|
To
understand the concept of motivation, you must first understand
what prompts people to act. Many theories about and approaches to
motivation have evolved. One of the more recent approaches is content
theories.
Content
theories emphasize the needs that motivate people. People have basic
needs such as food, achievement, or monetary reward. Managers who
understand the basis of human need are better able to design reward
systems that effectively meet those needs and motivate employees
to superior performance.
One
of the best known content theories was developed by Abraham Maslow.
Maslow?s Hierarchy of Needs theory states that humans are motivated
by many needs, and that these needs exist in a hierarchical order.
The lower needs take priority and must be satisfied before higher
needs can be met. Once basic needs are fulfilled, a person may focus
on meeting the next higher need.
Maslow
identified five general types of motivating needs in order of ascendance:
Physiological
needs.
These
are the most basic human physical needs, including food, water,
clothing, and sex. In the context of work, these equate to needing
a salary to pay for basic living needs.
Safety
needs.
These
are the needs for a safe, secure physical and emotional environment.
For an employer, this would mean providing fringe benefits, freedom
from violence, and job security.
Belongingness
needs.
These
needs reflect a person?s desire to be accepted by one?s peers, have
friendships, be part of a group, and be loved. These would influence
an employee?s desire for teamwork, participation with co-workers,
and a positive relationship with supervisors.
Esteem
needs.
These
needs relate to the desire to have a positive self-image and receive
attention, recognition, and appreciation from others. Esteem needs
are evident when employees are motivated by recognition, increases
in responsibility, and high status.
Self-actualization
needs.
These
represent a person?s need for self-fulfillment --- developing one?s
full potential, increasing competency, becoming a better person
--- which is the highest need category. An organization can help
employees meet these needs by giving them opportunities to grow,
be creative, and acquire training for improvement.
Though
the theory is sometimes faulted for its strict sequencing of needs,
it nevertheless provides an excellent framework for understanding
possible motivators for your employees. For instance, studies on
motivation in the workplace have established that those who have
achieved the lower order needs are not so much motivated by money
as by power and prestige. Money may be the measure of that, but
not the focus of need.
Another
content theory of motivation was developed by Frederick Herzberg.
Herzberg believed that two separate dimensions contribute to an
employee?s behavior at work: intrinsic factors (satisfiers) and
extrinsic factors (dissatisfiers).
Satisfiers
are the intrinsic factors of a person?s work experience that provide
positive motivation. Satisfiers relate to opportunities for advancement,
the work itself, responsibility, challenge and personal growth.
They tend to deal with the higher order needs of people. You should
provide challenging and responsible work to keep your employees
motivated.
Dissatisfiers
are the extrinsic aspects of the job such as working conditions,
pay, company policies, job security, and interpersonal relationships.
Dissatisfiers can only lead to job dissatisfaction. When they are
poor, work is dissatisfying. When these factors are good, motivation
is not increased; the dissatisfaction is only removed. When noise
levels are high and work conditions unsafe, workers will be dissatisfied.
But removing or correcting these conditions will not motivate or
satisfy employees.
To
achieve greater joy satisfaction, you need to recognize and remove
extrinsic factors that fail to meet basic needs while providing
work experiences that maximize intrinsic factors.
About
Author
Danny
Wood, an affiliate of the Sandler Sales Institute, is one of
New Jersey?s most respected sales force development experts. His
work has been recognized by business leaders and corporate managers
for providing their people with the aptitude to realize millions
of dollars in additional business that would otherwise have never
materialized or would have been lost to competitors.
|
