Search results
Results from the WOW.Com Content Network
The Hawthorne effect is a type of human behavior reactivity in which individuals modify an aspect of their behavior in response to their awareness of being observed. [1] [2] The effect was discovered in the context of research conducted at the Hawthorne Western Electric plant; however, some scholars think the descriptions are fictitious.
The studies shifted from a focus on physical factors to a social psychological approach. [4] The Hawthorne studies yielded primarily five insights: Individual work behavior is influenced by a complex set of factors, not simple cause-and-effect relationships. Informal workgroups develop norms between individual needs and the work setting.
The Hawthorne Studies were conducted at the Hawthorne plant of Western Electric from 1924 into the early 1930s. They began as a study of the effect of lighting on worker performance. Elton Mayo was instrumental in identifying the psychological basis of the phenomena observed in the experiments. The studies determined that motivation is not ...
The Hawthorne study suggested that employees have social and psychological needs along with economic needs in order to be motivated to complete their assigned tasks. This theory of management was a product of the strong opposition against "the Scientific and universal management process theory of Taylor and Fayol."
However, this theory has been contested, as Mayo's purported role in the human relations movement has been questioned. Nonetheless, although Taylorism attempted to justify scientific management as a holistic philosophy, rather than a set of principles, the human relations movement worked parallel to the notion of scientific management.
This practice grew out of the human relations movement in the 1920s, and is based on some of the principles discovered by scholars doing research in management and organization studies, most notably the Hawthorne Experiments that led to the Hawthorne effect.
Get AOL Mail for FREE! Manage your email like never before with travel, photo & document views. Personalize your inbox with themes & tabs. You've Got Mail!
George Elton Mayo (26 December 1880 – 7 September 1949) was an Australian born psychologist, [1] [2] [3] industrial researcher, and organizational theorist. [4] [5] Mayo was formally trained at the University of Adelaide, acquiring a Bachelor of Arts Degree graduating with First Class Honours, majoring in philosophy and psychology, [4] and was later awarded an honorary Master of Arts Degree ...