Cited by 618Management Theory and PracticeBehavioral and Psychological StudiesAcademic and Historical Perspectives in Psychology

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What Happened at Hawthorne?: New evidence suggests the Hawthorne effect resulted from operant reinforcement contingencies.

Parsons, H. M.·1974·Science

DOI 10.1126/science.183.4128.922

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Abstract

The Hawthorne effect in experimental research is the unwanted effect of the experimental operations themselves. Following the Hawthorne studies, various explanations have been proposed to account for rising rates of production. Although in the Relay Assembly Test Room experiment the experimental operations may have produced other extraneous variables, a reexamination based on new and neglected evidence has yielded a new interpretation. The new variable, made more plausible because research in other contexts has shown it to have similar effects, is a combination of information feedback and financial reward. It is an example of the control of behavior by its consequences. Although several approaches may be taken to explain the effects of response-consequence contingencies, I have favored operant conditioning because it seems to account for progressive increases in response rate—the Hawthorne phenomenon. Generalizing from the particular situation at Hawthorne, I would define the Hawthorne effect as the confounding that occurs if experimenters fail to realize how the consequences of subjects' performance affect what subjects do. But the Hawthorne effect need not be viewed solely as a problem in conducting experiments. The phenomenon that created it should be studied in its own right, as Sommer suggested with a different phenomenon in mind. The study of response-consequence contingencies might well be extended to the examination of motivation in industrial workers.

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“In conducting such experiments, different possible experimental effects may result, such as the demanding effect (e.g. Zizzo 2010), the Pygmalion or Rosenthal effect (e.g. Rosenthal and Jacobson 1968), and the Hawthorne effect (e.g. Parsons 1974).”
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“This phenomenon, known as the Hawthorne effect (Parsons, 1974) has been well researched and needs even further investigation (McCambridge,Witton, & Elbourne, 2014).”
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Authors: Parsons, H. M.
Affiliations: Riverside Research Institute (US)
Corresponding author: Parsons, H. M.
Venue: Science
Publisher: American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
Published: 1974-03-08
Volume: 183
Issue: 4128
Pages: 922-932
ISSN: 0036-8075 (ISSN-L)
1095-9203
DOI: 10.1126/science.183.4128.922
OpenAlex: W1987677291
Cited by: 615
References: 24
Citations by year: 2026: 12 · 2025: 14 · 2024: 17 · 2023: 14 · 2022: 16 · 2021: 29 · 2020: 29 · 2019: 45 · 2018: 30 · 2017: 29 · 2016: 21 · 2015: 30 · 2014: 23 · 2013: 22 · 2012: 29
FWCI: 10.19
Type: journal article
Language: en
Open access: closed
Locations: Science (publishedVersion)
PubMed (publishedVersion)
Topics: Social Sciences › Business, Management and Accounting › Organizational Behavior and Human Resource Management › Management Theory and Practice
Social Sciences › Psychology › Developmental and Educational Psychology › Behavioral and Psychological Studies
Social Sciences › Psychology › General Psychology › Academic and Historical Perspectives in Psychology
Keywords: Hawthorne effect, Hawthorne studies, information feedback, monetary rewards, operant conditioning, confounding variables, employee motivation, industrial workers, production rate

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What Happened at Hawthorne?: New evidence suggests the Hawthorne effect resulted from operant reinforcement contingencies.

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