Motivation Theories

MotivationOpens in new window is the state of mind that pushes all human beings to perform things with the highest spirit and with positivity. Leaders will have to ensure that their direct reports are motivated. The various motivation theories help in understanding what will motivate people.

A Brief Look at the Four Major Perspectives on Motivation

There is no theory accepted by everyone as to what motivates people. Therefore, before taking a closer look at several of the more famous motivation theories, we present the four principal perspectives.

From these, a leader may be able to select what ideas seem most workable to them. The four perspectives on motivation are

1. content,
2. process,
3. job design, and
4. reinforcement, as described in the following quick overview of these perspectives and the theories that utilize each one.

Content theories Emphasize Needs as Motivators

• Maslow’s hierarchy of needs has five levels to be met in order.
• McClelland’s acquired needs theory posits three needs, for achievement, affiliation, and power.
• Deci and Ryan’s self-determination theory assumes people seek innate needs of competence, autonomy, and relatedness in order to grow.
• Herzberg’s two-factor theory differentiates hygiene and motivators that determine work satisfaction and dissatisfaction.

Process Theories Focus on the Thoughts and Perceptions That Motivate Behavior

• Equity/justice theory proposes that people see fairness and justice in their interactions and relationships.
• Expectancy theory says people are motivated by how much they want something and how likely they think it is they will get it.
• Goal-setting theory says goals that are specific, challenging, and achievable will motivate behavior.

Job Design Theories Focus on Designing Jobs That Lead to Employee Satisfaction and Performance

• Scientific management theory (or Taylorism) attempts to fit people to jobs by reducing the number of tasks workers had to perform to achieve a goal.
• Job enlargement and job enrichment are ways to fit jobs to people by offering more variety, challenges, and responsibility.
• The job characteristics model is an outgrowth of job enrichment that traces the effect of five job characteristics on employee’s psychological states and work outcomes.

Reinforcement Theory Is Based on the Notion That Motivation Is a Function of Behavioral Consequences and Not Unmet Needs

As evident in the four perspectives on motivation, motivation is a huge field of study with many theories of motivation. Some of the famous motivation theories are:

1.     Maslow’s hierarchy of needs.

Abraham MaslowOpens in new window postulated that a person will be motivated when their needs are fulfilled. The need starts from the lowest level basic needs and keeps moving up as a lower level need is fulfilled.

The Maslow's hierarchy of needsOpens in new window are as follows:

• Physiological: Physical survival necessities such as food, water, and shelter.
• Safety: Protection from threats, deprivation, and other dangers.
• Social (belongingness and love): The need for association, affiliation, friendship, and so on.
• Self-esteem: The need for respect and recognition.
• Self-actualisation: The opportunity for personal development, learning, and fun/creative/challenging work. Self-actualization is the highest-level need to which a human being can aspire.

The leader will have to understand the specific need of each one of their direct reports and accordingly work to help fulfill their needs.

2.     Hertzberg’s two-factor theory.

HertzbergOpens in new window classified the needs into two broad categories namely hygiene factors and motivating factors.

• Hygiene factors are needed to make sure that an employee is not dissatisfied.

• Motivation factors are needed for ensuring employee’s satisfaction and employee’s motivation for higher performance.

The mere presence of hygiene factors does not guarantee motivation, and presence of motivation factors in the absence of hygiene factors also does not work.

3.     McClelland’s theory of needs.

McClelland's theoryOpens in new window affirms that we all have three motivating drivers, and it does not depend on our gender or age. One of these drives will be dominant in our behavior. The dominant drive depends on our life experiences. The three motivators are:

• Achievement: a need to accomplish and demonstrate own competence. People with a high need for achievement prefer tasks that provide for personal responsibility and results based on their own efforts. They also prefer quick acknowledgement of their progress.
• Affiliation: a need for love, belonging, and social acceptance. People with a high need for affiliation are motivated by being liked and accepted by others. They tend to participate in social gatherings and may be uncomfortable with conflict.
• Power: a need for control of one’s work or the work of others. People with a high need for power desire situations in which they exercise power and influence over others. They aspire for positions with status and authority and tend to be more concerned about their level of influence than about effective work performance.

4.     Vroom’s theory of expectancy.

In Vroom's expectancy theoryOpens in new window, Victor Vroom stated that people will be highly productive and motivated if two conditions are met:

People will be motivated to exert a high level of effort when they believe there are relationships between the efforts they put forth, the performance they achieve, and the outcomes/rewards they receive.

5.     McGregor’s theory X and theory Y.

In McGregor's theory X and theory YOpens in new window, Douglas McGregor formulated two distinct views of human beings based on participation of workers. The first is basically negative, labeled as Theory X, and the other is basically positive, labeled as Theory Y. Both kinds of people exist. Based on their nature they need to be managed accordingly.

• Theory X: The traditional view of the workforce holds that workers are inherently lazy, self-centered, and lacking ambition. Therefore, an appropriate leadership style is strong, top–down control.
• Theory Y: This view postulates that workers are inherently motivated and eager to accept responsibility. An appropriate leadership style is to focus on creating a productive work environment coupled with positive rewards and reinforcement.

6.     Hawthorne effect on productivity.

The Hawthorne theory is a productivity theory based on the physical conditions employees work in. This includes lighting, shift hours, and breaks. It also includes observation as a key motivator for performance. Hawthorne found that people were more productive based on the idea of being observed (e.g., the attention being paid to them) rather than changes in their physical working conditions.

7.     Attribution theory and response to success or failure.

Attribution theory refers to how people respond to success or failure.

By looking at the reasons for the end results, employees are able to identify why something succeeded or failed. This is implemented through employee reviews that cover various metrics and identify root causes. For example, an employee meeting all sales numbers might be making 50 outbound calls per day while an employee not meeting standards is only making 10. The success and failure are attributed to the outbound calls and can be adjusted for the second employee.

MotivationOpens in new window is needed for employees to be productive, and a leader’s leadership style has an important role to play. Motivation is not always based on financial rewards, but nonfinancial rewards can also be used to derive the best out of employees.

Although individual employees have their expectations, it is the leader’s responsibility to develop and align with motivation theories that are suitable to bring job satisfaction to their employees. However, as noted above, leaders must understand that there is no single reliable theory to be used, and a mixture of them should be used.

In terms of empowering or engaging the workforce, leaders should encourage employees and give them a platform to voice out their concerns on how they can be motivated.

Rewards and promotionsOpens in new window following performance appraisalsOpens in new window may be used to boost employees’ morale as well as feedbackOpens in new window. All employees should understand the organization’s vision and goals and work together towards those.

In some organizations, employees perform their duties in an assembly whereby if a certain section of employees is affected it will affect the whole plant. Employees perform their duties diligently if they are inspired and motivated as the results will always be positive with efficient production.

Leaders and organizations that are results oriented will go all the way to motivate their employees for them to reach their goals. Just like it is important for a leader to understand what motivation is, why it is important and what motivation theories exist, it is just as important that they understand the motivation process.