Discuss the following:
INDIVIDUAL AND ORGANIZATIONAL MOTIVATION
The topic of the assignment is to think back on a motivation experience that was significant for you. Choose an experience that intrigues you and that you want to learn more about.
A. Concrete Experience?:
• Objectively describe the experience (who, what, when, where, how)
• Subjectively describe your feelings, perceptions, and thoughts that occurred during (not after) the experience. What did others seem to be feeling?
B . Reflective Observation
• Looking back at the experience, what were the perspectives of the key actors (including you)?
• Why did the people involved (including you) behave as they did?
C. Abstract Conceptualization (See references below)
• Relate concepts or theories from the assigned readings or the lecture to the experience. Explain thoroughly how they apply to your experience. Please apply at least two concepts or theories and cite them correctly.
D. Active Experimentation?.
• What did you learn about motivation from this experience?
• What did you learn about yourself?
• What action steps will you take to be more effective in the future?
E. Integration, Synthesis, and Writing
• Did you integrate and synthesize the four sections?
• Was the Personal Application Assignment well written and easy to understand?
• Was it free of spelling and grammar errors?
One of the key factors that affects productivity is motivation, which is,defined as the psychological forces that determine the direction of people's behavior, their level of effort, and level of persistence (107).
• The primary task for managing motivation, therefore, is channeling and directing human energy toward the activities, tasks, and objectives, that further die organization's mission.
• Managers cannot directly influence this internal state, si they can only create expectations on the part of employees that their motives will be satisfied by doing the organization's work and then provide the rewards that satisfy the employee's needs.
• A more effective way of managing, motivation is through understanding. If you understand the needs and objectives of your subordinates and even your peers, you can work with them to develop an equitable psychological con- tract that recognizes their particular desires and creates conditions where these motives can be satisfied in the work setting.
SOME THEORIES:
1. CONTENTS THEORIES. They are focused on the specific internal needs that motivate people. Content theories include:
A)Maslow's hierarchy of needs.
• Maslow's theory is typically called the "Hierarchy of Needs" because it stated that the needs are arranged in a hierarchy (starting with physiological and progressing through security, social, self-esteem, and self-actualization), and that lower order needs must be satisfied before higher level needs can be addressed. Although research on the theory has failed to support the existence of a need hierarchy, Maslow's theory can be useful in helping managers understand different types of human needs.
B)McClelland's need theory
• Psychologists, most notably David McClelland, have made a great deal of progress over the past "40 years in scientifically measuring and defining human motives.
• McClelland and his colleagues found evidence of three human motives: need for affiliation, need for power, and need for ' achievement (110)
McClelland states that these motives are learned from our parents and culture. He discovered different motive patterns for different cultures.
The needfor power (n-Power) is defined as the need to influence and lead others and be in control of one's environment. A high need for power is very common among middle- and upper- level managers because, by definition, their job is to influence people and organizations.
The need for affiliation is the desire for friendly and close interpersonal relationships. People high in Affiliation prefer cooperative situations to competitive situations, and they seek 'relationships involving a high degree of mutual understanding.
The need for achievement is a need to accomplish goals, excel, and strive continually to do things better. Persons high in n-Achievement want to take personal responsibility for their success or failure
2. Goal-SettingTheory
One of the easiest and most effective ways to spur motivation is through goal setting. Goal Set- ting involves setting a clear objective and ensuring that every participant is aware of what is expected from h\m or her, if this objective is to be achieved. Groups that set goals have higher average performance than those that do not. Why does simply setting target goals increase motivation and performance? Goals provide direction and a sense of how much effort is needed to be successful.
3. Equity Theory
The equity that people perceive in their situation also influences motivation. According to equity theory, employees evaluate what they receive from a job (outputs such as pay, bonuses, job security, promotions, recognition, etc.) in relation to what they contribute (inputs such as time, skills, creativity, effort, etc.). They compare their own input-output ratio with relevant others, system policies and precedents, and/or criteria related to the "self," such as pre- vious jobs or family commitments.
4. Expectancy Theory
Expectancy theory, shown in Exhibit 2, assumes that motivation is a function of three linkages:
(1) the effort-performance expectation that if a person makes an effort, it will result in good per- formance,
(2) the performance-outcome expectation that good performance will result in a par- ticular outcome or reward, and
(3) the valence (value) of the reward to the person.