This document provides an overview of motivation theories including: 1. Maslow's hierarchy of needs which categorizes human needs into physiological, safety, social, esteem, and self-actualization needs. 2. Herzberg's motivation-hygiene theory which distinguishes between motivators like achievement and hygiene factors like salary. 3. McGregor's Theory X and Theory Y which propose different assumptions about human motivation and nature. Theory X assumes people dislike work while Theory Y assumes people can find work enjoyable.

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MOTIVATION
Definitions:
Motivation has been variously defined by scholars. Some definitions are discussed as follows:
Berelson and Steiner: -" A motive is an inner state that energizes activates, or moves and directs
or channels behavior goals".
Lills: -"It is the stimulation of any emotion or desire operating upon one's will and promoting or
driving it to action".
Nature of Motivation
Motivation is a psychological phenomena which generates within an individual. A person feels the
lack of certain needs, to satisfy which he feels working more. The need satisfying ego motivates a
person to do better than he normally does. From definitions given earlier the following inferences
can be derived:
1. Motivation is an inner feeling which energizes a person to work more
2. The emotions or desires of a person prompt him for doing a particular work
3. There are unsatisfied needs of a person which disturb his equilibrium
4. A person moves to fulfill his unsatisfied needs by conditioning his energies
5. There are dormant energies in a person which are activated
Importance of Motivation
1. High Performance: -.Motivated employees writ put maximum efforts for achieving
organizational goals. The untapped reservoirs of physical and mental abilities are taped to
the maximum. Better performance will also result in higher productivity. The cost of
production can also be brought down if productivity is raised.
2. Low employee Turnover and Absenteeism: -When the employees are not satisfied with
their job then they will leave it whenever they get an alternative offer. The dissatisfaction
among employees also increases absenteeism. The employment training of new
employees costs dearly to the organization.
3. Better Organizational Images: -Those enterprises which offer better monetary and non-
monetary facilities to their employees have a better image among them. Such concerns are
successful in attracting better qualified and experienced persons. Since there is a better
man-power to development programme, the employees will like to join such organizations.
Motivational efforts will simplify personnel functions also.
4. Better Industrial Relations: -A good motivational system will create job satisfaction among
employees. The employment will offer them better service conditions and various other
incentives. There will be an atmosphere of confidence among employers and employees.
There will be no reason for conflict and cordial relations among both sides will create a
healthy atmosphere. So motivation among employees will lead to better industrial relations.
5. Acceptability to Change: -The changing social an industrial situations will require changes
and improvements in the working of enterprises. There will be a need to introduce new and
better methods of work from time to time. Generally employees resist changes for fear of an
adverse effect on their employment.

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Theories of Motivation
Maslow's Need Hierarchy
Motivation is influenced by the needs of a person. There is a priority of certain needs over others.
The importance of needs will influence the level of motivation. A.H. Maslow, an American social
scientist, has given a framework that helps to explain the strength of certain needs. He has
categorized human needs into five categories. He is of the opinion that a person tries to achieve
first category first and then moves on to the next and so on.
1. Physiological Needs: -These needs are most essential for the survival and maintenance
of body. These include food, clothing, drinking, shelter, rest, exercise etc. A man will try to
satisfy these needs first. Unless physiological needs are satisfied no other needs will
motivation him. Once these needs and satisfied then these will cease to motivate him and
he will want to satisfy the other .needs.
2. Safety Needs: - Once physiological needs are satisfied then safety needs take the
precedence. These are the needs to be free from physical danger and the fear of loss of
job, property, shelter, etc. One would like to be free from economic worries like loss of job,
sickness, old age pension etc. The physical safety against murder, accident, fire, etc is also
essential. The physical and economic needs act as motivation upto the time they are not
properly met.
"According to McGregor, "Safety needs may serve as motivators in such circumstance as
arbitrary management actions, behavior which arouses uncertainty with respect to
continued unemployment and unpredictable administration of policy. The organization can
meet safety needs by installing safety devices at work and can start pension scheme,
insurance plan etc.
3. Social Needs: -Since people are human beings, they need to belong, to be accepted by
others. When social needs become dominant, human being will strike to have meaningful
association with others. In an organization workers may form informal groups for exchange
of ideas. If management tries to have close supervision and control then workers may retort
against such environment. The communication among workers should be encourage to
remove the irritants.
SAFETY
NEEDS
SOCIAL
NEEDS
ESTEEM
(EGO) NEEDS
SELF
ACTUALISATION
NEEDS
MASLOW’S HIERARCHY OF NEEDS CHART
Physiological
Needs

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4. Esteem or Ego Needs: -The needs are concerned with self- respect, self- confidence,
feeling of being unique, recognition, etc. The satisfaction of these needs brings confidence,
power, control and prestige. Some of the social problems have their roots in the unfulfilment
of these needs.
5. Self fulfillment or Actualization Needs: -Self-fulfillment is the highest need in Maslow's
hierarchy. This refers to the needs which help an individual to develop his potentialities. He
tries to do whatever he can and has a sort of self-development. A person tries to do what
ever he is capable of doing. He tries to bring out something hidden in him. The self-
fulfillment needs give satisfaction to the person concerned and are good for the society
also.
Maslow has categorized the needs in order of priority. An individual spends money from one
need to another. When one need is satisfied the other becomes the motivator. All the needs
are interdependent. It is not necessary that only one need is satisfied at one time. A person
may move to other needs even if earlier needs are not fully satisfied. When the peak of a
need passes then it causes to be a motivator.
Critical Analysis of Maslow’s Theory
A number of research studies have been undertaken to see the validity of hierarchy of needs.
Lawler and Suttle collected data on 187 Managers in two different organizations for a period of
six months to one year. No evidence was found to support Maslow's theory. They found there
were two level of needs-biological and other needs- and that other needs would emerge only
when biological needs were reasonably satisfied. A survey conducted in India of 200 factory
w9rker revealed that they give top priority to job security, earnings and personal benefits-all lower
other needs.
It is generally seen that needs do not follow Maslow's hierarchy. The hierarchy is determined by
individuals differently. They proceed to follow their own pattern of needs satisfaction. Some people
may try for self-actuating needs rather than lower needs. For some persons esteem needs are
more important than social needs.
There is no cause effect relation between and need and behavior. A particular need may cause
behavior in different ways in different person. Similarly, one particular behavior may result due to
different needs. It is said that higher needs motivate a person when lower needs are reasonably
satisfied. The word 'reasonably satisfied' is a subjective matter. The level of satisfaction may be
different for persons.
Herzberg's Motivation-Hygiene Theory
The priority of needs characterizes the type of behavior. The satisfaction of some needs may not
have positive effect on motivation but their non-satisfaction may act as negative factor. A question
arises as to what types of needs are important for improving motivation. Frederick Herberg and
his associates conducted a study of need satisfaction 200 engineers and accountants employed
by firms in an around Pittsburgh.
The person were asked to describe a few previous job experiences in which they felt exceptionally
good or exceptionally bad about jobs. The influence of these experiences on job was also studied.
Herberg concluded that there were two sets of conditions. First types of conditions, described as
maintenance of hygiene factors, do not motivate employees by their presence but their absence
dissatisfies them. The other conditions, called motivational factors, operate to build strong
motivation and high job satisfaction, but their absence hardly proves strongly dissatisfies them.

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The other conditions, called motivational factors, operate to build strong motivation and high job
satisfaction, but their absence hardly proves strongly dissatisfying.
Maintenance or Hygiene Factor
These were called maintenance or hygiene factors since they were necessary to maintain current
status i.e., reasonable level of satisfaction. These factors are more dissatisfied by their absence but
their presence will not motivate. The additional of more and more of these factors will not help in
motivating once they are satisfactory.
Herberg named the hygiene factors:
Company policy and administration, technical supervision, inter- personal relations with supervisor,
inter-personal relations with peers, life, work relations with subordinates, status. These factors
relate to conditions under which the job is performed. They produce no growth in workers but
restrict loss of growth. These factors are necessary to maintain reasonable level of satisfaction in
employees.
Motivational Factors
The presence of these factors builds high motivations and job satisfaction. However, if these
conditions are not present, they do not cause dissatisfaction. There are six factors: Achievement,
Recognition, advancement, work itself, possibilities of personal growth, responsibility. Most of
these factors relate to job content. Their performance of an employee on the job and the
satisfaction which he achieves from them from the contents of these factors. The increase in these
factors will be essential for in9reasing motivation of employees.
Herberg pointed out the mangers have been very much concerned with hygiene factors only. They
could not enlist the full co-operation of employees .by increasing salaries etc. They did not realize
the importance of motivating factors. The employees are motivated by the content of the job. The
satisfaction which an employee will derive from the job will go to increase his output. The
management should try to reduce dissatisfaction arising out of hygiene factor and building up the
satisfaction from motivators.
Mcgregor's Theory X and Y
Doughlas Mcgergor introduced these two theories i.e., Theory X and Theory Y, based on two
distinct views of human beings. He proposed, at opposite extremes, two pairs of assumptions
about human beings which he thought were implied by the actions of the mangers. Theory X deals
with one extreme, based on one set of assumptions and Theory y deals with another extreme
based on another set of assumptions. These theories are not based on any research, but
according to McGregor, these are intuitive deduction.
Theory X: -This theory is based on the traditional approach to human behavior. The assumptions
generally, held by the managers in their theory are: -
1. The average human beings inherently dislike work and will try to avoid it, whenever
possible
2. A the employee are lazy, they must be controlled, coerced, threatened with punishment to
achieve goals, to which they are indifferent

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3. Average employee will try to avoid responsibility and seek formal directions whenever
possible, because they have relatively little ambition.
4. Most workers place security above all other factors associated with work. These
assumptions about human nature are negative in their approach. Manager who advocate
these views feel that extreme control is most appropriate for dealing with irresponsible and
immature employees. This is an autocratic style of leadership based on the traditional
theory of what workers are like and what management must do to motivate them. Workers
have to be persuaded and pushed into performance.
Theory y: -This approach assumes that management by direction and control is questionable
method for motivating such people whose physiological and social needs have been satisfied and
whose social; esteem and self actualization needs are becoming more important. For such people,
Theory Y, seems to be applicable, which is the contrast of Theory X. This theory makes the
following assumptions about people:
1. The average human being does not inherently dislike work. He can view work as natural or
enjoyable as rest or play
2. Employees will exercise self direction and self control in the attainment of the objectives to
which they are committed
3. Given proper working conditions, average person can learn to accept and even to seek
responsibility
4. Commitment to objectives is a function of the rewards associated with their achievement
5. All the people are capable of making innovative and creative decision and the decision
making is not the sole province of the people in management position.
This theory has assumed a new approach in management. It emphasizes on co- operation
between management and employees. The individual and organizational goals do not conflict in
this approach. This theory places greater emphasis a satisfaction of high level needs of the
employees. Mcgregor himself holds that the assumptions of theory Y are more valid than Theory
X. Thus, delegations of authority, job enlargement, management by objective and participative
management techniques are great motivators for the employee.
Applicability of Theory X and Theory y
Theory X and the Theory Y represent two extreme. No person can being to these two extreme
situations. Each person possesses the traits of Theory X and Theory Y, though the degrees may
be different under different situations. Though, no generalization can be made, still it appears that
theory X is more applicable to unskilled and uneducated lower class workers who work for the
satisfaction of their physiological needs only. Theory Y appears to be applicable to the educated,
skilled and professional employee who understand their responsibilities and do not need any
direction and control. However, there can be exceptions. A lower revel employee may be more
responsible and mature than a will qualified high level employee. Still these theories are very
important tools is understanding the behavior of human beings and in designing the motivational
schemes. The management should used a combination of both the theories to motivate different
employees.
PHYSIOLOGICAL
NEEDS