| The Hawthorne effect, also known as the observer effect, is a psychological phenomenon that produces a temporary improvement in human productivity when there is increased attention from superiors, clients or colleagues. The Hawthorne effect was first seen in the 1920s at the Western Electric Company's Hawthorne Works, from which the term derives. The company conducted a series of studies designed to find ways to increase worker productivity. An increase in the level of workplace illumination, for example, had a measurable positive effect on employee productivity. However, the researchers also found that when they lowered the lighting levels, productivity still increased. In fact, for a limited period after any change in the illumination level, the workers' average output increased. The researchers concluded that lighting conditions had nothing to do with productivity increases and in 1939, Fritz J. Roethlisberger documented the results of the Hawthorne studies in "Management and the Worker." His conclusions about worker productivity were in sharp contrast to the common perceptions of that time. Financial reward was found to be much less conducive to worker productivity than expected. Instead, greater productivity resulted when management made workers feel valued and aware that their concerns were taken seriously. Professors Michel Anteby and Rakesh Khurana wrote about the Hawthorne studies in their article, "A New Vision:" The economic rewards of work were potentially picayune compared to the feeling of solidarity and worth created among individuals working together toward a common end. A manager's effectiveness, therefore, could be measured by the extent to which those in the organization internalized a common purpose and perceived the connection between their actions and the organization's ability to fulfill this common purpose. Management, then, was not about controlling human behavior but unleashing human possibility.
Although the conclusions of the Hawthorne studies have since been called into question, the theory persists -- probably because it is logical to believe that people try and do their best when someone they care about is watching. Continue reading about the Hawthorne effect... | 
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