Discus the motivation theories
1.The Hedonistic Principle
The Greek Philosopher’s Hedonistic principle holds the belief that people are motivated to search for pleasure and avoid pain. (But there are certain things that people do that are not explainable e.g. Banji Jumping where there is a thin line between pain and pleasure).
2.Urges and Needs Theories
People always want to satisfy needs e.g. food, shelter, or social needs which are to have friends, and the so called needs for self actualization. The urges and needs theories are supported by other theorists such as Abraham Maslow, Fredrick Herzberg and David McClelland. The needs and urges theories are important to motivation but don’t fully explain the whole spectrum of motivation. This is because people differ radically in the kind of motivation that they need and the strength of that need.
3.Reinforcement Theory
This theory holds that human behaviour is determined by the outcomes or results of each behaviour – normally people repeat the behaviour that have positive or pleasurable outcomes e.g. recognition, reward, salary increment/bonus. People avoid behaviours leading to negative or unpleasurable outcomes e.g. a reprimand, dismissal or other forms of discipline or punishment. Rewards and remuneration can be used to create a motivating environment in the work place but doesn’t have a long term effect. It loses its motivational capacity especially if the motivator is in monetary terms for it may become entitlement e.g. annual bonuses.
4.Cognitive Theory
Cognitive theories holds that individual behaviour is as a result of his/her own assumptions, premises, expectations, values and other psychological processes. Motivated behaviour is seen as a product of conscious rational decisions between alternatives. People decide on how they want to work i.e. they make individual choices. This is directly related to the Expectancy theory whereby an individual asks his/her self the question; if I work hard what will I get.
5.Three Needs Theory
David McClelland and others proposed the Three Needs Theory, which says there are three (3) needs that motivate employees.
- Need for Achievement (n-Ach) - this is the drive to excel, to achieve in relation to a set of standards and to strive to succeed. Such people are striving for personal achievement rather than for the trappings and rewards for They have a desire to do something better or more efficiently than it has been done before. They prefer jobs that offer personal responsibility for finding solutions to problems in which they can receive rapid and unambiguous feedback on their performance in order to tell whether they are improving and in which they can set moderately challenging goals.
- Need for Power (n-Pow) – this is the need to make others behave in a way or manner that they would not have behaved otherwise
- Need for Affiliation (n-Aff) – this refers to the desire for friendly and close interpersonal relationships. The need for power and affiliation are closely related to managerial success as the best managers tend to be high in the need for power and low in the need for affiliation.
6.Goal setting Theory
The proposition of this theory is that specific goals increase performance and that difficult goals, when accepted, result in higher performance than do easy goals. The employee’s intention to work towards a goal is a major source of job motivation.
Specific hard goals produce a higher level of output than does the generalized goals. The specificity of the goals themselves acts as an internal stimulus. Goal setting theory deals with people in general and the conclusions on achievement motivation are based on people who have a high need for achievement. Also the conclusion applies only to those who accept and are committed to the goals. Difficult goals will lead to higher performance only if they are accepted. Finally, people will do better when they get feedback on how well they are progressing towards their goals because it helps identify deviations between what they have done and they want to do i.e. feedback helps in guiding and regulating behaviour. Cognitive theory was found to be able to explain significantly what motivation is all about and therefore form the basis for creating a motivating environment.
7.Job Characteristic Theory
The characteristics of a job which an individual performs are key to his/her motivation therefore monotonous, repetitive jobs with little challenges inhibit employee motivation to perform well. Job design should promote a variety of experiences.
8.Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs Theory
Abraham Maslow was a psychologist who also contributed to the motivation theories. He identified that human needs are satisfied in some hierarchical order, that is, the more important needs are satisfied before the next needs etc.
CRITICISM OF MASLOW HIERARCHY OF NEEDS
- Indeed this is the basis of most criticism against Maslow i.e. he assumes that the needs are addressed in some hierarchical order
- Opposing theorist maintain that it is possible to address needs at the same time
8.Fredrick Herzberg’s Two Factor Theory (Also called Motivation Hygiene theory
Another important content theory of motivation arose from research work done b8y0 P
his team. Their findings were based on feedback from about 200 accountants, a6n0d
Herzberg and nsatisfactory
and satisfactory feelings on the job.
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Herzberg’s concentration was on factors (both inside and outside the organisation) whic at nal ef
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on the performance of employees.
Herzberg found out that the factors could be divided into two broad categories.
- Hygiene (Also called maintenance factors or dissatisfiers)
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An improvement in these will not lead to improved productivity but neither would it lead to reduced production.
On the other hand any reduction in these factors would lead to reduced performance levels, hence giving rise to the name ‘dissatisfiers’
Managers have to try and ensure that they do not reduce these hygiene factors or else risk negative effects of reduced productivity and lower employee morale.
These hygiene factors include:
- Company policy and administration
- Supervision, relationship with supervisor
- Working conditions
- Salary
- Relationship with subordinates
- Personal life
- Relationship with peers
- Status
- Security
The term ‘maintenance factor’ is probably used because these factors do not significantly affect motivation but are necessary to maintain hygiene within working environment. Put differently, these factors were the basic levels necessary to maintain certain levels of performance.
- Satisfiers (Also called Motivators)
These factors boost production each time they are increased. Herzberg believed that managers should concentrate on satisfiers or drivers (motivators) to maximise the benefits from motivation.
Typical motivators are:
- Achievement
- Recognition
- Work itself
- Responsibility
