Literally, motivation means incitement or inducement to act or move. In an industrial setting, it means to make a subordinate act in a desired manner. Obviously “desired” implies the interests of the organisation, as well as the employee. It implies not only that the subordinate should act in a disciplined manner, but also that s/he should act in an efficient and productive manner. To motivate, therefore, is to persuade, stimulate,even compel (as and when fear becomes the motivator) an employee to act in a manner which may help in attaining organisational objectives. This may be a limited view. Motivation really comprises all the internal urges which are described as desires, wishes, drives, etc., which make a person strive for doing a thing. Motivation is what makes people do things.
Motivation may not be the same as incentive. In incentives we generally expect greater output with the same inputs, while motivation involves some more inputs considered necessary for changing the work, attitude and behaviour. As such, financialincentives may not motivate all, particularly those employees whose physical needs are already satisfied. To motivate means really to produce a goal-oriented behaviour,which may not be made possible by mere provision of incentives with the object of higher earnings and higher output.The importance of motivation is too obvious. Survival and growth of an undertaking depends considerably on the performance of its employees, which in turn, depends on their ability and will to work. The ability is determined by the quality of education, training and experience that one has acquired. Even if there is any deficiency in the same, it can be made good by arranging further training and developing facilities for them. The willingness to work involves change in behaviour and attitude of a person towards work, or motivating him/ her to work in a desired manner and give better performance. Motivated workforce is essential for efficient working, optimum productivity, and attaining organisational objectives. The motivation in personnel management follows planning and organising. Any managerial decision becomes meaningful, if it can be converted into an effective action through motivation of subordinates. In fact, every aspect of personnel function is pervasively endowed with motivational attributes. Therefore, a successful personnel manager incorporates the principles and concept of motivation into her/his own philosophy of management. By applying them s/he can influence others in attaining a better or positive motivation.
Yow now know that motivating people is difficult. But it is very challenging for changing human behaviour. The study of motivation began to attract attention in the early part of the 19 th century. However, with the development of theories of learning, it came to occupy a central position. The application of psychology in education and industry led us to realise that motivation as a process is highly significant in achieving excellence. However, in spite of the relevance and popularity of motivation, its applicability was not well understood till 1953 when McClelland extended its applicability in industry, education and a wide range of areas and contexts. He identified achievement motive and developed a general theory of motivation and method of measuring the same. According to him, motivation consists of the learned anticipation of a goal as arousing positive or negative emotional reaction. His ideas highlighted an ever increasing significance of the entrepreneurial roles in society vis-à-vis organisation, especially so in economic development.
Another concept of motivation is in the form of five human needs placed in hierarchical order: Psychological, safety/security, social, self-esteem and self-actualization. This concept is based on assumption of internal motivation – the needs, wants and desires,which exist within an individual and influence him/her by determining his/her thoughts.These, in turn, determine the ultimate behaviour in a particular situation.The underlying assumption here is that individual motivation depends on urgency and potency of the needs. As the lower order needs are satisfied, the higher order needs take precedence over them.
Another way of looking at motivation is in terms of the internal dynamics of an individual vis-a-vis the power of contextual factors like money, work conditions, etc.An entirely different hypothesis of motivation is based on the nature of man, i.e., being lazy, idle and indolent or creative, open-minded and energetic. An idler is averse to any effort and would like to avoid any kind of responsibility.
Idlers prefer being directed and avoid being independent decision makers.They only work under direct control and threat of punishment. For a creative person,the work is as pleasant and natural as play. Responsibility is a welcome concept and such people seek self-regulatory behaviour.Motivation is also influenced by an organisation, and its style of management. Management styles can be depicted to be in a continuum. This concept is based on the effectiveness of management in ensuring participation of subordinates in decision making and action orientation. This theory of motivation is action oriented and projects the organisation as a task oriented, highly structured and authoritarian establishment on one hand and completely democractic, people oriented and emphasizing a participative management style on the other extreme. These are interspersed with two intermediate stages system where definitive relations between superior and subordinates have varying trust and confidence.
In the late nineteen sixties and thereafter, the concept of motivation expanded its horizon and in that process lost some of its sharp focus on human needs but in no way lost the significance for organisations and their members. The emphasis shifted from the study of motivational notions to such fields as job enrichment, quality of work life, meaning of work, organisational climate and to a very broad spectrum of organisational culture. There has been a paradigm shift in understanding the relevance and contribution of motivation vis-à-vis organisations. The enmeshing of individual identity with his/her motivation is being given a wider but well defined boundaries of social/organisational context. This may have caused some haziness in understanding and application of the concept. A psychologist likes to put a premium on the individual, whereas an organisational strategist would like to focus on the collectiveness. And the debate continues. Since each organisation is unique in its boundaries and contextual parameters, so is an individual. The concept of motivation and its complexities helps us understand and create a unique relationship between the two.
Some Common Assumptions about Motivation
i) It is commonly said that it is the subordinates or non-supervisory staff in an organisation who need to be motivated. The fact, however, is that every one in an organisation needs to be motivated; first the supervisory and managerial staff needit so that they will be able to motivate their subordinates.
ii) Motivation and higher productivity go together. This may be true by and large, but individual motivation at the workplace or group motivation as in the case of trade unions may not have such a correlation with productivity.
iii) All motivational techniques are designed and applied by the personnel, and managers and other line executives, who directly control and take work from those under them. In fact, the latter are more concerned as it is theirprimary function to see the persons under them work most efficiently. As they are in closer touch with their workers, they can understand their 34problems better and also know their needs. If necessary, they can take the advice of the personnel or industrial psychologist or any other consultant.
iv)Standard theories of motivation developed by psychologists will also apply to the industrial situation with varying degrees of dependability.
Motivation may not be the same as incentive. In incentives we generally expect greater output with the same inputs, while motivation involves some more inputs considered necessary for changing the work, attitude and behaviour. As such, financialincentives may not motivate all, particularly those employees whose physical needs are already satisfied. To motivate means really to produce a goal-oriented behaviour,which may not be made possible by mere provision of incentives with the object of higher earnings and higher output.The importance of motivation is too obvious. Survival and growth of an undertaking depends considerably on the performance of its employees, which in turn, depends on their ability and will to work. The ability is determined by the quality of education, training and experience that one has acquired. Even if there is any deficiency in the same, it can be made good by arranging further training and developing facilities for them. The willingness to work involves change in behaviour and attitude of a person towards work, or motivating him/ her to work in a desired manner and give better performance. Motivated workforce is essential for efficient working, optimum productivity, and attaining organisational objectives. The motivation in personnel management follows planning and organising. Any managerial decision becomes meaningful, if it can be converted into an effective action through motivation of subordinates. In fact, every aspect of personnel function is pervasively endowed with motivational attributes. Therefore, a successful personnel manager incorporates the principles and concept of motivation into her/his own philosophy of management. By applying them s/he can influence others in attaining a better or positive motivation.
Yow now know that motivating people is difficult. But it is very challenging for changing human behaviour. The study of motivation began to attract attention in the early part of the 19 th century. However, with the development of theories of learning, it came to occupy a central position. The application of psychology in education and industry led us to realise that motivation as a process is highly significant in achieving excellence. However, in spite of the relevance and popularity of motivation, its applicability was not well understood till 1953 when McClelland extended its applicability in industry, education and a wide range of areas and contexts. He identified achievement motive and developed a general theory of motivation and method of measuring the same. According to him, motivation consists of the learned anticipation of a goal as arousing positive or negative emotional reaction. His ideas highlighted an ever increasing significance of the entrepreneurial roles in society vis-à-vis organisation, especially so in economic development.
Another concept of motivation is in the form of five human needs placed in hierarchical order: Psychological, safety/security, social, self-esteem and self-actualization. This concept is based on assumption of internal motivation – the needs, wants and desires,which exist within an individual and influence him/her by determining his/her thoughts.These, in turn, determine the ultimate behaviour in a particular situation.The underlying assumption here is that individual motivation depends on urgency and potency of the needs. As the lower order needs are satisfied, the higher order needs take precedence over them.
Another way of looking at motivation is in terms of the internal dynamics of an individual vis-a-vis the power of contextual factors like money, work conditions, etc.An entirely different hypothesis of motivation is based on the nature of man, i.e., being lazy, idle and indolent or creative, open-minded and energetic. An idler is averse to any effort and would like to avoid any kind of responsibility.
Idlers prefer being directed and avoid being independent decision makers.They only work under direct control and threat of punishment. For a creative person,the work is as pleasant and natural as play. Responsibility is a welcome concept and such people seek self-regulatory behaviour.Motivation is also influenced by an organisation, and its style of management. Management styles can be depicted to be in a continuum. This concept is based on the effectiveness of management in ensuring participation of subordinates in decision making and action orientation. This theory of motivation is action oriented and projects the organisation as a task oriented, highly structured and authoritarian establishment on one hand and completely democractic, people oriented and emphasizing a participative management style on the other extreme. These are interspersed with two intermediate stages system where definitive relations between superior and subordinates have varying trust and confidence.
In the late nineteen sixties and thereafter, the concept of motivation expanded its horizon and in that process lost some of its sharp focus on human needs but in no way lost the significance for organisations and their members. The emphasis shifted from the study of motivational notions to such fields as job enrichment, quality of work life, meaning of work, organisational climate and to a very broad spectrum of organisational culture. There has been a paradigm shift in understanding the relevance and contribution of motivation vis-à-vis organisations. The enmeshing of individual identity with his/her motivation is being given a wider but well defined boundaries of social/organisational context. This may have caused some haziness in understanding and application of the concept. A psychologist likes to put a premium on the individual, whereas an organisational strategist would like to focus on the collectiveness. And the debate continues. Since each organisation is unique in its boundaries and contextual parameters, so is an individual. The concept of motivation and its complexities helps us understand and create a unique relationship between the two.
Some Common Assumptions about Motivation
i) It is commonly said that it is the subordinates or non-supervisory staff in an organisation who need to be motivated. The fact, however, is that every one in an organisation needs to be motivated; first the supervisory and managerial staff needit so that they will be able to motivate their subordinates.
ii) Motivation and higher productivity go together. This may be true by and large, but individual motivation at the workplace or group motivation as in the case of trade unions may not have such a correlation with productivity.
iii) All motivational techniques are designed and applied by the personnel, and managers and other line executives, who directly control and take work from those under them. In fact, the latter are more concerned as it is theirprimary function to see the persons under them work most efficiently. As they are in closer touch with their workers, they can understand their 34problems better and also know their needs. If necessary, they can take the advice of the personnel or industrial psychologist or any other consultant.
iv)Standard theories of motivation developed by psychologists will also apply to the industrial situation with varying degrees of dependability.
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