theories of motivation

what is motivation

internal state that induces people to engage in particular behaviours

includes direction, intensity, and persistence

distal vs proximal theories

distal: processes far removed from the actual behaviour (ie: need theories)

proximal: processes close to the actual behaviour (ie: goal setting theory)

general idea behind need theories

views motivation as deriving from people’s desires for things

need hirearchy (Maslow, 1943)

• behaviour determined by 5 needs

  • physiological, safety, love, esteem, self-actualization

  • movement up the hierarchy

how does the need hierarchy apply to jobs?

t suggests that certain things, like a clean office, food being offered, etc. will motivate us

two factor theory (Herzberg)

underlined that not everything at workplace is your needs, but there are basic needs that need to be at the workplace, if you don’t have these thigns you exoerience job satisfaction

hygeine vs motivator factors of the two factor theory

• Hygiene factors (the basic needs). if these are not met you have job disatisfaction

  EX: good relationships, average pay, clean area

• motivator factors: higher level needs, related with how you feel at the workplace. when you have these, it leads to job satisfaction

  EX: being successful, achievement,

only motivator factors can motivate work performance

reinforcement theory general idea 

if you give reinforcement, to will lead to increased positive behavior

Behaviour → Reward → greater likelihood of behaviour

basic incentive system

organizations start using basic incentives to get employees to maintain motivation

• high productivity with piece rates: giving rewards is highly related with increse in positivity

• successful for reducing absence: ppl stop skipping work

theory itself is useful but has little insight into motivation process, it is more focused on performance

expectancy theory: vroom (1964)

reinforcement cognitive theory that tries to understand how rewards predicts motivation not performance

people will be motivated when they believe their behaviour will lead to rewards or outcomes that then lead to rewards

equation for expectancy theory

Force (motivation) = Expectancy x ∑ (valence x instrumentality)

all factors must be higher than 0, cuz of the multiplication

expectancy

self confidence that a person can perform a behaviour

value

value of rewards to the person

instrumentality 

perception that behaviour will result in reward

self effecicacy theory

reinforcement theory that argues self confidence in task performance increases motivation

how does self efficacy connect to jobs?

• if employees are confident, they have higher motivation

• for new employees, their self efficacy is very low. therefore, they need to start with smaller/easier tasks and gradually grow

justice theories

people are motivated to achieve fairness in their dealings. when you feel you are treated unfairly, you will have negative attitudes and outcomes (like counterproductive work behaviours)

• these theories help us understand why people commit certain work behaviours

equity theories (adams, 1965)

shows how people give importance to fairness in the workplace

everyone will have a ration of inputs & outputs, and they compare this with other employees ratio. from this, you make a decision about fairness or unfairness in the workplace 

you compare to people inside organization, other jobs, etc.

inputs vs outputs in equity theories 

inputs: everything the employee brings to the organization (effort, education, knowledge)

outputs: the things you take from the organization (salary, appraisal, position, benefits, privilidges)

2 results of equity theories in the workplace 

• overpayment: leads to increased effort because you are paid more than others

• underpayment: leads to decreased effort/motivation and high turnover

limitations of equity theories

there was support for underpayment effects but none for overpayment

we also don’t know who people are comparing to

Fairness/organizational justice theory

underline that people evaluate how the organization treats them, not their comparison to others

justice relates to job performance, job satisfaction, and intention to quit 

distributive justice

fairness in the distribution of rewards, concerns the outcomes at workplace

EX: pay, promotion, praise

procedural justice

fairness in methods of distribution of rewards (what type of methods are used to make decisions about rewards)

EX: performance evaluation system,

interactional justice

how people are treating you within the workplace

gender differences in justice

procedural justice found important to women

distributive more important for men

goal setting theory is concerned with …

performance

Locke & Latham (1990)

looked at how to increase motivation for repetitive jobs (like call centres). believed that goals direct and focus behaviour

goal orientation: the aim of the goal

what did Locke & Latham (1990) find?

• learning: more preferable in terms of motivation because its not focused on outcome

  • increased the chance of success in the future

• performance: motivated by the outcome.

factors for effective goal setting

• goal commitment: sticking/committing to a goal. employees will commit to a goal if they feel included in the organizational decisions

• feedback

• goal difficulty: not too difficult, needs to be optimal

• goal specificity: keeps motivation high

the benefits of this research

the research is supportive, as goals increase our persistence, motivation, effort, consistency

some limitations or short comings of goal setting research

complex jobs and multiple goals not as effective

group goals work better with work groups

can become overly focused on goals

limitation: aims to understand performance not motivation

• does not apply to all jobs: like creative, fun ones (like marketing)

control theory (Klein, 1989)

looks at the role of feedback and how it affects effort in goal striving. different feedback leads to different aims or goals

a person compares progress toward a goal to internal standards

the steps of setting and modifying a goal according to control theory

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Action theory (Frese & Zapf, 1994

looks at how goals lead to behaviour and focus on goal oriented or intentional behaviours (called actions). the cognitive factors that influence goal setting and performance

• actions result from conscious intentions to accomplish something. we need to first plan and have a desire in order for a goal to be functional and influence behaviour

what does action theory underline about personality variables?

• action orientation personality: people who show effort to reach their goal. no procrastination

  these ppl perform better on the job

• state orientation personality: more procrastination behaviour. they plan but do not start the goal

5 steps of a goal according to action theory

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research/support for action theory

research supports some of its predictions

• high performers understand a problem quickly and make better use of feedback