Chapter 1 - Development of Administrative Theory
Chapter Notes (Lunenburg, F. C., & Ornstein, A. C. (2000)

Theory
Functions of Theories.
What is theory? How do theories function in educational administration? The text begins by exploring the nature of theory in administration and discusses six functions of theory in educational administration. Basically, educational administrators are professionals who have a code of ethics and are licensed by state boards of education. Thus, their behavior is guided by acceptable standards of practice. One of the best criteria of a profession, however, is that it has matured as a science; that is, it has developed a solid theoretical base - a body of organized and tested knowledge. Such is the case with educational administration.
Classical Organizational Theory
Scientific Management
Historically, scientific management focused on the management of work and workers. Taylor pursued the idea that through careful scientific analysis the efficiency of work could be improved. Taylor's scientific management can be summarized as consisting of four principles. Administrative management addressed issues concerning how the overall organization should be structured. Administrative management concentrated on the management of an entire organization. (By 1881 Taylor had published a paper that turned the cutting of metal into a science. Later he turned his attention to shoveling coal. By experimenting with different designs of shovel for use with different material (from 'rice' coal to ore) he was able to design shovels that would permit the worker to shovel for the whole day. In so doing, he reduced the number of people shoveling at the Bethlehem Steel Works from 500 to 140. This work, and his studies on the handling of pig iron, greatly contributed to the analysis of work design and gave rise to method study. To follow, in 1895, were papers on incentive schemes. A piece rate system on production management in shop management, and later, in 1909, he published the book for which he is best known, Principles of Scientific Management. A feature of Taylor's work was stop-watch timing as the basis of observations. However, unlike the early activities of Perronet and others, he started to break the timings down into elements and it was he who coined the term 'time study'. Read more at http://www.accel-team.com/scientific/scientific_02.html
The primary contributors to administrative management were Henri Fayol, Luther Gulick, and Max Weber.
Human Relations Approach
The human relations approach is considered to have started with a series of studies conducted at the Hawthorne Plant of Western Electric near Chicago by Elton Mayo and his associates between 1927 and 1933. These studies, widely known as the Hawthorne studies, have strongly influenced administrative theory.
The Hawthorne Studies
To understand the complex and baffling pattern of results, Mayo and his associates interviewed over 20,000 employees who had participated in the experiments during the six-year study. The interviews and observations during the experiments suggested that a human-social element operated in the workplace. Increases in productivity were more of an outgrowth of group dynamics and effective management than any set of employer demands or physical factors. The Hawthorne Experiments were headed by Elton Mayo and conducted at Western Electric, in Chicago (1927-1932). The original research plan was to study the effects of physical conditions (light, noise, temperature) on productivity. But what the researchers found was that productivity was largely determined by the social conditions at work. These conditions are shaped by the opportunities workers have to forge informal alliances. The thesis of these HR writers is aptly captured by Mayo (1945, p. 10): "... problems of absenteeism, labor turnover, 'wildcat' strikes, show that we do not know how to ensure spontaneity of cooperation; that is teamwork." Therefore, "collaboration in an industrial society cannot be left to chance..." The single most important discovery of the Hawthorne experiments was that workers had a strong need to cooperate and communicate with fellow workers.

The focus of the human relations movement was on "winning friends" in an attempt to influence people. For many "winning friends" was a slick tactic that made the movement seem manipulative and dishonest. More can be found here Elton Mayo

Other Contributors to the Human Relations Approach
Behavioral Science Approach
Behavioral scientists considered both the classicists' rational-economic model and the human relationists' social model to be incomplete representations of employees in the work setting. A number of authors attempted to reconcile or show points of conflict between classical and human relations theory; thus, the behavioral science approach was born.
The Individual and the Organization
Behavioral scientests fueled a new interest in the individual and the way in which they relate to organizations. Particularly important to this field were the works of Chester Barnard, Bakke, Argyris, Getzels and Guba, Maslow, McGregor, Herzeberg and Likert.
From your textbook and Internet reading about Chester Barnard, write (in the following form box) an answer the following question:
Barnard had his beliefs on the tasks a manager must deal with. Briefy summarize them in the form box below.

Press submit and your answer will be sent automatically to my e-mail address. Thanks for this first minor assignment.


Leadership
A variety of theories were espoused by Blake & Mouton, Fiedler, Hersey & Blanchard, Bass, Vroom, Reddin, Etzioni and Bennis. View this Powerpoint Presentation.
Development of Administrative Thought
Systems Theory
Basic Systems Model
A Systems View of School Administration
Key Terms To Know
In preparation for the Quiz on Day 2, please take the following online quizzes over Chapters 1.
Chapter 1 (Multiple Choice)
Chapter 1 (Multiple Choice: A different version)