The concept of motivation is extremely important for an understanding of individual and organizational behaviour and efficiency. It is without doubt one of the most pervasive concerns of human endeavour. Motivation is a common concept covering all the factors that initiate, direct and organize the behaviour of the individual and determine intensity and persistence of that behaviour.
People
have a variety of physical, social and physiological needs, and satisfying
these needs becomes their personal goal. Organizations have a variety of
incentives to use to induce people to work. These incentives include money, job
security, status, recognition and challenging jobs. Employees will be motivated
to work if they find these incentives attractive. Motivation leads to performance.
If these are rewarded satisfactorily the worker will repeat his productive behaviour. If they are not satisfactory, the worker will be discouraged. The survival of organizations depends on satisfying both individual and organizational goals, and motivation serves as a common denominator in determining the level of employee satisfaction and organizational performance.
If these are rewarded satisfactorily the worker will repeat his productive behaviour. If they are not satisfactory, the worker will be discouraged. The survival of organizations depends on satisfying both individual and organizational goals, and motivation serves as a common denominator in determining the level of employee satisfaction and organizational performance.
MOTIVATION DEFINED: Motivation
is concerned with the whys of human behaviour. It attempts to account for the
drives and wants of an individual rather than just focusing on the individual’s
actions. While general motivation is concerned with effort towards any goal, we
will narrow the focus to organizational goals in order to show our singular
interest in work-related behaviour. In any organizational context, thus,
motivation is the work a manager performs to inspire, encourage and impel
people to take required action.
A more limited and precise definition is that motivation is a process governing choice, made by persons or lower organisms, among alternative forms of voluntary activities. The term motivation is derived from the Latin words Movere which means “to move”.
The noted psychologist Atkinson defined motivation as the immediate influences on the direction, vigour and persistence of action. Although motivation is not the only factor that determines work efficiency (which also depends on knowledge and capabilities), it is most important because it is through motivation that an individual’s behaviour is most directly influenced by a great variety of external factors and characteristics of the immediate and broader environment-at the work place and in the community.
Since motivation is a very complex and fluid concept, influenced by a great many broader social, organizational and individual factors, only some of the important theories of motivation will be discussed here. Several theories of motivation have evolved during recent years, all of which complement one another even though advocates of each hold strongly to different tenets of behaviour. Let’s examine these theories in detail.
A more limited and precise definition is that motivation is a process governing choice, made by persons or lower organisms, among alternative forms of voluntary activities. The term motivation is derived from the Latin words Movere which means “to move”.
The noted psychologist Atkinson defined motivation as the immediate influences on the direction, vigour and persistence of action. Although motivation is not the only factor that determines work efficiency (which also depends on knowledge and capabilities), it is most important because it is through motivation that an individual’s behaviour is most directly influenced by a great variety of external factors and characteristics of the immediate and broader environment-at the work place and in the community.
Since motivation is a very complex and fluid concept, influenced by a great many broader social, organizational and individual factors, only some of the important theories of motivation will be discussed here. Several theories of motivation have evolved during recent years, all of which complement one another even though advocates of each hold strongly to different tenets of behaviour. Let’s examine these theories in detail.