theories of motivation to create a motivating work environment conducive to conditions for high performance.

An organization’s productivity is determined by many factors; employee motivation and satisfaction are only two of them. However, they are very important factors in any business. Motivation is a “person’s drive to take an action because that person wants to do so” (Werther and Davis, 1985: 399). If people are pushed or forced, they are merely reacting to pressure, and act because they feel they have to. However, if they are motivated, they make a positive choice to do something because they see this act as meaningful to them. When a manager considers the concept of motivation, and aims to apply it to his/her workforce, he or she should be primarily concerned with (1) what energizes human behaviour, (2) what directs or channels such behaviour, and (3) how this behaviour is maintained or sustained (Steers, Porter and Bigley, 1996: 8). Many theories have been developed in an attempt to deal with these specific issues related to motivation. A manager can become familiar with and make use o

Herzberg’s Motivator-Hygiene Theory

Unlike Maslow’s theory, which is based on a progression of satisfaction up the hierarchy, Alderfer’s ERG theory includes a frustration-regression viewpoint. In circumstances where higher-order needs remain unsatisfied, frustration occurs and the individual “regresses” to fulfilling more basic needs. Also, unlike Maslow, Alderfer’s model acknowledges that more than one need may be operative at any one time.

Douglas McGregor proposed that managers hold one of two diametrically opposed views of the nature of man and that these implicit philosophies are determinative of managerial style (Swanepoel, 1998: 363). Although McGregor’s theory is typically regarded as a theory of leadership, it demonstrates that one’s assumptions about man fundamentally influence one’s motivational strategies.

Some topics in this essay:
Werther Davis, Amos Ristow, Fundamentally Locke’s, Motivator-Hygiene Theory, According Vroom, Porter Bigley, Stacey Adam’s, Theory McClelland’s, Esteem Ego, Douglas McGregor, swanepoel 1998, amos ristow, et al, steers et, davis 1985, amos ristow 1999, steers et al, ristow 1999, et al 1996, werther davis, maslow’s hierarchy, al 1996, theories motivation, werther davis 1985, alderfer’s erg theory,