26 Theories of Motivation and its Application(Vroom)

Contents

1.    Objectives

2.    Vroom Expectancy Motivation Theory

3.    Application

1.      Objectives

At the end of the module, the learner will be able to:

• Explain vroom expectancy motivation theory
• Explain application of expectancy theory in workplace
• Explain application of expectancy theory in the classroom

2. Vroom Expectancy Motivation Theory

Several theories of motivation including the theories put forth by Maslow and Herzberg try to explain the relationship between internal needs and the efforts that are expended to fulfill the needs.

Vroom’s expectancy theory separates effort (which arises from motivation), performance, and outcomes. This theory is a cognitive model, which is based on conscious thoughts about situation and details not only how individuals feel and behave but also why they react in a particular way. An individual’s behavior emerges from conscious choices that one makes- this is basic assumption of Vroom’s expectancy theory. Many a times the choice is based on the purpose of maximizing pleasure and minimizing pain. Vroom recognized that an employee’s performance is based on individual factors such as personality, skills, knowledge, experience and abilities. He stated that effort, performance and motivation are linked in a person’s motivation. He uses the variables Expectancy, Instrumentality and Valence to account for this. It is a predictive theory of motivation.

The motivational relationship may be expressed in the form of formula:

Motivation = V x E x I; where

V= Valence, E= Expectancy, I= Instrumentality

The theory suggests that although individuals may have different sets of goals, they can be motivated if they believe that:

1. There is a positive correlation between efforts and performance,
2. Favorable performance will result in a desirable reward,
3. The reward will satisfy an important need,
4. The desire to satisfy the need is strong enough to make the effort worthwhile.

The different variables of the theory are explained as follows:

Expectancy is the belief that increased effort will lead to increased performance i.e. ‘if I work harder then this will be better”.

This is affected by things such as:

• Having the right resources available (e.g. raw materials, time)
• Having the right skills to do the job
• Having the necessary support to get the job done (e.g. supervisor support, or correct information on the job)

Usually people have certain expectations about whether their behavior will be successful or not. If individuals they see odds as zero, i.e there is zero chance of getting success, they will not even try. Expectancy is subjective and changes from person to person. People attach various expectancies to an outcome. Competent and secure individuals tend to perceive expectancy more positively than incompetent and pessimistic individuals. Educational managers can influence the employee’s expectancies positively by matching people to jobs or tasks that they can perform

Employees have different expectations and levels of confidence about what they are capable of doing. Institution must discover what resources, training, or supervision employee’s need.

Instrumentality is the belief that if you perform well that a valued outcome will be received. The degree to which a first level outcome will lead to the second level outcome. i.e. “if I do a good job, there is something in it for me”. This is affected by things such as:

• Clear understanding of the relationship between performance and outcomes – e.g. the rules of the reward ‘game’
• Trust in the people who will take the decisions on who gets what outcome
• Transparency of the process that decides who gets what outcome

Perceived instrumentality is also a subjective feeling. If people perceive that their performance is adequately rewarded,the perceived instrumentality will be positive. On other hand, if they perceive that performance does not make any difference to their rewards, the instrumentality will be low.

The perception of employees as to whether they will actually get what they desire even if a manager has promised it. Management must ensure that promises of rewards are fulfilled and that employees are aware of that.

Valence is the significance that the individual places upon the expected outcome. For the valence to be positive, the person must prefer attaining the outcome to not attaining it. For example, if someone is essentially motivated by money, he or she might not value offers of additional time off. It can be defined as the strength of a person’s preference for one outcome in relation to others. It is the subjective value attached to an incentive or reward.

Valence refers to the emotional orientations people hold with respect to outcomes [rewards]. The depth of the want of an employee for extrinsic [money, promotion, time-off, benefits] or intrinsic [satisfaction] rewards). Management must discover what employee’s value.

The three elements that are important for choosing one element over another because they are clearly defined: effort-performance expectancy (E>P expectancy) and performance-outcome expectancy (P>O expectancy).

E>P expectancy: This involves an individual’s assessment that one’s efforts will lead to the required performance

P>O expectancy: This involves an individual’s assessment that one’s successful performance will lead to certain outcomes.

Vroom’s expectancy theory works on perceptions – so even if an employer thinks they have provided everything appropriate for motivation, and even if this works with most people in that organization, it doesn’t mean that someone won’t perceive that it doesn’t work for them.

At first glance expectancy theory would seem most applicable to a traditional – attitude work situation where how motivated the employee depends on whether they want the reward on offer for doing a good job and whether they believe more effort will lead to that reward.

However, it could equally apply to any situation where someone does something because they expect a certain outcome. For example, “ I recycle paper because I think it’s important to conserve resources and take a stand on environmental issues (valence); I think that the more effort I put into recycling, the more paper I will recycle (expectancy); and I think that the more paper I recycle, then less resources will be used (instrumentality)”

Thus, Vroom’s expectancy theory of motivation is not about self-interest in rewards but about the associations people make towards expected outcomes and the contribution they feel they can make towards those outcomes.

Thus, Vroom suggests that an employee’s beliefs about Expectancy, Instrumentality, and Valence interact psychologically to create a motivational force such that the employee acts in ways that bring pleasure and avoid pain.

3.      Application

Application of Expectancy Theory in the Workplace Expectancy:

A leaders’ knack to fathom expectancy as related to the E-P linkage can be exceptionally useful in the workplace. There are five distinct components for a leader to keep in mind concerning this linkage.

• Present the employee with a reasonably challenging assignment as it has been shown that unchallenging work leads to boredom, frustration and marginal performance. Challenging work leads to development of self-confidence, education, ability development, training, skills and experience, among other things.
• The employee’s ability should be considered as people differ on experience, knowledge, training, skill, and educational level and so forth, tasks need to be assigned based on the individual’s level of competence. If an individual feels they are not capable to complete the tasks assigned, the E-P linkage will be weak. A competent leader needs to provide the necessary skills to the individual in order for them to be successful.
• Every leader must acknowledge that every employee differs greatly regarding their levels of self-esteem in regards to completing a task. Confidence will play a significant role in the employer’s ability to perceive their effort as capable of reaching a desired performance output.
• A leader needs to determine and specify which outcomes constitute acceptable performance, and which do not. The outcomes need to be communicated clearly with precised goals that need to be accomplished. Both the follower and the leader need to reach a mutual agreement on the behavior that represents a successful outcome for each of them. Concrete levels of performance allow the follower an accurate assessment of the strength associated with the E-P linkage.
• A leader should recognize that most individuals want to feel useful, competent, involved and productive. The workplace provides a vehicle to fulfill these needs. A leader, who is aware of these distinct aspects of human perceptions, as they relate to expectancy, can effectively understand and facilitate the E-P linkage for each of their employees. Managing these elements effectively allows a leader to strengthen the expectancy of each of their followers.

Instrumentality:

The strength performance output (instrumentality) linkage will be contingent upon three beliefs of the follower.

• First, a follower needs to be able to trust that a leader will be able to deliver the outcome promised. It is the outcome (given that the outcome is valued by the individual) that drives the motivational state according to the expectancy theory. A follower’s ability to trust that a leader can and will follow through with an outcome greatly effects the P-O linkage. Instrumentality is rooted in the belief that the performance rendered will result in the outcome promised.
• Second, leaders need to make sure followers receive fair treatment in a predictable manner. This is not to suggest that people should be treated exactly the same. This theory recognizes that people vary based on individual differences. However, this factor does suggest that treatment needs to be considered fair. A follower should come to understand that a particular action is associated with a particular type of treatment. This understanding reinforces the P-O linkage (Isaac, 2001). A leader’s ability to manage the behavior associated with these beliefs will determine how his workers perceive Instrumentality.

Valence:

With valence, there are two issues a leader should concern himself with:

• The attractiveness or value of outcomes differs amongst individuals. A leader needs to be able to identify the value of each outcome from the perspective of the follower. There are several types of rewards that can induce heightened motivational states for individuals. These rewards range from money, to praise, to appreciation, to time off, and so on. Many motivational outcomes are of little or no cost to a company, and these types of rewards become highly valuable motivational tools. The best way for an organization to motivate their employees without tangible rewards is by internalizing the objectives and the goal in the employees. When an organization increases the affinity toward internationalization of the desired behaviors and goals, it can directly increase the individual’s perceived value of the objective (Wood, et al, 2015).
• Leaders must put a lot of effort into the alignment of the followers’ personal goals and those of the organization. It is extremely important that the goals of the individual worker are assimilated into the goals of the organization. The pairing of these goals is crucial to workplace motivation. If the follower perceives that their goals are congruent with the goals of the organization, the follower’s motivational force associated with receiving outcomes of high valence are aligned with the furthering of organizational interests. A leader’s ability to do this will greatly enhance both their understanding of valence, as it pertains to individual followers, as well as give them the ability to use this understanding to motivate workers on the job.

Application of Expectancy Theory in the Classroom

Expectancy theory also applies to the classroom and student learning. Much research has been conducted on the validity of expectancy theory in the classroom but has not offered much in the way in which teachers can use expectancy theory in the classroom (Hancock, 1995). Dawson R. Hancock conducted research on teacher behaviors that are in line with Vroom’s expectancy, instrumentality, and valence concepts of the expectancy theory of motivation and offers the following recommendations:

Expectancy

A teacher can alter or improve a students’ perception of their ability to learn the material and concepts being presented. This can be done by explaining to students what types of behaviors go along with learning such as reading, understanding the meaning behind the reading, and actively asking questions about the reading and various meanings. In doing this, teachers can explain how to do these tasks like taking extra time to read and re-read material, expand the breadth of their reflection about the meanings, and be more active in the classroom. Teachers can also help students understand more by having after class discussions, offering tutoring, or presenting the material in a different format.

It is imperative for the teacher to make association between the work that is being done and the worth of the outcome; how doing well in school relates to life outside of school. Research has also showed that perceived importance doesn’t have a large affect on motivating good test performance because the students do not perceive the test to be important.

If students view an assignment as something they can accomplish they will not be motivated to even start to work on the assignment. Teachers can adjust the assignment, break the assignment into parts, or redesign the assignment entirely to improve a student’s motivation towards the assignment.

Finally, Hancock found that the environment could have a negative impact on a student’s motivation towards learning. Distractions like noise and disruptive students should be minimized directly or the disruptive student or class can be moved to a different location.

Instrumentality

Hancock found teachers could help students understand how their performance in the course is linked to desirable outcomes. Teachers can clarify and reassure students of what types of rewards exist for them learning this material. Rewards can be receiving positive feedback from parents, earning high grades, gaining entrance into selective colleges, being awarded scholarships, or obtaining a good job. Communication of student’s progress is also important to increasing their motivation to learn according to Hancock. Grades are a primary source of feedback in the classroom but teachers can increase feedback explaining the results of student’s current effort good or bad. Most importantly, students need to perceive teacher’s evaluations and feedback as equitable that it is fair or motivation will plummet.

Valence

In accordance with expectancy theory, each student has dissimilar values and views rewards differently. To some student earning an “A” grade may be their primary reward, to others developing skills for future employment may be most important. Teachers should assess each student’s differences and develop outcomes that match their desires and their motivation to learn will improve.

4.      To Summarize…

Expectancy theory predicts that employees in an organization will be motivated when they believe that:

• Putting in more effort will yield better job performance
• Better job performance will lead to organizational rewards, such as an increase in salary or benefits
• These predicted organizational rewards are valued by the employee in question

In order to enhance the performance-outcome tie, managers should use systems that tie rewards very closely to performance. Managers also need to ensure that the rewards provided are deserved and wanted by the recipients.

In order to improve the effort-performance tie, managers should engage in training to improve their capabilities and improve their belief that added effort will in fact lead to better performance.

The implication of Vroom’s expectancy theory is that people change their level of effort according to the value they place on the bonus they receive from the process and on their perception of the strength of the links between effort and outcome.

So, if someone perceives that any one of these is true:

1) “My increased effort will not increase my performance”

2) “My increased performance will not increase my rewards”

3) “I don’t value the rewards on offer”

..then Vroom’s expectancy theory suggests that this individual will not be motivated.

This means that even if an organization achieves two out of three, that employees would still not be motivated; all three are required for positive motivation.

For financial bonuses, it implies that people need to feel that their increased effort will be able to attain the level needed to get the bonus. Or, if no additional effort is needed, none will be added. This means a balance must be created, if a financial bonus is to be given, between making it achievable and not making it too easy to achieve. There need to be clear standards of achievement.

Refernces:

• Asri A., Munir S., Zikri M., Hassan N. K., Norizan Md. N. & Junaimah J., (2007). Employee Organizational Commitment in Smes: Evidence From The Manufacturing Sector In Malaysia, International Review of Business Research Papers, Vol. 3 (2), pp. 12-26.
• Bourgault M, Drouin N, & Hamel É. (2008). Decision Making within Distributed Project Teams: An exploration of formalization and autonomy as determinants of success. Proj. Manage. J., 39: S97-S110.
• Burke R (2007). Project Management Leadership. Cape Town: Burke. 
 Campbell, J.P., Dunnette, M.D., Lawler, E.E., & Weick, K.E. (1970). Managerial Behaviour, Performance, and Effectiveness. New York: McGraw-Hill.
•  Casper, W. J. & Harris, C. M. (2008) Work-Life Benefits and Organizational Attachment: Self-Interest Utility and Signaling Theory Models. Journal of Vocational Behaviour, Vol. 72, pp. 95–109.
• B. Mamoria, Personnel Management, Himalaya Publishing House, Bombay, 1995, p.403-446.
• H. Ponnu & C.C. Chuah (2010). Organizational Commitment, Organizational Justice and Employee Turnover in Malaysia. African Journal of Business Management, Vol. 4(13), pp. 2676-2692.
• VSP Rao and P.S. Narayana, Principles and Practices of Management, Konark Publishers PVT LTD, New Delhi, 1987,p.466-482.