EFFECTS OF MUSIC ON EMPLOYEE ATTITUDE AND PRODUCTIVITY IN A SKATEBOARD FACTORY

AN EXPERIMENT WAS DESIGNED TO LOOK AT THE EFFECTS OF 4 TYPES OF MUSIC, VS. NO MUSIC, ON THE QUANTITY AND QUALITY OF PRODUCTION AND THE ATTITUDE OF WORKERS ENGAGED IN THE ROUTINE TASK OF ASSEMBLING AND PACKING SKATEBOARDS. SS WERE 26 ASSEMBLY-LINE PERSONNEL AGES 18-23. 4 TYPES OF MUSIC WERE PLAYED: DANCE, SHOW, FOLK, AND POPULAR. THESE WERE CONTRASTED WITH PERIODS DURING WHICH NO MUSIC WAS PLAYED. MUSIC CONDITIONS WERE BALANCED WITH RESPECT TO DAYS OF THE WEEK OVER A PERIOD OF 5 WK. RESULTS SHOWED THAT, WHILE EMPLOYEES HAD A HIGHLY FAVORABLE ATTITUDE TOWARD MUSIC AND THOUGHT THEY DID MORE WORK WITH IT, THERE WAS NO CHANGE IN MEASURED PRODUCTIVITY.