Levels of Analysis

MGMT2008
OrganisationalBehaviour
Lectures 4 & 5 Motivation

Organizational Level
Group Level
Individual
Level

Nicole Knight

Components of Organizational Behavior

Two UWI students are discussing the topic of work motivation. One says,
"Motivation can never come from the boss, " while the other states, "If
people aren't motivated, managers are to blame." How can each position
be defended? How can the two positions be reconciled with each other?
Give examples to illustrate your answer.

Understanding
organizational behavior
requires studying
Individuals in Organizations
Group and Team Processes
Organizational Processes

Motivation

General Model of Motivation

The set of internal and external forces that

initiate workrelated behaviour, and
determine its form, direction, intensity, and
duration. (Pinder 1998)
This definition recognises the influence of
both environmental forces (eg reward
systems, nature of work being performed)
and forces inherent in the person (eg
individual needs and motives) on work
Elements
related behaviour. Key
1. Intensity: how hard a person tries
2.

Direction: toward beneficial goal

3.

Duration: how long a person tries

Inner state of 1
disequilibrium

Behaviour
or action
Modification of inner state

Incentive
or goal

1 = source of motivation (need, desire, expectation)

2 = anticipation that certain behaviours will satisfy needs and
desires, or fulfil expectations (provides directive / goal
oriented function of motivation)
3 = feedback process (observation of results to see if goal any
nearer to being achieved)
5

Why is Motivation Important?

Under optimal conditions,
effort can often be
increased and sustained
Delegation without
constant supervision is
always necessary
Employees can become
selfmotivated
Motivated employees can
provide competitive
advantage by offering
suggestions & working to
satisfy customers

Motivation Illustration
Misconceptions about Motivation
*Current generation has no work ethic
* Some people are born lazy
* Most people are motivated by the same thing
7

MAJOR THEORIES OF MOTIVATION

Bottom Line

I. Need Approaches:
Maslows Hierarchy of Needs

Motivation is accomplishing things

through the efforts of others. If you
cannot do this, you will fail as a
manager.

Alderfers ERG Theory

Herzbergs Two Factor Theory
McClellands Learned Needs Theory
II. Cognitive Approaches:
Expectancy Theory
Equity Theory/ Social Comparison
Goal Setting Theory
III. REINFORCEMENT THEORY OR OPERANT CONDITIONING : How
Rewards & Reinforcements Sustain Motivation Over Time
(Behavior Modification)
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Individual Motivation and Job

Performance

Job performance = f (ability X

motivation X organizational
support)

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Maslows Hierarchy of Needs

A Job Performance Model of Motivation

Maslows Needs Hierarchy Theory

People have needs, and when one need is relatively
fulfilled, other emerge in predictable sequence to
take its place.

Individual Inputs
Motivational
Factors

Motivated
Behaviors

Performance

Maslows hierarchy of needs:

Physiological needs: food, water, sleep, and sex.

Safety needs: safety from the elements and enemies.
Love needs: desire for love, affection, and belonging.
Esteem needs: selfperception as a worthwhile
person.
Selfactualization: becoming all that one can become.

Job Context

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Maslows Hierarchy of Needs

Maslows Hierarchy of Needs

The SelfActualizing Manager

Has warmth, closeness, and sympathy.

Recognizes and shares negative information and feelings.
Exhibits trust, openness, and candor.
Does not achieve goals by power, deception, or manipulation.
Does not project own feelings, motivations, or blame onto others.
Does not limit horizons; uses and develops body, mind, and senses.
Is not rationalistic; can think in unconventional ways.
Is not conforming; regulates behavior from within.

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Maslows Hierarchy of Needs

16

Evaluation of Maslow

Relevance of Maslows Theory for Managers

Beyond physical and safety needs, which higher
order need will emerge cannot be predicted.
A fulfilled need does not motivate an individual.
Effective managers can anticipate emerging needs
based on individual need profiles and provide
opportunities for fulfillment.
The esteem level of needs satisfied by jobs and
recognition provides managers with the greatest
opportunity to motivate better performance.
17

Failure to find confirmatory evidence in tests

of proposed hierarchical process (Hall &
Nougaim 1968; Lawler & Suttle 1972;
Rauschenberger et al 1980)
In particular
Satisfied needs not consistently less important
than unsatisfied needs
Satisfaction of lower level needs does not raise
importance of higher level ones
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Alderfers ERG Theory

Alderfers ERG Theory

Existence Relatedness Growth (ERG) Theory

Concepts:

Alderfers theory of human needs focuses on three

needs: existence, relatedness, and growth.

More than one need can be

operative at the same time.

Existence needs are similar to Maslows physiological and

security needs.
Relatedness needs are those that require interpersonal
interaction to satisfy (prestige and esteem from others).
Growth needs are similar to Maslows needs for selfesteem
and selfactualization.

Core Needs

Existence: provision of basic

material requirements.

If a higher-level need cannot

be fulfilled, the desire to
satisfy a lower-level need
increases.

Relatedness: desire for

relationships.
Growth: desire for personal
development.
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Alderfers ERG Theory

Need
Progression

Growth Needs

Herzbergs TwoFactor Theory

A theory of motivation based on job satisfaction.

Need
Regression

A satisfied employee is motivated from within to work

harder.
A dissatisfied worker is not selfmotivated to work.
Conclusion: Enriched jobs are the key to self
motivation.
Dissatisfiers: factors associated with the job context
or work environment.
Satisfiers: factors associated with the nature of the
task itself (job content).

Relatedness Needs

Existence Needs
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Herzbergs Theory Basically Rests on

Two Main Propositions

22

Herzbergs 2Factor Theory

Determinants of Job
Dissatisfaction are
Hygiene* Factors:
Pay, fringe benefits
Working conditions
Quality of supervision
Interpersonal relations
Job Environment Factors

1.) Job satisfaction is equivalent to being

motivated (influence of Human Relations) and
assumption that the happy worker is a
productive worker
2.) Job satisfaction and dissatisfaction are
separate concepts with unique determinants

23

Poor hygiene can make you, sick,

but good hygiene wont
necessarily make you healthy

Determinants of Job
Satisfaction are
Motivator Factors:
Work itself,
responsibility
Advancement
Recognition
Job Content
Factors
24

Summary of Herzbergs MotivatorHygiene Findings

Evaluation of Herzbergs Theory

Source:
Adapted from
Frederick
Herzberg, One
More Time:
How Do You
Motivate
Employees,
Harvard
Business
Review,
January
February 1968.

Contributions
1st to argue that job
content/job design was
important
Job enrichment as a
motivational strategy
Model appealing, easy
to understand
Explained why more
hygiene factors did not
increase motivation

Criticisms
Some individual
differences, like desire
for pay, rejected as a
motivator. Not everyone
wants an enriched job.
Assumes satisfaction =
motivation
May be methodbound
by selfserving bias

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David McClellands Theory of Needs

What are the implications of two factor theory
for how managers design work?

This theory focuses on three needs:

achievement, power, and affiliation that help
explain motivation
The Need for Achievement
A predisposition to strive for success and the satisfaction of
accomplishing a challenging task or goal.

The Need for Power

A desire to influence others directly by making suggestions,
giving opinions and evaluations, and trying to talk others into
things.

The Need for Affiliation

The motivation to maintain strong, warm relationships with
friends and relatives.
27

David McClellands Theory of Needs, Contd.,

High Achievers will be Motivated, if

28

WORK PREFERENCES OF PERSONS HIGH IN NEED FOR

ACHIEVEMENT, AFFILIATION, AND POWER
INDIVIDUAL NEED
High need for
achievement

WORK PREFERENCES

JOB EXAMPLE

Individual responsibility

Field sales person with

challenging quota and
opportunity to earn
individual bonus

Challenging but achievable

goals
Feedback on performance
Interpersonal relationships

High need for

affiliation

High need for

power

Opportunities to
communicate

Control over other persons

Attention
Recognition

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Customer service
representative; member
of work unit subject to
group wage bonus plan
Formal position of
supervisory
responsibility;
appointment as head
of special task force or
committee
30

A Graphic Comparison of Four

Content Approaches to Motivation

Higher
order
needs

Basic
needs

Maslow

Herzberg

Selfactualization

The work itself

- Responsibility
- Advancement
- Growth

Esteem

Motivators

Belongingness,
social, and love
Safety and
security

Achievement
Recognition

Hygiene
conditions

Physiological

Quality of interpersonal relations

among peers, with
supervisors

Alderfer
Growth

THE GOALS OF COGNITIVE

THEORIES ARE TO EXPLAIN
THOUGHTS ABOUT EFFORT:

McClelland
Need for
achievement

1.) the decision to expend effort

Need for
power
Relatedness

2.) the level of effort to exert

Need for
affiliation

3.) how effort can be made to persist

over time

Existence
Job security
Salary
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Vrooms Expectancy Theory

Expectancy Theory (Vroom)

A model that assumes motivational strength is
determined by perceived probabilities of success.
Expectancy: ones subjective belief or expectation that
one thing will lead to another.

A Basic Expectancy Model

People are conscious agents who are

continually sizing up situations in terms of
their perceived needs and then acting in
accordance with these perceptions.
Motivation = E x I x V

Ones motivational strength increases as ones

perceived effortperformance and performance
reward probabilities increase the likelihood of
obtaining a valued reward.

E represents expectancy (probability of success)

I is instrumentality (correlation)
V is valence (value of a particular reward)

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Expectancy Theory

Expectancy Theory

Involves 3 cognitions/perceptions:

Victor Vrooms Expectancy Theory argues that an employee will

be motivated to exert a high level of effort when he or she
believes that effort will lead to a good performance appraisal; that
a good appraisal will lead to organizational rewards such as
bonus, a salary increase, or a promotion; and that the rewards will
satisfy the employees personal goals. The theory, therefore,
focuses on three relationships:

1. Expectancy

the perceived probability that effort will

lead to task performance. E link

2. Instrumentality

the perceived probability that

performance will lead to rewards. I link

3. Valence

the anticipated value of a particular

outcome to an individual.

1.Effort-performance relationship
2.Performance-reward relationship
3.Rewards-personal goals relationship.

Effort
35

Performance

E link

Rewards or
Outcomes
I link

36

EXPECTANCY THEORY

(Text adds Personal Goals after Outcomes)

P Expectancy

Instrumentality
or P
O Theory

EXPECTANCY THEORY

Valence

What is the probability What is the probability

What value do I place
that I can perform at
that my good performance
on the potential
the required level
will lead to outcomes?
outcomes? (see
if I try?
next slide)

Effort

Performance

Motivation to
Exert
Effort

Level of
Performance
or
Production

E
Link

Money (+9)
Promotion (+6)
I
Job Satisfaction (+1)
Link
Peer
Disapproval (8)

Outcomes
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E P expectancy
Perceived Probability of
successful performance,
given effort

Partial Test of Expectancy Theory

P O expectancy
Perceived probability of
receiving an outcome,
given successful
performance

First-level
outcomes, each
with valence

Rewards or Outcomes
E
Effort

Instrumentality
Perceived probability of a first
level outcome leading to a
second level outcome
Second-level
outcomes, each
with valence

Outcome

Outcome
(Extrinsic)

Earn high grades

Feeling of accomplishment
Effort

Learning something
practical

Performance

Outcome
(Extrinsic)

Outcome

Outcome
(Intrinsic)

Motivation is expressed as follows: M= [E

P] x [(P O)(V)]

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Relevance of Expectancy Theory

for Managers

40

Evaluation of VIE Theory

Employee expectations can be influenced by

managerial actions and organizational
experience.
Training increases employee confidence in
their efforts to perform.
Listening provides managers with insights into
employees perceived performancereward
probabilities.
41

From Schwab et al 1979; Landy 1985; Leon 1981; Arnold et al

1998:
Predicts better where none of outcomes undesirable
Predicts better where effort / performance measured objectively / self
report rather than by peer / supervisor rating
Predicts better with an optimum range of choices (10 to 15)
Many research designs are a poor test of the model (comparing
individuals rather than different outcomes for the same person)
Is the relationship between components additive or multiplicative?
Selfreport measures of V, I and E often poorly constructed
Need to combine abilities and role perceptions with expectancy /
instrumentality (Lawler & Suttle 1973)

42

Implications for Managers

Adams Equity Theory

Increase expectancy Strengthen the link between

expectations that effort will lead to performance, and
performance, ie make the desired performance level
attainable (training, job redesign)
Increase instrumentality Clear links between valued
rewards and performance
Increase valance Provide rewards that have positive
valance, that employees want

People strive for fairness and justice in social

exchanges
Cognitive perception of fairness or lack of it
affects behavior
Inputs education, skills, training, effort, etc.
Outputs pay, fringe, security, recognition,
etc.

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44

Adamss Equity Theory

How a Perceived Inequity

Can Affect Performance

People have a need for, and therefore value and

seek, fairness in employeremployee
relationships.
If a person perceives an inequity, a tension or
drive will develop in the persons mind, and the
person will be motivated to reduce or eliminate
the tension and the perceived inequity.
Employees can do this by reducing what they put
into the job, or by boosting the magnitude of the
rewards they take out (or both).
It matters less what the reality is than how the
person perceives his or her inputs and outputs as
compared with the other (referent) persons.
G.Dessler, 2003

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Equity Theory: The decision to exert effort is a function

of social comparison

What is the basis of equity theory?

Involves 3 relevant perceptions:

the thinking process by which one makes

a decision to exert effort is a function of
social comparison
Based on individual perceptions of
outcomes (what your receive from
expending effort to complete a task), job
inputs (what you bring or contribute to
the task) and perceptions of a referent
person.

1. Perceptions of outcomes received from performing a task.

(e.g., pay)
2. Perceptions of inputs required to perform a task.
3. Perceptions of the outcomes and inputs of a REFERENCE
PERSON.
If: Outcomes Self

Outcomes Reference Person

=

Inputs Self

Inputs Reference Person

Then equity exists.

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Equity Theory

How does equity theory work?

Equitable Situation:

Employees mentally construct outputto

income ratios for themselves and their
referent other and socially compare
If equity exists, you experience no tension
and persist at your current level of effort
When OutputSelf =/= OutputReference person

Outcomes Self
Job Inputs Self

Outcomes Reference Person

Job Inputs Reference Person

Inequitable Situations:
A. Underreward or Cheated (from Selfs point of view)
Outcomes/Inputs Self 4/5

Input Self
InputReference person
Tension is created and employees are
motivated to restore equity

<

Outcomes/Inputs Reference Person 5/5

B. Overreward or Guilty (from Selfs point of view)

Outcomes/Inputs Self 5/4

>

Outcomes/Inputs Reference Person 5/5

C. Either way, a person is motivated to restore equity with R.P.

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50

Examples
You

Ref. Person

Restoring Equity

Ways to Reduce Tension

3 <

Outcomes

a. increase outcomes like ask for

Inputs

a raise ( Your outcome 3 to a 4)

Underreward:
Increase outcomes
Reduce inputs

b. reduce job inputs like effort

Overreward:

( Your input 4 to a 3)
Underreward (What YOU is, from Yous perspective)

4
3

>

3
3

Outcomes

Increase inputs
Reduce Outcomes (?)
criticism of equity theory

a. increase job inputs like work

Inputs

harder ( Your input 3 to a 4)

b. reduce outcomes
? refuse pay raise
? decline promotion, unrealistic
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Overreward Condition (What YOU is, from Yous perspective)

Organizational Justice

Other Options:
Leave situation
Alter perceptions
Change reference person

52

Equity Theory: Evaluation

Distributive Justice: The perceived fairness

of how resources and rewards are distributed.

Evidence from laboratory and field studies (Pritchard 1972,

Sweeney et al 1990)
Problems: difficult to predict behaviour
range of variable in equity ratio

Procedural Justice: The perceived fairness of

the process and procedures used to make
allocation decisions.

individual differences in perceptions,

tolerance, timescales

Interactional Justice:
The perceived fairness of the
decision makers behavior in
the process of decision
making.

Management implications:
comparative pay and benefits, major source of motivation
employees need to believe treated fairly and equitably

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Lessons in Equity Theory

GoalSetting Theory

Pay attention to what employees perceive to be fair

and equitable
Allow employees to have a voice
Employees should have opportunity to appeal
Organizational changes, promoting cooperation, etc.
can come easier with equitable outcomes
Failure to achieve equity could be costly
Climate of justice

Goal setting: the process of improving performance

with objectives, deadlines, or quality standards. In
addition when goals are properly conceived they
trigger a motivational process that improves
performance.

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REASONING BEHIND GOAL SETTING

56

A Model of How Goals Can Improve

Performance

Direction specific goals direct your focus to relevant activities

Effort need to devote more intense levels of effort toward difficult goals assumes
people are goal driven
Persistence specific, difficult goals encourage you to persist longer at a task than would
be the case without
such goals

Only possible exception is

high uncertainty avoidance
cultures.
57

GoalSetting Theory

How Goals Influence Performance

Personal Ownership of Challenging Goals

Goals direct attention and effort towards goalrelevant activities (Rothkopf

& Billington, 1979, Locke & Bryan, 1969)
Goal have an energising function high goals lead to greater effort than low
goals (Bandura & Cervone, 1983, Bryan and Lock, 1967)
Goals affect persistence: when participants are allow to control the time
they spend on a task, haod goals prolong effort (LaPorte & Nath, 1976).
Goals affect action indirectly by leading to the arousal, discovery, and/or use
of taskrelevant knowledge (Wood & Locke, 1990).

Characteristics of effective goals:

Specificity makes goals measurable.
Difficulty makes goals challenging.
Participation gives personal ownership of the goal.

How Do Goals Actually Motivate?

58

Goals are exercises in selective perception.

Goals encourage effort to achieve something specific.
Goals encourage persistent effort.
Goals foster creation of strategies and action plans.
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Evidence from Goal Setting Research

When people are confronted with a task that is complex,
urging them to do there best is sometimes leads to better
strategies than setting specific performance goals.
When people are trained in the proper strategies, those given
specific high performance goals are more likely to use those
strategies than those given other types of goals, and
performance improves.

When given a goal, people automatically use the knowledge and skills
they already have in task attainment.
If the goal cannot be achieved using automatised skills, people draw on a
repertoire of skills that have used previously in related contexts.
If the task is new, people will engage in deliberate planning to develop
strategies that will enable them to attain their goal.
People will high efficacy are more likely than those with low efficacy to
develop effective task strategies.

61

Moderators

62

Important Question

Is participation in setting of goals necessary?

Goal commitment
Goal importance
Self efficacy
Feedback on results
Task complexity

Locke et al (1981): No!

Mento et al (1987): Maybe!
Erez (1980s / 1990s): Yes!

Different results due to differences in

experimental procedure?
Locke used tell and sell procedure with assigned
goals, results of which resemble Erezs participatory
results. Purely assigned goals least effective
motivator (Locke, Erez & Latham 1987)
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Input Sources
Time and Motion Study
Previous performance level
Participation
Delegation
External constraints
Organizational Goals

Role of Goal Commitment

Moderator or motivation in itself?
Something that affects how much impact goals have on performance
(moderator)?
Is commitment to a goal the same as saying you are motivated to
achieve it (Arnold et al 1998)?

Achieving Goal Commitment

Instructions
Trust
Supportiveness
Spontaneous competition
Past Success

Goal commitment a function of:

Closeness of personal goals to goal assigned
Importance of that personal goal

Goal commitment also influenced by difficulty and

participation, as well as personal congruence, since these
affect efficacy beliefs etc.

Overcoming Resistance to
Goal Acceptance
Training skill development
Participation
Reward incentives
65

Support Elements
Resources
Company Policies
Selection(ability)
Training (knowledge)
Action plans
Feedback

Goal Attributes
Specificity
Difficulty
Group or Individual l

Benefits
High performance
Role clarity
Pride in achievement
(with success)

Direct
effort

Performance
(goal success
or failure

Dangers
Dissatisfaction (with failure)
Short cuts
Nongoal areas ignored

GOAL-SETTING MODEL
66

Evaluation & Critique 2

Evaluation & Critique 1

Austin & Bobko (1985)

Points 1 and 2 more problematic:

4 major points of critique

Emphasis on work quantity rather than quality
Failure to address conflicting goals
Emphasis upon individual rather than collective goals
Emphasis on laboratory research

Yearta et al (1995)
Goal setting impaired work performance of research
scientists

Meyer & Gellatly (1988)

Points 3 and 4 not substantiated

Manipulating beliefs about performance norms and

standards reduced effectiveness of goal setting

Consistent supportive evidence across work settings and contexts

(Arnold et al 1998)
90% of evaluation studies report supportive findings
Does work for groups as well as individuals (Pritchard et al 1998)

Earley et al (1989)
Goal setting harmful where people tackling novel
problems and multiple strategies are available

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Practical implications of goal

setting?

Insights from Goal-Setting Research

Difficult Goals Lead to Higher Performance.
- Easy goals produce low effort because the goal is too easy
to achieve.
- Impossible goals ultimately lead to lower performance
because people begin to experience failure.
Specific Difficult Goals Lead to Higher Performance for
Simple Rather Than Complex Tasks.
- Goal specificity pertains to the quantifiability of a goal.
- Specific difficult goals impair performance on novel, complex
tasks when employees do not have clear strategies for
solving these types of problems.
Feedback Enhances The Effect of Specific, Difficult Goals.
- Goals and feedback should be used together.

Management by objectives

68

Challenging goals
Specific goals (measurable, clearly specified)
Knowledge of results
Personal goal commitment

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Insights from Goal-Setting Research

(continued)
Participative Goals, Assigned Goals, and Self-Set Goals
Are Equally Effective.
- Managers should set goals by using a contingency approach.
Different methods work in different situations.
Goal Commitment and Monetary Incentives Affect
Goal-Setting Outcomes.
- Difficult goals lead to higher performance when employees
are committed to their goals.
- Difficult goals lead to lower performance when employees
are not committed to their goals.
- Goal based incentives can lead to negative outcomes for
employees in complex, interdependent jobs requiring
cooperation.

* Employees may not help each other.

* Quality may suffer as employees pursue quantity goals.
* Commitment to difficult goals may suffer.
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Guidelines for Writing SMART

Goals

Specific
Measurable
Attainable
Results oriented
Time bound
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Reinforcement Theory of
Motivation
Some view as an explanation of motivation; others
limit it to how motivation is sustained over time.
Does not have to rely on needs, perceptions or
cognitions. Managers can design work environment
to provide reinforcers that strengthen desired
behaviors & weaken undesired behaviors.
Motivation is a function of the environment.
Others allow for cognitions in that people can
observe rewards and punishments applied to
others. Called social learning or vicarious learning.

Motivation as a Form of Learning:

The Law of Effect
Behavior that leads
toward rewards tends to
be repeated
Behavior that tends to
lead toward no rewards
or toward punishment
tends to be avoided
The type of reinforcer &
the timing (schedule) of
reinforcement are key

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Reinforcers Which Weaken Behavior

Reinforcers Which Strength Behavior

managers do to increase prob. of behavior in the future

managers do to decrease prob. of behavior in the future

a. Positive reinforcementrewards contingent on exhibiting the correct behavior.

b. Avoidance Learningwithholding something unpleasant when a desired behavior is

engaged in (e.g., an annoying alarm is avoided when a machine is used properly, not
operating in reverse). Or, using social learning, noticing how engaging in some behavior
avoids an unpleasant outcome (e.g., arrive on time and the boss does not yell). Text:
Negative reinforcement

a. Punishmentadministering unpleasant consequences

following an undesirable behavior.

b. Extinctionwhen there are no rewards for a

behavior which was previously rewarded.

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Partial Reinforcement Schedules

Timing of Reinforcement

1. Based on passage of time

Fixed Interval Reinforcer given after set period of time.
Ex.: Weekly pay.
Variable Interval Reinforcer given randomly with
Ex.: Surprise bonus based on time.
passage of time.

a. How quickly reinforcers work depends on their

timing
b. Continuous. Used to shape new behaviors
c. But continuous reinforcement is impractical

2. Based on behavior exhibited by the employee (team)

Fixed Ratio Reinforcers based on behaviors. Ex.: Piece
rate pay.
Variable Ratio Reinforcers applied randomly after
exhibition of behaviors. Ex.: A company vacation to
Hawaii for all employees after new contract landed.

1. Costly
2. Not as effective in sustaining behavior
over time
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Schedules of Reinforcement

The predictive power of motivation

theories

Spacing or Timing of Reinforcer

Fixed
Number of
Behaviors
(ratio)

Fixed Ratio
piece rate

Basis for
determining
frequency
reinforcer

Variable Ratio
door to door
sales

Robbins (1991)

Variable Interval of
Occasional
praise by boss

Fixed Interval
weekly
paycheck

Passage
of time
(interval)

Needs theories: explain and predict job satisfaction

Equity theory: most strongly predicts absence and turnover,
weakly predicts differences in employee productivity
Expectancy theory: Powerful explanation of employee
productivity, absenteeism and turnover
Goalsetting theory: Powerful explanation of employee
productivity

Variable

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8-4
Table 8-1

Motivation Theories and Workplace Outcomes:

A Contingency Approach
Motivation Theories
Outcome of
Interest

Need

Reinforcement

Equity

Expectancy

Goal
setting

Job
Characteristics

Integrating
Contemporary
Theories of
Motivation

Choice
X

Effort
Performance
Satisfaction

Absenteeism

Turnover

X
X
X

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Motivation is Culture Bound

How Can We Motivate
Employees?

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84

Motivation Through Rewards

Motivation Through Rewards

Improving Performance with Extrinsic
Rewards

Extrinsic Rewards
Payoffs (external) granted to the individual by
others

Rewards must satisfy individual needs.

Cafeteria compensation: a plan that allows employees
to select their own mix of benefits.

Money, employee benefits, promotions, recognition,

status symbols, and praise.

Employees must believe that effort will lead to an

attainable reward.
Rewards must be personally and socially
equitable.
Rewards must be linked to performance (results)
such that desired behaviors are encouraged.

Intrinsic Rewards
Selfgranted and internally experienced payoffs
Sense of accomplishment, selfesteem, and self
actualization.
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Does reward always produce the desired

outcomes?

Types of Reward

Money not the overriding motivator (intrinsic rewards

Hertzberg, 1966)
Performance linked to pay can be demotivating if seen as an
attempt to control (Deci et al, 1999)
Competition for rewards can disrupt work relationships
(Torrington & Hall, 1991)
Incentive schemes can discourage risk taking,
experimentation and creative exploration
Rewards that are contingent on performance can undermine
interest in the job (Deci & Ryan, 1980), but not if reward is
providing feedback on performance

Financial, eg

86

Pay
Bonuses, incentives, commission
Competency based
Employee benefits and allowances

Non financial, eg
Awards
Praise
Treats
Extra holiday

87

88

Job Design Theories

Motivating Employees Through

Job Design

Hygiene factors & motivators

Job Design Changing the content and/or

Herzberg, 1966

process of a specific job to increase job

satisfaction and performance

Job Characteristics

Motivational Approaches

Hackman & Oldham, 1976

Job Enlargement putting more variety into a

job
Job Rotation moving employees from one
specialized job to another
Job Enrichment practical application of
Herzbergs motivator-hygiene theory of job
satisfaction

Sociotechnical systems theory

Trist & Emery; Cherns,1987

Autonomous work groups

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90

Motivating Employees Through

Job Design

8-13
Table 8-1

Principles of Vertically Loading a Job

Job Enrichment Theory

Redesigning jobs should increase their
motivational potential

Principle

A better fit between persons and their jobs should

foster both high work productivity and a highquality
experience for the people who do the work.
Vertical loading (introducing planning and decision
making responsibility) increases the challenge of work
(complexity and job depth) and reverses the effects of
overspecialization.
Job enrichment works best for individuals who have a
desire for personal growth.

Motivators Involved

A.

Removing some controls while

retaining accountability

Responsibility and
personal achievement

B.

Increasing the accountability of

individuals for their own work

Responsibility and
recognition

C.

Giving a person a complete natural

unit of work (module, division, area,
and so on)

Responsibility,
achievement, and
recognition

91
2004 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

McGraw-Hill

8-14
Table 8-1 cont.

Principles of Vertically Loading a Job

Principle
D.

E.

Granting additional authority to an

employee in his activity; job reform

Motivating Employees Through Job

Design: The Job Characteristics Model
Core
job
characteristics

Motivators Involved
Responsibility,
achievement, and
recognition

Introducing new and more difficult

tasks not previously handled

Growth and learning

G.

Assigning individuals specific or

specialized tasks, enabling them to
become experts

Responsibility, growth,
and advancement

Skill variety
Task identity
Task significance

Autonomy

Internal recognition
Making periodic reports directly
available to the worker himself rather
than the supervisor

F.

McGraw-Hill

Outcomes

Experienced
meaningfulness of
work

High intrinsic
work motivation

Experienced
responsibility for
outcomes of the
work

High growth
satisfaction
High general job
satisfaction

Knowledge of the
actual results of
the work activities

Feedback from
job

1.
2.
3.

2004 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

High work
effectiveness

Moderators
Knowledge and skill
Growth need strength
Context satisfaction

94

Steps for Applying the Job

Characteristics Model

Diagnosing and Measuring Task Scope

1)

Hackman and Oldham developed a questionnaire to assess the motivating

potential of a job Job Diagnostic Survey (JDS) to analyse the jobs. The
questions on this survey yield a quantitative score that can be used to
calculate an overall measure of job enrichment, or what is called job scope
so as to differentiate from Herzberg-type job enrichment. The formula for
this motivating potential score (MPS) is the following:

Critical
psychological
state

2)
3)

Diagnose the work environment to determine if a

performance problem is due to low motivation and demotivating job characteristics
Determine whether job redesign is appropriate for a
given group of employees
Determine how to best redesign the job

Note, if either autonomy or feedback are not included in job, the

job would offer no potential (MPS = 0) because of the
multiplicative relationships.

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8-17

Steps for Applying the Job

Characteristics Model
Biological Approach
focuses on designing
the work environment
to reduce employees
physical strain, effort,
fatigue, and health
complaints

Research Evidence

Perceptual-Motor
Approach emphasizes
the reliability of work
outcome by examining
error rates, accidents,
and workers feedback
about facilities and
equipment

Moderately strong relationship between job

characteristics and job satisfaction
Can decrease performance

Model is able to predict absenteeism and

turnover better than performance
Critical psychological states not necessarily
full mediators between job characteristics and
outcomes
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Motivation Through
QualityofWork life Programs (contd)

Motivation Through
QualityofWork life Programs
Flexible Work Schedules

Alternative Work Schedules

Flextime: a work schedule that allow employees

to choose their own arrival and departure times
within specified limits (core time).
Benefits
Better employeesupervisor relations.
Reduced absenteeism.
Selective positive impact on job performance (improves
productivity for some jobs, but not for others).

Compressed workweeks: 40 or more hours in less

than five days.
Permanent parttime: work weeks with fewer
than 40 hours.
Job sharing: complementary scheduling that
allows two or more parttimers to share a single
fulltime job.

99

Motivation Through
QualityofWork life Programs (contd)

100

Motivation Through
QualityofWork life Programs (contd)

Family Support Services

Wellness Programs

Onsite child and elder care facilities

Emergency child care

Employerprovided programs to help employees

cope with stress and burnout.
Stress reduction, healthy eating and living clinics, diet
and quitsmoking programs, exercise facilities

Sabbaticals
Giving longterm employees extended periods of
paid time off to refresh themselves and bolster
their motivation and loyalty.
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102

What is MBO?

Why MBOs Fail

Unrealistic expectations about MBO results
Lack of commitment by top management
Failure to allocate reward properly
Cultural incompatibilities

Key Elements
1.

Goal specificity

2.

Participative decision making

3.

An explicit time period

4.

Performance feedback

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Linking MBO with GoalSetting

Theory

Cascading of Objectives

Goal setting theory demonstrates that hard goals

result in a higher level of individual performance
than do easy goals, that specific hard goals result in
higher levels of performance than do no goals at all
or the generalized goal of do your best, and that
feedback on ones performance leads to higher
performance.
Compare these findings with MBO
105

106

Linking Employee Recognition

Programs and Reinforcement Theory

Employee Recognition Programs

Types of programs
Personal attention
Expressing interest
Approval
Appreciation for a job well done
Benefits of programs
Fulfills employees desire for recognition.
Encourages repetition of desired behaviors.
Enhances group/team cohesiveness and motivation.
Encourages employee suggestions for improving processes
and cutting costs.
107

1.

Consistent with reinforcement theory, rewarding

a behavior with recognition immediately following
that behavior is likely to encourage its repetition.
2. Recognition ma take place many forms.
3. You may personally congratulate an employee in
private for a good job.
4. You can send a handwritten note or an email
message acknowledging something positive that
employee has done.
108

Employee Involvement
Programs

What is Employee Involvement?

1.

Participative Management

2.

Representative Participation

3.

Work Councils

4.

Board Representatives

5.

Quality Circles

6.

Employee Stock Ownership Plans

109

Examples of Employee
Involvement Programs

110

Examples of Employee
Involvement Programs (contd)

111

Examples of Employee
Involvement Programs (contd)

112

How a Typical
Quality Circle
Operates

113

114

Linking Employee Involvement

Programs and Motivation
theories

Examples of Employee
Involvement Programs (contd)

Theory Y is consistent with Participative management, while Theory X

aligns with the more traditional autocratic style of managing people.
In Two-Factor Theory, employee involvement programs could provide
employees with intrinsic motivation by increasing opportunities for
growth, responsibility, and involvement in the work itself.
Employee involvement with compatible with ERG theory and efforts to
stimulate the achievement need.

115

Variable Pay Programs

116

Types of Variable Pay Programs

1.

Piece-rate pay plans

2.

Profit-sharing plans

3.

Gain sharing

117

Variable Pay Programs

118

Variable Pay Programs (contd)

119

120

SkillBased Pay Plans

SkillBased Pay Plans (contd)

Drawbacks of Skill-based Pay Plans:

1. Lack of additional learning opportunities that will

increase employee pay.
2. Continuing to pay employees for skills that have
become obsolete.

Benefits of Skill-based Pay Plans:

1. Provides staffing flexibility.

3. Paying for skills which are of no immediate use to the

organization.

2. Facilitates communication across the organization.

3. Lessens protection of territory behaviors.

4. Paying for a skill, not for the level of employee

performance for the particular skill.

4. Meets the needs of employees for advancement (without

promotion).
5. Leads to performance improvements.
121

Flexible Benefits

Special Issues in Motivation

Motivating Professionals
Provide challenging projects.
Allow them the autonomy to be productive.
Reward with educational opportunities.
Reward with recognition.
Express interest in what they are doing.
Create alternative career paths.
Motivating Contingent Workers
Provide opportunity for permanent status.
Provide opportunities for training.
Provide equitable pay.

Core-plus Plans:
a core of essential benefits
and a menu-like selection of
other benefit options.

Modular Plans:
predesigned benefits
packages for specific
groups of employees.

122

Flexible Spending Plans:

allow employees to use their
tax-free benefit dollars to
purchase benefits and pay
service premiums.

123

Special Issues in Motivation (contd)

Motivating the Diversified Workforce

124

Special Issues in Motivation

(contd)
Motivating People Doing Highly Repetitive
Tasks

Provide flexible work, leave, and pay

schedules.
Provide child and elder care benefits.
Structure working relationships to account for
cultural differences and similarities.

Recruit and select employees that fit the job.

Create a pleasant work environment.
Mechanize the most distasteful aspects of the job.

Motivating LowSkilled Service Workers

Recruit widely.
Increase pay and benefits.
Make jobs more appealing.
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126

How to Analyze PerformanceMotivation

Problems

Conclusions
Theories of work motivation inform our
understanding of how to design work
environments and reward systems that
encourage employees to maximise effort

Source: Copyright Gary Dessler, Ph.D. Suggested in

part by Performance Diagnosis Model, David
Whetton and Kim Cameron, Developing
Management Skills (Upper Saddle River, NJ:
Prentice Hall, 2001), p. 339.

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