Management, Job Satisfaction, and Teamwork

Mayo's Hawthorne Studies,Taylor's Theory, and Industrial Psychology

Nov 15, 2009

Psychology began to be applied to the work force after World War I. Taylor and Mayo had differing theories about productivity, profit, and the worker's relation to work.

After World War I the rapidly growing field of psychology became a focus of the American business world. Companies considered applying the new-found knowledge of the mind and psyche for their own advantage and benefit and thus laying the groundwork for industrial psychology.

Frederick Taylor and Scientific Management at Work

Frederick Taylor (1856-1915) was one of the pioneers to apply scientific management and theories to the business field. In his work “Principles of Scientific Management” Taylor’s aim was greater industrial efficiency often at the expense of the worker’s subjective experience.

Taylor wanted to replace the “rule of thumb” with more accurate and exact scientific measures of productivity. Furthermore, each worker should be selected and actively trained for specific skills by the management. The constant cooperation with the workers was meant to ensure that the scientific principles were implemented, and work ought to be divided equally between workers and managers.

Despite the strong influence of his principles on the work force, including Henry Ford and his use of the assembly line, there has been criticism of his scientific theory. Critics claim that the theory has often led to a monotony of the work force and that Taylor’s methods are in fact considered dehumanizing.

Elton Mayo’s Hawthorne Studies and the Creation of Personal Counseling at Work

It was in the 1920 when Elton Mayo (1880-1949) did various experiments at the Hawthorne plant, later to be known as the “Hawthorne Studies”. The idea behind this study was that output ought to increase when workers believe that the management cares about the workers.

During the expansion of industrialization people had grown alienated from society therefore business attempted to fill the void through the creation of “communities of workers”. It was the beginning of personal counseling at the working place, a specialized department that was meant to deal with and litigate complaints and to attend to the emotional needs and well-being of the workers.

With the help of personal development, happiness, and job satisfaction workers were supposed to find meaning in their work and as a result be more productive. It was generally believed that a satisfied worker would lead to an increase in the profits of the businesses.

Teamwork and Rapport since the Wake of Industrial Psychology

Although some psychologists have criticized the findings of the Hawthorne studies, the studies have been responsible for a shift from an objective scientific form of management to attending to the individual and personal needs of the worker and his or her relation to the overall group, including the co-workers and the supervisor. In today’s job world increased work input has been often correlated with motivation, teamwork, and caring and well-meaning supervisors and superiors.

Hardy Leahey, Thomas. A History of Psychology: Main Currents in Psychological Thought. New Jersey: Prentice Hall, 1997.

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