Scope and Contents
The collection consists primarily of articles about Theresa Layman Zajac and the Hawthorne Studies in employee-oriented publications issued by the Western Electric Company. Some of the publications contain reproductions of photographs of the RATR or of Zajac at commemorative events. One of her pay stubs from 1927 is included. A videotaped interview from September 9, 1983 with Theresa Layman Zajac and other participants from the RATR is also included. The taped discussions include insights into worker attitudes, methods of providing pay incentives, and other matters.
Dates
- Creation: 1927-1985
Creator
- Zajac, Theresa Layman (1911-1984) (Person)
Language of Materials
Materials entirely in English.
Conditions Governing Access
Collection is open for research. Materials stored offsite; access requires advance notice. Please contact specialcollectionsref@hbs.edu for more information on access procedures and reproduction services.
Users can access all digital materials in this collection using Harvard Library delivery services.
Conditions Governing Use
In many cases, Baker Library does not hold the copyright to the materials in its collections. Researchers are responsible for determining copyright status and identifying and contacting any copyright holders for permission to reproduce or publish content from collections. Baker Library staff have included the names of third-party copyright holders at the folder and item level when known.
Extent
.25 linear feet (1 box)19.7 Gigabytes (1 digitized video file)
Biographical / Historical
Theresa Layman Zajac (1911-1984) worked at the Western Electric Company Hawthorne Plant in Hawthorne, Illinois for many years between the early 1920s and 1976, taking 14 years off between 1939 and 1953 to raise her three daughters. Between 1927 and 1933 Zajac was a member of the Relay Assembly Test Room (RATR), consisting of a group of six women isolated in an observation room as part of the Western Electric Company Hawthorne Studies. Her name was Theresa Layman at the time of the study, and she was designated Operator No. 3 by the team of researchers. She lived at home with her parents during the period of the study. The studies attempted to isolate and understand variables in the industrial environment that affected worker output and efficiency.
Physical Location
MANU
Immediate Source of Acquisition
The Theresa Layman Zajac papers were received by Baker Library Special Collections as a donation from Leona Hycner.
Processing Information
Processed: November 1997 By: Jeffrey Mifflin
Processing Information
Baker Library Special Collections contracted with an external vendor to digitize materials in this collection. See item level notes below for additional information.
- Author
- Baker Library
- Description rules
- dacs
- Language of description
- eng
- EAD ID
- bak00453
Repository Details
Part of the Baker Library Special Collections and Archives, Harvard Business School Repository
Baker Library Special Collections and Archives holds unique resources that focus on the evolution of business and industry, as well as the records of the Harvard Business School, documenting the institution's development over the last century. These rich and varied collections support research in a diverse range of fields such as business, economic, social and cultural history as well as the history of science and technology.
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