1. UHS 2062 LECTURES at UTM Skudai.
Prepared by Siti Rokiah Siwok, August 2009
srsiwok@gmail.com
2. Motivation and Work
IO psychologists generally define work motivation as
the internal force that drives a worker to action , as
well as the external factors that encourage the actions.
Ability and skill determine the employee can do the
job.
Motivation determines whether the employee will
do the job properly.
Generally psychologist agree that increased employee
motivation results in increased job performance.
3. Theory X and Theory Y
In his 1960 book, The Human Side of Enterprise,
Douglas McGregor proposed two theories by which to
view employee motivation.
He avoided descriptive labels and simply called the
theories Theory X and Theory Y.
4. Theory X
People cannot be trusted, they are irrational ,
unreliable and inherently lazy.
Therefore people need to be controlled and motivated
using financial incentives, threats and punishment.
In the absence of such controls, people will pursue
their own goals , which will be in conflict with those
of their work organisation.
5. Theory Y
People seek independence, self-development and
creativity in their work.
People can see further than their immediate
circumstances and are able to adapt to new ones.
They are moral and responsible beings, who, if treated
as such, will strive for good of their organisation.
6. Needs, values and wants
Work motivation and job satisfaction are also
determined by the discrepancy between what we want,
value and expect, and what actually the job provides.
Three theories focus on employees’ needs and values:
Maslow’s needs hierarchy, ERG theory and two-factor
theory.
7. Needs Theories
Need theories are based on the idea that there are
psychological needs, that lie behind human
behaviour.
When our needs are unmet we experience tension or
disequilibrium which we try to put right; which means
we behave in ways that satisfy our needs.
9. Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs
Hierarchical , meaning that the lower-level needs
have to be satisfied before one is concerned with the
next level (like the staircase).
Each level is taken a step at a time and thus the higher
level need cannot be reached until the lower- level
need is satisfied
10. Humanistic perspective
The humanistic perspective emphasis free will , the ability
to make choices and come to decisions in their lives
(Feldman, 2006).
Carl Rogers, a major proponent of the humanistic
perspective, suggests that all people have a need for
positive regard, results from the undelying need to be loved
and respect.
Maslow suggest s that self actualization is the primary goal
in life.
Self actualization is a state of self fulfillment in which
people achieve their highest potential in their own unique
way (Feldman, 2006).
11. Evaluation of Maslow’s Theory
“Maslow’ theory is popular and stood the test of time,
but not very much supported by research.
The biggest “problem” with regards to the levels.
…need there be five? Or two or three enough?
There are people who skip levels .
What about overlapping of levels?
12. ERG Theory
To address the limitation of Maslow’s Theory, ,
Clayton Alderfer proposed the ERG theory, which like
Maslow's theory, describes needs as a hierarchy.
The letters ERG stand for three levels of needs:
Existence, Relatedness, and Growth.
The ERG theory is based on the work of Maslow, so it
has much in common with it but also differs in some
important aspects.
Other research supports the number of levels as
proposed by Alderfer
13. ERG Theory
According to this theory, people can skip levels.
ERG theory also explains why a higher-level need
sometimes do not become more important once a
lower-level need has been satisfied. There are other
factors.
Overlapping of levels has been addressed by reducing
the number of levels to three
14. Two-factor theory
Two-factor theory was proposed by Herzberg (1966),
in which job related factors are divided into two
categories: hygiene factors and motivators.
Hygiene factors are those job-related elements that
related from, but not involving the job itself.
Examples :
pay and benefits
making friends
(These are results of the work, but do not involve the work
itself)
15. Two-factor theory
Motivators are the job elements that concern the
actual task and duties.
For employees to have motivation and satisfaction,
both hygiene factors and motivators must be present.
This theory make sense but has not receive research
support.
The theory is being critised because of the methods to
develop the two factors
16. Two-factor theory
Hygiene factors Motivators
Pay
Security
Co workers
Working conditions
Company policy
Work schedule
Supervisors
Responsibilities
Growth
Challenge
Stimulation
Independence
Variety
control
17. Comparison of Theories
Maslow ERG Herzberg
Self -actualization Growth Motivators
Self-esteem
Belonging and love
(social)
Relatedness Hygiene factors
Safety Existence
Physiological needs
18. References:
Aamodt, M.G (2007). Industrial /organizational
psychology. An applied approach. Belmont, CA: Thomson
Arnold, J ( 2005). Work Psychology. Understanding
Human Behaviour in the Workplace (4th ed). England :
Pearson Education Ltd.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Motivation
http://www.wadsworth.com/cgi-
wadsworth/course_products_wp.pl?fid
http://www.netmba.com/mgmt/ob/motivation/mcgregor/
Feldman, R. S. (2006) Development across the lifespan.
(4th ed). New Jersey: Pearson Education.