Motivation

Why do we do what we do?

“Motivation is what gets you started. Habit is what keeps you going”
Learning outcomes
• students should be able to characterize the nature of motivation,
including its importance.
• Identify and describe the major content perspectives on motivation.
• Identify and describe the major process perspectives on motivation.
• Describe reinforcement perspectives on motivation.
Motivation defined
• Motivation it is defined as a driving force that initiates and directs behavior.
• Motivation is a kind of internal energy which drives a person to do something in order to achieve
something.
• It is a temporal or dynamic state within a person which is not concerned with his/her personality
Motivation defined
• Motivation is the processes that account for an individual’s intensity, direction, and
persistence of effort toward attaining a goal. While general motivation is concerned with
effort toward any goal, we’ll narrow the focus to organizational goals in order to reflect
our singular interest in work-related behaviour.
• The three key elements in our definition are intensity, direction, and persistence.
• Intensity describes how hard a person tries. This is the element most of us focus on when
we talk about motivation. However, high intensity is unlikely to lead to favorable job-
performance outcomes unless the effort is channeled in a direction that benefits the
organization.
• Therefore, we consider the quality of effort as well as its intensity. Effort directed toward,
and consistent with, the organization’s goals is the kind of effort we should be seeking.
• Finally, motivation has a persistence dimension. This measures how long a person can
maintain effort. Motivated individuals stay with a task long enough to achieve their goal.
Motivation
• To achieve organizational goals, managers must understand basic
human nature.
 What motivates a person to work hard?
 What does a person want or need from work?
• One of the manager’s major functions is to influence the motivation
cycle in order to achieve the organisation’s objectives.
• At each stage of the motivation cycle the manager must take certain
actions and design a system to satisfy these wants and needs?
Motivation cycle
• Motivation can be understood by looking at need deficiencies and goal-
directed behaviors.
• A need is something an individual requires or wants, it is the starting
point in the motivation cycle.
• Motivated behaviour usually begins when a person has one or more
important needs. A need deficiency usually triggers a search for ways to
satisfy it.
• E.g. consider a employee who is unhappy with their salary because they
feel it does not reflect the work they are doing in the organisation.
• Next comes a choice of goal-directed behaviors ( she may choose to work
harder or look for another job).
• Finally, the person assesses the extent to which the outcome achieved
fully addresses the original need deficiency.
Motivation cycle
Factor Affecting Motivation
• Individual differences - are those personal needs, values, attitudes,
and interests that people bring to their jobs. Because these
characteristics vary from person to person, so will what motivates
people. One employee may be motivated by money, others by
security, challenging tasks.
• Job characteristics - such as skill variety, autonomy, task significance,
performance feedback and task identity.
• Organisational practices - Rules, personnel policies, managerial
practices and reward systems of an organization.
Theories of motivation
• Content theories (also called need theories) are concerned with what
motivates people (needs and goal perspective).
• Process theories are concerned with how people are motivated –with
how they choose need satisfiers and how external factors affect that
process.
 Content Theories of Motivation
• Maslow’s Hierarchy of needs
• Maslow argued that human beings are “wanting” animals: They have innate
desires to satisfy a given set of needs.
• These needs cannot all be satisfied since on the satisfaction of one need,
another arises
• Furthermore, Maslow believed that these needs are arranged in a hierarchy of
importance, with the most basic needs at the foundation of the hierarchy.
• The three sets of needs at the bottom of the hierarchy are called deficiency
needs because they must be satisfied for the individual to be fundamentally
comfortable.
• The top two sets of needs are termed growth needs because they focus on
personal growth and development.
 Content Theories of Motivation
• The most basic needs in the hierarchy are physiological needs. These include the needs for food, sex, and
air.
• Next in the hierarchy are security needs: things that offer safety and security, such as adequate housing
and clothing and freedom from worry and anxiety.
• Social needs, the third level in the hierarchy, are primarily social. Examples include the need for love and
affection and the need to be accepted by peers
• The fourth level, esteem needs, actually encompasses two slightly different kinds of needs: the need
• for a positive self-image and self-respect and the need to be respected by others.
• At the top of the hierarchy are self-actualization needs. These involve a person’s realizing his or her full
potential and becoming all that he or she can be.
Maslow’s Hierarch of Needs

intrinsic needs

Extrinsic needs
 Content Theories of Motivation
• Maslow believed that each need level must be satisfied before the level above it
can become important.
• Thus, once physiological needs have been satisfied, their importance diminishes,
and security needs emerge as the primary sources of motivation.
• This escalation up the hierarchy continues until the self-actualization needs
become the primary motivators.
• Suppose, for example, you earn all the money you need and you are very satisfied
with your standard of living. Additional income may have little or no motivational
impact on your behavior. Instead, you will strive to satisfy other needs, such as a
desire for higher self-esteem
• However, if a previously satisfied lower-level set of needs becomes deficient again,
the individual returns to that level.
 Content Theories of Motivation
• How can a manager understand and evaluate needs of employees?
• Physiological needs are probably the easiest to evaluate and to meet. Adequate
wages, toilet facilities, ventilation, and comfortable temperatures and working
conditions are measures taken to satisfy this most basic level of needs.
• Security needs in organizations can be satisfied by such things as job continuity
(no layoffs), a grievance system (to protect against arbitrary supervisory
actions), and an adequate insurance and retirement system (to guard against
financial loss from illness and to ensure retirement income).
• Most employees’ social needs are satisfied by family ties and group
relationships both inside and outside the organization. In the workplace, people
usually develop friendships that provide a basis for social interaction and can
play a major role in satisfying social needs.
 Content Theories of Motivation
• Managers can help satisfy these needs by fostering interaction and a sense of group
identity among employees.
• At the same time, managers can be sensitive to the probable effects on employees
(such as low performance and absenteeism) of family problems or lack of acceptance
by coworkers.
• Esteem needs in the workplace are met at least partially by job titles, choice offices,
merit pay increases, awards, and other forms of recognition. Of course, to be sources
of long-term motivation, tangible rewards such as these must be distributed
equitably and be based on performance.
• Self-actualization needs are perhaps the hardest to understand and the most difficult
to satisfy. For example, it is difficult to assess how many people completely meet
their full potential. In most cases, people who are doing well on Maslow’s hierarchy
will have satisfied their esteem needs and will be moving toward self-actualization
Limitation
• Whether five need levels for individuals are found in all organizations.
• Needs are not static, but are quite dynamic.
• More than one level need can be operative at any one time.
• Individuals needs are never fully or permanently satisfied
Theories of Motivation
• The ERG theory by Clayton Alderfer
• ERG theory extends and refines Maslow’s needs hierarchy concept, although
there are also several important differences between the two.
• The E, R, and G stand for three basic need categories: existence, relatedness,
and growth.
• Existence needs — those necessary for basic human survival—roughly
correspond to the physiological and security needs of Maslow’s hierarchy.
• Relatedness needs — those involving the need to relate to others—are similar
to Maslow’s social and esteem needs.
• Finally, growth needs are corresponds to Maslow’s needs for self-esteem and
self-actualization.
 Theories of Motivation
• In contrast to Maslow’s approach, ERG theory suggests that more than one kind
of need—for example, both relatedness and growth needs may motivate a person
at the same time.
• A more important difference from Maslow’s hierarchy is that ERG theory includes
a satisfaction-progression component and a frustration-regression component.
• The satisfaction-progression concept suggests that after satisfying one category of
needs, a person progresses to the next level. On this point, the need hierarchy
and ERG theory agree.
• The need hierarchy, however, assumes that the individual remains at the next
level until the needs at that level are satisfied.
• In contrast, the frustration-regression component of ERG theory suggests that a
person who is frustrated by trying to satisfy a higher level of needs eventually will
regress to the preceding level.
Theories of Motivation
• Fredrick Herzberg’s Two-Factor Theory
• The theory is also known as the motivator- hygiene theory
• Herzberg conducted a study to understand the cause of satisfaction and
dissatisfaction.
• Herzberg discovered two factors that separately explained satisfaction
and dissatisfaction in employees. He suggested that people’s satisfaction
and dissatisfaction are influenced by two independent set of factors.
• Motivation factors and Hygiene factors
• Identified two different factors as primary causes of job satisfaction and job
dissatisfaction
Content Theories of Motivation
• The theory identified motivating factors as the primary cause of job satisfaction
and hygiene factors as the primary cause of job dissatisfaction. Factors that
cause job satisfaction are different from factors that cause job dissatisfaction
• Motivator factors (innate) – Simply put, these are factors that lead to
satisfaction and motivate employees to work harder. Examples might include
enjoying your work, feeling recognised and career progression.
• Hygiene factors (extrinsic) – These factors can lead to dissatisfaction and a lack
of motivation if they are absent. Examples include salary, company policies,
benefits, relationships with managers and co-workers.
• Hygiene factors are those that should be maintained if the are absent may
cause job dissatisfaction but if they are present motivation may not be
there.
Content Theories of Motivation
• Improving the hygiene factors only decreases job dissatisfaction
• Job dissatisfaction occurs when hygiene factors are poor
• Motivation factors- (achievement, recognition) were often cited by
people as primary causes of satisfaction and motivation.
• When present in a job, these factors apparently could cause
satisfaction and motivation; when they were absent, the result was
feelings of no satisfaction.
Content Theories of Motivation

Motivation factors Hygiene factors

• Achievement • Supervision
• Recognition • Pay
• The job/work • Job security
• Responsibility • Working conditions
• Advancement • Interpersonal relationships
• Growth • Company policies
Content Theories of Motivation
• To use the dual-structure theory in the workplace, Herzberg recommended a two
stage process.
• First, the manager should try to eliminate situations that cause dissatisfaction
(low pay, supervision), which Herzberg assumed to be the more basic of the two
dimensions.
• Once a state of no dissatisfaction exists, trying to improve motivation further
through hygiene factors is a waste of time.
• At that point, the motivation factors enter the picture. When the manager has
adequately dealt with hygiene issues, he/she should try to increase opportunities
for achievement, recognition, responsibility, advancement, and growth.
• This will lead to motivation and job satisfaction.
Content Theories of Motivation
• McClelland’s Theory of Needs
• McClelland’s theory of needs was developed by David McClelland
and his associates. It looks at three needs:
• Need for achievement (nAch) is the drive to excel, to achieve in
relationship to a set of standards. This need arises from an individual’s
desire to accomplish a goal or task more effectively than in the past.
• Individuals who have a high need for achievement tend to set
moderately difficult goals and to make moderately risky decisions.
• Need for power (nPow) is the need to make others behave in a way
they would not have otherwise.
Content Theories of Motivation
• Need for affiliation (nAff) is the desire for friendly and close
interpersonal relationships.
• Individuals with a high need for affiliation tend to want reassurance
and approval from others and usually are genuinely concerned about
others’ feelings.
Process Theory of Motivation
• Process-based perspectives are concerned with how motivation occurs.
Rather than attempting to identify motivational stimuli, process perspectives
focus on why people choose certain behavioral options to satisfy their needs
and how they evaluate their satisfaction after they have attained these goals.
The Equity Theory of Motivation By Stacy
J. Adams
• The equity theory of motivation is based on the relatively simple premise that
people in organizations want to be treated fairly.
• Employees perceive what they get from a job situation (outcome) e.g. salary
levels, raises, and recognition in relationship to what they put into it (inputs e.g.
effort, experience, education, competence), and then they compare their
outcome–input ratio with that of relevant others.
• Employees get motivated when they perceive equity; they tend to look at a
situation and determine whether there is equity. E.g. salary payments for
employees with the same qualifications.
• The theory defines equity as the belief that we are being treated fairly in
relation to others and inequity as the belief that we are being treated unfairly
compared with others.
Outcome(self) Outcome(other)
compared with
Input(self) Input(other)

If inequity(under rewarded)
if equity
if inequity (over rewarded)
The Equity Theory of Motivation
Response to equity and inequity
• If we perceive our ratio to be equal to that of the relevant others with whom
we compare ourselves, a state of equity exists; we perceive that our
situation is fair and justice prevails.
• When we see the ratio as unequal and we feel under rewarded, we
experience equity tension that creates anger.
• When we see ourselves as over rewarded, tension creates guilt.
• If an employee feels equitably treated, he/she is generally motivated to
maintain the status quo, for instance continue to provide the same level of
input to the organization as long as his/her outcomes do not change and the
ratio of inputs and outcomes of the comparison-other do not change.
 The Equity Theory of Motivation
Response to equity and inequity
• But an employee who is experiencing inequity, real or imagined is motivated to
reduce it. Moreover, the greater the inequity, the stronger the level of motivation.
• An employee may respond in any of the 6 ways when perceive inequity. He/she may
 change own input- put more or less effort into the job
Change own output- demand a payraise, seek additional avenues for growth and
development, or even resort to stealing as a way to “get more” from the organization
Quit job, engage in absenteeism
Change comparisons/choose a different referent
Alter perceptions of self
Alter perception of others
The Expectancy Theory of Motivation
(Victor Vroom)
• Expectancy theory argues that the strength of our tendency to act a certain way
depends on the strength of our expectation of a given outcome and its
attractiveness.
• In more practical terms, employees will be motivated to exert a high level of
effort when they believe it will lead to a good performance appraisal; that a
good appraisal will lead to organizational rewards such as bonuses, salary
increases, or promotions; and that the rewards will satisfy the employees’
personal goals.
• The basic premise of expectancy theory is that motivation depends on how
much we want something and how likely we think we are to get it and the
valuability of the reward.
• According to this theory, motivation depends on three key concepts or factors
The Expectancy Theory of Motivation
(Victor Vroom) Cont’d
• Expectancy - the extent to which a person believes that exerting a certain
amount of effort will yield acceptable performance (e.g realistic target/goal).
• Instrumentality - the extent to which an individual believes that
performance will be rewarded.
• Valence - represents the value placed upon a particular reward by a person.
Value of the reward must be highly positive for a person to be motivated
According to the expectancy theory if an employee believes putting in extra
hour at work will lead to higher output (that’s high expectancy) and that
higher output will lead to a promotion (high instrumentality) and if promotion
is important to the employee (high valence), a high level of motivation should
occur.
The Expectancy Theory of Motivation
(Victor Vroom)
• Employees have different valences (value) for the same reward. Also
employees may have different views on the relationship between effort
and performance; performance and rewards.
• The task of a manager is to identify and communicate performance
criteria which are important in achieving company objectives.
• Expectancy theory predicts employees will exert a high level of effort if
they perceive a strong relationship between effort and performance,
performance and rewards, and rewards and satisfaction of personal goals.
Goal-setting theory of motivation
• Important motivating factor is a challenging goals. To motivate employees
goals set should be challenging not too easy or too hard.
• Employees are motivated when they participate in setting goals they are
going to achieve.
• The goals or objectives must be SMART (specific, measurable, attainable,
realistic/relevant and time bound)
• Difficult/challenging goals are more likely to lead to higher performance than
less difficult goals
• Specific goals are likely to lead to higher performance than vague/general
goals.
• Task feedback motivate employees towards higher performance
Reinforcement theory
• Reinforcement theory suggests that behaviour is a function of its
consequences.
 Behaviour that results in pleasant consequences is more likely to be
repeated (the employee will be motivated to repeat the current behaviour),
and
 behaviour that results in unpleasant consequences is less likely to be
repeated (the employee will be motivated to engage in different
behaviours).
• Reinforcement theory also suggests that in any given situation, people
explore a variety of possible behaviours. Future behavioural choices are
affected by the consequences of earlier behaviours.
Types of Reinforcements in Organizations
• There are four basic forms of reinforcement positive reinforcement,
avoidance, extinction, and punishment.
• Positive reinforcement is a reward that encourages desirable behaviour
or other desirable consequences that follows behaviour.
• Based on the premise that if the consequences of a behaviour are
pleasant, the behaviour is repeated.
• Providing positive reinforcement after a particular behaviour motivates
employees to maintain or increase the frequency of that behaviour. A
compliment from the boss after an employee has completed a difficult
job and a salary increase following a worker’s period of high
performance are examples of positive reinforcement.
 Types of Reinforcements in Organizations Cont’d
• Negative reinforcement/ Avoidance is another means of increasing the
frequency of desirable behaviour. Rather than receiving a reward
following an undesirable behaviour, the person is given the opportunity
to avoid an unpleasant consequence/circumstance.
• Based on the premise that if the consequences of performing a
behaviour are unpleasant, the behaviour won’t be repeated.
• For example, suppose that a boss reprimands employees who report for
work late. To avoid criticism, an employee may routinely come for work
early to avoid being reprimanded. The employee is thus motivated to
engage in desirable behaviour (at least from the supervisor’s viewpoint)
to avoid an unpleasant, or aversive, consequence.
Types of Reinforcements in Organizations
Cont’d
• Extinction decreases the frequency of behaviour, especially behaviour that
was previously rewarded. If rewards are withdrawn for behaviours that were
previously reinforced, the behaviours will probably become less frequent
and eventually die out.
 For example, a manager may withdraw rewarding an employee who is
constantly reporting on others especially if this behaviour is affecting others.
 Withdrawing the rewards for reporting on others will probably extinguish
that behaviour.
 We should also note that if managers, inadvertently or otherwise, stop
rewarding valuable behaviours such as good performance, those behaviours
also may become extinct.
Types of Reinforcements in Organizations
• Punishment also tends to decrease the frequency of undesirable behaviours. It
must be a last resort in the organisation.
• Punishment is an unpleasant, or aversive, consequence of a behaviour.
 Examples of punishment are verbal or written reprimands, pay cuts, loss of
privileges, layoffs, and termination.
 Many experts question the value of punishment and believe that managers use it
too often and use it inappropriately. In some situations, however, punishment may
be an appropriate tool for altering behaviour. Many instances of life’s
unpleasantness teach us what to do by means of punishment.
 Furthermore, certain types of undesirable behaviour may have far-reaching
negative effects if they go unpunished. For instance, a clerk who steals money
from the petty cash account, deserve punishment.
Schedules of Reinforcement in
Organizations
• Reinforcement theory emphasises using positive reinforcement to
encourage desired behaviours
• Schedules of reinforcement indicate when or how often managers
should reinforce certain behaviours.
• Schedules of reinforcement, specify the basis for and timing of
positive reinforcement
• There are five basic schedules of reinforcement that managers can
use.
 Schedules of Reinforcement in
Organizations
a) Continuous reinforcement rewards behaviour every time it occurs.
Continuous reinforcement is very effective in motivating desirable
behaviours, especially in the early stages of learning.
 When reinforcement is withdrawn, however, extinction sets in very
quickly. But continuous reinforcement poses serious difficulties
because the manager must monitor every behaviour of an employee
and provide effective reinforcement.
• This approach, then, is of little practical value to managers. Offering
partial reinforcement according to one of the other four schedules is
much more typical.
Schedules of Reinforcement in
Organizations
b) Fixed-interval schedule – provides reinforcement at fixed time intervals – for
example, a weekly, twice-monthly, or monthly pay check.
c) Variable –interval schedule – provides reinforcement at irregular intervals of
time. Inspection crews work on this type of schedule. If employees don’t know
when their manager is going to drop in, they will maintain a reasonably high level
of desired behaviour.
d) Fixed-ratio schedule – reinforcement is given after a fixed number of desired
behaviours.
f) Variable ratio schedule – reinforcement occurs after a varying number of
behaviours occurs regardless of the time elapsed.
• Managers should emphasise positive reinforcement to encourage desired
behaviours and to let subordinates know what behaviours will be rewarded.
Contemporary Issues In Motivation

1. Motivation through job design

2. Motivating a diverse workforce
3. Motivation through rewards
4. Work life balance
5. Motivation through quality -of-work life innovations
Thank you