Categories of thought of managers, clerks, and workers about jobs and people in an industry

Abstract

What effect does the use of categories by various groups have on communication? What can be gained by analyzing categories of thought about jobs and people in industry? "Triads of jobs and people were presented to 105 Ss. The Ss were managers, clerks, and workers in a small New York State industrial concern. The Ss were asked 'Which one of these three jobs (people) is more different from the other two?' and 'Why?' The characteristics that differentiated one member of the triad from the other members were listed. Certain differences in the lists obtained from the various groups were observed. An attempt was made to assess the significance of these differences for inter-group communications in industry." (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2025 APA, all rights reserved)