I/O Psychology- Journal Assignment #4: Motivation

In modeling, trainees watch someone perform a task, and then imitate them. The model can be in person, on film, or videotape. Both effective and ineffective behaviors may be demonstrated. The trainer encourages the trainees to model the observed behavior and then gives them feedback about their performance. Modeling is a good method for training interpersonal skills such as supervisory behavior. It is also good for training technical skills. In general, modeling is advantageous because it includes lots of practice and feedback.

On-the-job training is any method in which employees learn the job while doing it. This may involve observing an experienced employee, or serving an apprenticeship, in which the trainee is the assistant of the trainer, as in many trades (electrician, plumber). This method provides a lot of exposure to actual job and promotes a high level of transfer.

A role play is a simulation in which the trainee pretends to be doing a task. Used as part of modeling, but could also be based on information acquired otherwise. Role play is effective due to the various opportunities for practice and feedback, but it is also costly, since few trainees can be trained at once.

In a simulation, specialized equipment or materials imitate a task situation. Trainees pretend the situation is real and carry out the task. Simulations are good for training in use of equipment, but also for business decision-making. Simulations provide opportunities for practice and facilitate transfer. However, they can be expensive to develop an often you can only train a few trainees at once.

Other Training Methods

Electronic training (e-learning)

Electronic training (e-learning) involves the use of electronic tools to provide training. This method is growing in popularity due to its many advantages:

· Gives the learner a great deal of control over the training process

· Allows for rapid development and modification of training program

· Allows for us of blended learning, or combining e-learning with other, more traditional methods

· Allows training to be easily customized for individual needs

· Web-based training is easily accessible to employees and cost-effective, but completion rates are generally less than 25%

Mentoring

Experienced employees offer career guidance, emotional support, and serve as role models for less experienced employees. Employees who have participated in mentoring programs have been found to have better performance, quicker promotions, better job attitudes, less turnover, and less work-family conflict. Mentoring can lead to benefits for the mentor as well as the protégé. Research shows that formal mentoring programs do not work as well as those that develop naturally.

Executive Coaching

Executive coaches may be paired with high-level executives to help the executive improve job performance. Executive coaching can have very positive effects. One concern with executive coaching is that there is no particular background or credentials one needs to be a coach.

Lesson 6.4: Evaluation of a Training Program

Introduction

Training program isn't finished until it’s been evaluated for effectiveness. Evaluation is a research study examining the effects of training.

This process is conducted through a five step process:

1. Develop criteria

2. Choose design

3. Choose measures of the criteria

4. Collect data

5. Analyze data and interpret results

Step 1: Develop Criteria

To evaluate if the goals of training were met, we must know what they are. The more specific they are, the better. For example, “reduce defective products by 10%” is much more specific that “improve quality of product”. There are two levels of criteria:

1. Training-level criteria are concerned with what trainees can do at the end of training in the training environment rather than on the job. Training criteria show if anything was learned.

2. Performance-level criteria look at the trainee’s performance on the job after training, examining transfer of training. Performance criteria shows if the training was effective from the organization’s point of view.

Another way of classifying criteria is to divide them into four types, two of which can be placed at the training level and two at the performance level.

Training Level

· Reactions criteria are how much the trainee liked the training and how much they believe they got out of it (e.g., course evaluations).

· Learning criteria represent what was learned in training; the knowledge and skills the trainee can demonstrate at the end of it (e.g., final exam scores).

Performance Level

· Behavior criteria show whether the trainee is doing the things learned in training.

· Results criteria show whether the training had the desired effect.

Each of these criteria is a partial index of training success. In a training evaluation, it is likely that not all criteria will show success. At least one performance and one training criterion should be used to evaluate the effectiveness of training.

Step 2: Choose Design

A design is the structure of the evaluation study, specifying how data are collected. The selected criteria set limits on design. For example, reactions criteria can only be measured once, at the end of training. Popular designs include pretest-posttest and control group designs.

The pretest-posttest design assesses trainees before training (pretest) and after training (posttest) on the same measures. This design evaluates how much trainees gained from training. It may also assess amount learned in training, or amount of change in behavior on the job. This design is practical for organizations, especially if testing is built into the training process. However, changes in performance may not be due to training. For example, existence of the training program could have motivated supervisors to get more out of subordinates.

The control group design compares trainees, after training, to a group of equivalent employees who did not get training. This design works best when employees are assigned at random to the two groups (which of course, is not always possible!). Much like experimental designs that have control groups, this design offers additional control. In general it helps to control for the possibility that something other than training caused the observed differences in employees.

Step 3: Choosing Measures of the Criteria

Once criteria have been chosen, the actual measures of those criteria need to be selected. The criterion determines its measurement to some extent. For example:

· Reactions require a questionnaire, though you must still choose its form and the particular questions.

· Learning criteria require knowledge and skills tests, which might include a role-play or simulation test.

· Performance criteria can be similar to those in performance evaluations.

Step 4: Collect Data

Collecting data in organizations can be difficult. People aren’t always cooperative and they might resist random assignment (some people will want to attend training and others will not). In general, it is best to choose the best possible design and measures and try to adapt to problems that arise.

Step 5: Analyze Data and Interpret Results

Data is analyzed with inferential statistics. For the two simple designs discussed, a t-test might be used to compare scores across groups.

If training works on both training and performance levels, it can be considered effective. Training that works at the training level but not for performance needs to be examined. Work conditions may keep it from being implemented, or maybe it’s not quite right. Training that doesn’t work at all needs to be eliminated or modified.

It is a good idea to pilot test training (i.e., to use it on a small group of employees and evaluate it before using it on a large scale). This pre-training testing allows problems to be fixed before too many resources are used.

Module 7 | Motivation

Welcome to Module 7: Motivation

This module will discuss theories of motivation in the workplace.

· Lesson 7.1 defines motivation and provides an overview of theories to be discussed this week.

· Lesson 7.2 describes how Need theories explain work behavior.

· Lesson 7.3 describes how Justice theories explain work behavior.

· Lesson 7.4 describes how Self-efficacy theory explains work behavior.

· Lesson 7.5 describes how Goal-setting theory explains work behavior.

Learning Objectives

· Describe what does and doesn’t motivate you and describe which motivation theories apply to those examples.

· Use Equity Theory or Fairness Theory to describe the problem in a case study and explain what could be done to fix the problem.

· Define motivation and identify general characteristics of work motivation theories.

· Identify how Need theories, Expectancy theory, Justice theories, Self-efficacy theory, and Goal Setting theory explain work behavior.

Readings

· Chapter 8

Lesson 7.1: What is Motivation?

Defining motivation

Understanding why some people are motivated to work harder than others is an important topic of study for I/O psychologists. There are a variety of factors that motivate hard work including tangible factors like money and intangible factors like a sense of accomplishment.

The effects of motivation on job performance are most important, but motivation theories also explain other important job behaviors such as turnover, and organizational citizenship behaviors.

So what exactly is motivation? Well, it is difficult to define. In general, motivation is defined as an internal state that induces a person to engage in particular behaviors.

One perspective argues that motivation determined the direction, intensity and persistence of behavior over time.

Another perspective argues that motivation is the desire to acquire or achieve some goal. This perspective argues that motivation originates from an individual's wants, needs, or desires.

Theories of Motivation: An Overview

Work motivation theories are mostly concerned with why some people perform their jobs better than others. These theories are not concerned with differences in ability, but rather finding an explanation for work behavior based on individual motivations. If people have the necessary ability to perform a job and work constraints on performance are low, high levels of motivation should lead to effective work performance.

The theories we will discuss this week offer different explanations for how motivation influences worker behavior. Although different in focus, the theories sometimes share common behavioral predictions. Some may even be complementary. Though your book discusses several other motivational theories, the following are those that we will focus on this week:

· Need theories (need hierarchy theory and two-factor theory) assume the people’s behavior is directed toward fulfilling their needs.

· Expectancy theory believes behavior is controlled by environmental rewards.

· Justice theories (equity theory and fairness theory) assume that people inherently value fairness at work. Situations that present unfairness or inequity motivate employees to remedy the unfairness.

· Self-efficacy is concerned with the beliefs individuals have about how their own capabilities.

· Goal setting theory views behavior as being controlled by an individual’s goals and intentions.

You will not be expected to know the other theories discussed in chapter 9 for the quiz or for the final exam. However, if you are interested I encourage you to read more about them.

Summary Table of Motivation Theories

Theses theories can further be described along a continuum from distal to proximal.

· Distal motivation theories deal with processes that are far removed from the behavior.

· Proximal motivation theories deal with processes that are close to the behavior.

Lesson 7.2: Need Theories

Introduction

Need theories see motivation as arising from people’s needs or desires for things. Needs can differ within the same person over time and across people.

Need theories were once popular; however, research has failed to show a relationship between need theories and job performance. One explanation for these results is that needs in these theories are general and can be satisfied in many ways, so are thus unlikely to be associated with any specific job behavior.

Regardless of these findings, need theories have contributed to I/O psychology by showing how people can vary in the rewards they want from work.

We will discuss two prominent need theories:

1. Need hierarchy theory

2. Two-factor theory

Need Hierarchy Theory (Maslow)

Maslow’s need hierarchy theory assumes that fulfillment of human needs is necessary for both physical and psychological health. Five categories of needs are arranged in a hierarchy (see the figure below):

Motivational Principles

· A need must be unmet to be motivating.

· People are motivated by the lowest level need that is unmet (i.e., a lower level need will dominate higher level needs). For example, a person who is hungry will seek food rather than affection.

Limitations

· Can be exceptions to the hierarchy; some individuals put higher level needs first. For example, someone might go hungry rather than steal food because of the need for self-respect.

· Many individuals in Western society aren’t very motivated by lower level needs because have never been deprived.

· Motivational research has not been supportive of Maslow’s theory.

Contributions

Maslow’s needs hierarchy has affected organizations by placing an emphasis on the importance of meeting employees’ needs at work.

Two-Factor Theory (Herzberg)

Herzberg’s two-factor theory states that motivation comes from the nature of the job itself, not external rewards or job conditions. The theory divides needs into two categories:

1. Hygiene factors are relevant to animal needs and include pay, supervision, coworkers, and organizational policies.

2. Motivator factors are relevant to psychological growth and include achievement, recognition, responsibility, and the nature of work itself.

Motivational Principles

· Job dissatisfaction and job satisfaction are separate and unrelated constructs rather than opposite ends of the same continuum.

· Hygiene factors can lead to job dissatisfaction, and only produce lack of dissatisfaction rather than satisfaction. No matter how favorable hygiene factors are, they cannot lead to motivation.

· Motivator factors can produce job satisfaction, whereas their absence can lead only to lack of satisfaction (not dissatisfaction).

Limitations

· Generally considered invalid; the two-factor system of job satisfaction / dissatisfaction has not been supported by research.

Contributions

· Despite shortcomings to the theory, Herzberg has been influential because he was the first to focus on job content as a source of employee motivation.

· Two factor theory focused attention on the necessity of providing meaningful work and led to job enrichment in organizations.

· It was the basis for job characteristics theory.

Lesson 7.3: Justice Theories

Introduction

In general, justice theories focus on norms for fair treatment of employees by their organizations. We will discuss two prominent justice theories:

1. Equity theory

2. Fairness theory

Equity Theory (Adams)

Equity theory states that people are motivated to have equity or fairness in their dealings with other people and with organizations. Employees who find themselves in inequitable situations experience dissatisfaction and emotional tension that they are motivated to reduce.

Motivational Principles

Inequity is a psychological state that arises from employees’ comparisons of their ratios of outcomes to inputs on the job to those of other employees.

Outcomes are the rewards, everything of personal value that an employee gets from working for an organization.

· "What do I expect to in return for my efforts?"

· Examples: pay, benefits, status, enjoyment

Inputs are the contributions an employee makes to the organization

· "What do I put into my job?"

· Examples: work, experience, and talents.

Employees might compare themselves to others in the same job, inside or outside the organization, or sometimes to others in different jobs.

When the employee’s ratio of outcomes/inputs is the same as the comparison person’s ratio, the situation will seem fair. Otherwise, it is inequitable, and the employee will be dissatisfied.

· Underpayment inequity exists when other people get less outcomes for their inputs. Results in feelings of anger.

· Overpayment inequity exists when other people get more outcome for their inputs. Results in feelings of guilt.

The theory states there are several ways to reduce the inequity, including:

· Changing inputs: Increase or decrease productivity to match the outcomes received.

· Changing outcomes: Seek additional rewards from work.

· Withdrawing from the situation: Quit or be late or absent more often.

Limitations

· Most of the research examining equity theory has been conducted in lab settings, not in real world environments and may not generalize.

· Overpayment inequity predictions have not been confirmed.

· Does not predict choice of comparison person.

· Explains past behavior better than it predicts behavior.

Contributions

· Underpayment inequity has been shown to be related to lowered performance, and stealing.

· Application of this theory has emphasized the importance of fair treatment of employees.

Fairness Theory (Various Authors)

Recent research on fairness in the workplace has replaced equity theory. Fairness theory distinguishes between the distribution of rewards and the procedures by which rewards are allocated.

· Distributive justice concerns the fairness with which rewards are found among people (similar to equity). It is the employees perceived fairness of the amounts and allocation of rewards among individuals.

· Procedural justice is concerned with the fairness of the reward distribution process.

Procedural justice does not always lead to distributive justice; in other words, despite the perceived fairness of the process of reward allocation (procedural justice), an employee may feel that the reward outcome (distributive justice) is not fair.

· For example, Sally may feel that the promotion process at her job was fair, but is upset because she did not get it and Jose did (obviously Sally feels she is more deserving!).

Further, unlike equity theory, fairness theory does not assume that perceptions of injustice derive from social comparison, but from negative events done purposefully in an unfair way.

Contributions

· Both distributive and procedural justice are related to job performance and job satisfaction.

· Procedural justice is more important for women, and distributive justice is more important for men.

Lesson 7.4: Self-Efficacy Theory

Self-Efficacy Theory (Bandura)

Self-efficacy is the belief that one is capable of accomplishing a task. As such, self-efficacy theory states that motivation and performance are partly determined by how effective people believe they can be.

Motivational Principles

· People who believe they can accomplish a task will be motivated to put forth effort, while those who don’t think they can succeed aren’t likely to try very hard.

· Individuals are assumed to have the necessary ability and not be prevented from performing by outside constraints.

· Individuals vary in self-efficacy across tasks; can have high self-efficacy for some tasks (test-taking) and low for others (mountain-climbing).

· Self-efficacy resembles expectancy, but expectancy specifies the likelihood of success for a task at a particular time, whereas self-efficacy is a more of a general feeling about a task (“I’ve got this”, “I am good at this”).

Contributions

Research has shown that self-efficacy predicts performance.

· Self-efficacy may develop from prior good performance; success increases it.

· It has been suggested that self-efficacy might operate through differences in setting goals; those with high self-efficacy may set higher goals.

Self-efficacy theory is very useful in the workplace. 

· Employers can increase self-efficacy of employees, especially new employees, by gradually increasing task difficulty so the employee can improve while experiencing success.

Eden and associates have argued that people’s beliefs about their own capabilities lead to better performance, as in a self-fulfilling prophecy.  They refer to this as the Galatea effect.

· Research has successfully used this approach to increase the job search success rate of unemployed individuals and with naval cadets who experience sea-sickness.

· The self-fulfilling prophecy can also be negative if the person does not believe in their capabilities. For example, a person with low self-efficacy does not believe s/he can accomplish a task and, therefore, will not be motivated to put forth effort.

Lesson 7.5: Goal Setting Theory

Goal Setting Theory (Locke)

Goal-setting theory assumes that behavior is motivated by internal intentions, objectives, or goals.  The theory predicts that people will exert effort toward accomplishing their goals, and that job performance is a function of the goals set.

Motivational Principles

· A goal is what the person consciously wants to attain or achieve.

· Can be specific (e.g., “to get this contract out by Friday”) or general (e.g., “to get a promotion”).

· General goals are often associated with a group of more specific goals. 

· Goal orientation refers to whether an individual focuses their efforts on learning (learning orientation), or on achieving certain levels of performance (performance orientation)

Goals affect behavior in that:

· Goals direct attention and action to behaviors that the person believes will achieve the goal.

· Goals increase effort.

· Goals increase persistence, so more time is spent on behaviors necessary for goal attainment.

· Goals can motivate the search for effective strategies to attain them.

For goal-setting to improve job performance in an organization:

· Employees must accept the goal (this is known as goal commitment).

· The goal should be difficult. The goal should challenging but also attainable.

· The goal should be specific.

· Employees must get feedback on progress toward the goal, so they know whether they’re doing the right things.

Limitations

· Although most of the research has shown that goal setting can be effective, researchers have begun to note that these studies have concentrated on single goals.

· Recent research that has examined multiple goals and more complex jobs has not shown as much of an increase in performance.

· Employees can focus so much on the goals that they ignore other equally important aspects of the job, and goals can conflict so that working on one prevents achieving another.

Contributions

· Goal-setting theory has been well supported by research and is currently the most popular theory.

· Goal-setting theory is also closely tied to behavior, making it easy to apply in organizational settings.