American companies have experimented with "employee involvement" (EI), also referred to as "workplace democracy," "quality of worklife," and "participatory decision making" since the late 1960's. Results are mixed but interest remains high because organizations that have adapted to this new form are industry leaders. Research of the literature suggested (and this research agrees) that EI will be a long term success when management: (1) shares information and power at all levels of the organizational unit, (2) emphasizes cooperative problem solving to meet organizational goals, and (3) engenders a sense of dignity, meaning and community in every employee in the organizational unit. This study at four manufacturing sites investigates the link between the process of change to EI management and managers' beliefs. In-depth interviews of 25 managers and 8 hourly employees (plus printed matter) provide data for this qualitative research. "Grounded theory" from the data generated five Management Characteristics and seven Antecedents for Change which provide a framework for further analysis of managers' beliefs related to EI. Research sites had different types of manufacturing, different organizational histories, and EI programs were at different stages of development, but 13 themes emerged which were highly consistent (and two themes that were dissimilar were still clearly significant to the change process). The study establishes that both the organizational change process and Antecedents affect a manager's response to EI. Some experiences and beliefs make it easier for a manager to adapt to EI management and some make it more difficult. Antecedents that were shown to have both positive and negative affects on the process include self confidence, family, education, and work experiences, mentors, organizational culture, and personal characteristics, beliefs and values.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:UMASS/oai:scholarworks.umass.edu:dissertations-7978 |
| Date | 01 January 1991 |
| Creators | Eccleston, Alan C |
| Publisher | ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst |
| Source Sets | University of Massachusetts, Amherst |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | text |
| Source | Doctoral Dissertations Available from Proquest |
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