Date of Award

12-2002

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy

Department

Psychology

Abstract

A meta-analysis was conducted to examine the effects of group size on incentive effectiveness using data obtained from incentive systems implemented in 13 companies. Other predictor variables included the organizational level targeted for improvement, long/short-term profitability type, company number, and length of exposure to the incentive system. The main dependent variable was the monthly score for each measure of performance. Three types of meaningful comparisons were defined for these data: (1) Between-Group - Within-Company comparisons in which a performance measure was in place in two or more units of an organization; (2) Between-Group - Across-Company comparisons in which a performance measure existed in two or more companies; and (3) Group Expansion comparisons in which a performance measure was in place in one unit of the organization and the group size increased over time. A variety of statistical analyses were conducted to examine the effects of the main independent variable (group size) and the other predictor variables on the performance scores. The results of this study are consistent with previous research as well as theory regarding the effects of group size on incentive effectiveness. That is, individual and small group incentives appear to be equally effective but this effectiveness decreases as the group size increases. Suggestions for future research are discussed.

Access Setting

Dissertation-Open Access

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