Motivation
is the strength and direction of behavior and the factors that influence people
to behave in certain ways (Armstrong & Taylor, 2020). Most of the
businesses understand that the effective employees who are motivated are those
that are intellectually and emotionally invested in their company. Badubi (2017)
states that the motivation theories which are introduced by different
authors using different approaches mostly give a relation or influence the
outcomes of employee satisfaction.
Figure 1: Classification of Motivation Theories
The
study of motivation has created two major theories applicable to employee
motivation programs namely Content theories and Process
theories (Jayawardena, N.S. & Jayawardena, D., 2020). Content
theories focus on WHAT, while process theories focus on HOW human behavior is
motivated. Figure 1 provides classification and contents of both types of
theories. Saif et al., (2012) adds Contemporary Theories as
another category to above mentioned two categories of motivational theories.
The Content theory category include Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, Herzberg’s Two
Factor Theory, Alderfer’s existence, Relatedness and Growth Theory and McClelland’s
needs theory. The process theories explain about the way motivation comes and
how it leads to employee satisfaction. Theories that fall into Process theory
category include Porter-Lawer’s model and Expectancy Theory by Vroom.
Contemporary theories of motivation incorporate equity, control and agency
theory, as well as goal setting, reinforcement and job design theory (Ramlall,
2004).
Smith & Cronje (1992) defines that
Maslow’s Theory is developed, based on the fact that needs of the people are
prioritized according to the importance to lives, namely
· Physiological Needs (food, shelter, and clothing)
· Safety and Security Needs (Physical protection)
· Social Needs (Association with Others)
· Esteem Needs (Receiving acknowledgement from others)
· Self- Actualization Needs (the willing for accomplishment or to leave behind a legacy)
Herzberg’s Motivation/Hygiene Theory
Focuses on two factors, which what causes job satisfaction are the opposite of those things that cause job dissatisfaction (Haque et al., 2014).
McGregor’s X and Y Theories
Saif et al. (2012) defines the theory as Theory X assumptions take a negative perspective of people, while theory Y assumptions take the opposite view. Theory X in simpler words means people have an inherent dislike for work and will avoid if possible. Hence, the employees need to be corrected, controlled, directed and threatened with punishment to make them work while Theory Y take the view of the mental and physical inputs expended at the workplace are equated and par with those rest or play.
McClelland’s Needs Theory
Saif et al. (2012) defines the basis of the theory as some people are driven to success through seeking personal achievement rather than rewards themselves.
According to Badubi (2004)) the basis of theory is identified as the behavior is a product of choices that are available to be prioritized.
Equity Theory
Badubi (2004) states that equity theory postulates that employees will weigh their input into a job against the output they receive from it.
Porter – Lawer Model
According to Wagner and Hollenburg (2007) this theory’s assumptions are that individual behavior is influenced by both internal and external factors, rational and make own choices about their behavior, have different goals, desires and needs. Finally, individuals decide between alternative behaviors.
Ramlall
(2004) states the critical factors among the motivation theories and the
implication for developing and implementing employee retention practices namely
needs of the Employee, Work Environment, Responsibilities, Supervision, Fairness
& Equity, Effort, Employee Development and Feedback.
As a conclusion, motivation
will drive a
person’s behavior in
such a particular
way that will
achieve organizational goals as
well as individual
employee’s benefits (Ramlall,
2004). Haque et al., (2014) states that, although more
valid explanations of motivation
have been developed, these early theories are important because they
represent the foundation
from which contemporary
motivation theories were
developed and because many practicing
managers still use them.
Reference
Armstrong,
M. and Taylor, S., 2020. Armstrong's handbook of human resource management
practice.
Badubi,
R.M., 2004. Theories of motivation and their application in organizations: A
risk analysis. International Journal of Innovation and Economic Development,
3(3), pp.44-51.
Haque,
Mohammad & Haque, Mohammad & Islam, Md Shamimul. 2014, Motivational
Theories – A Critical Analysis. 8.
Jayawardena, N.S. and Jayawardena, D., 2020. The impact of
extrinsic and intrinsic rewarding system on employee motivation in the context
of Sri Lankan apparel sector. International Journal of Business Excellence,
20(1), pp.51-69.
Ramlall,
S., 2004. A review of employee motivation theories and their implications for
employee retention within organizations. Journal of American academy of
business, 5(1/2), pp.52-63
Saif,
S.K., Nawaz, A., Jan, F.A. and Khan, M.I., 2012. Synthesizing the theories of
job satisfaction across the cultural/attitudinal dimensions. Interdisciplinary
journal of contemporary research in business, 3(9), pp.1382-1396.
Smit,
P.J. and CRONJe, G.D.J., 1992. Management principles: a contemporary South
African edition. Kenwyn: Juta.
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ReplyDeleteHi gihan, Agree with you, to Keeping the employee motivation, commitment and job involvement up, is always rewarding to a business as motivated and committed employees are more productive in the organization (Denton, 1987).
ReplyDeleteHi Dineth. Thank you for the comment. In today's business atmosphere as it is true with higher number of job losses due to layoff and cost-cutting to create a lean organization, it is also worthy for organizations to stop loses of performing employees due to decreasing job satisfaction and lack of motivation to continue with the organization for long term. (Varma, 2018).
DeleteI agree with the above blog and would like to mention employee motivation theories are classified into content theories and process theories (Iguisi, 2009). Further, content theories investigate what motivates a worker. The most famous content theories are Maslow's need hierarchy, Herzberg's two-factor theory and McClelland's three factor theory.
ReplyDeleteHi Dileep. Thank you for the comment. Agree with the two types of theories you've mentioned, the content theories and process theories. In addition to that, Saif et al., (2012) suggests Contemporary Theories as another category of motivation which incorporate equity, control and agency theory, as well as goal setting, reinforcement and job design theory.
DeleteHi Gihan, Agreed. In addition to the above, Pinder ( 2008) stated that motivation could be explained as the method which reflects employees’ persistence, direction, and intensity; therefore, motivated employees deliver the total commitment to work. Motivation is the process that moves employees from distress to desire ( Islam and Ismail, 2008). According to Korzynski (2013), employee motivation depends on technological, generational, and organizational changes. The idea that the new generation is more familiar with new technology and more practical when dealing with customers or organizations further, employees like to work under modern organizational culture, increasing their effectiveness.
ReplyDeleteHi Nirmika. Thank you for the comment. Motivation is an important stimulation which directs the employee behavior. Every successful organization is backed by a committed employee base, and the commitment is the outcome of motivation and job satisfaction. It is the energy that compels employees towards organizational objective. It would be impossible for the organization to generate performance without commitment. In order to create a competitive advantage organization need to have a competitive employee policies and practices (Varma, 2018)
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ReplyDeleteWell explained. Robbins,(1993) said that Motivation is the "Willingness to exert high levels of effort toward organizational goals, conditioned by the effort's ability to satisfy some individual needs"
ReplyDeleteHi Upeksha. Agree with your valuable comment. Armstrong & Taylor (2020) defines that motivation is the strength which energizes, directs and sustains behavior of people to achieve high performance.
DeleteAgree with you Gihan, Motivation is one of the most important factors in the development of an organization, and it can modify the profit figure of the business by increasing productivity. As a result, proper implementation of the theory will undoubtedly ensure positive-minded personnel, which will ultimately secure an organization's success (Haque et al, 2014).
ReplyDeleteHi Sanmuganathan. Agree with your valuable comment. Behnaz (2013) mentions that employee motivation is identified as a psychological process which drives and stimulates an individual’s behavior to attain his/her targets and thereby improve the productivity. According to Armstrong & Taylor (2020), the aim of the most of the theories mentioned above was to identify the factors associated with motivation and focused on the contents of motivation which arise in the shape of needs.
DeleteAgree with your points Gihan and One of the most important aspects of HR management is employee motivation. An organization will not be able to establish a long-term workforce without employee motivation. People should be at the forefront of corporate strategy and human resource development, as it invariably helps the relevant firms. The importance of human resources and their effective use and management in improving organizational performance cannot be overstated (Srivastava & Bhatia, 2013).
ReplyDeleteHi Indika. Agree with your valuable comment. As I have mentioned in each and every blog article about motivation, the importance of the effectively motivated human resource is extremely critical to the business organizations to increase their productivity. Sabir (2017) mentions that employee motivation is an outstanding way to promote productivity.
DeleteAgree with you Gihan. One of the forces that leads to performance is motivation. The desire to achieve a goal or a given degree of performance, which leads to goal-directed behavior, is characterized as motivation (Walker, 2019). When we say someone is motivated, we're referring to someone who is working hard to complete a task. If someone is to do successfully, they must be motivated.
ReplyDeleteHi Isuru. Agree with your valuable comment. According to Sabir (2017), the scholars have shown that motivated employees will have the objectives namely, a “better” way to complete a task, be more quality-oriented and work with higher productivity and efficiency.
DeleteThere are always big differences in the needs of workers, depending, among other things, on the categories and social background from which they come (Verma, 2017). Maintaining employee motivation throughout their careers is a real challenge as motivation can be influenced by external factors that cannot be controlled, such as health issues and the feeling of insecurity in an economic meltdown. It is more critical to identify intrinsically motivated employees and design recruiting processes so that they are identified during the process.
ReplyDeleteVerma, N., 2017. A profile based study on McClelland's needs. Journal of Management Research, 17(2), pp.65-73.
Hi Ravi. Agree with your valuable comment. According to Wahba & Bridwill (1979), all the employees are not having same needs. It means different employees have different priorities and because of that, it is invalid to get an assumption of that everyone has the same needs. Therefore, the HR managers should understand the actual requirements of each employee as the motivation patterns are different from each employee (Rathankoon et al., 2003).
DeleteGood article , Introductory to all the popular theories of motivation is the notion that employees are motivated to perform better when offered something they want, something they believe will be satisfying (Haque,2014)
ReplyDeleteHi Surangi, Agree with your valuable comment. According to Haque et al, (2014), it creates enthusiasm among the employees to work in pursuit of goals and objectives of the organization, when an individual’s needs and requirements are met by the management. Furthermore, well-motivated employees engage in positive discretionary behaviors (Armstrong & Taylor, 2020).
DeleteWell written article , Applying motivational theories in an organization one of the key fact to drive their employees to the organizational goals. Armstrong explained
ReplyDeleteMost influential motivational theories are categorises to three , such as Instrumentality theory which states rewards or punishments serve as the means of ensuring the people behaviour or act in desired ways, Content theory which focuses content of motivation, Process theory which focuses on the psychological process which affect motivation(Armstrong,2006)
Hi Manoj, Agree with your valuable comment. According to Haque et al, (2014), though more valid explanations about motivation have been developed, the early theories are vital because they represent the foundation from which contemporary motivation theories were developed and because most of the industry professionals still practice them.
DeleteHi Gihan, Well explained. Further to this would like to add an other categorization. As such Maslow’s theory of the hierarchy of needs, Alderfer’s ERG theory, McClelland's achievement motivation theory and Herzberg’s motivation-hygiene theory under the Content Theories (Dinibutun,2012). Reinforcement theory, Adams’ equity theory, Vroom's expectancy theory and Locke’s goal-setting theory under Process Theories of Motivation (Sahito and Vaisanen, 2017), Theory X and Theory Y, The Hawthorne Effect under Motivational Theories in Business and cognitive theories.
ReplyDeleteHi Deshani. Agree with your valuable comment. According to Armstrong & Taylor (2020), the aim of the most of the theories mentioned above was to identify the factors associated with motivation and focused on the contents of motivation which arise in the shape of needs. Ramlall (2004) categorize theories as Need theories, Equity Theory, Expectancy Theory and Job design model.
DeleteHi Gihan, Well said, Motivation is defined as “the intention of achieving a goal, leading to goal-directed behavior” (Columbia Encyclopedia, 2004, New York: Columbia University Press). When we say that someone is motivated, we mean that the person is trying hard to accomplish a certain task. Motivation is clearly important in order for someone to perform well. However, motivation alone is not sufficient. Ability—having the skills and knowledge required to perform the job—is also important, and is sometimes key to being effective. Finally, environmental factors—having the resources, information, and support one needs to perform well—are also critical to reaching one’s goals. Agarwal, N.C. (1998).
ReplyDeleteHi Purnima. Thanks and agree with the comment. The final target of the most theories mentioned above was to identify the factors associated with motivation and focused on the contents of motivation which arise in the shape of needs (Armstrong & Taylor, 2020).
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