Page 256 - Introduction to Business

230 PART 2 Managing Business Behavior

primary drives Instinctive or unlearned primary drives and secondary drives. Primary drives are instinctive or unlearned,
motives like hunger, thirst, and sex that are found in humans and animals alike, and motivate behavior that is vital to the
direct behavior that is vital to survival
survival of the individual. They include hunger, thirst, and sex. Secondary drives,
secondary drives Motives that are
acquired through learning, such as a such as a work ethic, are acquired through learning, from parents or elders, for
work ethic example. They are not based on the physiological state of the individual.
Psychologists also distinguish between intrinsic and extrinsic motivations.
intrinsic motivation Motivation for Intrinsic motivation refers to rewards provided by an activity itself. Certain types
which the reward is provided by the of activities, like membership in a student club or working with Habitat for Human-
activity itself
ity, are so rewarding in themselves that students are motivated to participate in
these organizations with little more than moral support. Similarly, most kinder-
garten teachers spend a lot of time in their classrooms with their students; they
extrinsic motivation Motivation for obtain a lot of enjoyment working with small kids. Extrinsic motivation refers to
which the reward is obtained as a rewards that are obtained not from the activity itself but as a consequence of the
consequence of the activity
activity. For example, some employees may be asked to attend computer software
training classes. Although not all the employees may be interested, they do realize
that attending those classes may lead to wage increases or promotion.
Determining whether employee behavior is intrinsically or extrinsically moti-
vated is of great interest to business. As you can see in Exhibit 7.1, leadership in
organizations plays an extremely important role in motivating employees to per-
form well. Organizations expect employees to work smart, not just hard, but hard
and intelligently and to be loyal to the company and its objectives. Employees, on
the other hand, want to be treated with respect, valued for their qualifications and
accomplishments, and compensated in an equitable manner. Employees also like a
work environment that is harmonious, where the relationship between managers
and employees is cordial. Then employee morale is high. Leadership, employee
welfare and motivation, employee performance, and achieving corporate goals
follow in sequence and have been the focus of much research since the late nine-
teenth century. During the twentieth century, labor unions became an important
channel for employee involvement in business. However, since the 1980s, union
membership and consultative committees have declined in the United States and
Europe, prompting growth in more direct forms of involvement such as teams and
problem-solving groups. Concepts such as participation, involvement, and
empowerment have become common in the thinking of human resources man-
agers these days.
In order to better understand the evolution of motivation theories, we will start
with traditional theories, followed by contemporary theories and current thinking
on how to enhance employee job satisfaction and performance. As a student, you
may wonder why you should bother yourself with all these theories. The reasons are
quite simple.
• You need to understand the history of motivation theories so that you get a
feel for why and how these theories evolved over time, and you do not try to
“reinvent the wheel” when you become a manager.
• You need to appreciate the fact that motivation theories are a function of cul-
ture, time, and the business environment in which companies operate, and so
be aware that what worked in the past may or may not be applicable to spe-
cific industries and countries today.
• You may be required to develop motivation strategies or policies for your
organization in order to make it competitive and at the same time be able to
retain the people you will need in your organization.
The environment in which an organization operates largely determines which
motivational theory will work and when. Cultural differences and income disparity

Copyright 2010 Cengage Learning, Inc. All Rights Reserved. May not be copied, scanned, or duplicated, in whole or in part.