BPS Core Textbooks Series

Developed in collaboration with the British Psychological Society

Chapter 14 – The Secrets of Black Magic: Industrial Psychology’s Technologies of the Self

Chapter Summary

This chapter explores the emergence and evolution of industrial psychology as a form of applied psychological science closely tied to the needs of capitalism. Beginning in the early twentieth century, psychologists such as Hugo Münsterberg, Lillian Gilbreth, Kurt Lewin, and Elton Mayo developed psychological techniques, not simply to describe workers but to shape them. Industrial psychology helped determine who was employable, trainable, efficient, and obedient, making psychology a crucial part of the machinery of modern labour.

The chapter introduces the critical thinking tool technologies of the self, drawing on Michel Foucault’s idea that people are not just governed externally but come to govern themselves through scientific categories, norms, and reflexive techniques. Industrial psychology created the conditions for workers to internalise identities like ‘productive’, ‘suitable’, or ‘motivated’ based on psychological evaluations.

This chapter invites us to critically reflect on how psychology functions as a social technology, and how it has historically served the needs of industry by shaping the very selves it claims to study. In doing so, it points to the legacy of work-place testing and behavioural surveillance in contemporary management, human resources, and employee profiling.

Chapter 14 – Quiz

  • Chapter 14 – Flashcards

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  • Chapter 14 – Key Readings

    Ackers, P. (2006), The history of occupational psychology: A view from industrial relations. Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology, 79(2), 213-216. https://doi.org/10.1348/096317906X100666 

    Baritz, L. (1960). The servants of power: A history of the use of social science in American industry. Wesleyan University Press. 

    Bryan, L.K. and Vinchur, A.J. (2025). Key thinkers in industrial and organisational psychology. London: Routledge. 

    Endrejat, P. C., & Burnes, B. (2022). Kurt Lewin’s ideas are alive! But why doesn’t anybody recognize them? Theory & Psychology, 32(6), 931-952. https://doi.org/10.1177/09593543221118652 

    Foucault, M. (1988). Technologies of the self: A seminar with Michel Foucault (L. H. Martin, H. Gutman, & P. H. Hutton, Eds.). University of Massachusetts Press. 

    Havoc, R. C., & Woody, W. D. (2025). The shrouded self: Racial passing as a tool of survival in early 20th century psychology. History of Psychology, 28(2), 170–178. https://doi.org/10.1037/hop0000277 

    Hodgetts, D., Sonn, C., Li, W., & Groot, S. (2020). What does Theory & Psychology have to offer community-orientated psychologists? Theory & Psychology, 30(6), 852-863. https://doi.org/10.1177/0959354320947821 

    Hollway, W. (2016). Efficiency and welfare: Industrial psychology at Rowntree’s Cocoa Works. Theory & Psychology, 3(3), 303-322. https://doi.org/10.1177/0959354393033002 

    Luks, T. (2020). Building the ‘House of Industry’: Factory Citizenship and Gendered Spaces at Cadbury’s and Rowntree’s. Labour History Review 85,(3), 233-252. https://www.liverpooluniversitypress.co.uk/doi/10.3828/lhr.2020.10 

    Rose, N. S. (1999). Governing the soul: The shaping of the private self (2nd ed). Free Association Books. 

    Schmidt, M. A. (2017). Planes of phenomenological experience: The psychology of deafness as an early example of American Gestalt psychology, 1928–1940. History of Psychology, 20(4), 347–364. https://doi.org/10.1037/hop0000074 

    Vinchur, A. J. (2018). The early years of industrial and organizational psychology. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 

  • Chapter 14 – Reflective Questions

    1. How did early industrial psychologists shape the definition of a ‘productive’ worker? 
    2. In what ways were psychological tests in the workplace mimetic rather than objective? 
    3. What does Foucault’s idea of ‘technologies of the self’ reveal about the power of psychological classification? 
    4. How did gender influence the design and application of industrial psychology, especially in the work of Lillian Gilbreth? 
    5. Can contemporary workplace assessments—such as psychometric profiling or performance targets—be understood as continuations of early industrial psychology?

  • Chapter 14 – Weblinks

    Lillian Moller Gilbreth – Wikipedia Page (Educational Resource

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lillian_Moller_Gilbreth

    This page details both the life and works of Lillian Gilbreth, providing details information on her life and the lead-up to her emergence in the fields of psychology and engineering, and putting the work she did into the context of the time in which she lived and worked.

    Michel Foucault, Technologies of the Self | Four Types of Technologies | Philosophy Core Concepts (YouTube Lecture)

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gx29YmGfwsE

    This 20-minute YouTube video lecture introduces the concepts presented by Foucault regarding the four technologies distinguished by him in his early work. The information is provided in such a way that students new to this topic will find it accessible and entertaining to engage with.

    Technologies of the Self – Foucault Info (Educational Resource)

    https://foucault.info/documents/foucault.technologiesOfSelf.en

    This webpage contains an archived copy of the lecture given by Foucault in 1982, alongside multiple other resources on Foucault and his work.

    Gestalt Psychology, Kurt Lewin, & Social Psychology: The Perfect Match – YouTube Lecture (Educational Resource)

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t8d8Fxfv2ys

    This 22-minute video gives an accessible introduction to the ways that Gestalt has influenced social psychology, and how this influence then interacted with Lewin’s work on leadership, motivation and group dynamics.

    Frederick Winslow Tayor and the Birth of Scientific Management – Academic Blog

    https://blogs.loc.gov/inside_adams/2024/07/frederick-winslow-taylor-scientific-management

    This blog discusses the work and practical applications of Frederick Winslow’s research on Scientific Management, giving students the ability to engage with these theories in the context in which they were originally developed.