Raphael manages Sarah, an employee who continues to regress at work. In the beginning, Sarah's work was far above the others, but now she seems to have lost her attention to detail. Her work is sloppy and full of errors. Raphael would like to turn the situation around. Because Sarah was once a star performer, he knows that she can put forth the effort and accomplish the tasks. After talking with her, Raphael concludes that the main problem is that Sarah doesn't think the reward she receives is enough to justify a high level of performance. Which theory is this finding consistent with?

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The finding that Sarah's lack of motivation is due to her belief that the reward is not enough to justify high performance is consistent with expectancy theory. Expectancy theory suggests that motivation is driven by the belief that effort will lead to high performance, and high performance will lead to desired outcomes, such as rewards. In this case, Sarah's belief that the rewards are not sufficient to justify high performance is affecting her motivation.

Raphael Manages Sarah, an Employee Who Continues to Regress at Work