Theories of Motivation
Motivation is a psychological, biological, social and cognitive, emotional state that a person towards a specific goal. The main theory of motivation is available in psychology. Without motivation, any person cannot achieve a goal because motivation forces them to continue hard work, smart work, and struggle. It maintains goal-oriented behavior in different-different situations too difficult conditions. In motivational approaches, many different theory of motivation are available related to content theory and process theory.
Motivation is a continuous process. And goal-oriented person follows the motivation cycle. Reward also has priority in this. And there is positivity in every work.
Sass Says, “Motivation is an abstract concept.”
The motivation word is derived from the Latin term “movere” which means “to move.” Motivation encourages people to give their best performance. And with the help of positive motivation leads to increased output and negative motivation leads to decreased output and performance. It is dependent on a person to person and situation to situation. Human beings have many types of motivation.
Two types of motivation. They are- Intrinsic motivation and extrinsic motivation.
In Intrinsic motivation, motives originate from inside the human body. It is an internal state and process. Intrinsic motivation includes all biological drives such as hunger, thirst, sleep, need for oxygen, temperature, and so on.
This motivation is done without the need for external rewards. These types of motivation are different from extrinsic motivation. We can understand intrinsic motivation through the theory of motivation.
Extrinsic motivation refers to external rewards or avoidance of punishment (positive and negative). It leads to reward behavior and is influenced by external environmental factors. These types of motivation play an important role in education settings. Extrinsic motivation plays an important role in all theories of motivation.
Dopamine is a neurotransmitter. It is associated with reward-related positive reinforcement in the motivation process. And amygdala is also responsible for motivation.
A higher level of dopamine is presented with the help of creativity, selective attention, alertness, and focus.
The theory of motivation is divided into two categories. They are- content theory and process theory.
The content theory focuses on what people need in the environmental condition. It is focused on a person’s needs. This theory is also known as the “Need theory of motivation.”
In 1943, the hierarchy of need theory was proposed by Abraham Maslow. It is a content theory of motivation and focuses on what people need. It is the first theory based on work related to motivation. Maslow’s theory is a type of theory of motivation.
The hierarchy of need theory is presented with the help of five stages. These five stages are divided into categories- basic needs, psychological needs, and self-fulfillment needs.
The five stages are:-
Basic needs are also known as physiological needs. And it is a physical requirement for human survival. The physiological need is the universal need of human beings. And any person cannot ignore these needs. Humans cannot survive without some basic needs. And without some basic needs person can survive.
If people’s physiological needs are satisfied then move to safety needs. Safety is the most essential element in human life. Safety can be fulfilled by society (e.g. police, medical care, and institutions). Everyone needs safety and security.
If people’s security needs to be satisfied then move to love and belongingness. Belongingness is also an essential element in human life. Because without love and belongingness, life is not complete. Love and belonging include intimacy, trust, attachment, acceptance, and love.
Humans have the art of adjustment. And love positive adjustment. Trust can also be called love.
IV. Esteem This is the fourth level of this theory after love and belongingness. Esteem is presented with the help of self-esteem. Abraham Maslow explained two versions of an esteem need. They are- lower version and higher version. The Lower version is the need for respect from others. And the higher version is the need for self-respect. And self-respect is a part of esteem.
V. Self-Actualization This refers to the realization of the full potential of a human being. It is not always a permanent feeling. And self-actualization is the last stage of the hierarchy of needs.
In later years, Abraham Maslow aided the transcendence needs in his theory of hierarchy of needs. Transcendence refers to the very highest level of human consciousness.
In 1969, ERG theory was proposed by Clayton Alderfer. ERG stands for Existence Relatedness Growth. If a person’s need is satisfied then a person leads to more effort and if a person’s need is unsatisfied then a person leads to fewer efforts.
Alderfer developed Maslow’s hierarchy of needs into ERG theory
According to Alderfer, three groups of core needs. They need are- existence, relatedness, and growth.
Existence It is referred to as physiological needs (basic needs) for the survival of human beings. In existence included two levels of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs (physiological needs and safety needs.
Relatedness This is related to developing and maintaining relationships, social status, and belongingness. Relatedness included Maslow’s theory two levels (Belongingness and esteem).
Growth This growth leads to the development of the full potential of human beings and personal development including creativity. Growth includes Maslow’s 4th and 5th levels (Esteem and Self Actualization)
In 1961, this theory was proposed by David McCelland. The McClelland theory of needs is also known as the “three needs theory” and “learned need theory.”
An individual receives the feedback in regular mode. This achievement involves a strong desire to succeed in attaining goals.
In 1959, Herzberg’s two factors theory was proposed by Frederick Herzberg.
Two factors influence behavior in the organization’s workplace. These factors are- motivating factors and hygiene factors.
Herzberg collected the data of 203 employees with the help of interviews and analysis data. He found that motivating factors and decision-making and hygiene factors lead to work conditions and job security.
These factors are:- Motivating factor and Hygiene factor.
Motivating Factor Motivating factor leads to encouraging the ability and capacity of employees to work hard in a working situation. Motivating factors increase the job satisfaction of employees. Hygiene Factor Hygiene factors cannot encourage the ability and capacity of employees in working situations. If hygiene factor is not present then employees’ work performance is very poor (less hard).
The result of this theory leads to strong commitment and high productivity by employees.
Process theory is focused on why and how to process. And our motivation affects our behavior in different- different conditions and situations. Process theory is focused on psychological processes.
In 1960, the Equity theory was proposed by J Stacy Adams. This is a motivational theory. Adam explained that employees seek to maintain equity between inputs and outputs. This theory focuses on equal distribution between inputs and outputs.
Equity theory is presented with the help of a fair balance between inputs and outputs. Input is provided by employees and output is provided by the organization in the workplace.
Example
Equity theory explains that two factors influence the motivational level. They are- input and output.
Input The initial effort to achieve the goal by the employee is called input. Input is done by employees in the working situation. Examples of Input:
In 1964, the Expectancy theory was proposed by Victor Vroom. . Vroom explained that employees select the best behavior option in the working situation. Employees can be motivated if they believe in the positive correlation between efforts and performance. In this theory, three variables were used. They are expectancy, valence, and instrumentality.
In 1990, Goal setting theory was proposed by Edwin A. Locke. This theory plays an important role in personal development and management. Locke explained that individuals set the difficult goal in a proper way and then achieved better performance compared to an easy goal.
Goal setting leads to better achievement, and goal setting leads to poor performance.
Example- Insurance advisor sets a big target. So, hard work to achieve his target. Because his target is too big. So, he hard works.
The main principles of goal-setting theory. They are- clarity, challenge, commitment, feedback, and task complexity.
So, feedback is the most important aspect in a workplace setting. And feedback leads to 100 % success.
Task Complexity If a task is very complex then the complex task is divided into subparts. Difficult tasks lead to low confidence. In such a situation the task is made easy.
The reinforcement theory of motivation is based on the “Law of Effect”. It is proposed by B.F. Skinner. Skinner says reinforcement theory is dependent on S-R( Stimulus-Response) connection.
In a working situation, the manager used a method of reinforcement (positive/ negative) for employees. The company gives bonus to employees. The bonus is positive reinforcement. And employees are very happy when they get bonus. The productivity of the company increases.
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