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Organizational psychology > Slide 3 > Flashcards

Slide 3 Flashcards

1
Q

What is the origin of the word motivation?

A

Motus, a Latin word, meaning to move
In English, it is derived from the word motive

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2
Q

What is motivation?

A

It refers to internal processes that activate, guide and maintain behaviour over time. Baron 2001

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3
Q

What is work motivation?

A

It refers to how much a person tries to work hard and work well

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4
Q

What are the 3 main components of motivation?

A
  1. direction: what a person is trying to do
  2. effort: how hard a person is trying to do it
  3. persistence: how long a person keeps on trying
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5
Q

What are the two categories of motivation?

A
  1. positive motivation
  2. negative motivation
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6
Q

What is positive motivation?

A

It is the type of motivation that promotes incentives

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7
Q

What is negative motivation?

A

It is the type of motivation that threatens the enforcement of disincentives

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8
Q

What are the 3 broad types of motivation?

A
  1. intrinsic motivation
  2. extrinsic motivation
  3. amotivation
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9
Q

What is intrinsic motivation?

A

It reflects the drive to engage in a behavior because it is personally rewarding

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10
Q

What are the 3 different types of intrinsic motivation?

A
  1. intrinsic motivation to know
  2. intrinsic motivation to accomplish
  3. intrinsic motivation to experience stimulation
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11
Q

What is extrinsic motivation?

A

This occurs when we are externally motivated to perform a behaviour or engage in an activity to earn a reward or avoid punishment

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12
Q

What is amotivation?

A

A lack of purpose and intentionality in one’s action

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13
Q

What does an amotivated employee experience?

A

He or she experiences feelings of incompetence and expectancies of uncontrollability and an important loss of motivation

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14
Q

Why should managers have an understanding of the various theories of motivation?

A
  1. Motivation is a complex concept, and no one theory is wholly acceptable, in explaining the nature of motivation.
  2. All the theories available only help to explain the behaviour of certain people at certain times.
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15
Q

What are the two groups of motivation theories?

A
  1. content (need) theories
  2. process (cognitive) theories
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16
Q

What are content or need theories?

A

They are theories that focus on factors within the individual that energise, direct and sustain or stop behaviour

17
Q

What are some examples of content theories?

A
  1. Maslow’s hierarchy of needs
  2. Alderfer’s modified need hierarchy (ERG: Existence, Relatedness and Growth)
  3. Herzberg’s two-factor theory
  4. McClelland’s Achievement Motivation theory
18
Q

What are cognitive or process theories of motivation?

A

They are theories that provide description and analysis of how behaviour is initiated, energised, directed, sustained and/or stopped

19
Q

What are some examples of cognitive/process theories?

A
  1. Equity theory (Adams )
  2. Expectancy Theories (Vroom, and Porter & Lawler)
  3. Operant Conditioning
  4. Goal-setting Theory (Locke
20
Q

What’s Maslow’s theory of physiological needs equivalent in organisations?

A
  1. pay
  2. pleasant working conditions
  3. cafeteria
21
Q

What’s Maslow’s theory of safety needs equivalent in organisations?

A
  1. safe working conditions
  2. company benefits
  3. job security
22
Q

What’s Maslow’s theory of belongingness sneeds equivalent in organisations?

A
  1. cohesive work group
  2. friendly supervision
  3. professional association
23
Q

What’s Maslow’s theory of esteem needs equivalent in organisations?

A
  1. social recognition
  2. job title
  3. high-status job
  4. feedback from the job itself
24
Q

What’s Maslow’s theory of self-actualisation needs equivalent in organisations?

A
  1. challenging job
  2. opportunities for creativity
  3. achievement in work
  4. advancement in the organisation
25
What are some criticisms of Maslow's theory?
1. motivation/job satisfaction does not necessarily lead to improved performance 2. people may be in the same hierarchy but may have different motivating factors 3. Several studies failed to validate the conception of a 5-step hierarchy 4. People place different emphasis on different things at different times 5. Maslow realized that more than one needs determine behaviour
26
Who developed the equity theory?
Adams(1963. 1965)
27
What is the equity theory based on?
It's based on the observation that people want to feel equitably compensated in their work
28
What are the two main assumptions of the equity theory?
1. The need for cognitive balance consistency—i.e., our need to feel that our beliefs and attitudes are consistent with each other and not conflicting 2. Social comparison process—i.e., the tendency to assess ourselves and our status by comparing ourselves to significant others (whom we accept as referents).
29
What are the key elements for comparison in the equity theory?
1. Inputs: efforts, experience, credentials, longevity, successful accomplishment 2. Outcomes: returns or compensation such as pay, benefits, enjoyment, etc.
30
What happens when employees perceive inequity?
They can: 1. change their inputs 2. change their outcomes 3. distort perceptions of self 4. distort the perception of others 5. choose a different referent 6. leave the field
31
What is the expectancy theory?
This is a theory that an individual will be more strongly motivated to engage in a behaviour as he or she perceives stronger probabilities that the behavior will lead to valued outcomes and avoid bad outcomes
32
What is the expectancy theory based on?
It is based on the observation that humans seek to do what has the greater likelihood of yielding a desirable outcome and to minimize bad results
33
What is one criticism of the expectancy theory?
It is difficult in application and validation
34
What is one contribution of the expectancy theory?
It helped in leadership theories, e.g path theory and goal theory It can be helpful in analyzing practical motivational issues in organizations
35
What is the goal setting theory?
It holds the view that difficult specific goals lead to higher performance than easy and/or vague goals or no goals
36
How does the goal setting theory work?
where one has a difficult goal, it enhances performance by directing attention and action and also gets the individual to mobilize effort, increasing persistence; this eventually motivates them to search for effective performance strategies

Organizational psychology (6 decks)

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