CASE: THE OLD FAMILY BANK The Old Family Bank is a large bank in a southeastern city. As a part of a comprehensive internal management study, H. Day, vice president of management information systems, examined the turnover, absenteeism, and productivity figures of all of the bank’s work groups. The results Day obtained offered no real surprises except in the case of the check-sorting and computer services departments. THE STUDY The study revealed that, in general, the departments displaying high turnover and absenteeism rates had low production fig-ures, and those with low turnover and absenteeism were highly productive. When the check-sorting and computer services figures were analyzed, Day discovered that the two departments were tied for the lead for the lowest turnover and absenteeism figures. What was surprising was that the check-sorting department ranked first as the most productive unit, whereas the com-puter services department ranked last. This inconsistency was further complicated by the fact that the working conditions for check-sorting employees were very undesirable. They worked in a large open room that was hot in the summer and cold in the winter. They worked alone and operated high-speed, check-sorting machines requiring a high degree of accuracy and concentration. There was little chance for interaction because they took rotating coffee breaks. The computer services room was air-conditioned, with a stable temperature year round; it had perfect lighting and was quiet and comfortable. Both groups were known to be highly cohesive, and the workers in each department functioned well with one another. This observation was reinforced by the study’s finding of the low levels of turnover and absenteeism. THE INTERVIEW DATA In an effort to understand this phenomenon, Day decided to interview the members of both departments in order to gain some insight into the dynamics of each group’s behavior. Day discovered that the check-sorting department displayed a…