CORE Motivation Survey measures intrinsic motivation at workplace using 12 primary and 31 secondary constructs.

1. CORE
Motivation Survey
Introducing CORE Motivation
Survey
A Measure of Intrinsic Workplace
Motivation

2. Individual Differences and Modern
Workplace
oThe idea that individual differences are important to workplace
is not new
oFor over seven decades, organizations have relied on various
measures of individual differences to hire people and develop
them
oIndividual differences have been very successful in predicting
performance at work, promotability and happiness

3. Individual Differences
oFor all practical reasons science of individual differences has
taken over completely by Personality
oWhile personality is a stable disposition toward thinking, feeling
and behaving, it doesn’t explain all individual differences in
behaviour
oOther individual differences like IQ or g general intelligence are
not behavioural in nature
oWhile personality does predict tendencies to behave in a certain
manner, they do not explain motivational triggers of these
behaviours

4. Why is motivation important?
What is motivation?

5. Motivation
oTruth be told, motivation theory is older than personality theory
oFrom the likes of Maslow to Skinner, Herzberg and McClelland
and Vroom to Miller, motivation has received fair amount of
scholastic approval as a theory
Motivation is theoretical construct that explains an
individual’s needs, desires, thoughts, emotions,
effort and behaviour.

6. Motivation as a measure of Individual
Difference
oColloquially, motivation is considered to come from environment
oIt is important to consider that motivation that is situationally
found as a pressure from the environment to act is called
extrinsic motivation
e.g. turning up early to make more money
o Alternatively, in absence of external stimuli, mind is naturally
geared to have certain ‘intrinsic motivation’. In this case the
reward is perceived and the act is its own reward.
e.g. turning up early to help a colleague

7. What is intrinsic motivation or motivation trait theory?
How is it different from personality traits?
What does intrinsic motivation predict?
What is Intrinsic Motivation?

8. Defining Intrinsic Motivation
oIntrinsic motivations can be defined as basic and universal
human needs which are indulged in without an external stimuli
or reward
i.e.
oreading a book on a vacation
obeing with friends
The litmus rule, is the action its own end or the means to an end

9. IM Theory
oBecause all concepts are hypothetical constructs, they are
created to explain phenomena
oIM theory has following basic assumptions:
oIM is innate (present at birth, even before any learning takes place)
oIM is evolutionary (even higher order animals will exhibit them)
oIM can be measured as a trait (it may not exist as a trait but may be
measured as one)
oIM tells us about individual drives, needs and ways to adapt/survive
oIM is an means to its own self (it ultimately leads to survival or
happiness, given that humans do not have to struggle for survival all
the time)
oIM is not the same as personality (measures of seeking to socialize
may not be the same as extraversion)

10. IM Theory
oAll these assumptions which are fundamental to the IM theory
have been tested and proven by decades of scientific and
behavioural research
oIM theory is not perfect. However, survey based on the theory
does predict constructs that the theory proposes to measure
oTheory will continue to grow and change as more scientific
evidence is provided in support of it or against it

11. Differences between
Personality and Intrinsic Motivation
Intrinsic Motivation
oWhy of behaviour?
oAction can be causally
explained by motives
Personality
oWhat of behaviour?
oAn action cannot be causally
explained by traits

12. Similarities between
Personality and Motivation
Intrinsic Motivation Personality
oPredict behaviour
oHave genetic component
oHave evolutionary roots, i.e. help in survival
oCan be measured as latent traits
oMeasure of individual differences

13. Challenges in measuring motivation
CORE Motivation Survey
Measuring Intrinsic Motivation

14. Challenges in Measuring IM
oTheoretically speaking, IM is triggered at a subconscious level
hence one has to depend on its reflection on self concept to
measure it through surveys
oIM is intrinsic which makes finding items very difficult
oDifferent needs are interpreted differently by different people
oSome IM are not seen as socially desirable
oIM can be very basic and may have rather uniform presence in
normal people e.g. need to eat or seek nutrition
oSome IM can be biological e.g. adrenaline causing impulsive
action

15. About CORE
oCORE is an Ipsative format instrument which reports Normative
measures
oCORE has 80 forced choice blocks/questions based on 121
unique items
oCORE measures 12 stable high order IM (Primary motivations)
and 31 lower order IMs (Secondary motivations)
o12 High order IMs can be conceptually be ordered into 4 broad
clusters. These are called Axis IMs.

16. CORE Construct Model
Association
Dissociation
Internal
Regulation External
Regulation
Acceptance
Affection
Social
Idealism
Righteousness
Tranquility
Certainty
Curiosity
Fascination
Competition -
Independence
Power

17. Development of CORE
oCORE has been developed to measure intrinsic motivation with
certain assumptions in mind
oReview Phase:
o Review of motivation theories
o Review of all IM identified till date
o Creation of a conceptual map of IM from over 150 researches on IM
oInitial Scoping:
o A set of 45 IMs were distinctly identified
o A review of overlaps was done and 39 were finally agreed upon
oItem Creation:
o 8 Items were created for all 39 constructs
o All items were checked for language, biases, semantic meaningfulness,
overlap with personality constructs, simplicity and readability

18. Development of CORE
oPreliminary Psychometric Evaluation:
o Items were tested in a normative format for reliability
o Poorly differentiating items were removed
o 3 Constructs which weren’t reliable were dropped
o Further items which did not perform well were dropped
oIpsative Format testing:
o An ipsative version of the questionnaire was created
o Survey was tested over 350 professionals
o Parameter estimation and Thurstonian modelling was used to derive at
normative scoring
oNorming, Interpretation and Validation:
o Another 127 professionals took CORE
o CORE was validated with the help of criterion measures and other
psychometric measures

19. Psychometric Properties of
CORE Motivation Survey

20. Reliability
oInternal Consistency
oAverage = 0.72
oRange = 0.63 – 0.84
oTest Retest Reliability over a Six week period
oAverage = 0.78
oRange = 0.71 – 0.89

21. Validity
oConstruct Validity Evidence:
oFactor Analysis shows two order factor structure
oAverage correlations with big 5 personality factors = 0.11
oAverage Correlation with Reiss Motivational profile = 0.34
oObserver Ratings = 0.41
oPredictive Validity Evidence:
oHappiness = 0.32
oJob Satisfaction = 0.36
oDiscretionary Effort = 0.41
oJob Performance (manager ratings) = 0.29
oJob Performance (sales target) = 0.35
oCareer Choice = 0.39

22. Other research that is underway
oIM correlates of intelligence measures
oIM correlates of academic performance
oIM correlates of leadership emergence and effectiveness
oIM correlates of learning styles

23. What can CORE be used for? How does CORE help?
Applications of CORE

24. Applications of CORE
oCreating self awareness
o Awareness of IM can allow individuals to choose situations which can
motivate them and help succeed
o Awareness of IM can help one rationalize own behaviour, evaluate fears and
impulses accurately
oHelp teams understand each other better
oHelp individuals choose rewarding careers
oHelp leaders understand their leadership motivation
oCan be used for hiring
oCan be used for identifying development areas
oCan be used in counselling

25. Frequently asked questions
FAQs

26. FAQs
oAren’t personality and motivation analogous?
o Average correlations with personality factors are low
o This implies that they are not the same
oCan people be good at something without being motivated by it?
o Yes, it is possible
o But this requires lot of external stimuli (rewards)
o Not sustainable in the long run
o Doesn’t make you happy
oWhy would IM be necessary if there are extrinsic rewards?
o Extrinsic rewards can not improve performance to a great extent
o Extrinsic rewards are costly on organizational resources
o People can become immune to extrinsic stimuli
o For extrinsic rewards to work goal setting must be undertaken well and
perceived expectancy must be high

27. FAQs
oAre IM traits real?
o Unlike personality traits (which are interpretations of factors), IMs are real
observable constructs which are assumed as trait for ease of measurement
oCan people be good at something without being motivated by it?
o Yes, it is possible
o But this requires lot of external stimuli (rewards)
o Not sustainable in the long run
o Doesn’t make you happy
oWhy would IM be necessary if there are extrinsic rewards?
o Extrinsic rewards can improve performance to a small extent
o Extrinsic rewards are costly on organizational resources
o People can become immune to extrinsic stimuli
o For extrinsic rewards to work goal setting must be undertaken well and
perceived expectancy must be high

28. FAQs
oWhy is CORE Ipsative?
oCORE is ipsative because our psychological needs, drives and
motivations are competitive in nature
oConscious mind cannot fulfill all needs and hence, they are exercised
at the expense of others
o Can CORE Ipsative scores be compared?
oYes, CORE is an ipsative survey, however, scores are reported in
normative format
oCan CORE be used as a replacement of personality?
oNo, motivation doesn’t predict behaviour directly, it predicts,
preferences and needs
oCORE instead predicts development and innate drives

29. FAQs
oWhen to not use CORE?
oCORE should be used in adherence to Psymetric’s code of ethical
practice and laws of the land
oCORE alone should not be used as a predictor of performance (it may
be used with a behavioural interview)
oCORE should not be used to reject candidates
oCORE should not be used to fire employees
o When to use CORE?
oCORE should be used for individual development, counselling, career
guidance, coaching, training, team building and stress management
oCORE may be used as a screening tool too

30. FAQs
oWhy does CORE not use Factor Analysis?
oFactor analysis has been carried out for CORE, however, interpretation
of factors is largely subjective
oCurrent structure is based on correlations and regression equations
that predict observable motivations
oAt primary level, CORE is criterion referenced
oAt secondary level, CORE is norm referenced