Contact:
Guide Editor
Guide Editor
Guide Editor
Created by Judith Faust, California State University, Hayward
The Committee reviews this guide on a three-year cycle. To report broken links, please send an email to rusa@ala.org and put “BRASS Education Committee” in the subject line.
Scope
Human Resources management refers to the way an organization administers its relationship with its employees. Topics may include:
- Recruitment
- Compensation
- Training and development
- Performance appraisals
- Productivity
- Career development
- Benefits
- Labor relations
- Employee terminations
A list of Library of Congress Call Numbers and Subject Headings can be found here: https://libguides.princeton.edu/IRCallNumbers/call
A glossary of key HR terms can be found on the SHRM website: https://www.shrm.org/topics-tools/tools/hr-glossary
Trending Topics
In person vs. remote work: Consider using search terms like Return to Office (RTO), hybrid work, and coffee badging
- WFH Research WFH Research and the Survey of Working Arrangements and Attitudes were founded in May 2020 in response to the dramatic impact of COVID-19 on working arrangements. The SWAA is a monthly online survey run jointly by the University of Chicago, ITAM, MIT, and Stanford University. Since then, we’ve collaborated with other team members on a UK and a Global Survey of Working Arrangements (G-SWA).
- Gallup Survey | Hybrid Work Self-administered web surveys of a random sample of adults who are aged 18 and older, working full time or part time for organizations in the United States that tracks the percentages of exclusively remote, hybrid and on-site employees and explore their experiences in those work arrangements.
Impact of Layoffs: Look to Reduction In Force (RIF) Trackers
- Layoffs.fyi Tracks tech and government layoffs by company. Shows number laid off by date and sources to articles reporting the layoffs.
- WARNTracker Uses publicly available filings required by the WARN (Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification) Act to track plant closures and mass layoffs
Impacts of genAI: incorporate artificial intelligence as a search term
- Brookings Institution | Generative AI, the American worker, and the future of work In this report, we frame generative AI’s stakes for work and workers and outline our concerns about the ways we are, collectively, underprepared to meet this moment. Next, we provide insights on the technology and its potential impact on jobs, drawing on our analysis of detailed data from OpenAI that explores task-level exposure for over a thousand occupations in the labor market. Finally, we discuss three priority areas for a proactive response—employer practices, worker voice and influence, and public policy levers—and highlight immediate opportunities as well as gaps that need to be addressed.
- HBR | How Gen AI Is Already Impacting the Labor Market Analyzed 1,388,711 job posts from a leading global online freelancing platform from July 2021 to July 2023. Focused their analysis on the introduction of two types of gen AI tools: ChatGPT and image-generating AI. Sought to understand whether the introduction and diffusion of these tools decreased demand for jobs on this platform and, if so, which types of jobs and skills are affected most and by how much.
- Pew Research | How the U.S. Public and AI Experts View Artificial Intelligence Surveyed US adults via the American Trends Panel and surveyed/interviewed AI experts in 2024. Includes a section on AI and jobs.
- IMF | Gen-AI: Artificial Intelligence and the Future of Work Artificial Intelligence (AI) has the potential to reshape the global economy, especially in the realm of labor markets. Advanced economies will experience the benefits and pitfalls of AI sooner than emerging market and developing economies, largely due to their employment structure focused on cognitive-intensive roles. There are some consistent patterns concerning AI exposure, with women and college-educated individuals more exposed but also better poised to reap AI benefits, and older workers potentially less able to adapt to the new technology. Labor income inequality may increase if the complementarity between AI and high-income workers is strong, while capital returns will increase wealth inequality. However, if productivity gains are sufficiently large, income levels could surge for most workers. In this evolving landscape, advanced economies and more developed emerging markets need to focus on upgrading regulatory frameworks and supporting labor reallocation, while safeguarding those adversely affected. Emerging market and developing economies should prioritize developing digital infrastructure and digital skills
HR Websites
- HR Guide.comExtensive list of well-organized links to "internet based resources for HR professionals and students."
- HR.comInformation on HR certifications for professionals, training materials including webcasts, events, publications on excellence in HR areas, free resources (forms, surveys, wikis). Requires creating a free account to access some areas of the website.
- hrVillage.comExtensive directory of HR resources covering various areas including recruiting, performance, and applicant tracking. Provides a Toolkit for forms, job ads, and policies and procedures. Also includes updated news.
Employment Law
- FindLaw Employment Rights CenterInformation on the legal rights of workers in all phases of employment, from hiring to termination, and other common employment law issues -- including job benefits, fair pay, Family and Medical Leave rights, workplace safety, and protection from on-the-job discrimination and harassment.
- Employment Law Information NetworkProvides a wealth of information on employment law including policies and forms, articles on national and state laws, access to court cases, and federal laws and regulations.
- HeinOnline Subscription includes access to law journals, U.S. Code, Code of Federal Regulations, Federal Register, Statutes at Large, access to federal agency legal publications via the U.S. Federal Agency Documents, Decisions, and Appeals Library, Congressional Documents, Federal Legislative History Library and more.
- Nexis Uni As well as a lot of other content, this database includes extensive legal sources for federal and state cases and statutes (including Title 12, etc.)
- Westlaw A legal research subscription database, but the best place to go if you really need to dig into primary law, analytical materials, litigation resources, public records and more.
Doctoral programs
- Institute for Research on Labor and Employment, University of California BerkeleyUniversity of California Berkeley's interdisciplinary research institute - connect to its four different working papers series.
- Center for Advanced Human Resources Studies, Cornell UniversityOffers mostly free access to the institute’s working paper series.
Related Field | I/O Psych
BACKGROUND
Industrial Organizational (I/O Psych) is defined as "...the application of psychological principles to workplace issues facing individuals, teams, and organizations" (Industrial-Organizational Psychology, 2018, p. 5).
While HRM and I/O Psych are separate and distinct fields, there exists a relationship between the two. The Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology (SIOP) is the main professional organization for I/O Psychologists and has written this article on the overlap between these fields: I-O and HR: Does HR Know About Us?
JOURNALS
Highhouse, S., Zickar, M. J., & Melick, S. R. (2020). Prestige and relevance of the scholarly journals: Impressions of SIOP members. Industrial and Organizational Psychology, 13(3), 273-290. doi:10.1017/iop.2020.2
In November 2017, association members were surveyed on which scholarly journals in management and applied psychology published rigorous and relevant research. Note that the most prestigious journals differed based on whether respondents were business faculty, psychology faculty, or practitioners. While many of the most prestigious journals can already be found on the BRASS Business Guide - Human Resources Management and BRASS Business Guide - Management, listed below are additional journals ranked highly by the field of I/O Psych.
BOOKS
Psychology Applied to Work: An Introduction to Industrial and Organizational Psychology (13th Ed.) by ISBN: 0974934550Publication Date: 2022
APA Handbook of Industrial and Organizational Psychology (3 vols.) by ISBN: 1433807270Publication Date: 2010
OTHER RESOURCES
- SIOP | Resources & Publications SIOP’s vast library of materials can support all who study and work in I-O Psychology.
