Very Short Question and Answer

1. State two characteristics of motivation.

The characteristics/ features of motivation are enlisted as follows:

  • Motivation is continuous in nature.
  •  Motivation can either be positive or negative.
2. What are the characteristics of the people with the need for affiliation?

The people having a high need for affiliation have the following characteristics:

  • They value the feeling of others,
  • They have a strong desire for acceptance and approval from others,
  • They view the organization as a platform to establish relationships.
3. Enlist the hygiene factors of Herzberg’s two-factor theory.

The key hygiene factors of Herzberg’s two factors theory are listed as follows:

  • Compensation,
  • Company policies and administration
  • Working condition
  • Supervision
  • Status
  • Inter-personal relation
  • Job security
4. Enlist the motivational factors in Herzberg’s two-factor theory.

The key motivational factors as per Herzberg are listed as follows:

  • Achievement
  • Recognition
  • I Work itself
  • Responsibility
  • Advancement Growth
5. What is motivation?

Motivation is a process that starts with a physiological or psychological deficiency or needs that activates a behavior or a drive that is aimed at a goal or incentive. In other words, motivation represents those psychological processes that cause the arousal, direction, and persistence of voluntary actions that are goal-directed.

6. Point out the importance of motivation.

The primary importance of motivation is enlisted as follows:

  • Motivation helps to create employees that are productive and creative in nature.
  • Motivation helps to reduce turnover and absenteeism associated with employees.
  • Motivation is important in maintaining good industrial relations in the workplace.
7. Define needs. List its different types.

Need refers to the state of felt deprivation.

As per Maslow, the different types of needs are enlisted as follows:

  • Physiological needs
  • Safety needs
  • Social needs
  • Esteem/Ego needs

Short Question and Answer

1. What is job satisfaction? Explain the effects of job satisfaction on employees’ performance.

Concept of Job Satisfaction

Job satisfaction is a general attitude of an individual in regard to a job. It is based on the difference between the number of rewards workers receive and the amount they believe they should receive. Management should place employees properly according to their merit, attitudes, interest and competencies. The well-placed employees take pride, interest and initiative in their work and derive job satisfaction and thereafter leading to the realization of individual and organizational goals.
There are different ways to express job satisfaction. Some of them are given below.

Employees can express dissatisfaction in the following way:

  • Exist → Leave the organization
  • Noise → Though active a constructive attempt to improve conditions
  • Loyalty → passively waiting for conditions to improve
  • Neglect → allows the condition to worsen.

Effect of Job Satisfaction on Employee Performance

The effects of job satisfaction on employee performance are the following:

  • Satisfaction and Productivity: Usually job satisfaction is positively related to an employee’s performance. For example, happy organizations are more productive.
  • Satisfaction and turnover: Usually they are negatively related. Less turnover because of recognition, praise rewards etc. given to them.
2. Explain the equity theory with its positive and negative aspects. Equity Theory of Motivation.

Equity Theory of Motivation

The equity theory of motivation was developed by J. Stacy Adams in 1963. It is a cognitively based motivation theory. This theory is based on the notion that people want to be treated fairly in relation to others for motivation. According to the equity theory of motivations, input and outcome ratio will help the individual to have an idea of being in a situation of equity or inequity. Inputs are the individual’s efforts, responsibility and other factors that they put into the job, whereas outcomes are the promotion, pay raise, a recognition of the work done, etc. in exchange for the inputs. Thus, the equity theory states that an individual compares his input/outcomes to that of the other working in the same position in the organization or in other organizations and tries to establish equity. In the process of comparison, if the individual perceives any sort of inequity he or she will change his or her behaviour at work.

Some of the key positive aspects associated with equity theory are listed below:

  • It helps in finding equity between the groups so that group motivation is enhanced.
  • It helps in providing fair pay to the employees as per their personal capabilities.
  • It also determines how the input and outcomes of a person can be matched.

Some of the key negative aspects associated with equity theory are listed below:

  • It cannot provide ideas regarding how to change the input and outcome of individuals.
  • The equity between input and output is almost impossible to gain as it depends upon the personal perception of employees.
  • The input cannot be changed easily. Moreover, changes in outcome can become conflicting. The equity theory is useful only for a company having a very small number of employees.
3. Define motivation. Explain the motivation process.

Motivation

Motivation originally comes from the Latin root word Moevere, which means “to move”. It is derived from the word ‘motive’. The motive may be defined as an inner state of our mind that activates and directs our behaviour. Motivation is a process that starts with a physiological or psychological deficiency or needs that activates a behaviour or a drive that is aimed at a goal or incentive. In other words, motivation represents those psychological processes that cause the arousal, direction and persistence of voluntary actions that are goal-directed.
Motivation is one’s willingness to exert efforts towards the accomplishment of his/her goal.
Job performance is a function of employee ability plus motivation. Employees may possess the necessary skills and abilities. But without a lack of motivation employees cannot perform their work effectively. A well-motivated employee can contribute more to an organization. Thus, the duty of every rational manager is to create an environment to motivate the entire employee.

Motivation Process

Referring to the given figure, an unsatisfied need is the starting point in the process of motivation. It is the deficiency of something within the individual and provides the spark which begins the chain of events leading to the behaviour.
An unsatisfied need causes tension i.e. physical and psychological within the individual, leading, the individual to engage in some kind of search behaviour (seek a means) to satisfy the need and thereby reduce the tension. For example, a thirsty person needs water which leads to tension. He is then driven by thirst and motivated by a desire for water in order to satisfy the need. Thus, the continuous process begins, with an unsatisfied need and ends with the need satisfaction, with goal-directed behaviour as a part of the process.

4. Elucidate the expectancy model of motivation.

Expectancy Model of Motivation

One of the most descriptive and logical explanations of motivation is offered by Victor Vroom in his Expectancy Theory. It is a cognitive process theory of motivation. The theory is founded on the basic notion that people will be motivated to exert a high level of effort when they believe there are relationships between the effort they put forth, the performance they achieve, and the outcomes they receive.
The relationships between notions of effort, performance, and rewards are depicted in the following figure:

Figure: Vroom’s Expectancy Model of Motivation

Thus, the key construct in the Vroom’s expectancy theory of motivation are:

  • Valence: Valence, according to Vroom, means the value of strength one places on the outcome or reward of a particular.
  • Expectancy: It relates efforts to performance.
  • Instrumentality: By instrumentality, Vroom means, the belief that performance is related to rewards.

Thus, Vroom’s motivation can be expressed in the form of an equation as follows:

Motivation = Valence x Expectancy x Instrumentality
As the model is multiplicative in nature, all the three variables must have high positive values to imply motivated performance choices. If any one of the variables approaches zero level, the possibility of the so motivated performance also touches zero level. Expectancy and instrumentality are attitudes, or more specifically, they are cognitions. As such, they represent an individual’s perception of the likelihood that effort will lead to performance and performance will lead to the desired outcomes. Similarly, on the other hand, it can be used to define what is termed a strong situation. Strong situations act to have base is a strong influence on the behaviour of individuals, often overriding their personalities, personal preferences, and other dispositional variables.

Long Question and Answer

1. Explain the significance of motivation and critically examine Maslow’s Need Hierarchy theory of motivation.

Significance of Motivation

Motivation is important in getting and retaining people. Motivation tools act as the glue that pastes individuals to organizational goals.

The major importances of motivation are given below:

  • Productive creative employee: Motivation makes employees productive and creative. That is because a motivated employee is a more productive employee. In addition, a productive employee is a more profitable employee. When people aren’t motivated, they become less productive and less creative. Ever before, we need motivated employees now.
  • Low employee turnover and absenteeism: Employee turnover and absenteeism are caused due to low level of motivation and job dissatisfaction. When dissatisfaction is increased employees do not enjoy the work assigned to them. Therefore, there is a tendency for absenteeism. The workers hunt for alternative jobs and leave the organization whenever they get the opportunity. In this way, increased turnover is disastrous for any organization as it puts strain on financial position due to additional recruitment, selection, training and development. Motivation is therefore a very important management tool to achieve organizational excellence.
  • Good industrial relations: It is the duty of every manager to ensure good industrial relations in the workplace. It can be insured by a high degree of motivation. For this purpose, managers should offer monetary and non-monetary incentives. Highly motivated workers would be committed and be regular at work. They have a sense of belonging to the organization. Such a situation tends to increase discipline, honesty and good industrial relation.
2. Critically Examine the Maslow’s Need Hierarchy Theory of Motivation

 The Maslow’s Need Hierarchy Theory of Motivation is critically examined as follows:

  • As compared to other theories of motivation it is very difficult to test. It is more of a theoretical statement rather than an abstraction
  • The sample size Maslow took on deriving this theory was relatively small which doubts its validity among people of all aspects.
  • The categories of need as per Maslow are fabricated and artificial. Many such needs may not even exist for an average person struggling for life.
  • The need priority model may not apply at all times in all places.
  • Due to individual differences, the level of need may be permanently low for many people which exactly does not fit with the theory.
3. One of the major challenges faced by modern managers is to motivate the employees in the organization. In the context of this statement, discuss McClelland’s theory of motivation and its application.

McClelland’s Theory of Motivation

In the early 1950s, David C. McClelland and his associates began to study three needs that motivate human behaviour i.e. power, affiliation and achievement. McClelland believes that each person has a need for all three but there is a difference in the degree to which the various needs motivate their behaviour.

Applications of McClelland’s theory

a) Need for Achievement [n Ach]: Need for achievement explains the drive to excel, to achieve in relation to a set of standards, and to strive to succeed. In other words, the need for achievement is behaviour directed toward competition with a standard of excellence. McClelland found that people with a high need for achievement perform better than those with a moderate or low need for achievement, and noted regional/national differences in achievement motivation. Through his research, McClelland identified the following three characteristics of high need achievers:

  • High-need achievers have a strong desire to assume personal responsibility for performing a task or finding a solution to a problem.
  • High-need achievers tend to set moderately difficult goals and task calculated risks.
  • High-need achievers have a strong desire for performance feedback.

b) Need for Power [n Pow]: The need for power is concerned with making an impact on others, the desire to influence others, and the desire to make a difference in life. People with a high need for power are people who like to be in control of people and events. This results in ultimate satisfaction in man. People who have a high need for power are characterized by:

  • A desire to influence and direct somebody else.
  • A desire to exercise control over others.
  • Concern for maintaining leader-follower relations.

c) Need for Affiliation [n Aff]: The need for affiliation is defined as a desire to establish and maintain friendly and warm relations with other people. The need for affiliation, in many ways, is similar to Maslow’s social needs. The people with high need for affiliation have these characteristics:

  • They have a strong desire for acceptance and approval from others.
  • They tend to conform to the wishes of those people whose friendship and companionship they value.
  • They give value and feeling to others.
4. Approaches to Measure Employees’ Job Satisfaction

There are two major approaches by which we can measure whether an employee is satisfied with the job or not. They are briefly explained as follows.

  • Single global rating: It is nothing more than asking individuals to respond to one question, such as “all things considered, how satisfied are you with your job?” Respondents then reply by circling a number between 1 and 5 that corresponds to the solution from “highly satisfied” to highly dissatisfied.
  • Summation score: It identifies key elements in a job and asks for the employee’s feelings about each; typical factors to be included are nature of the work, supervision, present pay, promotion, opportunities and relations with co-workers.

 


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