Hawthorne Effect

The Hawthorne effect is a type of reactivity in which individuals modify an aspect of their behavior in response to their awareness of being observed.[1][2] The effect was discovered in the context of research conducted at the Hawthorne Western Electric plant; however, some scholars feel the descriptions are apocryphal.[3] The original research involved workers who made electrical relays at the Hawthorne Works, a Western Electric plant in Cicero, Illinois. Between 1924 and 1927, the lighting study was conducted. Workers experienced a series of lighting changes in which productivity was said to increase with almost any change in the lighting. This turned out not to be true. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hawthorne_effect

To re-tell the story (which might not be true), it went like

• someone said "let's see what happens if we make the lighting brighter on the factory floor"
• output went up!
• "let's make it even brighter" -> output went up again!
• at some point someone said "uh, let's try turning the lights dimmer" -> output went up again!
• conclusion: paying attention to people/process makes their output better (temporarily)