Important Concepts

1
Important Concepts

• Behavior The action from which we infer
  motivation.
• Example, if a person works hard we usually infer
  that he or she is motivated.
• Performance Evaluation of behavior against some
  standard.
• Example, we evaluate a secretarys performance
  based on how many words he or she can type in a
  minute. The standard in the company is 80 words
  a minute.
• Ability A rather stable attribute of
  individuals that influences their behavior.
• Example, how well a person can type depends on
  their finger dexterity.

2
Important Concepts

• Situational constraints Environmental factors
  and opportunities that facilitate or retard
  behavior (and ultimately performance)
• Example, the quality of a secretarys typewriter
  will influence his or her typing performance.
• Motivation Willingness or desire to do
  something or behave in a particular way.
• Example, if a secretary wants to type fast and
  tries hard to do so then we say he or she is
  motivated to perform well.

3
Putting it Together

• Ability reflects what you can do.
• Motivation reflects what you will do given your
  ability.
• Situational constraints reflect what you are
  allowed to do, or what is possible given the
  circumstances.
• So,
• Performance (Ability x Motivation) -
  Situational Constraints
• Motivation is important because without it, even
  the most skilled or talented person will not
  perform well.

4
Work Motivation Theories

• Need Hierarchy Theory
• Equity Theory
• Expectancy Theory
• Reinforcement Theory
• Goal-setting Theory
• Not one right theory, just different ways of
  viewing motivation and ways to motivate people.
• Different ways of answering the question, What
  motivates people?

5
Need Hierarchy Theory

• Developed by Abraham Maslow.
• Not directly concerned with work motivation.
• Hierarchy (from top to bottom)
• Self-actualization needs (realization of ones
  full potential).
• Self-esteem needs (recognition, self-confidence,
  praise).
• Social needs (desire for association, belonging,
  companionship).
• Safety needs (freedom from threat, danger, and
  deprivation).
• Physiological needs (food, water, air).
• Behavior is dominated and determined by the needs
  that are unfulfilled.
• Basic needs take precedence. You work your way
  up.

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Need Hierarchy Theory

• Implications for work
• Employees will focus on those aspects of work
  unfilled in the hierarchy.
• Example, if pay and security are poor, they will
  be the focus. But if pay and security are good,
  then one strives for praise and
  self-actualization.
• Example, if work conditions are poor or unsafe,
  they will be the focus. If they are alright,
  then more a focus on pay and other aspects of the
  job.
• As people move up in the organization, their
  needs are different.
• Example, pay is not as much of an issue. Deals
  more with prestige.

7
Need Hierarchy Theory

• Maslows theory has not received much empirical
  support.
• It is difficult to measure different aspects of
  the theory. For example, what is
  self-actualization. No operational definitions.
• Whether Maslows theory is right or wrong is not
  really the important issue. It should be viewed
  as more philosophical and the principles should
  be considered when determining how to treat
  employees and understand why people behave in a
  certain way.

8
Equity Theory

• Remember when we talked about Equity in
  Organizational Justice theory.
• First discussed by Adams (1965). Really forms
  the basis for justice theory.
• Basic Premise
• Based on social comparison how hard you work
  based on comparing with efforts of others.
• People are motivated based on whether they think
  their outcomes are in-line with their inputs.
• However, not a simple comparison. It is social
  in nature.

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Equity Theory

• How do people determine if they are being treated
  fairly? In other words, are my outcomes just?
• People compare the ratio of their inputs to their
  outputs to the ratio of inputs and outputs of a
  comparison other.
• Based on this comparison, a person either
  determines that they are being treated fairly, or
  there is some type of inequity.
• Example PAY.
• Bob and Sally perform the same job. They both
  put in a similar amount of time and effort. In
  addition, they are both paid about the same. Bob
  compares his ratio of inputs to outputs to
  Sallys ratio and determines that it is fair.
• Bob and Sally perform the same job. Bob puts in
  less time and effort than Sally. Sally is paid
  considerably more than Bob. Based on the ratio
  of inputs and outputs Bob determines that this
  pay difference is fair.

10
Equity Theory

• What happens when inequity is perceived?
• Behavioral ways of reducing inequity.
• Change inputs
• Example, I determine that I am not getting paid
  enough for the work that I do. So, I do less
  work.
• Change outcomes.
• Example, I determine that I am not getting paid
  enough for the work that I do. So, I request a
  raise.
• Get Others to change inputs or outcomes.
• Example, I realize that others are getting paid
  the same as me but are not doing the same amount
  of work. I complain to my supervisor and request
  that they be required to do more work.
• Quit job for more equitable one.

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Equity Theory

• What happens when inequity is perceived?
• Cognitive ways to reduce inequity.
• Distort own inputs or outcomes.
• Example, I realize that I am being paid more than
  my coworkers who do the same job. I justify this
  by thinking that my work is critical to the
  success of the company.
• Distort others inputs or outcomes.
• Example, I realize that I am being paid more than
  my coworkers who do the same job. I justify this
  by thinking that their work is not as high
  quality as mine.
• Change comparison other.
• Example, I realize that I am being paid more than
  my coworkers who do the same job. But, then I
  think about how much professional athletes get
  paid for playing a game and realize that my pay
  is more than fair.

12
Equity Theory

• Good in principle. Cant deny that people make
  comparisons.
• However, difficult to measure and test.
• How do people determine comparison other?
• What factors are involved in the comparison?
• Basic tests of the theory show promise.
• Greenbergs theft studies (changed
  offices/changed pay studies)
• Once again, peoples fairness perceptions can
  influence their attitudes and behavior.

13
Expectancy Theory

• Vroom (1964) brought expectancy into motivation.
• Often called VIE Theory for
• Valence.
• Instrumentality.
• Expectancy
• Basic Premise
• Individuals motivation is determined by their
  expectations of achieving desired outcomes.

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Expectancy Theory

• Important Parts
• Job Outcomes What organization provides to
  employee (pay, promotions, vacation, also can be
  negative, include feelings)
• Valence Employees feelings about outcomes,
  attractiveness of outcomes or anticipated
  satisfaction with outcomes. Basically the
  perceived value of outcomes.
• Expectancy Perceived relationship between effort
  and performance. Can you achieve the outcome.
• Instrumentality Perceived relationship between
  performance and outcome attainment.
• Force amount of effort or pressure within the
  person to be motivated, a predictor of how
  motivated a person is thus
• Motivation Expectancy x Value x Instrumentality

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Expectancy Theory

• Example,
• Your motivation or effort in this class is
  determined by (1) the value you place on doing
  well (valence) (2) the extent to which you
  believe hard work will lead to good performance
  (expectancy) and (3) the extent to which you
  think your performance in this class will lead to
  desired outcomes, such as graduation or a better
  job (instrumentality).
• The basics of this theory are generally accepted.
• Biggest criticism People are not this logical.
• Middle ground People may make these evaluations,
  which in turn influence performance. But it is
  probably an unconscious decision (called Image
  Theory).

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Reinforcement Theory

• Based on B.F. Skinners work, remember operant
  conditioning, behaviorism?
• Involves response and reward.
• Skinner found that you could condition or train a
  response by presenting a reward.
• Example, pigeon learned to press lever because
  when it did it was rewarded with a food pellet.
• In work, we focus on how we can get a particular
  response from people by providing rewards or
  reinforcement.

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Reinforcement Theory

• Basic Premise
• We reward people for the correct response.
• Example, we reward hard work with good pay.
• Four Basic Reinforcement Schedules
• Fixed interval (e.g., hourly pay).
• Fixed ratio (e.g., piece rate, commission).
• Variable interval (e.g., during busy season paid
  more often due to increased volume of customers).
• Variable ratio (e.g., real estate agent gets paid
  500 per house sold when market slow, but 500
  per 2 or 3 houses when market is good).

18
Reinforcement Theory

• Has received good empirical support.
• Critical to match reinforcement type to the type
  of work or performance you want. Individual
  differences do matter here.
• Example, salespersons typically work on ratio
  reinforcement schedules because the goal is to
  sell as much of the product as possible. It
  really doesnt matter how long it takes you to do
  it.
• Can be used to influence outcomes besides just
  productivity.
• Examples absenteeism, turnover, teamwork.
• Can be detrimental if over focus on production
• This is the only theory that looks at
  environmental factors that shape or modify
  behavior.

19
Goal-Setting Theory

• Well accepted in field of IO Psychology
• Locke Latham (1990).
• Goals have two major function
• They are a basis for motivation. They help a
  person decide how much effort to put into their
  work.
• They direct behaviors. They tell a person what
  they should be striving to achieve, and sometimes
  exactly what they should be doing.
• Two things must occur for goals to work
• The person must be aware of the goal and know
  what they are supposed to accomplish (specific
  and clear goals).
• The person must accept the goal (moderate
  difficulty).

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Goal Setting Theory

• Best type of goals
• Difficult and Specific
• They should be specific so that they person knows
  what it is they are supposed to accomplish.
• They should be difficult so that they person has
  to work hard to achieve the goal, but it should
  be achievable.
• Other goal issues
• Ramped - increase goals across time.
• Learning vs. performance.
• Learning goals (also called mastery goals) good
  for long term performance and deep understanding
  of the task.
• Performance goals good for short term, no-error
  performance on a specific task.

21
Self-Regulation Theory

• Not an independent motivational theory but an
  important component of several motivational
  theories
• Based on the setting of goals and the receipt of
  accurate feedback that is monitored to enhance
  the chances of goal attainment.
• Self-monitoring very important, feedback from
  others gives error message when off track
• Example You want an A in this class, but get a
  C on the mid-term. You change your approach to
  studying. If this does not work, may revise your
  goal to getting a B.

22
Job Characteristics Theory

• The environment where work is performed is locus
  of control for motivation, not individual thus
  all employees can be motivated by the proper work
  environment.
• Process of designing jobs to enhance individual
  motivation to perform work is called job
  enrichment.
• Hackman Oldham most noted in this area
• Five core job dimensions
• Skill variety different activities, skills
  talents job requires
• Task identity degree to employee does job from
  beginning to end with results.
• Task significance the jobs impact on the
  lives/work of other people either inside/outside
  org.
• Autonomy the degree of freedom, independence,
  discretion in scheduling work/determining
  procedures.
• Task feedbackdegree to which job activities
  results in direct/clear information of
  performance.

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Job Characteristics Theory

• What are the effects of the core job dimensions
  on the individual?
• Experienced meaningfulness when high skill
  variety, task identify, and significance
• Experienced responsibility influenced by
  autonomy
• Knowledge of results of work activities
  function of feedback
• Best outcomes when high levels of these
  psychological states
• Growth need strength desire on part of employee
  to fulfill higher order needs, thus high need for
  personal growth will respond to jobs high on core
  dimensions

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Job Characteristics Theory

• Motivating potential score indexes the potential
  of a job to motivate its holder
• MPSSkill varietytask identitytask significance
  x auto. X feedback
• 3
• Thus job motivating potential is high when all
  components are high
• Growth need strength moderates the relationship,
  so employee must be trying to satisfy
  higher-order needs to respond favorably
• Moderate support for this theory highly
  researched in I/O
• Criticized because somewhat subjective, rating
  issues/individual differences issues.
• Correlates
• job satisfaction, the more jobs enriched, the
  more motivated and satisfied the people who
  perform them.
• Higher aptitudes and higher pay