Motivation

Question 1

What is motivation?

Answer 1

Motivation is the degree to which an individual wants AND chooses to engage in certain behaviours.

It’s also a cognitive decision process and was developed in the USA through empirical evidence.

Question 2

What is extrinsic and intrinsic motivation?

Answer 2

• Extrinsic Motivation in organisations is about activities influenced by the desire to secure rewards or avoid punishment. More tangible.
• Intrinsic Motivation in organisations can be understood as a feeling of joy, a sense of achievement or accomplishment that guides a person towards action. Intangible.
• The relationships between performance and intrinsic reward are more immediate than those between performance and extrinsic reward. Intrinsic rewards are thus more important influences on our motivation to work.

Question 3

What is are real life examples of Taylors motivation?

Answer 3

• McDonald’s invests in training and development programmes to equip employees with the necessary skills and knowledge to perform their tasks efficiently. New hires undergo comprehensive training that covers everything from food safety protocols to customer service techniques. Ongoing training and development initiatives help employees improve their performance and stay up to date with the latest procedures. McDonald’s regularly provides opportunities for advancement and skill development, fostering a motivated and knowledgeable workforce.
• Ford broke down the automobile assembly process into smaller, specialised tasks.
• The practice of timing emergency departments in hospitals and determining the shortest possible amount of time to attend to a patient. Also the NHS staff are trained in their department.

Question 4

What is demotivation?

Answer 4

A lack of interest and lack of enthusiasm in an activity/subject. Links to McGregor’s X and Y theory as X workers avoid work, lack ambition and value job security more than anything else.

Question 5

Why does demotivation happen?

Answer 5

• Values Mismatch: I don’t care enough to do this.
• Lack of Self-Efficacy: I don’t think I’m able to do this.
• Disruptive Emotions: I’m too upset to do this.
• Attribution Errors: I don’t know what went wrong with this.

Question 6

Why is motivation important?

Answer 6

• Motivation is crucial for understanding interactions within the social construct of the organisation.
• Affective behaviour is relevant in practical issues such as:
  absenteeism, turnover, etc.
• Can inform efficiency, productivity, effectiveness and quality.
• Strong link between the individual’s psychological state and organisational citizenship.

Question 7

What is the scientific management and human relations’ significance towards motivation?

Answer 7

• Taylor’s Scientific Management was one of earliest theories on motivation.
• He believed that people were motivated only by money.
• So pay for what people produce – ‘piece rate’- A fair days pay for a fair days work.
• Most often applied in industrial/manufacturing setting.
• Jobs broken down into small units of work.
• Repetitive – individual only did one element.
• Little opportunity for creativity.
• No incentive to develop.
• Often a very demotivating experience.

Question 8

What are the motivation theories?

Answer 8

• Hierarchy of needs
• McGregors Theory X and Y
• Motivator - hygiene factors
• Equity
• Expectancy
• Goal theory

Question 9

Historical context: Scientific
Management and Human
Relations Mayo

Answer 9

• In an experiment intended to measure how a work environment impacts worker productivity, Mayo’s researchers noted that workers productivity increased not from changes in environment, but when being watched. It’s a form of performance bias.
• High employee turnover despite relatively high levels of pay at Ford Motor Company suggested that other factors motivate people at work.
• Elton Mayo’s 1930s research at Western Electric Company, Hawthorne, USA
• ‘Hawthorne effect’.
• Motivation improved by paying attention to people.
• Giving people a degree of freedom to make choices.
• Supporting factors
• Good teamwork
• Non-repetitive work
• Involving people in decision making

Question 10

What is Maslow’s hierarchy of needs?

Answer 10

• The basic premise of the theory is that we all have 5 levels of needs and that starting at the lowest level we are motivated to satisfy each level in ascending order. As each level is sufficiently satisfied, we are then motivated to satisfy the next level in the hierarchy. The levels are physiological, safety, love, esteem and self actualisation.
• Maslow’s theory has been criticised for reflecting white American middle-class values in the mid-twentieth century, meaning its ethnocentric.
• This may represent a naive view. It is recognised that cultures have a tendency either to have a collective orientation or to focus more on the individual.

Question 11

What satisfies high order needs?

Answer 11

• Self actualisation is the desire for personal fulfilment, to develop one’s potential, and to become everything that one can become.
• Esteem code

Question 12

What satisfies low order needs?

Answer 12

• Social needs
• Safety needs
• Physiological needs

Question 13

What is Herzberg’s two factor theory?

Answer 13

• When it comes to our work lives, there are different, mutually exclusive factors.
• Job dissatisfaction: Influenced by hygiene factors, e.g. working conditions, policies and rules and coworker relations. Extrinsic factors are low order needs.
• Improving the motivator factors increases job satisfaction and vice Versa.
• Job satisfaction: Influenced by motivator factors, e.g. personal growth, responsibility and recognition. Intrinsic factors are more high order needs.

Question 14

What is job enlargement?

Answer 14

Workers being given a greater variety of tasks to perform (not necessarily more challenging) which should make the work more interesting.

Question 15

What are the strengths and weaknesses of Herzberg’s two factor theory?

Answer 15

• Defines the reasons why team members are satisfied or dissatisfied with their project or role.
• Uncovers the motivators and hygiene factors already deployed in the company that should be continued.
• Based on the assumption that all employees have the same needs. Doesn’t account for individual differences.
• That it places too much emphasis on job satisfaction and not enough on external factors, such as economic or social conditions.

Question 16

What is job enrichment?

Answer 16

Involves workers being given a wider range of more complex and challenging tasks surrounding a complete unit of work. This should give a greater sense of achievement.

Question 17

What is empowerment?

Answer 17

Means delegating more power to employees to make their own decisions over areas of their working life.

Question 18

Following Content Theories, Managers should:

Answer 18

• Understand how employees differ in what they need from work.
• Know what can be offered (i.e. rewards) to employees in response to their needs.
• Know how to create conditions that give employees opportunities to satisfy their needs by contributing to task performance.

Question 19

What are content theories?

Answer 19

• The most common examples of content theories are Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, Alderfer’s ERG model, Herzberg’s two-factor model, and McClelland’s need for achievement, affiliation, and power.
• Content theories argue that we direct and sustain our behaviour towards meeting unmet needs.

Question 20

What are the criticisms of content theories?

Answer 20

• Overly simplistic – do not account for the complexity of the real world and the complex decision-making process that individuals often make.
• Universality – Do they really apply to everyone? They take no account of gender, age, culture, religious or other factor differences.
• Individual differences and stability over time - Their static nature doesn’t relate to the real world.

Question 21

What is the equity theory?

Answer 21

• Equity is based on social comparison, people are gauge the fairness of their work outcomes compared to others.
• Negative inequity exists when employees feel they have received relatively less than others have in proportion to work inputs.
• Positive inequity exists when employees feel they have received relatively more than others have.
• By applying equity theory, organisations can strive to create a fair and just work environment where employees feel valued, respected, and rewarded fairly for their efforts. This can result in higher levels of satisfaction, commitment, and productivity among employees.
• Contains inputs, outputs and comparison.

Question 22

What type of theories are process theories?

Answer 22

• Expectancy theory
• Equity theory
• Goal theory

Question 23

What are the managerial implications?

Answer 23

The message for managers is that employees need to be seen to be rewarded on a fair and equitable basis, and inequities quickly adjusted.
- Underpaid people experience anger.
- Overpaid people experience guilt (sometimes).

Question 24

What is the equity theory criticism?

Answer 24

• An over-simplistic model: a number of demographic and psychological variables affect people’s perceptions of fairness and interactions with others.
• Much of the basic propositions of the theory were developed in laboratory settings; not from organisational contexts.

Question 25

What is the expectancy theory?

Answer 25

• This theory highlights that motivation is partly a decision-making process that evaluates effort for outcomes.
• Vroom argues that human behaviour is directed by subjective probability.
• Motivation= Expectation X Valence
• This theory was put forth by Victor Vroom in the 1960s.

Question 26

What are the strengths of the equity theory?

Answer 26

• The ability to motivate a team through fair and equitable treatment.
• Boosts Performance: When individuals perceive fairness and equity in their relationships, they are more likely to be satisfied with their work and motivated to perform at their best.

Question 27

What are the key expectancy theory variables?

Answer 27

1. Expectancy — belief that working hard will result in desired level of performance.
2. Instrumentality — belief that successful performance will be followed by rewards.
3. Valence — value a person assigns to rewards and other work related outcomes.

Question 28

What are the expectancy theory implications?

Answer 28

1. To maximise expectancy, managers should:
   - Select workers with ability, train workers to use ability.
2. To maximise instrumentally, managers should:
   - Clarify psychological contracts, identify rewards that are contingent on performance.
3. To maximise valence in a positive direction, managers should:
   - Identify individual needs and adjust rewards to match individual needs.

Question 29

What are the expectancy theory criticisms?

Answer 29

• Over simplistic
• It is based on the assumption that if an employer makes a reward attractive enough, then employees will increase thier productivity to obtain the reward.
• Fails to account for individual differences.

Question 30

What is the behaviourism theory?

Answer 30

• Stimulus - response psychology
• Skinners behaviour modification techniques
• Different schedules of reinforcement have different effects on motivation - fixed and variable rewards.
• We learn through interactions within our environment.
• Encourages positive behaviours in the workplace.
• It emphasises external factors over inherent traits or innate dispositions.

Question 31

What are the advantages and disadvantages of behaviourism?

Answer 31

+ In some cases behaviour is changed.
+ Use in the workplace: knowledge and learning; change management; leadership.

• Exactly what behaviours are rewarded?
• Underlying behaviour change, or simply meeting targets?
• Lack of Focus on Cognitive Skills: The behavioral model primarily emphasizes observable behaviors and external stimuli. It may overlook the development of critical thinking, problem-solving. Ignore the inner state.

Question 32

What is the behavioural modification theory?

Answer 32

Behaviour modification theory is often associated with both motivation and learning. Broadly, it suggests that behaviour is a function of its consequences, that is, the outcome of a particular behaviour will influence the nature of future behaviour . Both positive and negative reinforcement can increase the strength of a behaviour as people often respond positively to encouraging feedback and/or consider changing their behaviour if it leads to negative feedback.

Question 33

What is negative reinforcement?

Answer 33

• Negative reinforcement is the encouragement of certain behaviors by removing or avoiding a negative outcome or stimuli.
• Managers often conduct employee reviews, which the employees often disliked. The manger could use the ‘dislike’ as an opportunity to use negative reinforcement to increase productivity.
• For example, the manager could pitch an offer to the employees that if production goes up by 5% during the next quarter, with no increase in defective parts, they could skip the quarterly review next time.

Question 34

What is the research into behaviourism?

Answer 34

• Way & Bliss’s (1999) studied behaviourism techniques in a call centre. Workers were required to answer 9 calls per hour, and the system was monitored by IT. The aim was to manage the call centre efficiently.
• However, the call centre workers often struggled to meet this target because some calls lasted much longer than others.
• To avoid punishment, the workers would sometimes pick up a call and then end it immediately. The system would register the call and help the workers to meet their target.

Question 35

What are the different theoretical perspectives of the perception of pay?

Answer 35

1. Behaviourism - Pay is a stimulus and can be used as a reward or punishment.
2. Maslow’s hierarchy of needs - Pay motivates differently at different levels of the hierarchy.
3. Herzberg - Pay must be at a certain level to avoid dissatisfaction.
4. Adam’s equity - Pay is used by employees to compare against inputs and rewards of others.
5. Vroom’s expectancy - Pay is a reward, but the value of the reward depends upon how it is perceived.

Question 36

What is a real world example of behaviourism in the workplace?

Answer 36

Employers may use token economies, where employees receive tokens for desirable behaviours, such as arriving on time or completing tasks on schedule. These tokens can be exchanged for rewards, such as extra time off or bonuses. This reinforces the idea of positive reinforcement.

Question 37

What are the non financial methods of motivation?

Answer 37

• Delegation: One of Herzberg’s motivators- increased responsibility.
• Empowerment: Provides employees with more responsibility to work on their own behalf.
• Consultation: Occurs when managers and leaders obtain the views of employees when making decisions.
• Job Rotation: Involves the movement of employees through a range of jobs.
• Job Enrichment: Gives employees greater responsibility by increasing the range and complexity of tasks.
• Job Enlargement: Involves the addition of extra, similar, tasks to a job.
• Flexible Working - improves work-life balance and frees time for personal development, and caring responsibilities.
• Team Working

Question 38

What is a real life example of motivation in a company?

Answer 38

• In 2019, Microsoft tested out a four-day work week in its Japan offices and found as a result employees were not only happier, but significantly more productive.
• Microsoft Japan experimented with a new project called Work-Life Choice Challenge giving its entire 2,300 workforce five Fridays off in a row without decreasing pay.
• The shortened weeks led to more efficient meetings, happier workers, and boosted productivity by a staggering 40%, the company concluded at the end of the trial. As part of the programme, the company had also planned to subsidise family vacations for employees up to ¥100,000 or $920.

Question 39

How can motivation strategies go wrong in the real world

Answer 39

• Produce negative effects
• Promote wrong behaviours
• Stifle creativity
• Work against the interests of the organisation and consumers.

Question 40

What is a negative of flexible working?

Answer 40

The gig economy has a dark side. Flexible working, freelancing, and gigging may be a lifestyle preference. But this is precarious work; insecurity is the price of flexibility. Looking for gigs can be lonely, and financially risky, and leads to a blurring of work and home lives. Freelance workers do not have the same benefits as permanent employees, or the organisation’s protection should things go wrong.

Question 41

What has the post office and horizon scandal have to do with motivation?

Answer 41

There are suggestions that the financial incentives the Post Office leaders received led them to cover up wrong-doing.
Should companies incentivize good corporate governance as well as profitability?

Question 42

What is an example of motivation due to non- financial incentives?

Answer 42

Google claims to “create the happiest, most productive workplace in the world.” The company hosts employee forums on all Fridays where there is an examination of the 20 most asked questions. Employees are regularly surveyed about their managers. The worst managers are provided with vigorous support and coaching. Freedom over how and when work is completed. Unconventional office designs.

Question 43

What is the worse case of motivation?

Answer 43

Some of the recent large-scale bankruptcies, financial and
corporate scandals have their roots in failed motivational strategies. Enron Scandal: bankrupt in 2002 as a result of “cooking the books”. Enron senior managers accrued huge bonuses by generating the appearance of profit rather than by generating real profit. The incentive system was corrupted by greed and dishonesty.