Work Strategies: The Development and Testing of a Model.
Abstract
Work strategy refers to the plans and methods that workers use to do the tasks which are required by a job (e.g., scheduling rest periods, pacing the work, setting goals), and is a potentially powerful variable within the work environment. Research to date on work strategy suggests that a taxonomy of work strategies and a determination of the relationships between them and other work variables (e.g., ability) can add much to our understanding of worker productivity and motivation. A model of work strategy was developed which proposed several theoretical relationships between work strategy and other important work variables. A empirical investigation into some of the relationships suggested by the conceptual model was also conducted which involved 128 people employed to perform a data coding task in a simulated work environment. Work strategy was defined here as the length and frequency of rest periods taken by workers. The relationship of rest periods to task performance as well as to the worker's ability and choice of performance goals was explored. Results showed that there was a negative relationship between rest periods and task performance as well as between rest periods and goals. Contrary to other research, there was not an optimal rest period which balanced relief from fatigue against time away from the task. Rest periods can serve as a useful measure of work strategy, but other measures, such as pace of work, should be tested as well as other relationships between work strategies and work variables. Wage incentive and goal setting programs should be implemented in a variety of organizations to study work strategy and productivity.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Mar 01, 1986
- Accession Number
- ADA167130
Entities
People
- Barrie L. Cooper
- Boyd C. Tatum
- Delbert M. Nebeker
- James A. Riedel