Ch 8: Work Motivation Flashcards
Motivation concerns the conditions responsible for variations in intensity, quality, and _________ of ongoing behavior.
a. amplitude
b. satisfaction
c. direction
d. learning
c. direction
What type of motivational approach placed the emphasis for behavior and directed activity directly on the environment?
a. Behaviorist approach
b. Instrumental approach
c. Nature approach
d. Environmental approach
a. Behaviorist approach
Which theory proposed that various forces in the psychological environment have valence?
a. Instinct theory
b. Maslow’s need theory
c. Field theory
d. Metaphor theory
c. Field theory
What is the basic model for considering the role of motivation in performance?
a. Performance = (Motivation x Ability) + Situational constraints
b. Performance = (Motivation x Ability) – Situational constraints
c. Performance = (Motivation x Situational constraints) + Ability
d. Performance = (Motivation / Situational constraints) + Ability
b. Performance = (Motivation x Ability) – Situational constraints
Maslow’s model fits the person-as-machine metaphor well. Which of the following is false concerning the model?
a. A person will respond to whatever satisfies the lowest level unfulfilled need.
b. Workers in the same department are assumed to be at the same needs level.
c. The behavior of the individual is unconscious and automatic.
d. An employer needs to know at what need level a worker is operating.
b. Workers in the same department are assumed to be at the same needs level.
What is a major problem associated with using contingent reinforcement?
a. The approach cannot consistently predict motivation.
b. The approach makes too many assumptions of behavior.
c. The approach has little or no role for any cognitive activity.
d. The approach is not applicable in today’s workplace.
c. The approach has little or no role for any cognitive activity.
What is the theory called that suggests that tension exists when individuals hold incompatible thoughts?
a. Dissonance theory
b. Equity theory
c. Comparison theory
d. Incompatibility theory
a. Dissonance theory
The feedback loop in goal setting theory deals with the discrepancy between:
a. Actual goal accomplishment and expected goal accomplishment of peers.
b. Actual goal accomplishment and the failures the person has experienced.
c. Actual goal accomplishment and the goal to which the person was committed.
d. Actual goal accomplishment and the actual goal accomplishment of peers.
c. Actual goal accomplishment and the goal to which the person was committed.
Managers, across all cultures, tend to employ all of the following motivational practices except:
a. Quality improvement interventions
b. Differential distribution of rewards
c. Setting goals and making decisions for employees.
d. Design and redesign of jobs and organizations.
c. Setting goals and making decisions for employees.
Concerns the conditions responsible for variations in intensity, persistence, quality, and direction of ongoing behavior.
Motivation (M)
Inborn tendency that is thought to direct behavior.
Instinct
Internal motivation that is thought to be inborn and universally present in humans.
Need
Nonhuman equivalent of “motives” and “needs.”
Drive
Approach developed by B. F. Skinner that placed the emphasis for behavior and directed activity directly on the environment rather than on any internal needs or instincts.
Behaviorist approach
Approach developed by Kurt Lewin, who proposed that various forces in the psychological environment interacted and combined to yield a final course of action.
Field theory
Field that grew out of the application of Kurt Lewin’s field theory to industry.
Group dynamics
Metaphor that suggests that people’s behaviors/actions are reflexive and involuntary and are performed without conscious awareness.
Person as machine
Metaphor that suggests that people are active information gatherers and analysts who seek knowledge and understanding as a way of mastering their environment.
Person as scientist
The inability of humans to reason and make decisions in perfectly rational ways.
Limited rationality
Metaphor in which an individual seeks information about the extent to which the person and others are perceived as responsible for positive and negative events. The person looks for evidence of intention in the actions of others and considers those intentions in choosing a personal course of action.
Person as judge
Area of research that investigates whether the satisfaction that one experiences at work is in part affected by the satisfaction that one experiences in non-work and vice versa, particularly to the extent that one environment has demands that conflict with the other.
Work–life balance
The extent to which an individual views events as resulting from his or her own actions (an internal LOC) or from outside causes (an external LOC).
Locus of control
Theory that proposed that all humans have a basic set of needs and that these needs express themselves over the life span of the individual as internal “pushes” or drives. Identified five basic needs sets: physiological, security, love or social, esteem, and self-actualization.
Maslow’s need theory
Maslow’s need theory hierarchy:
Physiological needs. Security needs. Love or social needs. Esteem needs. Self-actualization needs.
Theory proposed by Herzberg that suggested that there were really two basic needs, not five as suggested by Maslow, and that they were not so much hierarchically arranged as independent of each other.
Two-factor theory
Lower-level needs described in Herzberg’s two-factor theory. Herzberg proposed that meeting these needs would eliminate dissatisfaction but would not result in motivated behavior or a state of positive satisfaction.
Hygiene needs
Higher- level needs described in Herzberg’s two-factor theory. Herzberg proposed that meeting such needs resulted in the expenditure of effort as well as satisfaction.
Motivator needs
Theory that proposes that behavior depends on three simple elements: stimulus, response, and reward. Proposed that if a response in the presence of a particular stimulus is rewarded (i.e., reinforced), that response is likely to occur again in the presence of that stimulus.
Reinforcement theory
A reward that depends on or is contingent on a particular response.
Contingent reward
A reward that is given for only some correct responses.
Intermittent reward
A reward that is presented every time a correct response occurs.
Continuous reward
First formal work motivation theory to suggest that people weighed options before choosing among them. Reasoned that if a worker saw high productivity as a path to the goal of desired rewards or personal goals (e.g., a pay increase or promotion, or increased power, prestige, or responsibility), he or she would likely be a high producer.
Path–goal theory of motivation
Motivation theory that assumed that individuals rationally estimate the relative attractiveness and unattractiveness of different rewards or outcomes (valence), the probability that performance will lead to particular outcomes or rewards (instrumentality), and the probability that effort will lead to performance (expectancy).
VIE theory
The strength of a person’s preference for a particular outcome.
Valence
The perceived relationship between performance and the attainment of a certain outcome.
Instrumentality
An individual’s belief that a particular behavior (e.g., effort, hard work) will lead to higher performance.
Expectancy
Theory suggested by Festinger that observed that tension exists when individuals hold “dissonant cognitions” (incompatible thoughts). This approach assumes that individuals always seek some sense of “balance” (i.e., absence of tension) and that they will direct their behavior toward reducing the tension resulting from dissonant cognitions.
Dissonance theory
Motivational theory developed by Adams (1965) that suggested that individuals look at their world in terms of comparative inputs and outcomes. Individuals compare their inputs and outcomes with others (e.g., peers, co-workers) by developing an input/outcome ratio.
Equity theory
The training, effort, skills, and abilities that employees bring to or invest in their work.
Inputs
The compensation, satisfaction, and other benefits employees derive from their work.
Outcomes
A co-worker or idealized other person to which the individual compares himself or herself in determining perceived equity.
Comparison other
Ratio that results when employees compare their inputs and outcomes to those of others (e.g., peers, co-workers) to determine if they are being treated equitably.
Outcome/input ratio
Motivational approach that assumes that individuals are intentional in their behavior.
Person-as-intentional approach
Theory proposed by Locke and colleagues in which the general concept of a goal is adapted to work motivation. In this approach, a goal is seen as a motivational force, and individuals who set specific, difficult goals perform better than individuals who simply adopt a “do your best” goal or no goal at all.
Goal-setting theory
Connection between knowledge of results and the intermediate states that occur between goal commitment and performance.
Feedback loop
Theory based on the principle of a feedback loop that assumes that an individual compares a standard to actual outcome and adjusts behavior to bring the outcome into agreement with the standard.
Control theory
Process by which individuals take in information about behavior and make adjustments or changes based on that information. These changes, in turn, affect subsequent behavior (e.g., strategies, goal commitment).
Self-regulation
The belief in one’s capability to perform a specific task or reach a specific goal.
Self-efficacy
Theory that includes broad consideration of the role of intention in motivated behavior as well as the connection between intention and action.
Action theory (Rubicon theory)
Process that starts with a goal, proceeds to a consideration of events that may occur in the future, and then progresses to the development of several alternative plans, the selection of a plan, the execution and monitoring of the chosen plan, and the processing of information resulting from the execution of the plan. The last step, feedback, then influences goal development once again.
Action process
Structure that includes the notion that (1) observable action is the result of a number of prior events and plans, hierarchically arranged, and (2) the feedback and resulting regulation of actions occur at different levels.
Action structure
A 48- item questionnaire that provides a standardized method of assessing six distinct aspects of general performance motivation.
Motivational Trait Questionnaire (MTQ)
A motivational approach that involves increasing the responsibility and interest level of jobs in order to increase the motivation and job satisfaction of employees performing those jobs.
Job enrichment
The Productivity Measurement and Enhancement System; a motivational approach that utilizes goal setting, rewards, and feedback to increase motivation and performance.
ProMES
Quantitative measures of how well each objective is being met in the ProMES approach.
Indicators
Operant Conditioning (Reinforcement theory)
Positive: Add something
Negative: Remove something
Reinforcement: Encourage behaviour
Punishment: Discourage behaviour
Hackman and Oldham (1976) five job characteristics:
Skill variety. Task identity. Task significance. Autonomy. Task feedback.
Moderating Variables for the Job Characteristics Model
Growth need strength
Knowledge and skills
Satisfaction with extrinsic aspects of work
Self Determination Theory (SDT)
People are inherently (intrinsically) motivated by things that satisfy their basic psychological needs for:
relatedness, competence, and autonomy.
