MID TERM POINT Module 5: Chapter 5 (Theories of Motivation) & Chapter 6 (Motivation in Practice)

Question 1

Define Motivation and the four characteristics

Answer 1

Motivation: the extent to which persistent effort is directed toward a goal

• Effort - The strength of a person’s work-related behaviour (effort) the person exhibits on the job
• Persistence - Perusing the job in a time-consistent manner
• Direction - Is what you’re doing helpful to the organization?
• Goals - Workers have some objective to work towards

Question 2

What are the two types of Motivation

Answer 2

Intrinsic Motivation: The task what you’re doing gives you pleasure; gives internal satisfaction

Extrinsic Motivation: Motivation that stems from the work environment external to the task and is applied by others; when you do something its because of external benefits

Question 3

What are the two forms of intelligence that are important for performance (objectives)

Answer 3

General Cognitive Ability: One’s overall capacity to mentally process, understand, and learn information (verbal, numerical, etc. required to perform tasks)

Emotional Intelligence (EI): the ability to understand and manage one’s own and others’ feelings and emotions

Question 4

Define Need Theories and name the three main theories

Answer 4

Need theories: motivation theories specify the kinds of needs people have and the conditions under which they will be motivated to satisfy these needs

1. Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs
2. Alderfer’s ERG Theory
3. McClelland’s AAP Theory of Needs

Question 5

What are the five Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs

Answer 5

1. Psychological needs
2. Safety needs
3. Belonginess needs
4. Esteem needs
5. Self-actualization needs

Question 6

Give the three needs of Alderfer’s ERG Theory?

Answer 6

1. Existence needs - needs that are satisfied by some material substance or condition (ex. need for food, shelter)
2. Relatedness needs - needs are satisfied by open communication and the exchange of thoughts and feelings with other organizational members
3. Growth needs - needs that satisfied by a strong personal involvement in the work setting

Question 7

What are the three needs of McClelland’s AAP Theory of Needs?

Answer 7

• Need for Achievement: a strong desire to perform challenging tasks well
• Need for Affiliation: a strong desire to establish and maintain a friendly compatible interpersonal relationships
• Need for Power: a strong desire to influence others, making a significant impact or impression

Question 8

is self/intrinsic -motivation and occurs when people feel they are in control of their motivation

Answer 8

Autonomous Motivation
○ Ex. They are performing a task because its interesting

Question 9

motivation that is externally controlled, such as when one is motivated to obtain a desired consequence or extrinsic reward

Answer 9

Controlled Motivation
○ Ex. When one feels they are pressured, they have no choice but to engage in the task

Question 10

Define Process Theory and list the three sub-theories

Answer 10

Process theories: motivation theories that specify the details of how motivation occurs

1. Expectancy Theory
2. Equity Theory
3. Goal-setting Theory

Question 11

motivation is determined by the outcomes that people expect to occur as a result of their actions on the job

[Process Theories]

Answer 11

Expectancy Theory
→ Instrumentality: the probability that a particular first-level outcome (ex. High productivity) will be followed by a particular second-level outcome (ex. Pay)

• The attractiveness of various work activities depends on the extent to which they lead to favourable personal consequences

Question 12

suggests that employee motivation at work is driven largely by their sense of fairness

[Process Theories]

Answer 12

Equity theory
* Ex. Women usually compare themselves to other women and men vs. men
* If women compare themselves to less-paid women, they are less likely to be motivated to correct wage inequalities

Question 13

states that goals are motivational when they are specific and challenging, when organizational members are committed to them, and when feedback about progress toward goal attainment is provided

[Process Theories]

Answer 13

Goal-Setting theory

Question 14

define variable pay, piece-rate, and wage incentive plans

Answer 14

• Variable pay: a portion of employees’ pay that is based on a measure of performance
• Piece-rate: a pay system in which individual workers are paid a certain sum of money for each unit of production completed
• Wage incentive plans: various systems that link pay to performance on production jobs
  → Ex. Workers in a steel mill may be paid hourly and have a additional monthly bonus for each tonne of steel produced

Question 15

Problems with wage incentives (5 things)

Answer 15

1. Lower quality
2. differential opportunity
3. reduced cooperation
4. incompatible job designs
5. restriction of productvity

Question 16

define Merit plans

Answer 16

Merit pay plans: systems that attempt to link pay to performance on white-collar jobs
→ Managers annually evaluates the performance of employees on a rating scale then the recommends some amount of merit pay to be awarded to individuals over and above their basic salaries

Question 17

What are the seven core characteristics of the Job Characteristics Model

FATTS

Answer 17

○ Skill variety: the opportunity to do a variety of job activities using various skills and talents

○ Autonomy: the freedom to schedule one’s own work activities and decide on work procedures

○ Task Significance: the impact that a job has on other people

○ Task Identity: the extent to which a job involves doing a complete piece of work, from beginning to end

○ Feedback: information about the effectiveness of one’s work performance

Question 18

Define Job Enrichment

Answer 18

Job Enrichment: the design of jobs to enhance intrinsic motivation, quality of working life, and job involvement

Question 19

Define Management by Objectives

Answer 19

Management by Objectives (MBO): an elaborate, systematic, ongoing program designed to facilitate goal establishment, goal accomplishment, and employee development