CHAPTER 7
7.1 - Motivation defined
2
Motivation = the processes that account for an individual’s intensity,
direction and persistence of effort toward attaining a goal
7.2 - Early theories of motivation
. Hierarchy of needs theory
Abraham Maslow’s hierarchy of five needs in which, as each need is
substantially satisfied, the next need becomes dominant
● Physiological = includes hunger, thirst, shelter, sex and other bodily
needs
● Safety-security = security and protection from physical and emotional
harm
● Social-belongingness = affection, belongingness, acceptance and
friendship
● Esteem = internal factors such as self-respect, autonomy and
achievement and external factors such as status, recognition and
attention
● Self-actualisation = drive to become what we are capable of becoming;
includes growth, achieving our potential and self-fulfilment
1 Has achieved long-standing wide recognition
– Logical and easy to understand
– Some research doesn’t validate it - hasn’t been frequently researched
since the 1960s
. Two-factor theory
Hertzberg’s motivation-hygiene theory = a theory that relates intrinsic
factors to job satisfaction and associates extrinsic factors with
dissatisfaction
,Intrinsic factors - motivators - (e.g. advancement, recognition, achievement)
are related to job satisfaction (people can find intrinsically rewarding)
– People who feel good about their work tend to attribute these factors to
their situations
Extrinsic factors - hygiene - (e.g. supervision, pay, company policies, work
conditions) are related to job dissatisfaction (when adequate they wil not
lead to dissatisfaction)
– Dissatisfied people tend to relate these to their situations
Faced criticisms - participants in original experiment may be biased in
thinking back to times when they felt good or bad about their jobs + if both
factors are equally valuable they both should be capable of motivating
– However, highly influential theory
. McClelland’s theory of needs
= a theory that states achievement, power and affiliation are three
important needs that help explain motivation
● Need for achievement (nAch) = the need to excel or to achieve on
relationship to a set of standards
○ In general, high achievers perform best when they perceive their
probability of success as 50%
◆ They dislike gambling with high odds, because they get no
satisfaction from success that comes by pure chance
◆ They dislike low odds because there is no challenge
○ High nAch: more positive moods, more interested in task at hand,
good performance in high stake situations
, ● Need for power (nPow) = the need to make others behave in a way in
which they would not have behaved otherwise
○ The need to obtain power
● Need for affiliation (nAff) = the desire for friendly and close
interpersonal relationships
○ High nAff: tend to perform the best, most open to communication,
experience least amount of conflict
7.3 - Contemporary theories of motivation
Each has a reasonable degree of valid supporting evidence - represent latest
thinking in explaining employee motivation (doesn’t mean they are
unquestionably right)
. Self-determination theory
= a meta-theory of motivation at work that is concerned with autonomy,
intrinsic motivation, extrinsic motivation and the satisfaction of
psychological work needs
– Having control over actions, feeling like there is no obligation to work
Cognitive evaluation theory = a sub-theory of self-determination theory in
which extrinsic rewards for behaviour tend to decrease the overall level of
motivation, if the rewards are seen as controlling or reduce their sense of
competence
– Reduce intrinsic interest in a task
– e.g. when people get paid for work, it feels like it’s something they have
to do not want to do
A recent meta-analysis confirms that intrinsic motivation contributes to the
quality of work, while incentives contribute to the quantity of work
Self-concordance = the degree to which people’s reasons for pursuing goals
are consistent with their interests and core values
– OB suggests that people who pursue work goals for intrinsic reasons are
more satisfied with their jobs, feel like they fit into their organisations
better and may perform better
– Because process of striving towards goals is fun regardless of