GREAT CHANCES AHEAD.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 16454, 16 June 1921, Page 8

GREAT CHANCES AHEAD.

INDUSTRIAL PSYCHOLOGY.

A revolution in industrial methods and organisation, brought about by tho application of industrial psychology, was forecasted by Professor Condliffe in a halt-hour talk at the Y.M. j C.A. to-day. . Mr J it Ci.nninghn f who occupied tVj chair, said that professor Gondi-< s adJ ess was: one ot a senes ot half-hour talks which were being held ai th. x on Thursdays, .irofr sor ConiUlife intended to deal with the subject of " industrial psychology ” n two such talks Professor Condiiffe said that he •o u uoi pi -it nd to deai at al. li.lly with the subject in the time at his disposal and oe would coniine hin.se.i to some of the more important aspects of the subject. There had been as yet but little application of induct al psychology to business. It had not ; penetrated the great bulk of business enterprise Not all the experiments which had been carried out had been sci ntific. It was necessary to distinguish between scientific industrial p -etiology and mere “speeding up.” Better use of human material and industry was a very different thing from “ speeding up.” One must guard against pseudo-scientific management. It had been necessary in some way or other to get the consent of the work-people to work under the new methods, and it often became necessary to offer them increased wages in consideration of increased prods ' turn. One of the great reasons why the ado union movement had been -opposi d to scientific management was the workers’ : d sn’-oporrionate share ot the resultant profits. Piece-work had given rise to much suspicion and bickering and there were cases in which, when piecework wages rose above a certain level the management immediately cut down the rates, thus destroying confidence in tho system. There was no doubt that such suspicion was very widespread and strong. The only remedy seemed to be what had been adopted in some instances in Lancashire—abovehoard bargaining between employers and employed. An investigation had been inode by a professor in Chicago as the result of which it was stated that in nine cases out of ten where scientific methods were introduced there were attempts at speeding up. i The good-will of the workers was everything in the application of industrial psychology. Its application was liable to give rise to unemployment, because of the economy effected, and some method must be found to avoid this evil. Some more enlightened firms which had applied industrial psychology had promised that they i would displace no employees. They j must reckon on the fact that the methods could not be introduced pureI ly by the management unless some- | thing like an industrial war on the subject was to result. The widespread application of -industrial psychology would bring about as great a change as the industrial revolution, and it depended upon how it was applied as to how the social fabric was affected. Much of the industrial unrest in the jOld Country at the present time, in the engineering trade especially, was due t<4 the feeling of the trades unions that their old moorings were slipping. Dilution of labour had been a potent factor in bringing this about. We were on the eve of another industrial revolution, and it was hard to sufficiently emphasise the fundamental and far-reaching changes, due in the most part to the application of industrial psychology, which were taking place. New working conditions would have to be framed to meet the position.