Work Motivation Theories

Work signifies an important aspect of human being’s life owing to the outcomes related with it, such as economic outcomes (salary, financial incentives), social status and fulfillment of needs. This had inspired organizational scholars to explore, what motivates one to work, leading to tremendous research on work motivation. Motivation theories can be classified through three predominant approaches (Chalofsky, 2003):

discrimination with the view of promotion of a just and equal treatment in all work environs.

For instance, maintaining a moderate growth in wages with time to ensure the employees are not overworked. The risk of failing to provide a fair workplace environment for all the staff in an organization involves a decrease in the level of employee morale. Reducing the level of employee morale means that the degree of work output of the employee in question will be affected. Additionally, employee autonomy will also be jeopardized since the employees will create a barrier between themselves categorizing themselves based on the provided treatment at the

A problem in a egalitarian society can be quality of work decreases. The Davis morris

Equity Theory: Individuals compare their work inputs and outcomes with others and then respond to eliminate any inequities between those comparisons

Companies should try to foster a culture of fairness or positive environment so that employees doesn’t get disgruntled and pose a problem to company.

In contrast of process theories of work motivation, content theories of work motivation assume that factors exist within the

Distributive justice is a moral principle that ought to be implemented in the workplace. This standard calls for an even distribution of pay raises, promotions and other organizational resources to those who contributed equally. Accordingly, personal characteristics – over which individuals have no control – should not carry any weight associated with the job. As a result, the procedural justice principle should be employed to determine how to distribute outcomes to members by appraising their performances. However, managing diversity effectively proves to be a good business choice as

329). Equity gives employees the sense of fairness in the workplace. A perceived inequity may result in decreased productivity and a sense of dissatisfaction in the workplace. An equitable workplace shows increased productivity, decreased absenteeism, and less staff turnover. Equity theory in the workplace shows greatly in matters of wages (Sweeney, 1990).

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.

The message is clear - if management can find out which level each employee has reached, then they can decide on suitable rewards.

Motivation is what encourages us to act in a certain way and to achieve certain things in our everyday lives and is a major factor in deciding how we behave. Work motivation is especially important to managers in organizations. According to Kanfer et al (2008), work motivation is a psychological process that influences how employees allocate effort to their work. It also influences the direction, intensity and persistence of these actions. It is very important that managers motivate their employees in the workplace as having highly motivated employees can benefit the organization. Motivated employees are known to be happier at work and as a result will work harder and are less likely to leave their job. There are many different theories of motivation that managers can use to motivate employees. In this assignment I am going to discuss, in detail equity theory and goal- setting theory. I will examine the effectiveness of these theories, outline some problems associated with them an compare the theories.

Equity Theory has been widely applied to business settings by Industrial Psychologists to describe the relationship between an employee’s motivation and his or her perception of equitable or inequitable treatment. In a business setting, the relevant dyadic relationship is that between employee and employer. As in marriage and other contractual dyadic relationships, Equity Theory assumes that employees seek to maintain an equitable ratio between the inputs they bring to the relationship and the outcomes they receive from it (Adams,

Goal setting and SMART goal setting theory was employed in this case through the proposed implementation of work reorganization tied to a reward scheme.

Theories can never be proven, only supported or rejected. Although there are many theories of motivation, there are only a few that I feel can be relevant and valuable in the work setting. Before settling on a theory to use to assist with the creation of my specific theory of motivation, I wanted to get a better understanding of some of the most well-known motivational theories. Throughout my research I’ve noticed a common trend in the motivational theories and how they are applied. Many theories such as McClelland’s Needs Theory (1961), Maslows’ Hierarchy of Needs Theory (1954), and