Motivational Theory

Motivation theory attempts to explain why people do what they do. What makes them get out of bed in the morning? What makes them tick? Motivation is a crucial aspect of the psyche. By understanding motivation theories, we can better relate to others and enhance the overall quality of our interactions.

Before going into the theories, it’s important to explain the difference between intrinsic and extrinsic motivators. Intrinsic motivators involve internal satisfaction while extrinsic motivators come from some external source, such as carrots and sticks. Intrinsic motivators have been shown to work much better than extrinsic motivators in almost all cases, however, most workplaces still use extrinsic motivators as their predominant motivational human resources strategy.

McGregor posits that every manager mixes two motivational theories in practice: Theory X and Theory Y. Theory X states that the average person dislikes work and attempts to avoid it, has no ambition, wants no responsibility, and would rather follow than lead, is self-centered and therefore does not care about organizational goals, resists change, is gullible and not particularly intelligent, and that most people must be forced with the threat of punishment to work towards organizational objectives. Theory Y, on the other hand, assumes that work can be as natural as play and rest, people will be self-directed to meet their work objectives without external control or threat of punishment, if they are committed to them, people will be committed to their objectives if rewards are in place that address higher needs such as self-fulfillment, people usually accept and often seek responsibility, most people can handle responsibility because creativity and ingenuity are common in the population, and in industry the intellectual potential of the average person is only partially utilized. If Theory Y holds, there are a variety of ways to improve an employee’s motivation: decentralization and delegation, job enlargement, participative management, and performance appraisals.

Theory Y also reminds me of Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi’s book, Flow. Mihaly theorizes that work can be enjoyable if flow is achieved. Flow has the following major components:
1.   when we confront tasks we have a chance of completing
2.   we must be able to concentrate on what we are doing
3.   there are clear goals and immediate feedback
4.   one acts with a deep but effortless involvement that removes from awareness the worries and frustrations of everyday life
5.   allow people to exercise a sense of control over their actions
6.   concern for the self disappears while the sense of self emerges stronger afterward
7.   the sense of duration of time is altered

The second theorist is Abraham Maslow. His hierarchy of needs classify lower-level needs such as biological and physiological needs and safety needs, as well as upper-level needs such as belongingness and love needs, esteem needs, and self-actualization needs. Most HR management caters to the lower-level needs, which are extrinsic motivators, while the upper-level needs fall into the category of intrinsic motivators.

The management implications for physiological needs are a lunch break, rest, and wages that are sufficient. Safety needs include providing a safe working environment, retirement account, and job security. Social needs are covered by a sense of community via team-based projects and social events. Esteem needs can be met by recognizing achievements to make employees feel appreciated and valued, and attaching importance to job titles. Finally, self-actualization can be achieved by providing employees a challenge and the opportunity to reach their full career potential.

McClelland’s theory of motivation states that a mix among three motivational needs characterizes a person’s behavior. The three needs are the need for achievement, the need for authority and power, and the need for affiliation. Everyone has a combination of different levels of those three needs. Those who are high achievers should be given challenging projects with reachable and measurable goals. Those who need more affiliation should work in a cooperative environment. And those who need power should hold controlling management positions.

Frederick Herzberg separates supposed motivators into two categories: hygiene factors and motivating factors. His central theory is that the factors involved in producing job satisfaction (and motivation) are separate and distinct from the factors that lead to job dissatisfaction. Hygiene factors prevent job dissatisfaction while motivating factors create job satisfaction. Hygiene factors include company policy and administration, supervision, relationship with supervisor, work conditions, salary, relationship with peers, relationship with subordinates, status, salary, and security. Motivating factors include achievement, recognition, the work itself, responsibility, advancement, and growth. Once again, the intrinsic motivators (motivating factors) lead to better performance and greater job satisfaction than extrinsic factors. 

The management implications are to enrich employees’ jobs by applying the following principles:
•        Increase individuals’ accountability for their work by removing some controls.
•        Give people responsibility for a complete process or unit of work.
•        Make information available directly to employees rather than sending it through their managers first.
•        Enable people to take on new, more difficult tasks they haven’t handled before.
•        Assign individuals specialized tasks that allow them to become experts. 
•        The payoff? Employees gain an enhanced sense of responsibility and achievement, along with new opportunities to learn and grow—continually.

The final theorist, Patrick Lencioni, finds that the three things that make employees most miserable are anonymity, irrelevance, and a lack of measurement of their work. People want to be managed as people, not as workers. When a manager seems to care about an employee as an individual, anonymity is no longer a risk. He writes that people need to feel that they have a direct impact on someone other than themselves. He adds that if their work is not measured, they can easily lose interest or get frustrated. They can feel like their work is not meaningful if they can’t see where they’re going or how they’re doing.

These theories should shape how human resources operations are run. Providing intrinsic motivators that follow the recommendations of Herzberg, McGregor, and Lencioni could revolutionize the working environment of so many miserable workers. Granted, these recommendations don’t apply to every worker in every job, but a more critical look at human resource management in businesses and organizations could more accurately direct these theories to their appropriate markets. 

It doesn’t take a 4-hour work week to be satisfied with your job. It just takes intrinsic reward systems that take into account the individual’s needs, as well as the organization’s goals.