Chapter 3 – Three Early Perspectives on Organizations and Communication – Blog #2
On pages 83 and 84, the authors discuss the Hawthorne effect which they say shows “that increased attention raises productivity” in workers. It appears people work harder when they know they are being watched, evaluated, and/or relied on by peers. “Even under poor working conditions, supportive informal group norms could have a positive effect on productivity.” It’s amazing how coworkers can deter or encourage productivity. In the Hawthorne effect experiments, the need for belonging and interpersonal relationships proved to be more motivation for good work than good working conditions. In order for companies to move toward higher goals, managers and business owners should recognize that teams and groups possess an extraordinary amount of influence over work behavior and productivity.
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2 comments:
I definately agree that people work harder when they know they are being watched. I had a co-worker who would slack off and do nothing all day unless our boss was there. If our boss was in the office she would seem as if she was really busy but when our boss was out of the office than she would shop online and talk on the phone all day. I also agree that people strive on interpersonal relationships than working conditions. A company could have great conditions but if the relationships are not good than many people could want to leave.
I have also seen this lot in my past jobs when employees seem to appear as extra hard worker when someone is watching. I have also seen this during practices. There are times when I have to run around there campus trying to get things done that could not do before practices. In these cases I leave the captain in charge of practice for a little while I go do what I have to do on campus. After I am done, I like to come from unexpected place to see how they are doing when they can’t see me. When I do come back I see them fooling around more or being more talkative because they lose their focus since there is no one watching them.
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