ORGANISING AND ORGANISATIONS

MOTIVATION AT WORK (2)

Jennifer Johnston

Learning Outcomes

• Develop an understanding of the different theories of motivation

• To define and outline the PROCESS theories of motivation

• Examine and apply theories of motivation to work situations

• Fincham, R. & Rhodes, P. Principles of Organizational Behaviour 4th Ed (2005)

• French et al (2008) Organisational Behaviour. Chichester. Wiley Chapter 4

• Huczynski, A. & Buchanan, D. (2007) Organisational Behaviour. Chapter 8

• Mullins, J. (2007) Management and Organisational Behaviour. Harlow. FT Chapter 7

• Rollinson, D. Organisational Behaviour and Analysis – An integrated approach 3rd Ed (2005) Chapter 8 Pages 187-205

Resources

• Evaluate the importance of money as a motivator to employees referring to named motivation theories

• Describe one CONTENT theory and one PROCESS theory of motivation and describe their practical implications for managing staff

Example Questions

• What motivates you?• What motivated you to attend lectures and

seminars?• What makes you study hard?• What has motivated you in jobs you have

done?• Are these motivators internal or external?• How do employers motivate employees?

Questions to consider

Definitions of Motivation

• The driving force within individuals by which they attempt to achieve some goal in order to fulfil some need or expectation

• The degree to which an individual wants and chooses to engage in certain behaviour.

Mullins

Why is motivation important?

• Job performance = Attributes x Work effort x Organisational Support

French et al ( 2008)

• Effective Job performance leads to business success

• The purpose of studying motivational theories is to help predict and/or manage behaviour.

• It can improve your business management skills

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What happens without motivation?

• Lower performance

• And if combined with poor Job satisfaction– Alienation at work (Blauner )

• Powerlessness• Meaninglessness• Isolation• Self estrangement

Main theories of work motivation

The needs & expectations of people at workFigu12.2

Content theories

PROCESS Theories

• The HOW

– A cognitive process that explains connections

– How or why a particular need is linked to a specific reward and the actions needed to make the link

– The thought processes behind why people choose one action or behaviour over another

Process theories of motivation

• Expectancy-based models – Vroom and Porter & Lawler

• Equity theory – Adams

• Goal theory – Locke

• Attribution theory – Heider and Kelley

Motivation - Process and Exchange

Psychological contract –in the mind of the employee an assessment of relative inputs and outcomes. Implicit reciprocity and exchange. Loyalty in the 21st century?

Comparison with others: Adams (1965) –see F&R pp202-8.

Resolving inequity? De-motivation a possibility

Expectancy theory –Process - Equity theory - Process - Adams

• Perceptions of fair treatment• Motivation to act comes from inequality/unfair

treatment• Based on social comparisons

– Perception of inequity leads to tension– Tension leads to motivation to take action– Action leads to restoration of equity

Felt inequity can be POSITIVEor NEGATIVE

ADAMS EQUITY THEORY

INPUT + OUTPUT + COMPARISONS(work + (intrinsic + (with others) effort) + extrinsic

rewards)

Behaviour as a consequence of inequity

Types of possible behaviour as a consequence of inequity:

• Changes to own work input levels

• Changes to outcomes

• Act to change the inputs or outcomes of others• Change comparison points• Distort the comparisons• Leave the situation

Adams

Practical implications of equity theory

• It provides managers with another explanation of how beliefs & attitudes affect job performance

• It emphasises the need for managers to pay attention to employees’ perceptions of what is fair & equitable

• Managers benefit by allowing employees to participate in decisions about important work outcomes

Kreutzer et al.

Locke’s theory of goal setting

Goal theory- Process- Locke

• Based on the premise that people are motivated to achieve the successful attainment of challenging goals

• Studies concluded:– More difficult goals result in higher levels of

performance than easier goals– Specific goals produce higher levels of

performance than general ones – 6 influencing incentives

• Knowledge of score, time limits, participation, competition, praise/reproof and money

Basic model of expectancy theory

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Expectancy theories/ Exchange theories

• Basis of expectancy theory is ‘exchange’ or ‘transaction’ – What do I get in exchange for some form of effort?

• Subset of wider group of theories called exchange theory

– 1. Economic Exchange: outcomes stipulated explicitly in advance and governed by contract. Relative power determines how ‘fair’ the terms of trade are.

– 2. Social Exchange: outcomes not specified and follow norm of reciprocation rather than contract. Can be used as a form of manipulation and control.

Expectancy theory –Process - Vroom

• F = E x I x V – F= Force or strength of motivation to

perform– E = Expectation that behaviour will

result in increased performance (output)– I = Instrumentality, belief that increased

performance will result in reward– V = Valence or strength of preference

for the reward

Moderators of Expectancy theory

• How closely can people see the link between their effort and their output?

• Will their increased output be recognised and counted?

• How much do they value the reward?

Implications for managers of expectancy theories

Managers need to:

• Consider perceived fairness of the system i.e. procedures for evaluation of performance

• Have clear goal setting processes

• Have clearly recognised relationships between effort-performance & rewards, as perceived by the individual

• Remove barriers to performance

• Minimise undesirable outcomes that may be perceived to result from a high level of performance

Implications of Process and Content motivation theories

• Recruitment and Training• Job design• Communications• Reward• Career development• Forming groups and teams• Objective setting• Managing performance both good and poor

Controversies in motivation theory

• Intrinsic versus extrinsic• Money as a motivator• Satisfaction and Performance• Participative decision making

Money as a motivator?

Taylor asserted that what workers wanted from employers was high wages - Rational economic concept

Human relations school of thought disputed this

Surveys of HR managers have shown problems retaining manual workers strictly on pay. Other incentives are needed to keep workers in a job

The complexities of pay as a motivator

• Equity theory– Pay is an object of social comparison

• Content theories– Pay can satisfy many needs– Pay is an extrinsic reward– Law of diminishing returns

• Expectancy theories– Poor reward systems have a negative correlation

• Goal theory– Achieving the goal or getting the reward for achieving the

goal?

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Motivation and Satisfaction

• Job Satisfaction “ A pleasurable or positive emotional state resulting from the appraisal of one's job or job experience” Rollin son (2005)

– People can be Motivated but unsatisfied– People can be Satisfied but unmotivated

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Is there a link between Motivation, Satisfaction and performance?

– Thorndike (1917)

– Viteles (1932)

– Brayfield & Crockett (1955)

– Vroom (1964)

– Lawler and Porter (1967)

– Bandura (1989)

– Locke & Latham (1990)

– Bandura (1997)

Does Participative decision making increase motivation and performance?

• Early assumptions said “of course”• Later research says not necessarily• The primary benefit of participation in

decision making is cognitive rather than motivational– It can stimulate information exchange and

increase confidence

• Assigning a goal with a clear rationale can be just as effective

Current research focus

• The link to personality• The link to environment• Person/environment fit• As well as the controversial areas:

• Intrinsic versus extrinsic• Money as a motivator• Satisfaction and Performance• Participative decision making

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Summary– Motivation is important to avoid alienation at

work– Process theories are the “How” of motivation,

they provide the link between the reward and the behaviour

– Common process theories include:• Equity theory – Adams• Goal theory – Locke• Expectancy theory – Vroom

– Motivation theories have lead to many “accepted“ good management practices

– There are still controversies in motivation research and much research still needed