Transcript OB Motivation I Ch2.ppt

Organizational
Behaviour
The Individual:
Motivation I – Learning Theories
and Goal Setting Theory
Motivation: the
extent to which
persistent effort
is directed
toward a goal
Learning Theories –
• Operant learning theory/operant
conditioning/reinforcement theory –
where an individual learns to
operate on the environment to
achieve certain consequences
• Social learning theory – learning by
watching the behaviour of others,
seeing the consequences to them,
and then thinking about engaging
in the behaviour ourselves
Reinforcement Theory –
Creating Behaviours
• Positive Reinforcement: increases
the probability of the behaviour by
following the behaviour with a
pleasant or desirable consequence
• Negative Reinforcement: increases
the probability of the behaviour by
removing an aversive stimulus
contingent on the performance of
the behaviour
Reducing or Removing
Behaviours
• Punishment - following the behaviour with
an aversive stimulus
– no replacement behaviour, requires constant
monitoring, causes strong emotional
responses, causes low self-esteem
• Extinction - removing the reinforcement
Errors and problems in
Reinforcement
• Confusing reinforcements with rewards
(rewards are not necessarily contingent on
desired behaviours)
• Not recognizing individual differences in
preferences (diversity)
• Group norms can negate the effects of
organizational reinforcements
• Many sources of organizational
reinforcement are ignored
Creating Behaviours
• Schedules (how often your reinforce has
important consequences on behaviour)
– continuous versus partial
• Interval: a time period must elapse
before another reinforcement is given
– fixed and variable
• Ratio: a number of responses must
occur before another reinforcement is
given
–fixed and variable
Goal Setting Theory
• Intended to increase efficiency and
effectiveness
• Primary Elements
– Goal specificity – clear and specific;
understood without guessing
– Goal challenge/difficulty – not too easy, nor
impossible to achieve
– what is wrong with “do your best”?
Significance to the workplace
• A means for diagnosing performance
problems:
1) How are the goals set?
2) Are the goals challenging?
3) What is affecting goal commitment?
4) Does the employee know when
he/she has done a good job?