motivation notes

Motivation in theory - What is motivation?

What is Motivation?

Buchanan defines motivation as follows:

"Motivation is a decision-making process, through which the individual chooses the desired outcomes and sets in motion the behaviour appropriate to them".

How does motivation differ from "motives"

Buchanan defines motives as:

"learned influences on human behaviour that lead us to pursue particular goals because they are valued".

Motivation can therefore be thought of as the degree to which an individual wants AND chooses to engage in certain behaviours.

For example: are you motivated to study? The answer lies in whether you

(1) Want to study - what are the reasons, if so?

(2) Choose to study? - Why are you reading these revision notes? What factors mean that you have taken the decision to study? How much effort do you put in?

Individual behaviour is at the heart of human motivation

Why is individual behaviour so important in trying to understand and then influence motivation?

- Every individual has a set of needs and a different set of goals

- Individuals behave in a way as to satisfy their needs and fulfil their goals

- Therefore, individuals behave differently!

- Businesses, as organisations, are in a position to offer some of the satisfactions that individuals seek:

E.g. - Relationships; sense of belonging; intellectual stimulation; mental & physical challenge; self-development

Why is motivation important for businesses?

It is often said that the best businesses have the best motivated workers. Why might this be important? Because well-motivated employees are usually characterised by:

- Higher productivity (i.e. they produce more for a given level of resources than poorly-motivated workers)

- Better quality work with less wastage

- A greater sense of urgency (things happen quicker - when they need to)

- More employee feedback and suggestions made for improvements (motivated workers take more "ownership" of their work")

- More feedback demanded from superiors and management

- Working at 80-95% of their ability

Motivation in theory - Maslow's hierarchy of needs

Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs is a "content theory" of motivation" (the other main one is Herzberg's Two Factor Theory).

Maslow's theory consisted of two parts:

(1) The classification of human needs, and

(2) Consideration of how the classes are related to each other

The classes of needs were summarised by Maslow as follows:

Maslows hierarchy of needs

How does the Hierarchy Work?

- A person starts at the bottom of the hierarchy (pyramid) and will initially seek to satisfy basic needs (e.g. food, shelter)

- Once these physiological needs have been satisfied, they are no longer a motivator. the individual moves up to the next level

- Safety needs at work could include physical safety (e.g. protective clothing) as well as protection against unemployment, loss of income through sickness etc)

- Social needs recognise that most people want to belong to a group. These would include the need for love and belonging (e.g. working with colleague who support you at work, teamwork, communication)

- Esteem needs are about being given recognition for a job well done. They reflect the fact that many people seek the esteem and respect of others. A promotion at work might achieve this

- Self-actualisation is about how people think about themselves - this is often measured by the extent of success and/or challenge at work

Maslow's model has great potential appeal in the business world. The message is clear - if management can find out which level each employee has reached, then they can decide on suitable rewards.

Problems with the Maslow Model

There are several problems with the Maslow model when real-life working practice is considered:

- Individual behaviour seems to respond to several needs - not just one

- The same need (e.g. the need to interact socially at work) may cause quite different behaviour in different individuals

- There is a problem in deciding when a level has actually been "satisfied"

- The model ignores the often-observed behaviour of individuals who tolerate low-pay for the promise of future benefits

- There is little empirical evidence to support the model. Some critics suggest that Maslow's model is only really relevant to understanding the behaviour of middle-class workers in the UK and the USA (where Maslow undertook his research).

And one of the great question facing the Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs is "Do people follow the hierarchy of needs exactly in the same order as stated by Maslow?"

For example, a person might prioritize self-actualization needs higher than his social needs so that, he is motivated to fulfill his actualization need first, prior to fulfilling social needs. This is just one example and there can be many more where people do not make decisions according to the Maslow's Theory. Therefore, everyone might not necessarily follow the Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs in the same order as stated by Maslow.

Originally Posted by bbageek

And one of the great question facing the Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs is "Do people follow the hierarchy of needs exactly in the same order as stated by Maslow?"

For example, a person might prioritize self-actualization needs higher than his social needs so that, he is motivated to fulfill his actualization need first, prior to fulfilling social needs. This is just one example and there can be many more where people do not make decisions according to the Maslow's Theory. Therefore, everyone might not necessarily follow the Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs in the same order as stated by Maslow.

but masolowis hirachy can very important for starter for employees just enterned the coporated for eg supervisors

Interesting, but Maslow's theory has been modified by the research of Edward Deci and Richard Ryan. They found that what motivates us all is the simultaneous existence of competence, autonomy, and relatedness. They termed this Self Determination Theory. My own 30+ years of managing people bears out their research.

Best regards, Ben Simonton
Author "Leading People to be Highly Motivated and Committed"