The human relations school - Mayo

Question 1

limitations of Hawthorne experiments

Answer 1

-all of the workers were female - in social context of the 1930s, they may have been more willing to participate in the experiment and try to make them work

-the experiment concentrated of a small segregated area and thus has a very narrow approach (several other experiments were conducted in other areas of the factory but each was done in isolation)

-factory-based experiments are limited in their transferability to other sectors of work.

Question 2

describe the human relations school / findings of the Hawthorne experiments

Answer 2

• Elton mayo focused on importance of social factors and human behaviour and stressed the importance of considering workers’ needs to improve productivity
• When staff were given attention from managers their productivity/motivation improved
• Productivity improved when physical conditions were changed
• Workers enjoy social aspects of working in groups
• Workers may be influenced more by informal groups than official leaders
• Relationships which evolve at work are more motivating to employees than money
• Absenteeism dropped