PROBLEM AREAS OF GROUP WORK - THE 2ND TRI AL - A CASE-STUDY FROM INDUSTRY

The problem areas of groupwork are rarely discussed on a conceptual le vel and are extremely rarely verified with empirical data One problem area connected with the ,,second trial'' of introducing groupwork is s hown here. The question is raised if preexperiences with a ,,first tri al,, cause persistence or willingness for change. Therefore a subject- oriented analysis and questions concerning work satisfaction and willi ngness for change were applied to 32 workers with preexperiences in gr oup work, 35 workers without such preexperiences and 13 maintenance wo rkers in the chemical industry. Our data show, that in case of the ,,f irst trial'' there is a lack of typical characteristics of groupwork l ike autonomy etc. Inspite of high work satisfaction the workers expres s the necessity for changes, but thy are unmotivated to involve themse lves in the enforcement of these changes. As a result of the preexperi ences with the ,,first trial'' of introducing groupwork the workers te nd to persist on existing achievements and do not enforce changes by t hemselves.