Organizational Information-Processing Capabilities and Degree of Employee Participation

An empirical test of the relationship between information processing and employee participation in a longitudinal experimental field setting is described. Data were obtained over a 40-month period from an engineering division within a major southeastern power-generating organization, and hypotheses were tested using a nonequivalent control group design with a comparison group to analyze changes in information processing for employees having different degrees of participation (direct, indirect, or no participation) in decisions regarding an organizational change effort. Results indicate that degree of participation in the change effort affected information-processing capacity positively, thus partially confirming complementarity between participation theory and information theory.