Productivity in an Organizational Setting: A Systematic View of the Causalities at Work

The purpose of this research was to portray productivity in a larger context than has previously been presented, using system analysis. The result was a single causal loop diagram describing productivity in a work setting. Information on the components affecting productivity and how they interact was gathered from the industrial and organizational psychology (I-O psychology) literature as researchers in that field have spent a great deal of effort on shedding light on the subject. Articles from well-known I-O psychology journals were selected for further analysis through a systematic literature search. From these articles, 45 causal loop diagrams (CLDs) were constructed based on the causalities described in their theoretical background sections and results. These CLDs were subsequently synthesized in two steps to create a single CLD describing productivity. The resulting CLD provides an opportunity to view productivity in the workplace in a wider context.