How the Hawthorne Effect Works

Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsHistoryExamplesDoes It Really Exist?Other ExplanationsHow to Avoid It

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Table of Contents

History

Examples

Does It Really Exist?

Other Explanations

How to Avoid It

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The Hawthorne effect is a term referring to the tendency of some people to work harder and perform better when they are participants in an experiment.

The term is often used to suggest that individuals may change their behavior due to the attention they are receiving from researchers rather than because of any manipulation ofindependent variables.

The Hawthorne effect has been widely discussed in psychology textbooks, particularly those devoted toindustrial and organizational psychology. However, research suggests that many of the original claims made about the effect may be overstated.

History of the Hawthorne Effect

Why Is It Called the Hawthorne Effect?The phenomenon is named after the location where the experiments took place, Western Electric’s Hawthorne Works electric company just outside of Hawthorne, Illinois.

Why Is It Called the Hawthorne Effect?

The phenomenon is named after the location where the experiments took place, Western Electric’s Hawthorne Works electric company just outside of Hawthorne, Illinois.

The electric company had commissioned research to determine if there was a relationship between productivity and work environments.

The original purpose of the Hawthorne studies was to examine how different aspects of the work environment, such as lighting, the timing of breaks, and thelength of the workday, had on worker productivity.

Increased Productivity

In the most famous of the experiments, the focus of the study was to determine if increasing or decreasing the amount of light that workers received would have an effect on how productive workers were during their shifts. In the original study, employee productivity seemed to increase due to the changes but then decreased once the experiment was over.

What the researchers in the original studies found was that almost any change to the experimental conditions led to increases in productivity. For example, productivity increased when illumination was decreased to the levels of candlelight, when breaks were eliminated entirely, and when the workday was lengthened.

The researchers concluded that workers were responding to the increased attention from supervisors. This suggested that productivity increased due to attention and not because of changes in the experimental variables.

Types of Variables in Psychology Research

Findings May Not Be Accurate

The term Hawthorne effect remains widely in use to describe increases in productivity due to participation in a study, yet additional studies have often offered little support or have even failed to find the effect at all.

Examples of the Hawthorne Effect

The following are real-life examples of the Hawthorne effect in various settings:

What Is Extrinsic Motivation?

Does the Hawthorne Effect Exist?

Later research into the Hawthorne effect suggested that the original results may have been overstated. In 2009, researchers at the University of Chicago reanalyzed the original data and found that other factors also played a role in productivity and that the effect originally described was weak at best.

While some additional studies failed to find strong evidence of the Hawthorne effect, a 2014 systematic review published in theJournal of Clinical Epidemiologyfound that research participation effects do exist.

After looking at the results of 19 different studies, the researchers concluded that these effects clearly happen, but more research needs to be done in order to determine how they work, the impact they have, and why they occur.

While the Hawthorne effect may have an influence on participant behavior in experiments, there may also be other factors that play a part in these changes. Some factors that may influenceimprovements in productivityinclude:

While the Hawthorne effect has often been overstated, the term is still useful as a general explanation for psychological factors that can affect how people behave in an experiment.

How to Reduce the Hawthorne Effect

In order for researchers to trust the results of experiments, it is essential to minimize potential problems and sources of bias like the Hawthorne effect.

So what can researchers do to minimize these effects in their experimental studies?

Summary

Many of the original findings of the Hawthorne studies have since been found to be either overstated or erroneous, but the term has become widely used in psychology, economics, business, and other areas.

More recent findings support the idea that these effects do happen, but how much of an impact they actually have on results remains in question. Today, the term is still often used to refer to changes in behavior that can result from taking part in an experiment.

13 SourcesVerywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Schwartz D, Fischhoff B, Krishnamurti T, Sowell F.The Hawthorne effect and energy awareness.Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2013;110(38):15242-15246. doi:10.1073/pnas.1301687110McCambridge J, Witton J, Elbourne DR.Systematic review of the Hawthorne effect: New concepts are needed to study research participation effects.J Clin Epidemiol. 2014;67(3):267-277. doi:10.1016/j.jclinepi.2013.08.015Letrud K, Hernes S.Affirmative citation bias in scientific myth debunking: A three-in-one case study. Bornmann L, ed.PLoS ONE.2019;14(9):e0222213. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0222213McCarney R, Warner J, Iliffe S, van Haselen R, Griffin M, Fisher P.The Hawthorne effect: a randomised, controlled trial.BMC Med Res Methodol. 2007;7:30. doi:10.1186/1471-2288-7-30Pickering AJ, Blum AG, Breiman RF, Ram PK, Davis J.Video surveillance captures student hand hygiene behavior, reactivity to observation, and peer influence in Kenyan primary schools. Gupta V, ed.PLoS ONE.2014;9(3):e92571. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0092571Understanding Your Users.Elsevier; 2015. doi:10.1016/c2013-0-13611-2Levitt S, List, JA.Was there really a Hawthorne effect at the Hawthorne plant? An analysis of the original illumination experiments. 2009. University of Chicago.NBER Working Paper No. w15016,Levitt, SD & List, JA.Was there really a Hawthorne effect at the Hawthorne plant? An analysis of the original illumination experiments.American Economic Journal: Applied Economics.2011;3:224-238. doi:10.2307/25760252McCambridge J, de Bruin M, Witton J.The effects of demand characteristics on research participant behaviours in non-laboratory settings: A systematic review.PLoS ONE. 2012;7(6):e39116. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0039116Chwo GSM, Marek MW, Wu WCV.Meta-analysis of MALL research and design.System.2018;74:62-72. doi:10.1016/j.system.2018.02.009Gnepp J, Klayman J, Williamson IO, Barlas S.The future of feedback: Motivating performance improvement through future-focused feedback.PLoS One. 2020;15(6):e0234444. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0234444Hawthorne effect. The SAGE Encyclopedia of Educational Research, Measurement, and Evaluation. doi:10.4135/9781506326139.n300Murdoch M, Simon AB, Polusny MA, et al.Impact of different privacy conditions and incentives on survey response rate, participant representativeness, and disclosure of sensitive information: a randomized controlled trial.BMC Med Res Methodol. 2014;14:90. doi:10.1186/1471-2288-14-90Additional ReadingLandy FJ , Conte JM.Work in the 21st Century: An Introduction to Industrial and Organizational Psychology. New York: John Wiley and Sons; 2010.McBride DM.The Process of Research in Psychology. London: Sage Publications; 2013.

13 Sources

Verywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Schwartz D, Fischhoff B, Krishnamurti T, Sowell F.The Hawthorne effect and energy awareness.Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2013;110(38):15242-15246. doi:10.1073/pnas.1301687110McCambridge J, Witton J, Elbourne DR.Systematic review of the Hawthorne effect: New concepts are needed to study research participation effects.J Clin Epidemiol. 2014;67(3):267-277. doi:10.1016/j.jclinepi.2013.08.015Letrud K, Hernes S.Affirmative citation bias in scientific myth debunking: A three-in-one case study. Bornmann L, ed.PLoS ONE.2019;14(9):e0222213. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0222213McCarney R, Warner J, Iliffe S, van Haselen R, Griffin M, Fisher P.The Hawthorne effect: a randomised, controlled trial.BMC Med Res Methodol. 2007;7:30. doi:10.1186/1471-2288-7-30Pickering AJ, Blum AG, Breiman RF, Ram PK, Davis J.Video surveillance captures student hand hygiene behavior, reactivity to observation, and peer influence in Kenyan primary schools. Gupta V, ed.PLoS ONE.2014;9(3):e92571. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0092571Understanding Your Users.Elsevier; 2015. doi:10.1016/c2013-0-13611-2Levitt S, List, JA.Was there really a Hawthorne effect at the Hawthorne plant? An analysis of the original illumination experiments. 2009. University of Chicago.NBER Working Paper No. w15016,Levitt, SD & List, JA.Was there really a Hawthorne effect at the Hawthorne plant? An analysis of the original illumination experiments.American Economic Journal: Applied Economics.2011;3:224-238. doi:10.2307/25760252McCambridge J, de Bruin M, Witton J.The effects of demand characteristics on research participant behaviours in non-laboratory settings: A systematic review.PLoS ONE. 2012;7(6):e39116. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0039116Chwo GSM, Marek MW, Wu WCV.Meta-analysis of MALL research and design.System.2018;74:62-72. doi:10.1016/j.system.2018.02.009Gnepp J, Klayman J, Williamson IO, Barlas S.The future of feedback: Motivating performance improvement through future-focused feedback.PLoS One. 2020;15(6):e0234444. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0234444Hawthorne effect. The SAGE Encyclopedia of Educational Research, Measurement, and Evaluation. doi:10.4135/9781506326139.n300Murdoch M, Simon AB, Polusny MA, et al.Impact of different privacy conditions and incentives on survey response rate, participant representativeness, and disclosure of sensitive information: a randomized controlled trial.BMC Med Res Methodol. 2014;14:90. doi:10.1186/1471-2288-14-90Additional ReadingLandy FJ , Conte JM.Work in the 21st Century: An Introduction to Industrial and Organizational Psychology. New York: John Wiley and Sons; 2010.McBride DM.The Process of Research in Psychology. London: Sage Publications; 2013.

Verywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.

Schwartz D, Fischhoff B, Krishnamurti T, Sowell F.The Hawthorne effect and energy awareness.Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2013;110(38):15242-15246. doi:10.1073/pnas.1301687110McCambridge J, Witton J, Elbourne DR.Systematic review of the Hawthorne effect: New concepts are needed to study research participation effects.J Clin Epidemiol. 2014;67(3):267-277. doi:10.1016/j.jclinepi.2013.08.015Letrud K, Hernes S.Affirmative citation bias in scientific myth debunking: A three-in-one case study. Bornmann L, ed.PLoS ONE.2019;14(9):e0222213. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0222213McCarney R, Warner J, Iliffe S, van Haselen R, Griffin M, Fisher P.The Hawthorne effect: a randomised, controlled trial.BMC Med Res Methodol. 2007;7:30. doi:10.1186/1471-2288-7-30Pickering AJ, Blum AG, Breiman RF, Ram PK, Davis J.Video surveillance captures student hand hygiene behavior, reactivity to observation, and peer influence in Kenyan primary schools. Gupta V, ed.PLoS ONE.2014;9(3):e92571. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0092571Understanding Your Users.Elsevier; 2015. doi:10.1016/c2013-0-13611-2Levitt S, List, JA.Was there really a Hawthorne effect at the Hawthorne plant? An analysis of the original illumination experiments. 2009. University of Chicago.NBER Working Paper No. w15016,Levitt, SD & List, JA.Was there really a Hawthorne effect at the Hawthorne plant? An analysis of the original illumination experiments.American Economic Journal: Applied Economics.2011;3:224-238. doi:10.2307/25760252McCambridge J, de Bruin M, Witton J.The effects of demand characteristics on research participant behaviours in non-laboratory settings: A systematic review.PLoS ONE. 2012;7(6):e39116. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0039116Chwo GSM, Marek MW, Wu WCV.Meta-analysis of MALL research and design.System.2018;74:62-72. doi:10.1016/j.system.2018.02.009Gnepp J, Klayman J, Williamson IO, Barlas S.The future of feedback: Motivating performance improvement through future-focused feedback.PLoS One. 2020;15(6):e0234444. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0234444Hawthorne effect. The SAGE Encyclopedia of Educational Research, Measurement, and Evaluation. doi:10.4135/9781506326139.n300Murdoch M, Simon AB, Polusny MA, et al.Impact of different privacy conditions and incentives on survey response rate, participant representativeness, and disclosure of sensitive information: a randomized controlled trial.BMC Med Res Methodol. 2014;14:90. doi:10.1186/1471-2288-14-90

Schwartz D, Fischhoff B, Krishnamurti T, Sowell F.The Hawthorne effect and energy awareness.Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2013;110(38):15242-15246. doi:10.1073/pnas.1301687110

McCambridge J, Witton J, Elbourne DR.Systematic review of the Hawthorne effect: New concepts are needed to study research participation effects.J Clin Epidemiol. 2014;67(3):267-277. doi:10.1016/j.jclinepi.2013.08.015

Letrud K, Hernes S.Affirmative citation bias in scientific myth debunking: A three-in-one case study. Bornmann L, ed.PLoS ONE.2019;14(9):e0222213. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0222213

McCarney R, Warner J, Iliffe S, van Haselen R, Griffin M, Fisher P.The Hawthorne effect: a randomised, controlled trial.BMC Med Res Methodol. 2007;7:30. doi:10.1186/1471-2288-7-30

Pickering AJ, Blum AG, Breiman RF, Ram PK, Davis J.Video surveillance captures student hand hygiene behavior, reactivity to observation, and peer influence in Kenyan primary schools. Gupta V, ed.PLoS ONE.2014;9(3):e92571. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0092571

Understanding Your Users.Elsevier; 2015. doi:10.1016/c2013-0-13611-2

Levitt S, List, JA.Was there really a Hawthorne effect at the Hawthorne plant? An analysis of the original illumination experiments. 2009. University of Chicago.NBER Working Paper No. w15016,

Levitt, SD & List, JA.Was there really a Hawthorne effect at the Hawthorne plant? An analysis of the original illumination experiments.American Economic Journal: Applied Economics.2011;3:224-238. doi:10.2307/25760252

McCambridge J, de Bruin M, Witton J.The effects of demand characteristics on research participant behaviours in non-laboratory settings: A systematic review.PLoS ONE. 2012;7(6):e39116. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0039116

Chwo GSM, Marek MW, Wu WCV.Meta-analysis of MALL research and design.System.2018;74:62-72. doi:10.1016/j.system.2018.02.009

Gnepp J, Klayman J, Williamson IO, Barlas S.The future of feedback: Motivating performance improvement through future-focused feedback.PLoS One. 2020;15(6):e0234444. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0234444

Hawthorne effect. The SAGE Encyclopedia of Educational Research, Measurement, and Evaluation. doi:10.4135/9781506326139.n300

Murdoch M, Simon AB, Polusny MA, et al.Impact of different privacy conditions and incentives on survey response rate, participant representativeness, and disclosure of sensitive information: a randomized controlled trial.BMC Med Res Methodol. 2014;14:90. doi:10.1186/1471-2288-14-90

Landy FJ , Conte JM.Work in the 21st Century: An Introduction to Industrial and Organizational Psychology. New York: John Wiley and Sons; 2010.McBride DM.The Process of Research in Psychology. London: Sage Publications; 2013.

Landy FJ , Conte JM.Work in the 21st Century: An Introduction to Industrial and Organizational Psychology. New York: John Wiley and Sons; 2010.

McBride DM.The Process of Research in Psychology. London: Sage Publications; 2013.

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