Teaching psychology to future engineers.

Abstract

Human needs and goals are integral to engineering, but human-centered engineering requires understanding principles and methods from the social sciences. Instruction is needed to introduce engineering students to these concepts. This study explored (a) students' initial attitudes toward human systems engineering (HSE) and the bridging of psychology and engineering and (b) how attitudes shifted over one semester. Undergraduate students responded to a survey of their attitudes and conceptions at the beginning (n = 215) and end (n = 146) of a semester. Students reported high perceived value for human-centered engineering, and these attitudes remained stable or increased. Students gained in their perceived understanding of psychological concepts and usercentered design, their ability to define HSE, and ability to articulate the value of humancentered engineering. Introductory coursework in Human Systems Engineering may thus help to prepare engineering students to appreciate the psychological underpinnings of their work and engage in human-centered engineering.