‘confusion on thejob’ and ‘negative attitudes about their own job’.

In general the intention of the

experimental subjects seems to be to retain or improve status, the lowering of status

being thought of as highly undesirable. The selective screening of infonmition described

above is seen by these researchers as a ‘psychological substitute’ for actual movement

upward on the. part of aspiring low-status members.

In industrial pyramids these effects can be translated as a lack of open relationships.

Managers become reluctant to upset or contradict their superiors by giving them

unpleasant facts-there can be a tendency to keep

one’s head down, a reluctance to experiment, to take risks, and even to make effective

decisions. In many fIrms more or less specific forms of behaviour become prescribed for

the contacts between persons at different levels on the ladder of status. The supelior

may call his subordinate by his first name, but the junior shows deference in responding

by addressing the superior more formally. Even after working hours the boss’s wife may

use the subordinate’s wife’s Christian name while she may not reply with a first name

unless invited to. The degree of formalization of behaviour patterns varies between

organizations. Senior managers “might be surprised if their

juniors stood to attention when they entered the room,

although in the Army this is the norm. Nevertheless, the

‘captains’ of industry are accustomed to a considerable amount of preferential

treatment-the chauffeured car, the parking spot nearest the entrance foyer, the

sharpened pencils, and the percolating coffee-to name but a few examples.

As already mentioned, the effects of status divisions on communication have even been

shown in the artifIcial atmosphere of the laboratory. Similarly, Roethlisberger and

Dickson showed that each job in their experiment group at Western Electric’s Chicago

Plant carried its own social status or significance. The group in the Bank Wiring

Observation Room could be differentiated into five graduations ranging from the highest

to the lowest. Whyte found similar divisions where workers at a salad station in a

restaurant were accorded higher status by fellow

employees than those engaged -in the preparation of vegetables or fIsh.

From the foregoing it would seem that status differentials can occur at any level of

industry. It can also

be argued’that the status of the job itself-its potential in arousing feelings of pride, worth,

and recognition-is an important element in moulding attitudes and in gratifying

psychological needs.