Assignments Lecture 3 on Personnel Economics
Personnel Economics
2020-2021
Assignment Lecture 3
Student: Student number:
Date: 23-11-2020
Word count: 1701
1
, Assignments Lecture 3 on Personnel Economics
Assignment about Individual Job Design
a. How can Job Design increase the meaning of work according to Cassar and Meier? Refer to
Deci and Ryan (p.216). How does that relate to a modern approach of job design (i.e. Lazear
and Gibbs)?
According to Cassar and Meier, job design can increase the meaning of work as it influences job
dimensions rooted in the three human psychological needs, as defined by self-determination
theory of Deci and Ryan (1985). These psychological needs are autonomy, competence and
relatedness. First of all, a job designed in such a way that workers have more autonomy in
decision making will increase a workers’ feeling of involvement. This leads to higher job
satisfaction, predicting market mobility and productivity (Cassar and Meier 2018). Secondly, the
psychological feeling of competence arises when workers gain personal and social recognition for
being able to apply their knowledge, skills and abilities to achieve a certain goal. As workers feel
recognized, their feeling of meaningfulness of work increases. Lastly, jobs designed to increase
workers’ feelings of relatedness increase work meaningfulness as they encourage workers to
connect and identify with the members and goals of the organization. This leads to increased
effort and productivity. According to Cassar and Meier, an organizational culture that supports the
psychological needs of autonomy, competence and relatedness can thus be highly valuable for
employees.
The self-determination theory used in the article of Cassar and Meier relates to the modern
approach used by Lazear and Gibbs (2015), as they combine the psychological approach from
Cassar and Meier with an economic approach. Lazear and Gibbs focus on job design through two
key factors: multitasking and decentralization. This leads to job enrichment: increasing
knowledge of workers for continuous improvement. However, job enrichment, at the same time,
encourages workers to think about their job, psychologically motivating them, as explained by the
psychological view of Cassar and Meier. Thus, the psychological approach and the economic
approach of job enrichment are complementary and related closely.
b. What is the relation between a meaningful job and wages according to Cassar and Meier?
Explain?
Cassar and Meier state that empirical evidence exists for two perspectives: job meaningfulness
can either have a substitutive or a complementary relationship to monetary compensation schemes
(wages).
2
Personnel Economics
2020-2021
Assignment Lecture 3
Student: Student number:
Date: 23-11-2020
Word count: 1701
1
, Assignments Lecture 3 on Personnel Economics
Assignment about Individual Job Design
a. How can Job Design increase the meaning of work according to Cassar and Meier? Refer to
Deci and Ryan (p.216). How does that relate to a modern approach of job design (i.e. Lazear
and Gibbs)?
According to Cassar and Meier, job design can increase the meaning of work as it influences job
dimensions rooted in the three human psychological needs, as defined by self-determination
theory of Deci and Ryan (1985). These psychological needs are autonomy, competence and
relatedness. First of all, a job designed in such a way that workers have more autonomy in
decision making will increase a workers’ feeling of involvement. This leads to higher job
satisfaction, predicting market mobility and productivity (Cassar and Meier 2018). Secondly, the
psychological feeling of competence arises when workers gain personal and social recognition for
being able to apply their knowledge, skills and abilities to achieve a certain goal. As workers feel
recognized, their feeling of meaningfulness of work increases. Lastly, jobs designed to increase
workers’ feelings of relatedness increase work meaningfulness as they encourage workers to
connect and identify with the members and goals of the organization. This leads to increased
effort and productivity. According to Cassar and Meier, an organizational culture that supports the
psychological needs of autonomy, competence and relatedness can thus be highly valuable for
employees.
The self-determination theory used in the article of Cassar and Meier relates to the modern
approach used by Lazear and Gibbs (2015), as they combine the psychological approach from
Cassar and Meier with an economic approach. Lazear and Gibbs focus on job design through two
key factors: multitasking and decentralization. This leads to job enrichment: increasing
knowledge of workers for continuous improvement. However, job enrichment, at the same time,
encourages workers to think about their job, psychologically motivating them, as explained by the
psychological view of Cassar and Meier. Thus, the psychological approach and the economic
approach of job enrichment are complementary and related closely.
b. What is the relation between a meaningful job and wages according to Cassar and Meier?
Explain?
Cassar and Meier state that empirical evidence exists for two perspectives: job meaningfulness
can either have a substitutive or a complementary relationship to monetary compensation schemes
(wages).
2
