways to deal with a particular problem, or to move forward. Data here is broadly defined as any information, statistical or otherwise, pertinent to the issue you are exploring (e.g., data provided in an industry report; commentary on a leadership failure).
Word limit: 1,200 words
Late Assessment: Extensions for assignments will be granted only on the basis of a written application, accompanied by a medical certificate. Extensions cannot be applied for on the day or the day before the piece of assessment is due. It is your responsibility to ensure that your work is submitted on time. Assignments will lose 2 marks for each day late, including 2 marks for each day of the weekend or public holiday. Assignments submitted more than 2 weeks late will receive an automatic failure. There are no variations to these requirements.
All assessment items must be attempted: It is a requirement of the Australian Psychology Accreditation Council (APAC) of the Australian Psychological Society (APS) that the minimum pass mark for each and every assessment task relating to the Core Capabilities and Attributes for Psychologists is 50%. Thus, all assessment items for PSYC7594 must be attempted and receive a mark of at least 50% in order to pass the course.
Submission guidelines
Assignments to be submitted electronically via Turnitin by the due date and time.
Deferral or extension
You may be able to apply for an extension.
The maximum extension allowed is 14 days. Extensions are given in multiples of 24 hours.
For full details please review the School of Psychology Student Guidelines - Extensions and Deferred quiz/exam.
Late submission
A penalty of 10% of the maximum possible mark will be deducted per 24 hours from time submission is due for up to 7 days. After 7 days, you will receive a mark of 0.
Course grading
Full criteria for each grade is available in the Assessment Procedure.
| Grade | Cut off Percent | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 1 (Low Fail) | 0 - 19 |
Absence of evidence of achievement of course learning outcomes. |
| 2 (Fail) | 20 - 39 |
Minimal evidence of achievement of course learning outcomes. |
| 3 (Marginal Fail) | 40 - 49 |
Demonstrated evidence of developing achievement of course learning outcomes |
| 4 (Pass) | 50 - 64 |
Demonstrated evidence of functional achievement of course learning outcomes. |
| 5 (Credit) | 65 - 74 |
Demonstrated evidence of proficient achievement of course learning outcomes. |
| 6 (Distinction) | 75 - 84 |
Demonstrated evidence of advanced achievement of course learning outcomes. |
| 7 (High Distinction) | 85 - 100 |
Demonstrated evidence of exceptional achievement of course learning outcomes. |
Additional course grading information
Percentage marks will be rounded to the nearest whole number ie. 84.4% will round down to 84% and 84.5% will round up to 85%. This will apply to all grade cutoffs apart from a grade of 4. The minimum pass mark is 50% and a pass cannot be achieved with 49.5%.
All assessment items must be attempted: It is a requirement of the Australian Psychology Accreditation Council (APAC) of the Australian Psychological Society (APS) that the minimum pass mark for each and every assessment task relating to the Core Capabilities and Attributes for Psychologists is 50%. Thus, all assessment items for PSYC7594 must be attempted and receive a mark of at least 50% in order to pass the course.
ﾠ
Supplementary assessment
Supplementary assessment is available for this course.
Additional assessment information
Assessment of Professional Competencies
The PSYC7594 assessment items have been designed to address specific core capabilities and attributes for psychologists, as defined by the Australian Psychology Accreditation Council (APAC) of the Australian Psychological Society (APS), necessary to become eligible for full registration as a psychologist with the Psychology Board of Australia (PBA). On satisfactory completion of all assessment items, you may elect to submit your “Core Capabilities and Attributes for Psychologists” forms for sign-off by the Program Director. How you choose to match each assessment item to the competencies will be a matter for you to determine, according to your individual Supervised Practice Plan. Competencies addressed by the assessment items in this course include: Knowledge of the discipline (5.1.12(a)) and Communication and interpersonal relationships (5.1.12(f)).
Learning resources
You'll need the following resources to successfully complete the course. We've indicated below if you need a personal copy of the reading materials or your own item.
Library resources
Library resources are available on the UQ Library website.
Additional learning resources information
Students are encouraged to utilise the discussion board on Blackboard for class questions and comments.
Learning activities
The learning activities for this course are outlined below. Learn more about the learning outcomes that apply to this course.
Filter activity type by
Please select
| Learning period | Activity type | Topic |
|---|---|---|
Week 1 (24 Feb - 02 Mar) |
Lecture |
Session 1 See the course Blackboard page for details |
Week 3 (10 Mar - 16 Mar) |
Lecture |
Session 2 See the course Blackboard page for details |
Week 4 (17 Mar - 23 Mar) |
Lecture |
Session 3 See the course Blackboard page for details |
Week 5 (24 Mar - 30 Mar) |
Lecture |
Session 4 See the course Blackboard page for details |
Week 6 (31 Mar - 06 Apr) |
Lecture |
Session 5 See the course Blackboard page for details |
Week 7 (07 Apr - 13 Apr) |
Lecture |
Session 6 See the course Blackboard page for details |
Week 10 (05 May - 11 May) |
Lecture |
Session 7 See the course Blackboard page for details |
Week 11 (12 May - 18 May) |
Lecture |
Session 8 See the course Blackboard page for details |
Policies and procedures
University policies and procedures apply to all aspects of student life. As a UQ student, you must comply with University-wide and program-specific requirements, including the:
- Student Code of Conduct Policy
- Student Integrity and Misconduct Policy and Procedure
- Assessment Procedure
- Examinations Procedure
- Reasonable Adjustments - Students Policy and Procedure
Learn more about UQ policies on my.UQ and the Policy and Procedure Library.
You'll also need to be aware of the following policies and procedures while completing this course:
School guidelines
Your school has additional guidelines you'll need to follow for this course: