The Hawthorne studies

Elton Mayo and Fritz Roethlisberger conducted out the Hawthorne studies. At the Hawthorne Plant, they were completed in the 1920s (Pelto, 2017). These studies suggest that when given a favorable working environment, such as a tidy workspace, well-lit offices, and work spaces that encourage teamwork, people perform better. During the research, staff members were also permitted to take regular breaks (Nelson & Quick, 2013). The Hawthorne Effect is a result of the discovery that people tend to alter their behaviour in the workplace when they become aware that they are being watched (Pelto, 2017). Components of this study have a significant impact on the current human resource functions and affect individuals who are not motivated by money or power to improve their performance (Nelson & Quick, 2013). In my contemporary work setting, for instance, the human resource manager will express gratitude and appreciation to all employees and co-workers equally. Additionally, the human resource manager ensures that workers are provided with all necessary equipment when working, for instance, protective clothing if they work in a hazardous environment. This makes the employees happy hence their productivity is increased as they feel valued and respected as their leader shows ethical behavior and cares about the institution, members of staff and the environment. However, the downside of this method is that the productivity gains are short-term and in some cases employees will change their behaviors when they discover they are being watched or the supervisor is gone they revert to their normal behavior. At our workplace, when the supervisor is around, most employees pretend to be working as expected, but when he goes away, they start browsing or talking to each other. Therefore, additional methods like paying people basing on productivity are introduced to make it more efficient.

References

Nelson, D. L., & Quick, J. C. (2013). Organizational behavior: Science, the real world, and you (8th Ed.). USA: Cengage Learning.

Pelto, P. J. (2017). Mixed methods in ethnographic research: Historical perspectives. New York, NY: Routledge. pp. 74-76