Motivation Essay

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Motivation is generally defined as the processes that account  for an individual’s intensity,  direction,  and persistence of effort toward attaining a goal. The three core concepts when explaining motivation—intensity, direction, and persistence—refer to how hard an individual tries, where the effort is channeled,  and how long the effort is maintained. Motivation explains why an individual behaves in certain  ways; management can use this concept to guide the practice of encouraging or discouraging certain behaviors of employees and thus improve performance.

What motivates an individual? In general, researchers and managers identified two kinds of motivators: intrinsic  and extrinsic.  Intrinsic  motivators  refer to an individual’s internal  desire to do something,  due to  such  things  as interest,  challenge, and  personal satisfaction. Extrinsic motivators are those that come from outside  the person,  such as pay, bonuses, and other  tangible rewards. According  to the  Cognitive Evaluation theory, when management  gives extrinsic rewards for behavior that had been previously intrinsically rewarded, this can result in a decrease in the overall  level of motivation,  because  the  individual experiences a loss of control over his/her own behavior when it is rewarded by external sources.

There  are  many  theories  explaining  motivation. For example, D. McGregor proposed  “Theory X and Theory Y.” Theory X assumes that employees dislike work, will attempt  to avoid it, and must be coerced, controlled, or threatened with punishment if they are to  perform.  Theory Y assumes  that  employees  like work, are creative, seek responsibility, and can exercise self-direction and self-control. Managers who believe Theory X will design policies for tight control and  coercion,  which might  cause employee  resentment,   withdrawal,  indolence,   lack  of  interest,   or other negative behaviors. Employees’ negative behaviors will reinforce belief in Theory X, thus forming a vicious cycle. Although McGregor’s theory has been challenged by more recent studies, its basic argument remains valid and central to motivational research.

Motivation  theories can be roughly classified into two  categories: needs-based  theories  and  process based theories. Needs-based theories generally argue that  individuals  have needs  that,  when  unsatisfied, will result in motivation. Maslow’s hierarchy of needs,

Alderfer’s ERG theory, McClelland’s theory of needs, and Herzberg’s two-factor  theory are representative of this type of theory. For example, McClelland argues that people vary in the types of needs they have. Their motivation  and  how  well they  perform  in  a work situation are related to whether they have a need for achievement, affiliation, or power. Needs-based theories are challenged by later researchers regarding the completeness  of their  categorization  schemes  (i.e., how many needs  are there  and which list of needs should we use) and the validity of their explanation (attributing  a concrete behavior to a category).

Process-based theories of motivation  are inherent in Lewinian intellectual tradition. Lewin believed that specific behaviors (regions of activity) are perceived as paths to a goal and the level of motivation  corresponds with resultant  psychological force toward the goal. For example, if a goal is important for an individual, the valence of the goal increases the total psychological forces toward the goal. Expectancy theory, Equity theory, and Goal Setting theory are examples of process-based  theories of motivation. Specifically, Expectancy theory  proposes  that  Effort (or motivation)  = E x I x V. In this equation,  E (Expectancy) is the belief that  effort could lead to performance;  I (Instrumentality) is the belief that performance could lead to reward/outcome; and V (Valence) is the subjective importance/value of reward.

Managers  can manipulate  employees’ motivation by adjusting  Expectancies  (ability/skill  level; training; build  self-efficacy, clarify appropriate   actions), Instrumentality (measurement of performance,  variable rewards for variable performance), and Valences (“Cafeteria style” benefit plans, etc.).

Goal Setting theory proposes that achieving a goal is motivating, and goals clarify expected behavior/performance.  When  management  defines performance goals for employees, they should  follow the general principles: specific goals increase performance  more than  the generalized goal of “do your best”; difficult but attainable  goals, when accepted, result in higher performance than do easy goals; and feedback on goal attainment leads to  higher  performance  than  does no feedback.

Each of the  process-based  theories  has  its  own issues, but  the  general  principles  inherent  in these theories have fundamental influences on current management   practices.  The  concept  of motivation provides  a useful language for understanding what makes people become more productive at work. From the pioneer  of management  through  to the work of contemporary researchers,  motivation  has and  will continue  to guide the way we manage people in an organization for productivity and self-actualization.

Bibliography:   

  1. Alderfer, “An Empirical Test of a New Theory of Human Needs,” Organizational Behavior and Human  Performance (v.4, 1996);
  2. Frederick Herzberg, One More Time: How Do You Motivate  Employees? (Harvard Business Press, 2008);
  3. Herzberg, Work and the Nature of Man (World Publishing, 1966);
  4. Ruth Kanfer, Gilad Chen, and Robert D. Pritchard, Work Motivation: Past, Present, and Future (Routledge, 2008);
  5. Alfie Kohn, “By All Available Means: Cameron and Pierce’s Defense of Extrinsic Motivators,” Review of Educational Research (v.66/1, 1996);
  6. Maslow, Motivation and Personality (Harper & Row, 1954);
  7. C. McClelland, Power: The Inner Experience (Irvington, 1975);
  8. McGregor,  Proceedings of the Fifth Anniversary Convocation of the School of Industrial  Management,  The Human Side of Enterprise (Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 1957);
  9. Nitin Nohria, Boris Groysberg, and LindaEling Lee, “Employee Motivation: A Powerful New Model,” Harvard Business Review (v.86/7–8, 2008);
  10. Porter  and E. Lawler, Managerial Attitudes  and Performance (Dorsey Press, 1968);
  11. Vroom, Work and Motivation (John Wiley & Sons, 1966).

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