Question

Compare and contrast the findings of the Hawthorne Studies with at least two other organizational behavior studies

Answer 1

Hawthorne Studies:

Elton Mayo a Sociologist in an Electrical factory in Hawthorne area in Chicago during the late 1920s and early 1930s conducted these experiments. Hawthorne effect is also called observer effect where the observed tend to change his/her behaviour when they know that someone is observing them.

This research is really important to Industry and Organisational psychologists because if they need to record a real behaviour, attitude or reaction of the employees they need to observe things as they happen. These type of research will not yield the expected results as they might change their responses to suit the researchers. This will be very effective in an industry because the time employees know that they are being watched or observed, they would start working more effectively. The recent CCTV set up is the follow up of this effect.

The Hawthorne Studies led to the development of the Human Relations Movement in business management. The experiment was about measuring the impact of different working conditions by the company itself (such as levels of lighting, payment systems, and hours of work) on the output of the employees. The researchers concluded that variations in output were not caused by changing physical conditions or material rewards only but partly by the experiments themselves.

Organizational behavior studies:

organisational behaviour studies can study about the human behavior in an organizational settings, the interface between human behavior and the organization. Organizational behavior studies the behavior of individuals and their interaction in a group. It is very important in an organizational perspective as people come from the different social and cultural background and join the organization. Here, the organization tries to modify the behavior of individuals as they work in a group and achieve the common organizational objective.
Formation of team culture, shared assumptions, mentoring programs and different types of organizational structures are the examples to bring a suitable organizational behavior among the employees.

Hawthorne Studies and organizational behavior studies comparision:
Organizational culture is the way people behave in organizations and it is based on the shared values and beliefs among the people. Administrative theory was propounded by Henry Fayol and is based on several principles of management. In addition, management was considered as a set of planning, organizing, training, commanding and coordinating functions. The Hawthorne studies was developed to study the competencies of the workers to measure, analyse and improve their capabilities. Hawthorne studies plays a major role in organizational behavior because it influences the behavior of the employees. Neoclassical theory emphasizes individual or group behaviour and human relations in determining productivity. The main features of the neoclassical approach are individual, work group and participatory management. When the Hawthorne studies analysis shows positive results and motivates the employees then there is an improved and healthy organizational culture. The other organizational theory is polyphonic organization theory which is based on the concept that the society is functionally differentiated and how it is connected to the organizational growth. In contrast to the Hawthorne studies, the Polyphonic theory is purely based on the society and its values and beliefs.