Essay Question
Compare and Contrast Two theories of motivation. Suggest how a team leader might use these theories to motivate their team.
Motivation according to Vroom (1964) is based within the individual , which influences one to complete a task. It is important for team leaders to motivate their team in order to 'improve productivity' (Hyun and Oh ,2011, P103) and ensure that employees enjoy their jobs. Many theories of motivation have been developed, which allows team leaders use in work to motivate their teams
The theory's which will be compared and contrasted in this essay are:- Herzbergs two-factor theory and Adams equity theory. Herzbergs theory, has become widely used as well as an respectable theory for explaining
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Unlike, Herzbergs, Adams (1968) maintained that inequity results from people not only when they are relatively underpaid but also when the are overpaid. For example a person may feel inequity when they are being paid low for high productivity of input whilst another may also feel inequity when they are being paid high for low productivity. Whilst in the two-factor theory, motivation is more to do with increase in motivators thus this may occur even when productivity is low. (Herzbergs 1976).
Therefore according to the equity theory, motivation is effected by how one perceives being treated fairly. Equity is defined as justices (Al-zawahreh and Al-madi 2012). Thus inequity occurs when a person feels that an imbalances in the ratio between their outcomes and inputs with others workers outcome and inputs. (Mine 1980)
Moreover, according to Bell ( to improve productivity using the equity theory is to remove the feeling of unbalance, a team leader should do this by providing regularly evaluation of each employee on their perception of input which should be balanced with their perception of fair outcomes. This would provide the employees would understanding of the outcome received and remove any thoughts of unfairness. Moreover a lager amount of research has examined the characteristics of motivation factors that occur. For example Bandura cited in Sachau (2007) found that people are motivated to perform an activity to the extend that they feel a
The Equity Theory touches on the effects these situations have on the employee’s motivational level. In society today employees are constantly comparing how they are
Motivational theories are attempted to explain the way of employee effort is generated, in this they are different types of motivational theories which is perform the effective result of the organization development with the employee individual behavior. Different types of motivational theories are named as goal setting, social learning and equity theories.
Much like many of the more prevalent theories of motivation, for example, Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs and Herzberg's Two-Factor Theory; Adams' Equity Theory recognizes that delicate and variable factors affect an employee's appraisal and impression of their relationship with their work and their manager.
Rather, Equity, and the sense of fairness which commonly underpins motivation, is dependent on the comparison a person makes between his or her reward/investment ratio with the ratio enjoyed (or suffered) by others considered to be in a similar situation”(Balancing Employee Inputs and Outputs).
Adam’s Equity Theory is a model of motivation which basically states that employees will perform at a more productive rate if they feel that they are being treated fairly (Kreitner & Kinicki, 2010). Equity is achieved when a worker perceives their reward for their amount of work to be equal to that of a relevant worker. Negative inequity is perceived by the employee when the relevant worker receives greater rewards for the same amount of work. Positive inequity is perceived by the employee when the relevant worker receives fewer rewards for the same amount of work (Kreitner & Kinicki, 2010).
This theory stems from the idea that individuals need fair treatment in order to be motivated,
Equity Theory: Individuals compare their work inputs and outcomes with others and then respond to eliminate any inequities between those comparisons
Swenson, D. Expectancy and equity theories of motivation. The College of St. Scholastica Website. Retrieved from http://faculty.css.edu/dswenson/web/OB/VIEtheory.html Robbins, Judge, Millet, Marsh, 2008, Organizational Behavior, 5th Edition, Pearson
One’s ability can be developed through training, education, and work experience. However, substantial developments in motivation can be obtained fairly quickly. As an effective manager, may achieve a significant increase in your team's performance by improving its motivation and this begins with understanding what motivates people. According to Maslow Hierarchy of needs theory (Robbins & De Cenzo, 2014), there are 5 levels of motivation that a manger should recognize as it relates to what motivates individuals and how people are motived. According to Maslow (2014), lower needs take most priority and they get fulfilled before others get activated. The five pyramids of needs are categories below in figure
Equity theory is a popular theory of motivation and has received extensive research attention and although there have been some non supportive results, by and large the research evidence supports the main ideas of equity theory. (Greenberg, 1982 cited in George, 2002)
The first video elaborated on equity theory. Equity theory is important for motivation in the workplace. According to the video on equity theory, employees compare outputs;what employees receive from organizations to the inputs; what the employee gives to the company. Inputs can range from time to skills and education. Outputs include throngs like pay, benefits and recognition earned on the job.
First off, equity theory is when people are motivated to excel when they know they are treated with fairness, especially among other coworkers. The quality of fairness can be seen very differently among the employees. They believe equity depends on the quality of someone's work and how known they are. For example, CEO's who earn more money is because they are great at the job ; therefore, they get greater recognition. Some components include inputs and outcomes, along with referents which is the people someone looks at to determine if they are being treated legitimately. Next is expectancy theory, in which employees are motivated to a certain extent depending if they believe the good performance will lead to great rewards. Since not everyone
Some anthropologists even believe that it is cohesive nature of being group animals that contributed to the eventual civilization of humanity. Because we are group animals by nature, it is typical for us to compare ourselves with others. Equity theory is a theory that helps us understand satisfaction in terms of fair or unfair distribution of resources within groups or interpersonal relationships. These resources may be monetary, emotional, intellectual, but center on the issue of how an individual perceives themselves as either under-rewarded or over-rewarded, and the stress this causes that person. Equity theory holds that the actual perception of unfairness is a significant and powerful motivating force within the workplace, and a significant barrier to intimacy in personal relationships. This tends to complicate the manner in which managers interact with employees to find ways (salary, praise, training, education, experience) to allow for the greatest possible productivity, or for interpersonal relationships to actualize (Montana and Chanrov, 2008).
Having motivation to do something is very important. Motivation plays a huge roll in everyone’s life, even If someone has very little motivation. There are several types of motivation such as Instinct and drive motivation. These two motivations are quite similar, but different at the same time. I will compare and contrast both of these types of motivation and what I think about them. These motivations are very important to your life and can determine an outcome of your life.
Motivation in the workplace is one of the major concerns that managers face when trying to encourage their employees to work harder and do what is expected of them on a day-to-day basis. According to Organizational Behavior by John R. Schermerhorn, James G. Hunt and Richard N. Osborn the definition of motivation is "the individual forces that account for the direction, level, and persistence of a person's effort expended at work." They go on to say that "motivation is a key concern in firms across the globe." Through the years there have been several theories as to what motivates employees to do their best at work. In order to better understand these theories we will apply them to a fictitious organization that has the following