Diminishing Returns at Work provides a brief history of working hours both in the United States and Britain, including the influence of trade unions pushing for shorter hours of work, the tension with employers who resisted reducing hours, and the influence of legislation and custom. Pencavel provides an overview of how the length of working hours evolved from the 19th century to today and how the number of working hours affects work performance and other outcomes, including health, well-being, and wages. While increasing the number of hours someone works may increase output, this incisive book demonstrates that there are diminishing returns to long working hours.

It is a central component of the production function that translates inputs to outputs. Marlayne Whitlock, M.A., GROWcounseling.The relationship between the number of hours worked and productivity has long fascinated economists and management. Take the time to invest in yourself or the relationship in new ways and watch the returns increase. Thinking in terms of relationships, the law of diminishing returns may leave one person feeling alone in the relationship. This is not an easy step.Īs I stated earlier, there are a myriad of subjects where this impacts our lives: desserts, alcohol, television, and computer use are just a few. When you recognize a decline taking place-physical, emotional, or relational-it may be time to take an assessment and make some changes. It may mean that a simple change is needed or goals might need to be redefined. The law of diminishing returns says that there is a point where doing more of the same will stop working the way we expect.

“This is the way we’ve always done it in the past, so doing more of it will surely make things better.” Not always. They expect their memorized behavior will always work. Couples often “memorize the dance steps” to their relationship. It can even happen in relationships and friendships. It can happen with candy or cookies, food or drink, or a myriad of other choices. Eventually they lost all sensation of the taste of sourness. On one long car trip they consumed piece after piece of it. One of my children loved a certain sour candy. It happens when a continued effort does not create the desired result. However, I do know enough about the concept of diminishing returns to see it play out in other areas of life. I make no claim to be an expert on the subject.

Point of diminishing returns