Motivation at work (+ book week 4)

What is motivational science?

\~ subfield of psychology and neuroscience, interested in why people do what they do (the direction, intensity and persistence of behaviour)

\
→ concerned w/needs, goals, effort, and rewards

What is hedonic axiom?

\~ organisms try to obtain positive outcomes and avoid negative ones

\
→ basic assumptions of motivation science

→ __axiom__ \~ fundamental assumption that cannot be tested(bc it is so fundamental it is just common sense sort of)

What are the general principles of motivational science?

a. needs

b. goals

c. efforts

d. rewards

\
→ consistent across the fields studying motivation

What is valence, instrumentality, and expectancy?

__valence__ \~ idea of how valuable the outcomes of a good performance are (scale 1-10)

\
__instrumentality__ \~ the probability with which people expect their performance to have the outcomes (scale 0-1)

\
__expectancy__ \~ are people able to perform to the level required (probability of reaching that; scale 0-1)

\
force = expectancy \* the sum of (all valence times all instrumentality)

\
→ ppl can choose to perform well or just good enough

when do people choose for the more difficult tasks?

__when__

i. valence is higher

ii. instrumentality is higher

iii. valence \* instrumentality is higher

\
→ supports expectancy theory

→ linked to dopamine systems and mood disorders

→ maybe linked to melatonin-dopamine interaction (decisions made differently in the evening as compared to during the day)

\
\

What is Adam's equity theory?

\~ having a job is similar to being in a relationship (give and take)

\
__que__ → do I get enough in return for all my work?

i. outcomes

ii. inputs

→ own outcomes and inputs compared to the outcomes and inputs of others (outcome/input of self vs outcome/input of a reference => can be our past selves or smb else)

\
__research__ w/monkeys & cucumber/grapes, planes w/business and economy classes & number of fights

\
→ based on cognitive dissonance

\

What are the critical notes on equity theory?

i. only about __distributive justice__ (how the outcomes are distributed) as opposed to including also __procedural justice__ (how do you get to the outcome)

\
ii. __non-specific about inputs and outcomes__ → treats money, recognition, … as the same (while they are psychologically different)

\

What is goal setting theory?

\~ says that motivation comes from within the person but that the environment can shape motivation and behaviour as well

\
→ behaviour motivated by intentions, motives, and/or goals

\
__important factors for it to be effective__

i. goal commitment

ii. feedback

iii. the more difficult the goal, the better the performance

iv. specific hard goals > vague do your best goals

v. self-set goals > organisationally assigned ones

Why is the word motivation not so useful in science?

\~ bc it is quite general and therefore doesn’t pinpoint a specific psychological process (motivation is a cause of behaviour is super broad)

\
\

how can expectancy theory be described?

\
\~ analytical way of making predictions of human behaviour based on expectancy, instrumentality and valence

\
__basic assumption__ → brain predicts outcomes of potential actions by making computations which help in decision making

\
__main que__ → what happens in the mind when trying to answer is this worth working for? Is the outcome worth the effort?

\
ppl have some degree of understanding how well they perform and what will happen if they do well

how is (in)equity divided?

a. __equity__ \~ compared to others, I get the same amount of reward for my effort (content)

\
b. __underpayment inequity__ \~ others get more money for the same amount of effort (anger)

\
c. __overpayment inequity__ \~ others get less money for the same amount of effort (shame)

\
__social__ (how fair is it in comparison to others doing the same job) vs __personal__ (did you get as much as you deserved?) equity

what are the levels of needs assessment and how is it conducted?

\~ done to determine who needs training and what kind of training

\
__levels & how__

i. __organisation level__ \~ analysing the organisation’s objectives and how those are related to the employee performance

\
ii. __job level__ \~ analysing what is the nature of tasks of jobs (major tasks and the KSAOs needed for them)

\
iii. __person level__ \~ analysing how well are people able to do the job tasks

\

what is transfer of training and which factors affect it?

\~ the expectation that employee will apply what they have learnt during the training on the job itself

\
**model of transfer**

\~ how the training design features affect how well trainees learn and therefore how well the training transfers to the job itself

i. __trainee characteristics__

ii. __training design__

→ feedback

→ general principles \~ why and how; framework of learning)

→ identical elements \~ responses in the training should be identical w/those on the job)

→ overlearning \~ overlearning the material so that it consolidates so well that it becomes almost automatic)

→ sequencing \~ *part vs whole* (learning it in parts vs all in one go), *massed vs spaced* (long sessions w/i short period of time vs short sessions over longer period of time)

iii. __work environment__

What are the eight different training methods and their advantages?

a. __audiovisual construction__ \~ electronic presentation of materials (audio, video, …)

\
b. __autoinstruction__ \~ self-paced training method w/o an instructor (e.g., *programmed instruction* → chunks/frames of material w/questions and feedback that a person goes through on their own)

\
c. __conference__ \~ trainer meets w/trainees and can discuss the material and ask questions (active learning)

\
d. __lecture__ \~ trainee gives a presentation to a group of trainees (efficient)

\
e. __modelling__ \~ watch smb perform a task and then model what has been seen (live/recorded; effective/ineffective behaviour)

\
f. __on the job training__ \~ showing how to do a job while the employee is doing it (e.g., apprenticeship)

\
g. __role play__ \~ pretending to do a task as if it was real (part of the modelling procedure)

\
h. __simulation__ \~ pretending as if the situation is real, with all the same equipment and all, carrying out the tasks as they would in real life

\
→ __computer games__ also found to be effective

how are trainings evaluated?

__**five steps**__

i. __define criteria for evaluation__

→ __training-level criteria__ (*reaction* - how much they liked it, *learning* - what they have learnt)

→ __performance-level criteria__ (*behaviour* - do they do what they were taught, *results* - did the training have the intended effect)

ii. __choose design__ \~ how do you collect the data (pre/post test, control group, …)

iii. __choose measures of the criteria__ \~ reaction criteria → questionnaire; learning criteria → test at the end

iv. __collect data__

v. __analyse and interpret data__

\
→ if training works at both training and performance level, it is effective

How can work-motivation theories be divided?

a. __expectancy theory__ \~ relates environmental rewards to behaviour

b. __self-efficacy theory__ \~ looks at how ppl’s beliefs about their capability affect their behaviour

c. __justice theories__ \~ concerned w/ppl’s values, presuming they generally value fairness (unfairness motivates ppl to resolve it)

d. __goal-setting theory__ \~ how ppl’s goals and intentions lead to behaviour

e. __cognitive control theory__ \~ focus on goal w/attention on feedback and how discrepancies between goals and current situation motivate behaviour

f. __action theory__\~ explains self-motivated and voluntary (volitional) behaviour at work

\
→ __distal__ (processes far from behaviour, needs) vs __proximal__ (processes close to the behaviour, goals/intentions) __motivational theories__

What are the two needs theories?

\~ motivation is seen as a result of people’s desires for smth

\
a. __need hierarchy theory__ \~ Maslow, needs fulfilment necessary for overall health/wellbeing (need must be unmet to be motivating)

\
b. __two-factor theory__ \~ motivation comes from the nature of the job, not the rewards

how are job satisfaction and organisational commitment different?

\~ organisational commitment focuses on the attachment of the individual to the organisation rather than on whether or not they are satisfied w/the job

\
→ job satisf. assessed w/questionnaires or an interview (que > interv)

what are the types of organisational commitment?

a. __affective__ \~ emotional attachment as a motivation to stay in a job

b. __continuance__ \~ need of the benefits/lack of alternatives motivating the person to stay in the job

c. __normative__ \~ ppl believe they owe it to the organisation to stay as it is the right thing to do

\
→ assessed based on these three subtypes w/a questionnaire

how are emotional states different from moods?

\~ __emotional state__ is the immediate experience of an emotion while a __mood__ is a long-term, less specific state w/a positive or negative direction