07 Motivation Concepts

Organizational Behavior
Nineteenth Edition
Chapter 7
Motivation Concepts
Copyright © 2023, 2019, 2017 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved
Learning Objectives (1 of 2)
7.1 Describe the three key elements of motivation.
7.2 Compare the early theories of motivation.
7.3 Contrast the content-based theories of motivation,
including self-determination theory, regulatory-focus
theory, and job engagement theory.
7.4 Understand the differences between the context-based
theories of motivation: reinforcement theory and social
learning theory.
Learning Objectives (2 of 2)
7.5 Compare the process-based theories of motivation:
expectancy theory, goal-setting theory, and self-efficacy
theory.
7.6 Describe the forms of organizational justice, including
distributive justice, procedural justice, informational
justice, and interactional justice.
7.7 Describe how the contemporary theories of motivation
complement one another.
Describe the Three Key Elements of
Motivation (1 of 2)
• Motivation is the processes that account for an
individual’s intensity, direction, and persistence of effort
toward attaining a goal.
• The level of motivation varies both between individuals and

within individuals at different times.
Describe the Three Key Elements of
Motivation (2 of 2)
• The three key elements of motivation are:
1. Intensity: concerned with how hard a person tries.
2. Direction: the orientation that benefits the
organization.
3. Persistence: a measure of how long a person can
maintain their effort.
Compare the Early Theories of
Motivation (1 of 7)
Exhibit 7.1 Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs
Source: Based on H. Skelsey, “Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs—the Sixth Level,”

Psychologist (2014): 982–83.
Motivation (2 of 7)
• Maslow’s need theory has received wide recognition,
particularly among practicing managers.
– It is intuitively logical and easy to understand and some
research has validated it.
– However, most research does not, and it hasn’t been
frequently researched since the 1960s.
Motivation (3 of 7)
Exhibit 7.2 Comparison of Satisfiers and Dissatisfiers
Source: Based on Harvard Business Review, “Comparison of Satisfiers and Dissatisfiers,”

An exhibit from One More Time: How Do You Motivate Employees? by Frederick Herzberg,
January 2003. Copyright © 2003 by the Harvard Business School Publishing Corporation.
All rights reserved.
Motivation (4 of 7)
Exhibit 7.3 Contrasting View of Satisfaction and
Dissatisfaction
Motivation (5 of 7)
• Criticisms of Herzberg’s theory:
– Limited because it relies on self-reports.
– Reliability of methodology is questioned.
• Regardless, the theory has been quite influential.
Motivation (6 of 7)
• McClelland’s Theory of Needs
– The theory focuses on three needs:
▪ Need for achievement (nAch): drive to excel, to
achieve in relation to a set of standards, to strive to
succeed.
▪ Need for power (nPow): need to make others
behave in a way that they would not have behaved
otherwise.
▪ Need for affiliation (nAfl): desire for friendly and
close interpersonal relationships.
Motivation (7 of 7)
• Research shows some relationships between nAch and
job performance.
– Employees high on nAch:
▪ Exhibit more positive moods and greater interest in
the task at hand.
▪ Perform very well in high-stakes conditions on the
job.
• Research also supports nPow and nAff concepts.
Contemporary Theories of
Motivation: Content-Based (1 of 5)
• Self-determination theory (S D T): employees’ well-being
and performance are influenced by the nature of their
motivation for certain job activities.
– Motivation can be either autonomous or controlled.
▪ Cognitive evaluation theory: when people are paid
for work, it feels less like something they want to do
and more like something they have to do.
• Self-concordance theory: considers how strongly
people’s reasons for pursuing goals are consistent with
their interests and core values.
• S D T also suggests that there are several basic
psychological needs that affect work motivation.
– Need for autonomy
– Need for competence
• What does all of this mean?
– For individuals:
▪ Choose your job for reasons other than extrinsic
rewards.
– For organizations:
▪ Provide intrinsic as well as extrinsic incentives.
• Regulatory focus theory: people differ in the way they
regulate their thoughts and behaviors during goal pursuit.
– People fall into two categories:
▪ Promotion focus
▪ Prevention focus
• Job engagement
– The investment of an employee’s physical, cognitive,
and emotional energies into job performance.
• Job engagement predicts higher levels of task
performance and citizenship behavior
Motivation: Context-Based (1 of 2)
• Reinforcement theory: behavior is a function of its
consequences.
– Reinforcement conditions behavior.
– Behavior is environmentally caused.
• Operant conditioning theory: people learn to behave to
get something they want or to avoid something they don’t
want.
– B.F. Skinner’s behaviorism.
Motivation: Context-Based (2 of 2)
• Social-learning theory: we can learn through both
observation and direct experience.
– Assumes behavior is a function of consequences.
Motivation: Process-Based (1 of 10)
• Expectancy theory: a tendency to act in a certain way
depends on an expectation that the act will be followed by
a given outcome and on the attractiveness of that outcome
to the individual.
• Three relationships:
– Effort–performance relationship
– Performance–reward relationship
– Rewards–personal goals relationship
Exhibit 7.4 Expectancy Theory
• Goal-setting theory: intentions to work toward a goal are
considered a major source of work motivation.
• Goals:
– direct attention.
– mobilize effort.
– encourage persistence.
– facilitate the development of strategy.
• Goal origins
– Self-set goals can lead to greater employee
enthusiasm, whereas supervisor-set goals may lead to
heightened anxiety and perceptions of uncertainty and
threat.
• Goal characteristics
– Specific goals increase performance.
– Difficult goals, when accepted, result in higher
performance than do easy goals.
• Other factors influencing the goals-performance
relationship:
– Goal commitment
– Task characteristics
– Feedback
– Goal orientation
– Goal conflict
• Implementing goal setting
– Management by objectives (M B O): a program that
encompasses specific goals, participatively set, for an
explicit time period, with feedback on goal progress.`
Exhibit 7.5 Cascading of Objectives
• Self-efficacy theory is an individual’s belief that he or she
is capable of performing a task.
• Increasing self-efficacy
– Enactive mastery
– Vicarious modeling
– Verbal persuasion
– Arousal
Exhibit 7.6 Joint Effects of Goals and Self-Efficacy on
Performance
Source: Based on E. A. Locke and G. P. Latham, “Building a Practically Useful Theory of

Goal Setting and Task Motivation: A 35-Year Odyssey,” American Psychologist (September
2002): 705–17.
• The best way for a manager to use verbal persuasion is
through the Pygmalion effect.
– A form of self-fulfilling prophecy—believing in
something can make it true.
Forms of Organizational Justice (1 of 5)
Exhibit 7.7 Equity Theory
Ratio Comparisons* Perception

Inequity due to being underrewarded
Equity
Inequity due to being overrewarded
*Where represents the employee and represents relevant others
• When employees perceive an inequity, they can be
predicted to make one of six choices:
– Change inputs.
– Change outcomes.
– Distort perceptions of self.
– Distort perceptions of others.
– Choose a different referent.
– Leave the field.
Exhibit 7.8 Model of Organizational Justice
• Justice Outcomes
– All the types of justice discussed have been linked to
higher levels of task performance and citizenship.
– Third-party, or observer, reactions to injustice can be
substantial.
• Promoting Justice
– Adopting strong justice guidelines in an attempt to
mandate certain managerial behavior isn’t likely to be
universally effective.
• Culture and Justice
– Inputs and outcomes are valued differently in various
cultures.
Integrating Contemporary Theories of
Motivation
Exhibit 7.9 Integrating Contemporary Theories of Motivation
Implications for Managers (1 of 5)
• Classic theories paint an incomplete picture of motivation.
Consider contemporary theories when assessing
motivation in your organization.
• People will be motivated if they feel like their actions are
feely chosen and in alignment with their interests and
values. Try to foster this autonomy instead of treating
motivation as completely “controllable” through pressure,
direction, or reward.
• Despite the power of autonomy, rewards and
reinforcement can still be a powerful force in promoting
desired behaviors in organizations—but do not
underestimate the psychological aspects of motivation.
Rewards alone cannot fix organizational problems.
• Depending on which behaviors are desirable given the
task, try to adopt or lead others toward a promotion focus
(e.g., for innovation goals) or prevention focus (e.g., for
safety goals).
• Job engagement is still a management “buzzword,” and
there is confusion regarding what job engagement actually
represents. However, it can help put motivation into
practice. Apply other contemporary motivation theories to
understand how employees and managers can become
(and stay) engaged in the workplace.
• Lead by example: Model and encourage others to model
the types of behaviors you would like to see performed by
employees.
• Thinking of motivation in terms of expectancy,
instrumentality, and valence can help you break down
many common motivation problems in organizations into
their parts. Ask yourself whether effort leads to
performance, whether performance leads to the desired
outcome, and whether those involved actually care about
it.
• Harness the power of goal setting: Set specific, difficult
goals. Consider the factors that may affect goal setting.
Determine whether a management by objectives program
would be suitable for your organization.
• Self-efficacy can affect motivation and behavior throughout
the motivation process and is sometimes helpful and
sometimes even harmful. Consider how self-efficacy
changes throughout the goal-setting process and adapt
accordingly.
• When making decisions regarding resources in your
organization, make sure to consider how the resources are
being distributed (and who is affected), the fairness of the
decision, and whether your actions demonstrate that you
respect those involved.
Discussion Questions
• How do you think the COVID-19 pandemic has changed
the factors that lead to satisfaction in the workplace? Using
McClelland’s Theory of Needs, consider whether
employees will be motivated by the same factors post-
pandemic as pre-pandemic. Does your response change if
you consider white-collar workplaces versus blue-collar?
Explain.
• Using self-concordance theory, think about your own
career plans. What do you think will be your motivating
factors?
• What does job engagement mean to you?
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Organizational Behavior

• The level of motivation varies both between individuals and

Source: Based on H. Skelsey, “Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs—the Sixth Level,”

Source: Based on Harvard Business Review, “Comparison of Satisfiers and Dissatisfiers,”

Source: Based on E. A. Locke and G. P. Latham, “Building a Practically Useful Theory of

Exhibit 7.7 Equity Theory

Ratio Comparisons* Perception

Inequity due to being overrewarded

*Where represents the employee and represents relevant others

This work is protected by United States copyright laws and is

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