ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOR & LEADERSHIP
317.1.1-06
People are motivated to engage in behavior when they believe that their efforts will result in performance, and that their performance will lead to outcomes that they value. Expectancy theory is the most complex motivation technique in that it takes into consideration the numerous factors possibly influencing the motivation of employees. Three perceptions to consider are: Effort equals Performance; Performance equals Outcome then what is the total value of the outcome.
Managerial Steps for Using Expectancy Theory concerning Effort and the desired Performance: Step 1: Determine if an employee’s Effort equals Performance is low. Step 2: If it appears low, try to figure out why. Step 3: Focus your efforts on trying to strengthen employee’s Efforts to equal the Performance, by rectifying factors that cause the connection to be low. Effort equals Performance: The strength of an employee’s expectation that if he or she tries, he or she can successfully perform the task as assigned. If an employee does not believe he or she can successfully perform the task assigned, even if he or she puts forth a lot of effort, he or she will not be motivated for the task. We want this connection to be as strong as possible for employees.
What would affect Effort equals Performance? Traits of the employee: self-confidence, sense of task efficacy, abilities, knowledge, task skills, experience, locus of control and anxiety. Traits of the task: extremely difficult or complex, unclear, ambiguous, lack of control over tasks Traits of the work context: ineffective manager (e.g., critical, absent), destructive, distracting co-workers, insufficient resources (e.g., technology), lack of information, feedback, lack of time, disruptive or negative work environment factors. Performance equals Outcome: The strength of an employee’s expectation