Which statement best reflects the Hawthorne finding about leadership attention to people?

Which statement best reflects the Hawthorne finding about leadership attention to people?

• A. Team performance improves when leaders ignore staff to focus on tasks
• B. Team performance improves when leaders pay attention to people and treat them as partners
• C. Team performance declines when leaders show concern for workers
• D. Team performance is unaffected by leadership attention

Answer: (B)

Attention to people by leaders boosts performance because social factors influence motivation and engagement. The Hawthorne studies showed that productivity increased when workers received attention from supervisors and were treated as valued contributors, not just as inputs to a task. This sense of being cared for and treated as partners fosters ownership, morale, and cooperation, which translates into higher performance. The idea that leaders should pay attention to people and treat them as partners best captures this dynamic. Saying attention has no effect, or that concern harms performance, contradicts what the findings demonstrated, and ignoring staff ignores the motivational impact of being valued.

Attention to people by leaders boosts performance because social factors influence motivation and engagement. The Hawthorne studies showed that productivity increased when workers received attention from supervisors and were treated as valued contributors, not just as inputs to a task. This sense of being cared for and treated as partners fosters ownership, morale, and cooperation, which translates into higher performance. The idea that leaders should pay attention to people and treat them as partners best captures this dynamic. Saying attention has no effect, or that concern harms performance, contradicts what the findings demonstrated, and ignoring staff ignores the motivational impact of being valued.