Democratic workplaces are all the rage (down with corner offices!), but a study suggests that a clear pecking order can sometimes improve productivity. In one experiment, nearly 140 people were primed to think of themselves as high-ranking or low-ranking by recalling a time when they wielded power over someone else (or were under someone else's thumb). A third group, conceived of as middle-ranking, thought of something unrelated to power—a trip to the supermarket. (click below to read more)
Researchers then created teams of high-power-mindset participants (all leaders), low-power-mindset participants (all followers) and a mix of mind-sets. The mixed, or hierarchical, groups outperformed the other two on a cooperative task that involved building sentences out of words contributed by each member.
Despite the unfashionableness of hierarchies, the authors said, they do create clear roles, which can boost productivity—at least on "interdependent" tasks. "Pecking orders, it seems, are not just for the birds," they write.
"The Path To Glory is Paved With Hierarchy: When Hierarchical Differentiation Increases Group Effectiveness," Richard Ronay, Katharine Greenaway, Eric M. Anicich and Adam D. Galinksy, Psychological Science
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