AN EXPERIMENT ON THE STATUS INCONGRUENCE PHENOMENON.
Abstract
Status incongruence was experimentally imposed on twelve four-person teams, and their performance, morale, and tendency toward restructuring were compared with control teams that were experimentally congruent. The two status dimensions manipulated to produce congruence or incongruence were the announced class standing of the college Ss and the assignment of the keyman or directive position in the team's organization. The teams performed a laboratory task that consists of co-operative typing on a typewriter altered so as to require multiple typists. Results were: (1) teams congruent initially but free to change structure did not do so; (2) teams incongruent initially tended to change structure but not toward experimentally defined congruence; (3) the person perceived as leader by team members themselves tended to be the one who talked most and made the most suggestions, even if he were a lowerclassman and not the keyman, but the preferred future leader in these cases was often the upperclass man; (4) teams with many discrepancies among these status rankings (but not including the experimentally manipulated keyman ranking) tended to have significantly low task performance and satisfaction. These results, while positive, fall short of giving satisfactory experimental confirmation of the alledged strain toward status congruence. (Author)
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jul 01, 1965
- Accession Number
- AD0619216
Entities
People
- Donald Trow
- Grace Herschdorfer
Organizations
- Binghamton University