“Hawthorne effect,” coined in 1953 by psychologist J. R. P. French, derives from experiments conducted between 1924 and 1933 in Western Electric’s factory at Hawthorne, a suburb of Chicago. The experimenters made various changes to the working environment, like adjusting light levels, and noticed that regardless of the change, performance improved. If they increased light levels, performance improved. If they decreased light levels, performance improved. They eventually concluded that observing the workers was leading to the enhanced performance, and the actual change in working conditions was
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