HUMAN FACTORS IN PSYCHOLOGY
    Human Factors (also known as ergonomics or human engineering) is a scientific discipline which examines human behavior and capabilities in order to find the best ways to design products, equipment and systems for maximum safe, effective, satisfying use by people.  

    Professionals in the area of Human Factors apply their skills in a variety of areas, including aerospace systems, computer software and hardware design, industrial and office settings, educational technology, consumer products, usability analysis and virtual reality.  Employment areas may be in Academic Institutions, Industry, Military-related Research Centers and Independent Consultant.  Job titles include professor, human factors engineer, ergonomist, technician specialist, safety scientist, consultant and research scientist.

    Human Factors research and engineering are concerned with enhancing the productivity of workers and increasing the level of satisfaction of workers with their jobs, in addition to improving the safety of work situations.  Equipment design can be blamed, at least in part, for many of the errors that people make, both on the job and elsewhere.  Human Factors professionals work to eliminate those errors.

OVERVIEW OF THE PROGRAM
    The Human Factors/Applied Experimental option of the CSULB MA-Research program is designed to prepare students to apply human factors skills to the design of jobs, information systems, consumer products, workplaces and equipment in order to improve user performance, safety and comfort.  The MA-Research Human Factors option program is designed as a terminal MA degree, but it also provides excellent preparation for advanced graduate work.

    Faculty in the CSULB Human Factors program are currently working on a number of topics such as human-computer interaction, usability testing, auditory/visual display design, knowledge engineering and decision making.  Students in the program will acquire a background in the core areas of experimental psychology, research design and methodology along with specialized courses in human factors, computer applications and research methods in industrial psychology.

Human Factors graduates have been employed by:
        XEROX Inc.
        Canon Information Systems
        Boeing Corporation
        IBM
        Kodak Information Systems
        Veterans Administration (VA)

APPLYING TO THE MA-R/HUMAN FACTORS PROGRAM:
    Students interested in this option must apply and be accepted to the MA-Research (MA-R) program.  Please refer to the MA-R description for additional information.  Course requirements for the Human Factors option are available via PDF (Acrobat Reader required to view).

    See Application Procedures for instructions.