Hawthorne studies

The Hawthorne studies was a program of industrial research run by Western Electric Company it took place over a long period of time between 1924 and 1932, until the early years of the Depression. The experiment involved female workers in their early twenties operating a relay assembly in a room specifically created for the experiment while being observed by a team industrial researchers..The series of experiments are documented more than 600 pages in great detail. It was published in 1939 by Harvard University Press and is was considered "the most outstanding study of industrial relations that has been published anywhere, anytime." The goal of the experiment was for the researchers to determine if certain features of the factory, such as the level of illumination in the factory lamps, affected the productivity of the workers.The most interesting finding was what we might call today "the Hawthorne effect," which refers to the observation that the worker’s productivity increased over time with every variation in the work environment, which is believed to depend on the fact that the subject were aware that they are part of a research and they change how they act.

History

1.Historical context The Hawthorne studies began in 1924 when Bell Telephone Western Electric decided to learn how various factors, such as lighting conditions, could influence the efficiency and productivity of their workers. Over the years, the studies have been a source of controversy, but almost a century after they were conducted, they are still considered groundbreaking studies in the social sciences.

The Illumination and Relay Assebly Test

• First experiment conducted by personnel managers over a three-year period(1924-1927) to explore the how lighting conditions effected the productivity of the employees reduce accidents and eyestrain.
• Result were inconsistent. Even when the lighting conditions were radically different, the girls continued to increase their productivity.
• In the end the experiments failed to explain the relationship between quality of lighting conditions and efficiency

The initial aim of the experiment was more technical than therapeutic: to determine the most appropriate technical and social arrangements for the production process.

The Relay Assembly Test Room

• In 1928 Elton Mayo was consulted for the second round.(1928-19392)
• Changes in the new test room were introduction of breaks,provision of lunch and beverages ,group rate calculated on the productivity, and alteration in work schedule.
• With each new variable the efficiency increased
• The initial aim of the experiment was more technical than therapeutic: to determine the most appropriate technical and social arrangements for the production process.ref>https://doi.org/10.1177/0038026118755603</ref>

The interviewing and supervisory training programme

• Mayo and his team worked on a new question research protocol and started interviewing 1600 employees.
• Employees belived the questions did not address their issues and felt leading.
• Mayo decide an indirect approach, trained the interviewers to use a scientific inquiry process.

The bank wiring observation room study

It was a study that emerged from the interview programme and it was created in order to explore the interaction between the various groups within the company

Hawthorne effect

what is hawthorne effect how can manager use the hawthorne effect to motivate their team.

The Legacy Of The Hawthorne Studies

• Hawthorne studies are perhaps more recognized for their methodological problems and their flawed arguments rather than for their significant findings.
• On the one hand, it has been argued

that this experiment, interpreted by Australian-born psychologist Elton Mayo (1880– 1949) in cooperation with colleagues at Harvard Business School, built the scientific foundation of personnel management and the Human Relations School. The Hawthorne Studies were the single most important investigation of the human dimensions of industrial relations in the early 20th century.

• Motivational theory