The Human Relations School: Hawthorn Studies

The Hawthorne Studies were a series of experiments conducted by Elton Mayo and his colleagues in the 1920s and 1930s at the Hawthorne Works of Western Electric in Chicago. The studies were designed to investigate the relationship between productivity and work conditions, including lighting, rest breaks, and working hours. The studies found that productivity increased not as a result of changes in the work environment, but rather due to the social and emotional factors that emerged among the workers during the study.
The Hawthorne Studies are widely recognized as a significant milestone in the development of organizational behaviour and management theory, as they challenged traditional theories that focused solely on the physical and technical aspects of work. The studies demonstrated the importance of social and psychological factors in the workplace, including group dynamics, leadership, and motivation.