College 4 Flashcards
Motivation
There are a lot of things that can motivate you, what are the different categories for these motivational factors?
- Person related (P)
- Task related (T)
- Social/Context related (C)
What is motivation?
Motivation is
- What a person does (direction)
- How hard a person works (intensity)
- How long a person works (persistence)
You need motivation for all types of behaviour.
How can you motivate other people as a leader?
First it is important to energize behaviour. One way to do this is to search for underlying needs or values, things that people find interesting. Because if you know that, you can energize people’s behaviour and make them really enthusiastic for instance and motivate them to perform this behaviour.
The next thing is to direct the behaviour towards a certain goal, either an individual goal or an organisational goal. Ideally the individual goal is in line with the organisational goal.
Then it’s about sustaining behaviour, it’s about persistence. One way of doing this is, is providing rewards. You could also use punishment or sanctions.
It’s important to use feedback to see if the energizing behaviour and the directing behaviour are still in line. So giving feedback on what people are doing can also be helpful for motivating people to energize the behaviour again.
Goal setting
A good way to motivate yourself but especially other people, is by setting goals.
“A goal without a plan is just a wish”
One way to come up with really good goals is to use SMART Goal Setting.
You can differ in how promotion or prevention focused you are.
The goals you set should really fit with the regulatory focus of people, otherwise they work less.
One is not better than the other, people just differ.
SMART Goal Setting
- Specific
o The more specific the better - Measurable
o How far are you in obtaining the goal?
o Have you reached your goal? - Achievable
- Relevant
o It needs to be relevant for the person and the organisation - Time-Based
o It is clear when the goal needs to be reached, but in an obtainable time
Regulatory Focus Theory (RFT)
- Promotion-Focused-Individuals have a need for achievement, focus on advancement, and set learning goals.
- Prevention-Focused-Individuals are vigilant and careful, emphasize fears, focus on avoiding threats, and set prevention goals.
o E.g., goals that are clearly written in the job description
It can differ per situation.
It is not a very clear difference usually, so people can sort of fall in between, but everyone has a tendency to promotion focused or prevention focused.
What is the following connected to? “Setting goals is a sort of interaction between an individual and the leader. But the job itself could also be motivating or less motivating.”
The job characteristics theory.
What are the five core dimensions of the Job Characteristics Theory?
- Skill variety
- Task identity
- Task significance
- Autonomy
- Feedback
Skill variety in the job characteristics theory
- Not the same skill over and over again.
- You will have to use different skills in order to be motivated to do the job.
Task identity in the job characteristics theory
- People need to identify with the task.
- You need to feel like an owner of the process, from beginning to the end.
- The ikea effect
- When you work on a task from beginning to end you automatically give it more meaning and you value it more. As a consequence you’re more motivated to do the task or to repeat the task at a later stage.
Task significance in the job characteristics theory
- It has to have some significance, some impact on other people for instance.
Autonomy in the job characteristics theory
- You need to feel freedom.
- You shouldn’t feel monitored all the time.
- This is a very important dimension in order to feel motivated.
Feedback in the job characteristics theory
- The job needs to give some sort of feedback.
- You need to know when you are doing the right thing.
The ikea effect
An example of task identity (job characteristics theory).
The ikea effect: when you work on something you value it more than if you just buy it.
What happens when people are motivated or when the job characteristics are present?
It results in:
- More satisfaction with the work.
- Higher internal work motivation.
- Higher quality work performance.
- Less absenteeism and turnover.
What do job characteristics theory-designed jobs do?
They give internal rewards.
What is a moderating factor of the job characteristics theory?
The employee growth need strength.
The positive effects only occur if people have a need to grow.
If they don’t have a need to grow the positive effects are less likely to occur.
What must jobs have/be to be motivating?
Motivating jobs must
- Be autonomous
- Provide feedback
- Have at least one of the three meaningfulness factors (skill variety, task identity or task significance).
When does the job characteristics theory work less well?
It works less well in a collectivistic culture as opposed to an individualistic culture.
Job crafting
This can really motivate people and can lead to more sustainable employability.
The extent to which individuals can demonstrate initiative in designing their own work.
- E.g., you can ask for feedback
I-deals
- Individuals can come to an individual agreement with their manager that can deviate from the formal regulations that apply to everyone.
o E.g., leaving work earlier to pick up your kids.
The importance of fairness
Fairness is an important aspect that has an effect on motivation.
This can be explained by:
- Equity theory
- Organisational justice
- Developing a fair reputation
Equity theory
What I put into my job (e.g., skills, effort) = What I get out of my job (e.g., pay, praise)
People compare themselves to co-workers, this relates to fairness. Is it fair that another coworker gets something and I don’t’? If people feel other people put in the same amount and get the same amount, then all is fine.
According to the equity theory, what happens if you find out you get paid less than your coworker for the same work?
You will feel demotivated.
According to the equity theory, what happens if you find out that you earn more than your co-worker even though you are putting in less/the same amount of work?
You will start making justifications and looking for explanations for why you earn more. You will not work harder or be more motivated.
Organisational justice
The perception of members/employees about how things have gone in terms of fairness.
Or
The “member’s sense of the moral propriety of how they are treated”.
What types of organisational justice are there?
- Distributive justice
- Procedural justice
- Interpersonal justice
- Informational justice