Question 1

Sarah works at a tech firm. She recently met with her supervisor and was told she would be given increased autonomy and control over how she did her job. What phenomenon is Sarah experiencing in this situation?

Accepted Answer

Sarah is experiencing job enrichment, which involves giving employees more control and ownership over their work. This can lead to greater job satisfaction and motivation. Job rotation involves moving employees between different roles, compensation increase involves giving employees more money for their work, and distributive justice involves fairness in the distribution of rewards and resources. However, none of these concepts fully capture the increased autonomy and control that Sarah is experiencing.

Question 2

When an organization redesigns jobs and attempts to increase how much control employees have over completing tasks and the variety of tasks they complete, which theory of motivation are they applying to their work, in essence?

Accepted Answer

Job characteristics theory emphasizes the importance of designing jobs that have high levels of skill variety, task identity, task significance, autonomy, and feedback. By increasing control over tasks and the variety of tasks, organizations are applying principles of job characteristics theory to motivate employees. Maslow's hierarchy of needs relates to fulfilling physiological, safety, social, esteem, and self-actualization needs, and is not directly related to job redesign. Equity theory focuses on the fairness of rewards in relation to an individual's inputs and outputs, and growth theory is primarily used to describe economic development.

Question 3

An employee who does not believe that increasing their effort will result in improved performance may need their __________ link strengthened, according to expectancy theory.

Accepted Answer

According to expectancy theory, effort leads to performance (expectancy), which in turn leads to outcomes (instrumentality), and the employee's belief that the outcome is valuable (valence). Therefore, if an employee does not believe that increasing their effort will result in improved performance, their expectancy link needs to be strengthened.

Question 4

Sandra works for a consulting company and is paid $100,000 per year. She recently found out that a new hire was offered twice her salary, and as a result Sandra has reduced her productivity. Which theory might explain her behavior?

Accepted Answer

According to equity theory, individuals compare their inputs (such as effort, experience, and qualifications) with their outputs (such as pay and benefits) with others who are in a similar situation. If they perceive that they are not receiving fair compensation compared to others who have similar inputs, they may reduce their productivity or exhibit other negative behavior. In this case, Sandra's reduced productivity may be a result of perceiving inequity in her pay compared to the new hire.

Question 5

Paul works at a job with good benefits, decent pay, and regular hours. However, the work is boring and exhausting. Paul is still with the company probably due to what type of motivation?

Accepted Answer

Extrinsic motivation refers to motivation that comes from external incentives such as pay, benefits, or recognition. In this case, Paul is likely motivated to stay with the company because of the benefits and pay, despite the fact that the work is boring and exhausting.

Question 6

A job applicant takes a battery of selection tests they believe to be fair but they do not get the job. What type of injustice are they likely experiencing?

Accepted Answer

Distributive injustice refers to perceived unfairness in the allocation of resources or outcomes, such as not getting a job despite believing the selection process was fair.

Question 7

What type of motivation is present when an employee is working harder in order to receive a raise at work?

Accepted Answer

The motivation is extrinsic because the employee is working harder for an external reward, which in this case is a raise.

Question 8

A company is trying to increase motivation by providing pay raises, but an employee doesn't place a strong value on receiving a raise. In this case, the company is not properly addressing the employee's

Accepted Answer

Valence refers to the value an individual places on a particular outcome or reward. In this case, the employee does not place a strong value on receiving a pay raise, so providing one will not effectively increase their motivation. The company should explore other forms of rewards or incentives that align with the employee's values and goals.

Question 9

Which phenomenon is defined by a set of forces that determine the form, direction, intensity, and duration of behavior at work?

Accepted Answer

Work motivation is defined by a set of forces that determine the form, direction, intensity, and duration of behavior at work. Leadership, job satisfaction, and work engagement can all impact work motivation, but they are not the phenomenon itself.

Question 10

A supervisor has been waiting for a report from an employee. The supervisor has been texting and emailing the employee to get the report done - something that the employee finds unpleasant. The supervisor stops sending the texts and emails once the employee has finally done the report. This is an example of

Accepted Answer

The supervisor stopping the unpleasant texts and emails once the employee completed the report is an example of negative reinforcement. Negative reinforcement involves removing an unpleasant stimulus to increase the likelihood of a desired behavior. In this case, the supervisor removed the unpleasant stimulus (the texts and emails) once the desired behavior (the completion of the report) was achieved, thereby increasing the likelihood that the employee will complete the report in a timely manner in the future to avoid such unpleasant stimuli.

Question 11

A supervisor has told an employee that they will lose $10 of their pay if they are late for work again. The next time the employee is late, the supervisor cuts the employee's pay by $10. This is an example of

Accepted Answer

This is an example of punishment because the supervisor is taking away something (pay) to decrease the likelihood of the behavior (being late) happening again in the future.

Question 12

A current approach used by some organizations to try to motivate and engage employees is:

Accepted Answer

Gamification is a current approach used by some organizations to motivate and engage employees. It involves incorporating gaming elements, such as points, badges, and leaderboards, into everyday tasks and activities to make work more fun and engaging. This can improve employee motivation, satisfaction, and performance.

Question 13

Existence, relatedness, and growth are the three components of ERG theory.

Accepted Answer

This is correct. ERG theory was developed by Clayton Alderfer and proposes that human needs can be categorized into three levels: existence, relatedness, and growth.

Question 14

According to Maslow, when a person moves up the motivational hierarchy, that is referred to as fulfillment progression.

Accepted Answer

Maslow's theory suggests that as a person fulfills their lower level needs (such as physiological and safety needs), they progress up the hierarchy towards self-actualization, which is the ultimate fulfillment of their potential. This is commonly known as the "fulfillment progression".

Question 15

Intrinsic motivation includes factors such as pay and benefits.

Accepted Answer

Intrinsic motivation refers to the internal factors that drive a person, such as personal satisfaction or enjoyment in the task itself, while extrinsic motivation includes factors such as pay and benefits that come from external sources.

Question 16

According to Herzberg's theory, the presence of hygiene factors leads to increased motivation.

Accepted Answer

Herzberg's theory states that the presence of hygiene factors (such as salary, job security, working conditions) can prevent dissatisfaction but their presence does not necessarily lead to increased motivation. To achieve motivation, Herzberg argued that companies must focus on providing motivating factors (such as recognition, personal growth, and meaningful work).

Question 17

According to VIE (expectancy) theory, expectancy is the degree to which a person wants a desired outcome.

Accepted Answer

Expectancy in VIE theory refers to the belief that one's effort will lead to desired performance, not the degree to which a person wants an outcome.

Question 18

According to equity theory, a person often compares themselves to a comparison other person to determine the degree of fairness.

Accepted Answer

Equity theory proposes that individuals make comparisons between their own ratio of inputs and outcomes to that of a comparison other person in order to determine their satisfaction or dissatisfaction with a situation. These comparisons help individuals evaluate whether they are being treated fairly in relation to others in the same situation.

Question 19

Goal setting theory says that setting a specific, difficult goal for someone will motivate a person more than just telling them to do their best.

Accepted Answer

According to goal setting theory, setting specific, challenging goals leads to higher levels of performance and motivation than vague or easy goals.

Question 20

According to the job characteristics theory, the key core job characteristics are task significance, growth, and responsibility.

Accepted Answer

The key core job characteristics according to the job characteristics theory are skill variety, task identity, task significance, autonomy, feedback, and knowledge of results. Growth and responsibility are considered psychological states that may result from experiencing these core job characteristics.

Quiz 9: Work Motivation