Job Characteristics and Work Motivation

Question 1

Content Theories

Answer 1

Attempt to explain ‘what’ motivates people

Question 2

Process Theories

Answer 2

Attempt to explain ‘how’ people are motivated

Incorporates individual differences e.g. different people may not be motivated by the same things

Question 3

Taylor’s Money Motivation Theory (content theory)

Answer 3

People are mainly motivated by money - should be paid according to amount of work done e.g. time-piece-rate pay

Question 4

Herzberg’s 2-Factor Hygiene-Motivation Theory (content theory)

Answer 4

Argues there are certain factors e.g. challenge, responsibility which will directly motivate one to work harder
But there are also factors that would demotivate the worker if not present (hygiene factors) e.g. pay, work environment etc

Question 5

Hackman and Oldham’s Job Characteristics Model (1976) (content theory)

Answer 5

There are certain factors e.g. skill variety, task significance, feedback etc that produce critical psychological states and feelings of meaningfulness and responsibility which influence motivation, satisfaction and work performance

Question 6

Job Simplification

Answer 6

Taylor advocates job simplification - job design that minimises skill requirement and maximises management control. Money seen as the sole reason of working

However Kornhauser (1965) noted job simplification can lead to poor work attitudes and poor mental health

Question 7

Job Enrichment

Answer 7

Herzberg indicates that more responsibility rather than job enlargement/rotation will provide job enrichment

Question 8

Individual Differences: McClelland’s (1961) Need for Acheivement

Answer 8

Not everyone has the work ethic, pursuit of excellence, competitiveness etc compared to others as well as against own standards (mastery)

Question 9

Individual Differences: Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs

Answer 9

Individuals may be at different levels so their motivators may be different - or they may put different value on different needs

Question 10

Individual Differences: McGregor’s Theory X and Theory Y

Answer 10

Theory X: management style that assumes employees dislike work, responsibility, are lazy and need to be coerced to work e.g. through money as a motivator

Theory Y: management style where managers have an optimistic, positive opinion of their workers. Regular appraisals encourage open communication

Question 11

Expectancy Theory (Vroom, 1964) (process theory)

Answer 11

Expectancy of achieving outcome x the value of each outcome = motivation

Question 12

Goal-Setting Theory (Locke, 1981) (process theory)

Answer 12

Commitment and acceptance of a goal are determined by factors such as:

• goal specificity: e.g. do x by time y rather than ‘do your best’
• goal difficulty: relationship between the person and the goal. Subjective depending on ability and experience

Specific
Measurable
Attainable
Relevant
Timely
SMART GOALS

Question 13

Combining Content and Process Theories

Answer 13

Expectancy theory can be used to find out what content individuals value/what motivates them e.g. money

Goal-setting to achieve desired content/incentive

Design the job accordingly