Motivating Employees

Question 1

What is Motivation?

Answer 1

Motivation is the process by which a person’s effort are:
- energized
- directed
- sustained
towards attaining a goal.

Question 2

3 Components in motivation:

Answer 2

• Energy: a measure of intensity or drive
• Direction: towards organizational goals
• Persistence: exerting effort to achieve goals.
  => Motivation works best when individual needs are compatible with organizational goals.

Question 3

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs Theory:

Answer 3

• Maslow’s theory that human needs - physiological, safety, social, esteem, and self actualization form a sort of hierarchy.

Question 4

Hierarchy of needs:

Answer 4

1) Self-actualization (doing the best you can, putting your all into your job= highest needs)
2) Esteem
3) Social
4) Safety
5) Physiological
=> Satisfy the lower levels in order to reach the upper level.

Question 5

Physiological needs:

Answer 5

a person’s need for shelter, food, drink, sexual satisfaction, and other physical needs.

Question 6

Safety needs:

Answer 6

a person’s need for security and protection from physical and emotional harm.

Question 7

Social needs:

Answer 7

a person’s need for affection, belongingness, acceptance, and friendship.

Question 8

Esteem needs:

Answer 8

a person’s needs for internal factors such as self-respect, autonomy, and achievement, and external factors such as status, recognition, and attention.

Question 9

Self-actualization needs:

Answer 9

a person’s needs to become what they are capable of becoming.

Question 10

Note:

Answer 10

• all the needs need to be satisfied one by one without skipping on any of them.
• you cannot jump on one need and ignore the other.

Question 11

McGregor’s Theory X and Theory Y:

Answer 11

Theory X: the assumption that employees are lazy, dislike work, avoid responsibility, and require close supervision.

Theory Y: the assumption that employees are creative, enjoy work, seek responsibility, and can exercise self-direction.

Assumption: motivation is maximized by participative decision making, interesting jobs, and good group relations.

Question 12

Contemporary Theories of Motivation:

Answer 12

• Job design: the way tasks are combined to form complete jobs. (combination of tasks)
• Job scope: the number of different tasks required in a job and the frequency of which those tasks are repeated.
  (repetition of tasks)
• Job enlargement: the horizontal expansion of of a job by increasing job scope. (increasing and expanding the job)
• Job enrichment: the vertical expansion of a job by adding planning and evaluating responsibilities. (participating in decisions, evaluations)

Question 13

Equity Theory:

Answer 13

the theory that an employee compares their job’s input-outcome ratio with that of relevant others and then corrects any inequity.

• if the ratios are perceived as equal, then the state of equity (fairness) exists.
• if the ratios are perceived as unequal, inequity exists and the person feels under- or over-rewarded.
• when inequities occur, employees will attempt to do something to rebalance the ratios (seek justice)