Running head: Motivation Theories: A Literature Review
Motivation Theories: A Literature Review
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Motivation Theories: A Literature Review Motivation is an important concept for managers to understand. Motivation affects direction, intensity and duration (Locke & Gary, 2004). High task motivation has been found to correlate with high firm growth (Miner, Smith, et. al., 1989). Berman and Miner (1985) studied CEOs, COOs, executive VPs and group VPs and found that those “who reached the highest levels of large business firms [had] higher motivation to manage than individuals with less achievement” (377-391).
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Daniel Goleman gives six distinct leadership styles, “coercive leaders demand immediate compliance. Authoritative leaders mobilize people toward a vision. Affiliative leaders create emotional bonds. Democratic leaders build consensus. Pacesetting leaders set high standards and expect excellence. Coaching leaders develop people” (Longenecker, Moore, Petty & Palich, 2008, p. 474-475). Forsyth (2006) called leadership “the process by which an individual guides others in their pursuits, often by organizing, directing, coordinating, supporting and motivating their efforts” (p. 376). Invang (2008) the guide to his group members. “A manager who listens encourages employee growth and career development” (Burley-Allen, 1995, p. 9). Anthony (1989) discusses motivation by example and through involvement and interactions with employees. Wolleat (2007) reviewed Gary Latham’s book, Work Motivation: History, Theory, Research, and Practice and acknowledged its use in presenting motivation theories but Locke and Gary (2004) found that motivation theories do not compete with each other as much as they show different aspects of motivation. The goal of managers, therefore, should not be so much to evaluate motivation theories to select the superior theory; rather the goal of managers should be to use characteristics of different motivation theories to effectively motivate employees.
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Motivation is a key aspect in the organization or workplace, and it is imperative to know the basic theory application and methods dealing with any problems that usually unavoidable for the employee and will come up in any work environment. This is a mandatory skills for a leader or future manager to know how important on how to motivate his or her employee to work more efficient. Motivating employees is a big dilemma for managers. To produce a higher level of performance and productivity, manager’s today are obliged to pay more attention on this matter. Every employee needs different types of motivation. In this paper will elaborate three motivational methods that a
Coaching leaders help employees by identifying their unique strengths and weaknesses. They encourage employees to establish long-term goals. Coaching style is used least often because many leaders don’t have time to teach people and help them grow. Studies have shown that leaders who have mastered four our more especially the authoritative, democratic, affiliative and coaching styles have the best climate and business performance. I believe in order to master the art of leadership we need to comprehensively understand human behavior and have the ability to adapt. Leadership styles can lead to different types of success, as mentioned in the article leadership will never be an exact science. But neither is it a complete mystery. I believe that the business environment is continually changing, all leaders have to respond. Leaders must know when to use the right style at the right time to gain success. Although not all skills are equally effective leaders could use multiple styles at one time to gain success. For example leaders could use the authoritative style to mobilize people towards a vision while at the same time creating bonds and harmony through the affiliative
The six basic styles of leadership presented (Coercive, Authoritative, Affiliative, Democratic, and Coaching) can have either a net positive or net negative affect on an organizations climate. The basis for being
A1. Leadership Style Upon conducting research, it is clear that the definition of “leadership” is not agreed upon. It is fluid, based upon many perceptions, situations, and surroundings. According to Robinson (2010), adopting a specific style of leadership is rather futile as it is, “contingent on the personal traits of the leader, the people being led, and the nature of the activity.” Tools are available to help guide potential leaders in determining a preferred style of leadership. For example, utilizing the “Leadership Self-Assessment
The special edition of Academy of Management Review in 2004 on future of motivation theories was a significant milestone in the field, which noticed stagnation in work motivation research since 1990s and helped
In the reading by Daniel Goleman, the six different type of leadership are described, and defined. The writer states the different types are Coercive, Authoritative, Affiliative, Democratic, Pacesetting, and Coaching (Goleman, 2000). “Coercive leaders demand immediate compliance. Authoritative leaders mobilize people toward a vision. Affiliative leaders create emotional bonds, and harmony. Democratic leaders build consensus through participation. Pacesetting leaders expect excellence and self-direction, and coaching leaders develop people for the future,” (Goleman, 2000). The reading state out of the six, Authoritative leadership is the type which has the most positive effect on workers because in the realm of Emotional Intelligence it shows empathy, and self-confidence (Goleman, 2000). The other positive leadership styles are Affiliative, Democratic, and Coaching (Goleman, 2000). In all of these types, the common theme is empathy, and working together.
When looking back in one’s career, each manager in the organization leads and develops employees differently. A person can apprehend that each leader has their own leadership style with
Leaders have a profound effect on employee performance because they shape workers’ perceptions of the working environment. Consequently, some leadership styles are more effective with meeting particular objectives. Although personal attributes dictate a leader’s natural leadership style, effective leaders recognize the benefits and limitations of each style, understand the impact a style will have on the organization’s environment, and are capable of developing and incorporating a variety of styles to ensure the desired outcome is achieved.
Today’s managers have a lot of tasks on their plate, even more so than managers of the past due to stricter rules and regulations imposed by the Federal Government, as well as the arduous amount of paperwork involved with documenting employees work habits and interactions be they good or bad. Ad on top of all this the need for annual or quarterly performance appraisals and daily supervision, it can make a manager feel overwhelmed, especially if they have employees who don’t seem to be overly motivated to do their jobs, or do them adequately. With this in mind, it is important to understand the motivational theories that make employees want to excel, management theories that we can use to better guide our employees, and their effect on leadership styles today. It is also important as well to understand how they relate to our personal lives, career enhancement opportunities, and ultimately and most importantly, our relationship with God.
There are many styles of leadership that have been identified by scholars. For the purpose of this report following will be discussed.
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
ABSTRACT Locke and Latham provide a well-developed goal-setting theory of motivation. The theory emphasizes the important relationship between goals and performance. Research supports predictions that the most effective performance seems to result when goals are specific and challenging, when they are used to evaluate performance and linked to feedback on results, and create commitment and acceptance. The motivational impact of goals may be affected by moderators such as ability and self-efficacy. Deadlines improve the effectiveness of goals. A learning goal
An effective leader influences their employees in a desired manner to achieve goals and objectives. Different leadership styles can affect an organization’s effectiveness and performance. The objective of this paper is to analyze the review of literature on various leadership styles over the past years and how effective and ineffective different leadership styles are in the workplace.
Human Resources is dependent on the success, happiness, and contentment of employees that keep the business on course. Motivation is one of the best ways to push employees forward while making sure everyone is in a comfortable position in their job. Motivational theories just attempt to explain what motivates or makes people act the way that they do. The goal of understanding these theories and their outcomes is to ensure a better performance from each employee, and to give each of those employees the best situation they can have in the workplace. Visionaries such as Abraham Maslow, Frederick Herzberg, and Henry A. Landsberger also brought forward new ways of management and ways to handle internal situations that changed the landscape of human resources as a whole. Motivational theories instituted in the workplace have a commonly positive effect on both employees and management, showing that it is important to strive for proven motivational practices.
This essay’s aim is to analyse and establish an understanding of various motivation theories and their possible application within organisations. Along with implementing, the information related to motivation, this essay would demonstrate the importance of motivation and it is necessary for organisations to motivate their employees effectively