Workers' Attitudes to Technical Change

DOCUMENT RESUME VT 006 380 ED 025 617 By- Touraine, Alain; And Others Industrial Relations Aspectsof Workere Attitudes to Technical Change:An Integrated Survey of Research. Manpower Policy 2. Organisation for Economic Cooperation andDevelopment, Paris (France). Pub Date 65 Note-163p. Pennsylvania Avenue, Washington,D.C. 20006. Available from-OECD PublicationCenter, Suite 1305, 1750 (S6.50). EDRS Price MF-S0.75 HC-S8.25 At titudes, *Environmental Descriptor s- Administrative Organization, Administrative Policy, *Employee Change.*SocialInfluences,*Technological Influences.IndustrialStructure, Job Satisfaction,Social Advancement. *Work Attitudes, WorkEnvironment Identifiers-Economic Cooperation andDevelopment Organization worker attitude andbehavior towardchange Methods for encouraging positive policies and programs were examined toprovide a basis forre-evaluation of current relating to introduction oftechnological changes. Theliterature reviewed ispresented in sections of: (1)"The Worker and theOccupational System," byClaude Durand, (2) Organisational System," byAlfred Willener, (3) "TheWorker and *The Worker and the Worker and the the Decision-MakingSystem," by AlainTouraine, and (4) "The Some general conclusions were:(1) A change israrely Community," by Daniel Pecaut. changes in workfrom an eventwhich can be isolated, (2)It is difficult to separate evolufion of work, orattitudes toward changefrom changes inattitudes, (3) greater autonomyby workers of theproblems of Industrial evolution involves a attitude with execution, organization,and direction of work,(4) The study of workers' general analysis ofpolicies of management, regard to change is inceptible to a more by all and (5) The nature, causes,and consecluences of achange should be known those who undergo or participatein it. A 13-pagebibliography is included.(DM) U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH,EDUCATION & WELFARE OFFICE OF EDUCATION EDO25617 THIS DOCUMENT HAS BEEN REPRODUCEDEXACTLY AS RECEIVED FROM THE POINTS OF VIEW OR OPINIONS PERSON OR ORGANIZATION ORIGINATINGIT. EDUCATION STATED DO NOT NECESSARILYREPRESENT OFFICIAi OFFICE OF POSITION OR POLICY. workers' attitudes to technical change- An integrated survey of research by ALAIN TOURAINE, Director at the Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudes, Paris In collaboration with CLAUDE DURAND, Research Associate at the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique DANIEL PECAUT, Research Director at the Ecole Pratiques des Hautes Etudes ALF RED W1LLENER, Research Associate at the Centre National de la 1:icherche Scientifique ORGANISATION FOR ECONOMIC CO-OPERATION AND DEVELOPMENT) 1965 The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development was set up under a Convention signed inParis on 14th December1960 bythe Member countries of ihe Orkanisation for European Economic Co-operation and by Canada and the United States.This Convention provides that the 0.E.C.D. shall promote policies designed: to achieve the highest sustainable economicgrowth and employ- inent and a rising standard of living in Membercountries, while maintaining financial stability, and thus to contribute to the world economy: to contribute tosound economic expansion i- Member as well as non-meniber countries in the process of economic development; to cont:ibute to the expansion of world trade on amultilateral, non-discriminatorybasisinaccordancewithinternational obligations. The legal personality possessed by the Organisation forEuropean Economic Co-operation continues in the 0.E.C.D. which came into being on 30th September 1961. The Members of 0.E.C.D. are Austria, Belgium, Canada, Den- mark, France, the Federal Republic of Germany, Greece, Iceland,Ire- land, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway,Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, the United Kingdom andthe United States. This is a publication of the Manpower and Social Affairs Directorate, Social Affairs Divi- sion.It is the second of a series devoted to the Industrial Relations Aspects of an Acme Manpower Policy, the first being" Office Automation: Administrative and Human Prob- lems " by W. H. Scott. CONTENTS FOREWORD, by Solomon Barkin 7 PREFACE 1 I INTRODUCTION by Alain TOURAINE 1.THREE TYPES OF ANALYSIS OF WORKERS' ATIITUDES 16 II.THE STUDY OF CHANGE 21 111. CONCLUDING REMARKS 24 Section I THE WORKER AND THE OCCUPATIONAL SYSTEM by Claude DURAND INTRODUCTION 29 I.FRAGMENTATION OF WORIC AND MAINTENANCE OF OCCUPATIONAL AUTONOMY 31 II.RE-INTEGRATION OF WORK TASKS 43 CONCLUSION 51 Section II THE WORKER AND THE ORGANISATIONAL SYSTEM by Alfred WILLENER INTRODUCTION 57 1. THE INSERTION OF CHANGE 61 H. CHANGE AND THE DEFENSIVE REACTION 71 HI.CHANGE AND ITS OFFENSIVE USE 79 CONCLUSION 85 5 Section III THE WORKER AND THE DECISION-MAKING SYSTEM by Main TOURAINE INTRODUCTION 91 I.WORKERS' ATTITUDES AND TYPES OF INDUSTRIAL SOCIETIES 93 II.THE EVOLUTION OF WORK AND THE CHANGE IN WORKERS' ATITTUDFS 101 III.LABOUR STRATEGY 109 Section IV THE WORKER AND THE COMMUNITY by Daniel PECAUT INTRODUCTION 117 I.SOCIAL ENVIRONMENT 119 II.ECONOMIC ENVIRONMENT 127 III.CULTURAL ENVIRONMENT 133 IV.INDIVIDUAL EXPECTATION 135 V.MEANING OF THE CHANGE 145 CONCLUSION 149 GENERAL CONCLUSIONS by Alain TOURAINE I.GENERAL RESULTS 153 II.THE CHANGES AND THE FIRM 156 III.PROPOSALS 159 BIBLIOORAPHY 165 6 FOREWORD Technical and economic change is visibly reflected at the work place by alterations, eliminations and additions of jobs for blue or white collar employees either in the factory or the office. The ease with which these changes will be made will in part be dependent upon the a ttitude of employees.Will they accept or acquiesce fully or with reservations, or reject and resist these changes ? For the promotion of the fundamental economic and social objectives of continuing economic growth and rising living standards for the population, it is important that these innovations be made as smoothly as possible with due consideration of the people involved. Policy-makers and administrators of an active manpower policy are therefore challenged to design policies,programmes, services and aids which will convert negative or resisting attitudes into positive or supporting ones. To achieve this objective both the initiators of change and the policy-makers should be conversant with " workers' attitudes toward change " and the tools available for realising a positive attitude and behaviour. This information is vital both to the formulators of national andcom- munity, and enterprise policies and programmes. They should not only be both motivated by similar goals b tlt should possess a common fund of knowledge and insights concerning workers' behaviour and attitudes which deteror facilitate the acceptance of change vital to the nation or the enterprise. The programmes in both spheres should supplement, complement and reinforce one another where it is essential. Failings in the programmes and services at the community or national levels will affect workers' attitudes in the workshop. Similarly, shortcomings in the programmes and policies for the enterprisemay undo much of the contribution made by the public authorities or imposean even greater burden than envisaged upon the public adjustment programmes. Sociologists have, over the last few decades, and particularly during the last 20 years, examined workers' attitudes toward change.The European Productivity Agency of the 0.E.E.C. and the 0.E.C.D. have sponsored two such field studies. The first related to attitudes of workers in the steel industry towards technological change. The second, published by the 0.E.C.D. under the title " Office Automation ; Administrative and Human Problems ", reports the attitudes of non-manual workers to the introduction of computers in four different countries.2 The growing volume of field reports and reflective writingson this subject has presented policy-makers and practical administrators, both at the community 1.Steel Workers and Technical Progress.A Comparative Report on Six National Studies. EPA Project No. 164, Industrial Version No. 2. European Productivity Agency of the 0.E.E.C., Paris, June, 1959, pp. 65. 2. Scow W. H.: " Office Automation: Aaministrative and Human Problems ", 0.E.C.D., Paris, 1965, pp. 103. 7 and enterprise levels, with the severe problem of determining the major findings in this field. The evidence has been mounting but few efforts have been made to distil and integrate the conclusions. In fact the diversity of approachesand methods and problems studied has tended to restrict the use made of the full range of findings.' The present volume is a contribution toward an integrated view of the conclusions to be drawn from the available studies.It seeks to provide a framework for considering the reports and writings so that they may become more accessible to public and enterpriseofficials dealing with manpower and industrial relations problems.It can therefore constitute a basis for the re- evaluation of current policies and programmes essential to effective operation in the area of facilitating the introduction of technical change. While the report necessarily reviews the workers' reactions to specific innovations, the analysis recognizes a broad range of influences affecting the behaviour pattern. Attitudes and behaviour are conditioned by a number of different personal and social factors, in fact the whole life setting of an individual. In Section IV on " The Worker and the Community ", it is concluded that a general attitude receptive to change on the part cf the workers will also favour a more favourable attitude in the workshop.

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