The Hawthorne Effect

Between 1927 and 1932, at the Hawthorne plant of the Western Electric Company in Chicago, a Harvard Business School professor named Elton Mayo conducted a series of experiments involving members of the workforce. 

His initial goal was straight forward To determine the extent to which workers and productivity are affected by subtle and not-so-subtle variations in plant lighting, temperature, humidity, rest breaks, and working hours. 

The projected results may have seemed self-evident. If workers are tired, surely, they will work more slowly and produce less. If they are allowed short, refreshing breaks at regular intervals, it s reasonable to assume they will work faster and produce more. If the lighting in the plant is too soft or too harsh, they will probably lose their concentration and production will decline. If it s too hot or too cold, the same may happen. 

But real life, as Professor Mayo was to discover, is rarely that neat and simple. In the most famous of the experiments, Mayo chose two female workers from the assembly line, and invited them to choose another four. 

This small clique of six—all women— were then separated from their fellow workers and placed under the eye of a friendly, personable observer, who would sit at the workshop table with them, hstening to their needs and concerns, asking for their advice and opinions, while carefully explaining the nature and purpose of the research. 

Have you ever heard of a study from which a basic management theory called the Hawthorne Effect was named In this section, I summarize this study and the conclusions that were drawn from it. Even though this study took place almost 80 years ago, the conclusions remain valid today. This study gets into team members basic needs. This theory still works because humans basic needs have not really changed much in the last 80 years. 

The Hawthorne Effect gets its name from a series of experimental field studies conducted between 1924 and 1932 at the Hawthorne Works of the Western Electric Company. The main product that the Hawthorne Works produced was the telephone. At this point in time, the telephone was a heavy piece of complicated wiring, relays, coils, and materials that were assembled and packaged in a labor-intensive manner. 

Furthermore, at the conclusion of the first phase, productivity increased in response to changes in weekly and daily work schedules, lengths of rest periods, and the amount of lunch time provided by the company. Even more surprising was that production rates remained at an increased level even after workers were returned to prestudy work conditions.  

In November 1924, the Western Electric Company, in connection with the National Research Council of the National Academy of Sciences, planned to study the relation of quality and quantity of illumination to efficiency in industry. In other words, the researchers were planning on changing the lighting in the work area to provide more or less light in different work areas, and then study any differences in production. This particular study lasted until April 1927, a period of two and one-half years. 

This test resulted in very appreciable production increases in both groups and of almost identical magnitude. The difference in efficiency of the two groups was so small as to be less than the probable error of the values. Consequently, we were again unable to determine what definite part of the improvement in performance should be ascribed to improved illumination.  

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Placebo response may be related to the Hawthorne effect. - As the practitioner provides more attention to the patient s health, there is often an increased desire of the patient to please the caregiver and to express appreciation for an effective intervention. 

The Hawthorne effect usually refers to an effect of the involvement of researchers or other outsiders upon the measured outcome. This term arose from a famous study of factory workers at Western Electric s Hawthorne Works in the 1920s. A subset of workers was moved to a different section of the factory, their working conditions manipulated and the effect of this on their productivity observed. It turned out that workers were more productive under any of the work conditions tried—even an uncomfortable one like low lighting conditions. It is believed that the effect of the new psychosocial working conditions (i.e., increased involvement of workers) in the experimental simation actually overshadowed any effect of the changes in the physical environment. 

Regardless of external validation methodology, sources of bias like the Hawthorne effect (that any change in a standard environment is perceived by individuals in that environment to be positive) are likely to get in the way of objective analysis. When faced with using an ITS, students will by definition work and learn more effectively due to the very novelty of the ITS, rather than particular attributes of the ITS. This problem has bedevilled scientiric attempts to prove that LOGO, for example, is a better way of teaching mathematical reasoning than more traditional approaches. 

The Hawthorne effect usually refers to an effect of the involvement of researchers or other outsiders upon the measured outcome. This term arose from a famous study of factory... 

If we apply the lessons of the Hawthorne Effect to near miss incident reporting, we find the very foundation of safety motivation. Near miss incident reporting is not simply a discipline or a set of precepts that must be imposed from above. It must involve the worker, recognize the worker, and perhaps even reward the worker. 

National Occupational Safety Association (NOSA).1990. We shall call it the Hawthorne Effect. Safety Management Training Course (SAMTRAC). Pretoria, SA NOSA. 

Cocco G. Erectile dysfunction after therapy with metoprolol the Hawthorne effect. Cardiology 2009 112 174-7. 

Perhaps the PMI data and the introduction to the Hawthorne effect and further evidence presented near the end of this written guidance section, even though they may not pertain directly to whatever you and your organization do, will cause you and to give further thought to implementing written guidance for repetitive tasks and processes. It will help you achieve quality, that is, meet all requirements. 

Research evidence. The power of feedback is evident in the famous Hawthorne studies. Ask any safety manager, industrial consultant, or applied psychologist whether they have heard of the "Hawthorne Effect," and they probably will say, "yes." They might not be able to describe any details of the studies that occurred between 1927 and 1932 at the Western Electric plant in the Hawthorne community near Chicago that led to the classic Hawthorne Effect. Most, however, will be able to paraphrase the infamous finding from these studies that the hourly output rates of the employees studied increased whenever an obvious environmental change occurred in the work sethng. 

From his scienhfic detective work. Parsons concluded that performance feedback was the principal extraneous, confounding variable that accounted for the Hawthorne Effect. The performance feedback was important to the workers (so they were apt to respond to it) because their salaries were influenced by an individual piecework schedule—the more relays each employee assembled, the more money each earned. 

So, if we want our businesses to continually improve, management needs to find ways to motivate team members and keep their awareness levels high. The Hawthorne Effect is a basic motivational theory that has been shown to work. If management treats people as an important part... 

The programs discussed in this book stress what I believe to be the best management practices. These practices have been field tested and proven to work. The book stresses the Hawthorne Effect throughout because I believe that the Hawthorne Effect is the basic reason that workers act the way they do. 

When used properly, the JSA is a valuable tool in the development of culture, as a training aid, and to emphasize the Hawthorne Effect. JSAs should be an important part of any company s safety culture and are referred to in several areas of this book. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has published extensive information in a pamphlet available in hard copy and through the Internet from the OSHA web page. For the reader s convenience, I have included a copy of the majority of this document as Appendix A. Keep in mind that although the information found in Appendix A can be useful, the format offered in Chapter 7 has the advantage of being easily understood by the team member performing the work task. 

The Hawthorne Effect demonstrated that workers will be more productive when they are treated like valuable team members. As the management at the Hawthorne Works plant demonstrated that workers were important, the production in the plant increased. 

Workplace violence has been in the news often recently. Although this subject is important, this book will not address workplace violence in more than a general way however, numerous sources discuss this subject in great detail. If it is taking place in the workplace and has a potential to harm workers, OSHA is typically interested. My hope is that with a well-developed safety culture and keeping in mind the Hawthorne Effect, workplace violence issues should be eliminated or at least minimized. 

Again, let s recall the Hawthorne Effect. Consider taking the typical widget department worker and using this worker in an orientation video. In our scenario, the expert is an experienced worker who shares his expertise with others on videotape. 

Let s talk about determining the training objectives. In general, we can go back to the Hawthorne Effect. As we train our team members, they will be assured that management cares about them and that they are... 

We need to remember that the front-line supervisor s job takes a lot of skill and know-how in order to be effective. I believe that one of the most important skills is people skill. Understanding the Hawthorne Effect... 

On the other hand, when the effort has been minimal or haphazard, this also is evident. If we look back to the Hawthorne Effect, if we provide team members with a poor-quality training experience, we have indirectly shown them that they are not important, and therefore management cannot expect much from them however, if we show team members that management expects them to be well-trained because management realizes that they and their jobs are important, we will reap the benefits of the Hawthorne Effect. 

For safety incentive bonus programs, I believe that most of the focus should be on the team rather than the individual. Although every team member has his or her specific role in the big picture, I like to see incentive plans that are based on group performance rather than individual performance. If we remember the Hawthorne Effect, this philosophy fits... 

Front-line supervisors should set the tone for safety, lead by example, ensure that workers are properly trained and qualified to perform their work, and provide the proper tools, personal protective equipment (PPE), planning, and so on to ensure that the work is done safely and properly. Front-line supervisors have a difficult and important job. If we relate back to our discussion of the Hawthorne Effect, supervisors need to be treated as important team members also. They interface between the team members who are getting the work done and the management team. This situation can be difficult. Front-line supervisors typically wear many hats. They must manage the job from a viewpoint of the superintendent, yet they must deal with the workers on a personal level on a constant basis. The supervisor might be expected to be part of all of the following job functions ... 

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