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Hawthorne Studies
Elton Mayos Study on EmployeeMotivation and Work Productivity
Developed by: Melissa Mackay
Boise State University
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What Will Be Covered
Definition of the Hawthorne Studies
Experiment that Mayo conducted
Results
Conclusions
Brainstorming: How this can be used inorganizations
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What Will Be Covered
Cont.
Nuts and Bolts: Explanation of topic
How it works in the field
Real World Example
Summary
References
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Definition of Hawthorne
Studies
The Hawthorne Studies were
conducted from 1927-1932 at theWestern Electric Hawthorne
Works in Chicago, where Harvard
Business School Professor EltonMayo examined productivity and
work conditions.
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http://www.accel-team.com/motivation/hawthrone_02.
Definition of Hawthorne
Studies Cont.
Mayo wanted to find out what effect
fatigue and monotony had on jobproductivity and how to control them
through such variables as rest
breaks, work hours, temperatures
and humidity.
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Mayos Experiment
Five women assembled telephone relays, onesupplied the parts.
Made frequent changes in working conditions withtheir consent.
Records were kept of relays made, temperature andhumidity of rooms, medical and personal histories,eating and sleeping habits, and bits of conversation
on the job.
No one supervised the girls.
They were told to work as they felt and at a
comfortable pace.
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Mayos Experiment
Cont.
Productive capacity was measured by recording the
girls output for two weeks before the study began.
First five weeks, no changes were made.
Third stage, a pay system was ensured allowing the
girls to earn in proportion to their efforts.
Eight weeks later, two five-minute rest pauses were
added.
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Mayos Experiment
Cont.
Eighth phase, workday ended a half-day early.
Ninth phase, the girls finished an hour earlier thanusual.
Five-day week introduced.
Girls went back to no breaks, lunches and a full
work week,
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Results
Researchers found that output rateswerent directly related to the physical
conditions of the work.
Output went up when: They were put on piece-work for eight weeks.
Two five minute rest pauses were introduced for
five weeks. Rest pauses were lengthened to ten minutes.
A hot meal was supplied during first pause.
They were dismissed at 4:30 p.m. instead of 5:00p.m.
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http://courses.bus.ualberta.ca/orga417-reshef/mayo.htm
Results Cont.
Output slightly fell when six five minute pauseswere added.
It remained the same when they were dismissed at4:00 p.m. instead of 4:30 p.m.
Mayo believes what actually happened was thatsix individuals became a team and the team gaveitself wholeheartedly and spontaneously to
cooperation in the experiment. The consequencewas that they felt themselves to be participatingfreely and without afterthought, and were happy inthe knowledge that they were working withoutcoercion from above or limitations from below.
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Conclusions
Work is a group activity.
Social world for an adult is primarily patternedabout work.
Need for recognition, security and sense of
belonging.
Complaints, commonly a symptom manifesting
disturbance of an individuals status position.
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Conclusions Cont.
Attitudes and effectiveness are conditioned by
social demands.
Informal groups at work are strong social controls
over the work habits and attitudes of a worker.
Change from established society to adaptive
society.
Group collaboration.
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Brainstorming: How this can
be used in organizations
Cooperation and communicationwith coworkers.
Rearrange/reorganize jobfunctions.
Create an atmosphere ofworking as a team.
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Nuts and Bolts:
Explanation of Topic
Interviewing
Provide insight to workers moral,
their likes and dislikes and how
they felt about their bosses.
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Nuts and Bolts:
Explanation of Topic Cont.
Role of Supervisor
Retained the responsibility of
making sure that their workers
reached production levels, should
lead their workers.
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Nuts and Bolts:
Explanation of Topic Cont.
Management
Need to gain active support and
participation from workers, while
maintaining managerial control.
Be patient with workers, listen tothem, and avoid creating emotional
upsets.
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http://couses.bus.ualberta.ca/orga417-reshef/mayo.htm
Nuts and Bolts:
Explanation of Topic Cont.
TeamworkCooperation, communication, sense
of belonging. Mans desire to be continuouslyassociated in work with his fellows isa strong, if not the strongest, humancharacteristic. Any disregard of it by
management or any ill-advisedattempt to defeat this human impulseleads instantly to some form of defeatfor management itself.
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How it Works in the
Field
Aspects of Hawthorne Studies
Workers
Management
Motivation
Productivity
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How it Works in the
Field Cont.
Workers
Insights, suggestions, likes and
dislikes, moral, training.
Management
Transfer of power to workers,knowing their workers.
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How it Works in the
Field Cont.
Motivation
Incentives to increase productivity
and quality.
Productivity
By increasing the output rate andkeeping costs down, the company
will be able to increase profits.
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Real World Example
Swedish Case
Pay system didnt fit the structure
of jobs and organization.
Two years later an incentivesystem was added, productivity
went up 45%.
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Real World Example
Cont.
Swedish Case
New incentive system provided
motivation through tying
cooperation and teamwork.
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Exercise
Brainstorm ideas that can motivateemployees to increase productivityand find ways to implement them.
Think of more efficient ways in which
a process can be completed and whoyou might go to in order to find thisout.
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Summary
Hawthorne Studies dealing with
worker motivation and workproductivity.
Increase communication and
cooperation among coworkers.
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Summary Cont.
Motivation can cause an increase in
productivity
Involve employees in decision making.
Create a sense of belonging by creating
teams.
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References
Man and Work in Society. Edited by
Eugene Louis Cass and Frederick G.
Zimmer. 1975. New York: Van Nostrand
Reinhold Company.
Manufacturing Knowledge, A History of
the Hawthorne Experiments. Richard
Gillespie. 1952. New York: Press Syndicate
of the University of Cambridge. http://courses.bus.ualberta.ca/orga417-
reshef/mayo.html
http://www.accel-
team.com/motivation/hawthorne 02.html
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