Motivation

Question 1

If managers are to take decisions to improve the performance of individuals so that they can make a greater contribution to organisation effectiveness, the managers will require an understanding of motivation.
Discuss four content theories of motivation and evaluate their usefulness in providing a management tool for the motivation of individuals in the workplace.

Answer 1

1) Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs.
2) McClelland’s Achievement Motivation.
3) McGregor’s Views of Man.
4) Herzberg’s Two Factor Theory

Question 2

What are content theories and how are they different to process theories?

Answer 2

Content theories focus on WHAT motivates people, whereas process theories focus on the PROCESSES through which people are motivated

Question 3

EXPLAIN the stages of 1)

Answer 3

Maslow’s theory of motivation (1954) comprises of a hierarchy of needs in ascending order:

• PHYSIOLOGICAL - essentials for survival
• SAFETY - security and protection against danger
• SOCIAL - fulfil need for belonging, love and affection
• ESTEEM - need for respect from self and others
• SELF-ACTUALISATION - need for self fulfilment, striving to realise one’s full potential.

Once a need is satisfied it no longer monopolizes an individual’s behaviour; behaviour will be directed towards satisfying the next need level. The corollary is obvious -only unsatisfied needs act as motivators. However, the exception to this is self-actualization where increased satisfaction, instead of decreasing need strength, tends to increase the desire for further self-fulfilment. Complete satisfaction of self-actualization is rarely, if ever, achieved.

Question 4

How useful is 1) for providing a management tool for the motivation of individuals in the workplace?

Answer 4

• The theory was not tailored to be applicable in industry
• Needs can be satisfied elsewhere from the workplace
• Maslow highlighted the importance of intrinsic motivation: this is motivation stemming from within the individual, which raises questions on how work might be structured to facilitate individual satisfaction of higher order needs.
• Conversely, extrinsic motivation results from factors external to the individual, for example, pay.

Question 5

EXPLAIN 2

Answer 5

McClelland (1961) studied achievement orientated people, and shared the following characteristics:

• PREFERENCE of performing tasks with a SOLE RESPONSIBILITY to identify closely with success of their outcomes.
• MODERATE RISK TAKERS that apply attainable goals to maximise success
• CONTINUAL FEEDBACK to gain knowledge of their success and achieve satisfaction

Question 6

What were the conclusions from 2) and how useful was it for providing a management tool for the motivation of individuals in the workplace?

Answer 6

• under achievement comes from parental influence, education, cultural background and the value systems dominant in society.
• Organisations may be concerned with selecting high achievers as managers and therefore low achievers could be trained to develop a greater urge to achieve.

Question 7

What are the name of the two theories outlined in 3)?

Answer 7

Theory X, the economic man view and theory Y, the social man view

Question 8

What were the assumptions for theory X?

Answer 8

1) people only work for money
2) average person dislikes work and will avoid it wherever possible
3) people must be coerced, controlled, directed and threatened with punishment
4) most people avoid responsibility

Question 9

What were the conclusions from Theory X and how useful was it for providing a management tool for the motivation of individuals in the workplace?

Answer 9

• most organizations realize the significance of pay as an incentive to improve performance, and to criticize the economic approach does not mean that pay is not important to individuals as has been verified in a number of studies
• However, management must realize that the importance attached to pay may vary between individuals and that they have other needs to fulfil as well as economic needs

Question 10

What are the assumptions of Theory Y?

Answer 10

1) people seek self fulfilment
2) average person does NOT dislike work as it SATISFIES
3) people can exercise their own self-direction and control at work
4) satisfy high order needs as well as low order needs
5) keen to accept responsibility and capable of creativity
6) average person not utilised to full potential

Question 11

What were the conclusions from Theory Y and how useful was it for providing a management tool for the motivation of individuals in the workplace?

Answer 11

If management can create a work environment where individuals can realise their higher order needs, it will increase performance.

Question 12

What are the two factors discussed in 4)?

Answer 12

Hygiene factors and motivator factors

Question 13

What are the Hygiene factors?

Answer 13

• salaries, wages, benefits
• company policy and administration
• good inter-personal relationships
• quality of supervision
• job security
• working conditions
• work/life balance

Question 14

What are the motivator factors?

Answer 14

• sense of personal achievement
• status
• recognition
• challenging/stimulating work
• responsibility
• opportunity for advancement
• promotion
• growth

Question 15

What do these the hygiene and motivator factors result in (individually)?

Answer 15

1) General satisfaction 
Prevention of dissatisfaction
2) High motivation 
High satisfaction 
Strong commitment

Question 16

What were the conclusions from 4) and how useful was it for providing a management tool for the motivation of individuals in the workplace?

Answer 16

The equations indicate the independent nature of the two variables. The removal of dissatisfaction by adjusting the hygiene factors will not cause satisfaction, which can be achieved only by taking account of the motivator factors

Question 17

What is the other approach not in Theory X and Y, but probably more realistic?

Answer 17

The complex man approach

Question 18

What did Herzberg suggest managers should do?

Answer 18

Move away from their traditional concentration upon the extrinsic factors and redesign jobs so that the individual has greater scope for autonomy, responsibility and the opportunity for personal growth.

1. Job rotation This involves moving workers between a number of jobs on some regular time basis so as to introduce some variety into the activities performed by the employee.
2. Job enlargement (sometimes referred to as horizontal job enlargement). This involves changing the content of a specific job in order to build in additional tasks which do not require any increase in responsibility levels.
3. Autonomous work groups Experiments in autonomous work groups are closely related to the socio-technical systems approach which attempts to derive the optimal match between technological requirements, social needs and economic factors.