This Article Full Text (PDF) References Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Alert me to new issues of the journal Add to Saved Citations Download to citation manager Request Permissions Request Reprints Add to My Marked Citations Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Citing Articles via Scopus Google Scholar Articles by GOTTFREDSON, G. D. Search for Related Content Social Bookmarking                         What's this?

The Hawthorne Misunderstanding (and How to Get the Hawthorne Effect in Action Research)

The Hawthorne relay-assembly research has been misinterpreted as showing that interest in employees' well-being is sufficient to stimulate increased performance. In the original studies of this phenomenon, the assemblers of relays received considerable attention, but they also wanted to improve their performance and they were given feedback on how they performed. As a result, they learned to produce more relays. The "Hawthorne misunderstanding" is common in criminology, criminal justice, and other fields because authors have failed to recognize this explanation of improved work output. Producing real Hawthorne effects—that is, improvements in the performance of people—is important in action research, and such improvements are often the aims of scientists who pursue this form of research. To produce Hawthorne effects, foster the acceptance of performance goals or standards, provide feedback on performance, and remove obstacles to improved performance.

Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency, Vol. 33, No. 1, 28-48 (1996)
DOI: 10.1177/0022427896033001003


CiteULike    Complore    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    Twitter    What's this?

This article has been cited by other articles:

				R. Spano Observer Behavior as a Potential Source of Reactivity: Describing and Quantifying Observer Effects in a Large-Scale Observational Study of Police Sociological Methods Research, May 1, 2006; 34(4): 521 - 553. [Abstract] [PDF]