motivation in action case study examples

Motivation in Action: Case Study Examples

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5.5 Motivation in Action: The Case of Trader Joe’s

Figure 5.13

Paul L Dineen – shopping cart harmonic convergence II – CC BY 2.0.

People in Hawaiian T-shirts. Delicious fresh fruits and vegetables. A place where parking is tight and aisles are tiny. A place where you will be unable to find half the things on your list but will go home satisfied. We are, of course, talking about Trader Joe’s (a privately held company), a unique grocery store headquartered in California and located in 22 states. By selling store-brand and gourmet foods at affordable prices, this chain created a special niche for itself. Yet the helpful employees who stock the shelves and answer questions are definitely key to what makes this store unique and helps it achieve twice the sales of traditional supermarkets.

Shopping here is fun, and chatting with employees is a routine part of this experience. Employees are upbeat and friendly to each other and to customers. If you look lost, there is the definite offer of help. But somehow the friendliness does not seem scripted. Instead, if they see you shopping for big trays of cheese, they might casually inquire if you are having a party and then point to other selections. If they see you chasing your toddler, they are quick to tie a balloon to his wrist. When you ask them if they have any cumin, they get down on their knees to check the back of the aisle, with the attitude of helping a guest that is visiting their home. How does a company make sure its employees look like they enjoy being there to help others?

One of the keys to this puzzle is pay. Trader Joe’s sells cheap organic food, but they are not “cheap” when it comes to paying their employees. Employees, including part-timers, are among the best paid in the retail industry. Full-time employees earn an average of $40,150 in their first year and also earn average annual bonuses of $950 with $6,300 in retirement contributions. Store managers’ average compensation is $132,000. With these generous benefits and above-market wages and salaries, the company has no difficulty attracting qualified candidates.

But money only partially explains what energizes Trader Joe’s employees. They work with people who are friendly and upbeat. The environment is collaborative, so that people fill in for each other and managers pick up the slack when the need arises, including tasks like sweeping the floors. Plus, the company promotes solely from within, making Trader Joe’s one of few places in the retail industry where employees can satisfy their career aspirations. Employees are evaluated every 3 months and receive feedback about their performance.

Employees are also given autonomy on the job. They can open a product to have the customers try it and can be honest about their feelings toward different products. They receive on- and off-the-job training and are intimately familiar with the products, which enables them to come up with ideas that are taken seriously by upper management. In short, employees love what they do, work with nice people who treat each other well, and are respected by the company. When employees are treated well, it is no wonder they treat their customers well daily.

Based on information from Lewis, L. (2005). Trader Joe’s adventure . Chicago: Dearborn Trade; McGregor, J., Salter, C., Conley, L., Haley, F., Sacks, D., & Prospero, M. (2004). Customers first. Fast Company, 87 , 79–88; Speizer, I. (2004). Shopper’s special. Workforce Management, 83 , 51–55.

Discussion Questions

How much of Trader Joe’s success can be attributed to the fact that most larger chain grocery stores do not sell the type of food available at Trader Joe’s?
Is pay enough of an incentive to continue at a job you do not enjoy?
Trader Joe’s promotes entirely from within the organization. This means that if you are a good, dedicated worker, you can rise up within the company. Do you feel employees would be as dedicated to the company if this were not the case? Would high pay be enough to keep employees? What if the company only promoted from within but pay were not as good?

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Customer service involves all those activities designed to identify and satisfy customer needs. The company uses a simple customer satisfaction survey – the Enterprise Service Quality index (ESQi) – to find out how satisfied its customers are. It is based on two simple questions:

Were you completely satisfied with your rental experience at Enterprise?
Given the opportunity to return to Enterprise, would you?

Enterprise knows that to perform well on the ESQi it needs to have motivated employees. The company prides itself on providing superb customer service. Only highly motivated staff will provide this quality of service. Employees deal with customers face-to-face and by phone, email and online.

The culture at Enterprise supports customer service which excels and differentiates the business from that of its competitors. The term culture refers to typical ways of behaving in an organisation. Enterprise is a big company that has the approach and feel of a small business. Each employee has an important role to play. To understand how Enterprise continues to meet its financial and strategic objectives, it is necessary to understand the culture.

The culture is based on having motivated people working every day to deliver the best service for customers. Customer satisfaction drives the growth of the business because this results in repeat custom, recommendations to other people and an enhanced reputation.

The term ‘motivation’ can be used to describe anything which causes people to accomplish more than they would otherwise achieve.

motivation in action case study examples

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs

These 8 factors fit closely with the theory of human resource development. For example,

safety – a need to feel secure, e.g. through job security or personal protective equipment
social – a need for affection, e.g. friendly work places based on trust, support and encouragement
self-esteem – a need for self-respect and the respect of others, e.g. recognition and promotion
self-actualisation – the opportunity for personal fulfilment, e.g. learning new skills and working towards personal goals.

John Stacy Adams- Equity Theory

In comparison, another researcher, John Stacey Adams, set out his Equity Theory. This states that employees will balance the effort they put into work (input) with the rewards they get from it (output). They then compare their own input-to-output ratio to what they perceive others’ to be. Adams’ theory suggests that employees will be motivated if they feel that they are being treated fairly in the workplace compared to their colleagues.

As part of its motivation programme, Enterprise managers are expected to ensure that employees are engaged and motivated by:

developing good relationships with their staff
providing the right materials, equipment and information
encouraging employees to identify personal development targets
recognising and rewarding good performance.

Enterprise also recognises that motivated employees benefit the company by:

working with passion
coming up with new innovative ideas
moving the company forward.

Clear communications – clear goals and expectations are set and plans are shared. Reasons for doing things are clearly explained so employees can see how they fit into the big picture.
Adequate resources – managers make sure that materials, equipment and information are provided and fit for purpose.
Encouragement employees are praised for getting things right. Frustrations and problems are acknowledged. The focus is on working towards goals.
Recognition effort and good performance are rewarded. By establishing best practice, it is possible for Enterprise to measure branch culture against the benchmarks or standards it has set.

Team leaders need to understand the needs of the people they manage to ensure they apply the right motivating factors for individuals. During training, managers learn to assess the motivation culture of their branch. For example, a branch with highly motivated employees may demonstrate this by:

answering the phone before the working day starts
working together as a team

Frederick Herzberg

a lack of organisation or structure
a lack of feedback
a lack of understanding why a task is important
a lack of consequences for poor performance.

Managers are therefore trained to identify and work to reduce these within their branches. This may be by effective communication, training or clear guidance on job standards.

Recognition, one of Herzberg’s motivators, is important for employees to feel they are valued. To address this, Enterprise has introduced a system called ‘The Vote’. This aims to support and encourage the development of exceptional customer service.

The names of the best performer and most improved employee are communicated to all employees in the region. This is a way of recognising those employees who are delivering exceptional service and identifying those who may need additional motivation.

‘The Vote’ helps to achieve high ESQi scores because:

everyone is involved in suggesting improvements to others
only constructive feedback is allowed
progress reports are issued regularly to remind fellow employees on how to improve.
improvement is valued as much as overall performance.

The training that managers receive also enables them to consider how they can motivate employees in non-management roles. It provides a checklist of actions that managers may take with employees. This may be by something as simple as saying ‘thank you’ in public or formally publicising exceptional effort resulting in a satisfied customer.

Managers in Enterprise motivate their employees through informal competitions, giving opportunities to take the lead on projects or providing training to learn new skills.

A motivated workforce does not just happen. People need to be encouraged. This requires skilful management and managers trained in motivation. Systems also need to be created which encourage employees to be more engaged with their jobs.

How does your task and position fit your goals?
What could we do better?

By actively listening to the employee’s ideas, they may be able to make changes that will motivate the employee.

Enterprise encourages managers to motivate their teams throughout the working day. This involves:

making sure the team understands the objectives and targets for the day (taking into account any constraints such as short staffing)
monitoring progress at mid-day and giving constructive feedback on how to make the rest of the day run smoothly
thanking and acknowledging each person”s achievement for that day and creating enthusiasm for the next day’s work.

Enterprise managers recognise that motivation is personal to the individual. If employees feel that they are being treated fairly, they will be more likely to give their best. Motivation comes from within an individual. Enterprise managers therefore need to find out about the personal goals and aspirations of their employees. What motivates one employee will not necessarily motivate another.

In addition to ensuring fair pay and conditions, it is also essential for the business to meet the higher order needs of individual employees. These include the need for recognition and fulfillment at work.

Enterprise has created the right environment for motivating and engaging its people through the development of good communication channels, appropriate training and honest and timely feedback.

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Chapter 5: Theories of Motivation

Chapter Learning Outcomes

After reading this chapter, you should be able to know and learn the following:

Understand the role of motivation in determining employee performance.
Classify the basic needs of employees.
Describe how fairness perceptions are determined and consequences of these perceptions.
Understand the importance of rewards and punishments.
Apply motivation theories to analyze performance problems.

Introduction

The challenges and motivators in a post pandemic world..

The world is becoming progressively more digital with every passing year, so today’s workforce looks a lot different than it did 25 years ago. This progression, expedited by the global pandemic of Covid19, presents new challenges that today’s employers must learn to navigate to motivate their teams, prevent employee burnout and minimize turnover.

To understand and overcome the challenges in motivating today’s workforce, especially companies with significant numbers of non-desk workers, we must understand both the challenges and the motivators of new age, digital employees.

Let’s start with the challenges.

The top challenges chosen by the vast majority of employers

A. Building a great employee experience

1.Listen to people. Ensure that employees have a means of communication. Many non-desk workers are not connected to the company in a way that allows two-way communication.

2.Get feedback from surveys and focus groups, then implement change if need be. Keep an open channel of communication so that employees feel connected. Be committed to employee development and growth.

3.Equip and enable managers to support their teams. Creating a positive employee experience goes a long way with employee engagement and motivation.

B. Creating calm and reassurance in periods of turbulence

1.We can all agree that the world has been in a period of turbulence over the past two years. As a leader in an organization, you must pause and breathe . Managers can unintentionally pass their stress onto other employees.

2.Do the research and prevent the spread of misinformation. Speak clearly and confidently to your teams and colleagues so that you appear to have control over the situation. Transparency will create trust and go a long way in calming the workforce.

C. Fighting burnout

1.Let’s talk about the ever-elusive fight against burnout. It’s easy to understand that the outside stressors of everyday life during and after a pandemic paired with the daily stressors of work are enough to burn anyone out. More than 70% of employees reported feeling burnt out over the past year, making history (Forbes.com).

2.It’s never been more critical than it is now to tackle feelings of physical and emotional exhaustion. The key to avoiding burnout is getting in front of it, as it is much easier to prevent burnout than reverse it.

D. Turnover and letting employees go

1.Turnover tends to be a result of a poor approach to the above challenges. It’s no secret that the cost of turnover is high, estimated at 1.5 – 2 times an employee’s salary and $1,500 per hourly employee (builtin.com).

Therefore, organizations should actively avoid turnover by putting into place best practices and implementing a solid plan to tackle the above challenges.

E. Retaining top talent

1.With the cost of turnover being so high, retaining top talent is a priority . The key here is employee engagement, so ask questions to gain insight on employees to instill the correct development and training programs.

Weekly one-on-one meetings with department heads or managers are an excellent way to ask questions and get to know these individuals. Including all employees in the communication loop creates an atmosphere of teamwork and ensures that everyone’s efforts are appreciated.

2.Create on-the-job learning opportunities, whether significant or small. Vary learning experiences and provide insightful feedback that is constructive and accompanied by manageable action steps.

F. Communicating effectively

These challenges arguably have a common denominator – they’re a causal effect of poor communication. Therefore, effective communication could essentially eliminate or solve these challenges.

It seems simple, yet effective communication is complex and involves complex solutions. Everyone communicates differently. The good news is there are a plethora of companies specializing in making communications in the workforce easy.

According to Pew Research, 91% of Americans between the ages of 18 and 64 own a smartphone, making them far and away the most popular way to communicate. Due to this information, the most innovative and easiest way to reach employees and increase engagement would be to interact via the smartphone.

Employee engagement apps can simplify your workforce management system and workplace communication making it accessible for all employees, non-desk workers, remote and office workers alike. Some of these platforms include Artificial Intelligence which provides highly structured communications.

These communications give the right message to the right person at the right time, prevent spray and pray messaging, and the chaos and lack of usage that reply-all messaging creates.

Now that the challenges have been addressed, let’s understand the motivators.

Why is it that, on some days, it can feel harder than others to get up when your alarm goes off, do your workout, complete a work or school assignment, or make dinner for your family?

Motivation (or a lack thereof) is usually behind why we do the things that we do.

There are different types of motivation, and as it turns out, understanding why you are motivated to do the things that you do can help you keep yourself motivated — and can help you motivate others.

There are two types of motivator categories in a company’s culture, intrinsic and extrinsic.

What Is Intrinsic Motivation?

When you’re intrinsically motivated, your behavior is motivated by your internal desire to do something for its own sake — for example, your personal enjoyment of an activity, or your desire to learn a skill because you’re eager to learn.

Examples of intrinsic motivation could include:

Reading a book because you enjoy the storytelling
Exercising because you want to relieve stress
Cleaning your home because it helps you feel organized

What Is Extrinsic Motivation?

When you’re extrinsically motivated, your behavior is motivated by an external factor pushing you to do something in hopes of earning a reward — or avoiding a less-than-positive outcome.

Examples of extrinsic motivation could include:

Reading a book to prepare for a test
Exercising to lose weight
Cleaning your home to prepare for visitors coming over

If you have a job, and you must complete a project, you’re probably extrinsically motivated — by your manager’s praise or a potential raise or commission — even if you enjoy the project while you’re doing it. If you’re in school, you’re extrinsically motivated to learn a foreign language because you’re being graded on it — even if you enjoy practicing and studying it.

So, intrinsic motivation is good, and extrinsic motivation is good. The key is to figure out why you — and your team — are motivated to do things and encouraging both types of motivation.

If someone is not performing well, what could be the reason? According to this equation, motivation, ability, and environment are the major influences over employee performance.

Performance is a function of the interaction between an individual’s motivation, ability, and environment.

Motivation is one of the forces that lead to performance. Motivation is defined as the desire to achieve a goal or a certain performance level, leading to goal-directed behaviour. When we refer to someone as being motivated, we mean that the person is trying hard to accomplish a certain task. Motivation is clearly important if someone is to perform well; however, it is not sufficient. Ability —or having the skills and knowledge required to perform the job—is also important and is sometimes the key predictor of effectiveness. Finally, environmental factors such as having the resources, information, and support to perform well are critical to determine performance. At different times, one of these three factors may be the key to high performance. For example, for an employee sweeping the floor, motivation may be the most important factor that determines performance. In contrast, even the most motivated individual would not be able to successfully design a house without the necessary talent involved in building quality homes. Being motivated is not the same as being a high performer and is not the sole reason why people perform well, but it is nevertheless a key influence over our performance level.

So, what motivates people? Why do some employees try to reach their targets and pursue excellence while others merely show up at work and count the hours? As with many questions involving human beings, the answer is anything but simple. Instead, there are several theories explaining the concept of motivation. We will discuss motivation theories under two categories: need-based theories and process theories.

5.1 A Motivating Place to Work: The Case of Rogers Communications Inc

Rogers Communications was rated as A+ on aspect communication, financial benefits and performance, employee engagement and performance, and training and skills development.

Rogers Communications Inc has been identified as one of Canada’s 100 top employers by Media Corp Canada, who investigate Canadian companies based on 8 criteria: (1) Physical Workplace; (2) Work Atmosphere & Social; (3) Health, Financial & Family Benefits; (4) Vacation & Time Off; (5) Employee Communications; (6) Performance Management; (7) Training & Skills Development; and (8) Community Involvement. Employers are compared to other organizations in their field to determine which offers the most progressive and forward-thinking programs (Media Corp Canada,2019).

5.2 Need-Based Theories of Motivation

Early researchers thought that employees try hard and demonstrate behaviour to satisfy their own personal needs. For example, an employee who is always walking around the office talking to people may have a need for companionship, and his or her behaviour may be a way of satisfying this need. At the time, researchers developed theories to understand what people need. Two theories may be placed under this category: Maslow’s hierarchy of needs and McClelland’s acquired-needs theory.

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs

Abraham Maslow is among the most prominent psychologists of the twentieth century. His hierarchy of needs is an image familiar to most business students and managers. The theory is based on a simple idea: human beings have needs that are ranked (Maslow, 1943; Maslow, 1954). There are some needs that are basic to all human beings, and in their absence nothing else matters. As we satisfy these basic needs, we start looking to satisfy higher order needs. In other words, once a lower-level need is satisfied, it no longer serves as a motivator.

The most basic of Maslow’s needs are physiological needs . Physiological needs refer to the need for food, water, and other biological needs. These needs are basic because when they are lacking, the search for them may overpower all other urges. Imagine being very hungry. At that point, all your behaviour may be directed at finding food. Once you eat, though, the search for food ceases and the promise of food no longer serves as a motivator. Once physiological needs are satisfied, people tend to become concerned about safety needs . Are they free from the threat of danger, pain, or an uncertain future? On the next level up, social needs refer to the need to bond with other human beings, be loved, and form lasting attachments with others. In fact, attachments, or lack of them, are associated with our health and well-being (Baumeister & Leary, 1995). The satisfaction of social needs makes esteem needs more salient. Esteem needs refer to the desire to be respected by one’s peers, feel important, and be appreciated. Finally, at the highest level of the hierarchy, the need for self-actualization refers to “becoming all you are capable of becoming.” This need manifests itself by the desire to acquire new skills, take on new challenges, and behave in a way that will lead to the attainment of one’s life goals.

How can an organization satisfy its employees’ various needs? In the long run, physiological needs may be satisfied by the person’s paycheck, but it is important to remember that pay may satisfy other needs such as safety and esteem as well. Providing generous benefits that include health insurance and company-sponsored retirement plans, as well as offering a measure of job security, will help satisfy safety needs. Social needs may be satisfied by having a friendly environment and providing a workplace conducive to collaboration and communication. Company picnics and other social get-togethers may also be helpful if most employees are motivated primarily by social needs (but may cause resentment if they are not and if they must sacrifice a Sunday afternoon for a company picnic). Providing promotion opportunities at work, recognizing a person’s accomplishments verbally or through more formal reward systems, and conferring job titles that communicate to the employee that one has achieved high status within the organization are among the ways of satisfying esteem needs. Finally, self-actualization needs may be satisfied by the provision of development and growth opportunities on or off the job, as well as by work that is interesting and challenging. By making the effort to satisfy the different needs of each employee, organizations may ensure a highly motivated workforce.

Acquired-Needs Theory

Among the need-based approaches to motivation, David McClelland’s acquired-needs theory is the one that has received the greatest amount of support. According to this theory, individuals acquire three types of needs because of their life experiences. These needs are the need for achievement, the need for affiliation, and the need for power . All individuals possess a combination of these needs, and the dominant needs are thought to drive employee behaviour.

McClelland used a unique method called the Thematic Apperception Test (TAT) to assess the dominant need (Spangler, 1992). This method entails presenting research subjects an ambiguous picture and asking them to write a story based on it. The instructions will be: “Take a look at the following picture. Who is this person? What is she doing? Why is she doing it?” The story you tell about the woman in the picture would then be analyzed by trained experts. The idea is that the stories the photo evokes would reflect how the mind works and what motivates the person. ( Apperception : the mental process by which a person makes sense of an idea by assimilating it to the body of ideas he or she already possesses. For example: a perception would be seeing a dog and thinking “There is a dog.” Apperception would be seeing a dog and thinking “That dog looks like the one that bit my friend Andres”)

If the story you come up with contains themes of success, meeting deadlines, or coming up with brilliant ideas, you may be high in need for achievement. Those who have high need for achievement have a strong need to be successful. As children, they may be praised for their hard work, which forms the foundations of their persistence (Mueller & Dweck, 1998). As adults, they are preoccupied with doing things better than they did in the past. These individuals are constantly striving to improve their performance. They relentlessly focus on goals, particularly stretch goals that are challenging in nature (Campbell, 1982).

Are individuals who are high in need for achievement effective managers? Because of their success in lower-level jobs where their individual contributions matter the most, those with high need for achievement are often promoted to higher level positions (McClelland & Boyatzis, 1982). However, a high need for achievement has significant disadvantages in management positions. Management involves getting work done by motivating others.

If the story you created in relation to the picture you are analyzing contains elements of making plans to be with friends or family, you may have a high need for affiliation . Individuals who have a high need for affiliation want to be liked and accepted by others. When given a choice, they prefer to interact with others and be with friends (Wong & Csikszentmihalyi, 1991).

Finally, if your story contains elements of getting work done by influencing other people or the desire to make an impact on the organization, you may have a high need for power . Those with a high need for power want to influence others and control their environment. A need for power may in fact be a destructive element in relationships with colleagues if it takes the form of seeking and using power for one’s own good and prestige.

5.3 Process-Based Theories

A separate stream of research views motivation as something more than action aimed at satisfying a need. Instead, process-based theories view motivation as a logical process. Individuals analyze their work environment, develop thoughts and feelings, and react in certain ways. Process theories attempt to explain the thought processes of individuals who demonstrate motivated behaviour. Under this category, we will review equity theory, expectancy theory, and reinforcement theory.

Equity Theory

Imagine that you are paid $10 an hour working as an office assistant. You have held this job for 6 months. You are very good at what you do, you come up with creative ways to make things easier around you, and you are a good colleague who is willing to help others. You stay late when necessary and are flexible if requested to change hours. Now imagine that you found out they are hiring another employee who is going to work with you, who will hold the same job title, and who will perform the same type of tasks. This person has more advanced computer skills, but it is unclear whether these will be used on the job. The starting pay for this person will be $14 an hour. How would you feel? Would you be as motivated as before, going above and beyond your duties?

Inequity in social exchange. In L. Berkowitz (Ed.), Advances in experimental social psychology.

If your reaction to this scenario is along the lines of “this would be unfair,” your behaviour may be explained using equity theory (Adams, 1965). According to this theory, individuals are motivated by a sense of fairness in their interactions. Moreover, our sense of fairness is a result of the social comparisons we make. Specifically, we compare our inputs and outcomes with other people’s inputs and outcomes. We perceive fairness if we believe that the input-to-outcome ratio we are bringing into the situation is like the input-to-outcome ratio of a comparison person, or a referent . Perceptions of inequity create tension within us and drive us to action that will reduce perceived inequity.

What Are Inputs and Outcomes?

Inputs are the contributions people feel they are making to the environment. In the previous example, the person’s hard work; loyalty to the organization; amount of time with the organization; and level of education, training, and skills may have been relevant inputs. Outcomes are the perceived rewards someone can receive from the situation. For the hourly wage employee in our example, the $10 an hour pay rate was a core outcome. There may also be other, more peripheral outcomes, such as acknowledgment or preferential treatment from a manager. In the prior example, however, the person may reason as follows: I have been working here for 6 months. I am loyal, and I perform well (inputs). I am paid $10 an hour for this (outcomes). The new person does not have any experience here (referent’s inputs) but will be paid $14 an hour. This situation is unfair.

Who is the Referent?

The referent other may be a specific person as well as a category of people. Referents should be comparable to us—otherwise the comparison is not meaningful. It would be pointless for a student worker to compare himself to the CEO of the company, given the differences in inputs and outcomes. Instead, individuals may compare themselves to someone performing similar tasks within the same organization or, in the case of a CEO, a different organization.

Reactions to Unfairness

The theory outlines several potential reactions to perceived inequity. Oftentimes, the situation may be dealt with perceptually by altering our perceptions of our own or the referent’s inputs and outcomes . For example, we may justify the situation by downplaying our own inputs (I don’t really work very hard on this job), valuing our outcomes more highly (I am gaining valuable work experience, so the situation is not that bad), distorting the other person’s inputs (the new hire really is more competent than I am and deserves to be paid more), or distorting the other person’s outcomes (she gets $14 an hour but will have to work with a lousy manager, so the situation is not unfair).

Another option would be to have the referent increase inputs . If the other person brings more to the situation, getting more out of the situation would be fair. If that person can be made to work harder or work on more complicated tasks, equity would be achieved.

The person experiencing a perceived inequity may also reduce inputs or attempt to increase outcomes . If the lower paid person puts forth less effort, the perceived inequity would be reduced. Research shows that people who perceive inequity reduce their work performance or reduce the quality of their inputs (Carrell & Dittrich, 1978; Goodman & Friedman, 1971). Increasing one’s outcomes can be achieved through legitimate means such as negotiating a pay raise. At the same time, research shows that those feeling inequity sometimes resort to stealing to balance the scales (Greenberg, 1993).

Other options include changing the comparison person (e.g., others doing similar work in different organizations are paid only minimum wage) and leaving the situation by quitting (Schmidt & Marwell, 1972). Sometimes it may be necessary to consider taking legal action as a potential outcome of perceived inequity. For example, if an employee finds out the main reason behind a pay gap is gender related, the person may react to the situation by taking legal action because sex discrimination in pay is illegal in Canada.

Fairness Beyond Equity: Procedural and Interactional Justice

Equity theory looks at perceived fairness as a motivator. However, the way equity theory defines fairness is limited to fairness of rewards. Starting in the 1970s, research on workplace fairness began taking a broader view of justice. Equity theory deals with outcome fairness, and therefore it is considered to be a distributive justice theory.

Distributive justice refers to the degree to which the outcomes received from the organization are perceived to be fair. Two other types of fairness have been identified: procedural justice and interactional justice.

Let’s assume that you just found out you are getting a promotion. Clearly, this is an exciting outcome and comes with a pay raise, increased responsibilities, and prestige. If you feel you deserve to be promoted, you will perceive high distributive justice (you getting this promotion is fair). However, you later found out upper management picked your name out of a hat! What would you feel? You might still like the outcome but feel that the decision-making process was unfair. If so, you are describing feelings of procedural justice.

Procedural justice refers to the degree to which fair decision-making procedures are used to arrive at a decision. People do not care only about reward fairness. They also expect decision-making processes to be fair. In fact, research shows that employees care about the procedural justice of many organizational decisions, including layoffs, employee selection, surveillance of employees, performance appraisals, and pay decisions (Alge, 2001; Bauer et al., 1998; Kidwell, 1995). People also tend to care more about procedural justice in situations in which they do not get the outcome they feel they deserve (Brockner & Wiesenfeld, 1996). If you did not get the promotion and later discovered that management chose the candidate by picking names out of a hat, how would you feel? This may be viewed as adding insult to injury. When people do not get the rewards they want, they tend to hold management responsible if procedures are not fair (Brockner et al., 2007).

Now let’s imagine the moment your boss told you that you are getting a promotion. Your manager’s exact words were, “Yes, we are giving you the promotion. The job is so simple that we thought even you can handle it.” Now what is your reaction? The feeling of unfairness you may now feel is explained by interactional justice. Interactional justice refers to the degree to which people are treated with respect, kindness, and dignity in interpersonal interactions. We expect to be treated with dignity by our peers, supervisors, and customers. When the opposite happens, we feel angry. Even when faced with negative outcomes such as a pay cut, being treated with dignity and respect serves as a buffer and alleviates our stress (Greenberg, 2006).

Expectancy Theory

The expectancy theory of motivation, or the expectancy theory, is the belief that an individual chooses their behaviors based on what they believe leads to the most beneficial outcome. The individual’s motivation to put forth more or less effort is determined by a rational calculation in which individuals evaluate their situation (Porter & Lawler, 1968; Vroom, 1964).

This theory is dependent on how much value a person places on different motivations. This results in a decision they expect to give them the highest return for their efforts.

According to this theory, individuals ask themselves three questions.

The first question is whether the person believes that high levels of effort will lead to outcomes of interest, such as performance or success. This perception is labeled expectancy . For example, do you believe that the effort you put forth in a class is related to performing well in that class? If you do, you are more likely to put forth effort.

The second question is the degree to which the person believes that performance is related to subsequent outcomes, such as rewards. This perception is labeled instrumentality . For example, do you believe that getting a good grade in the class is related to rewards such as getting a better job, or gaining approval from your instructor, or from your friends or parents? If you do, you are more likely to put forth effort.

Finally, individuals are also concerned about the value of the rewards awaiting them as a result of performance. The anticipated satisfaction that will result from an outcome is labeled valence . For example, do you value getting a better job, or gaining approval from your instructor, friends, or parents? If these outcomes are desirable to you, your expectancy and instrumentality is high, and you are more likely to put forth effort.

Expectancy theory is a well-accepted theory that has received a lot of research attention (Heneman & Schwab, 1972; Van Eerde & Thierry, 1996). It is simple and intuitive. Consider the following example. Let’s assume that you are working in the concession stand of a movie theater. You have been selling an average of 100 combos of popcorn and soft drinks a day. Now your manager asks you to increase this number to 300 combos a day. Would you be motivated to try to increase your numbers? Here is what you may be thinking:

Expectancy: is the belief that if an individual raises their efforts, their reward may rise as well. Expectancy is what motivates a person to gather the right tools to get the job done, which could include raw materials and resources, skills to perform the job and support and information from supervisors. Can I do it? If I try harder, can I really achieve this number? Is there a link between how hard I try and whether I reach this goal or not? If you feel that you can achieve this number if you try, you have high expectancy.
Instrumentality: is the belief that the reward you receive depends on your performance in the workplace. What is in it for me? What is going to happen if I reach 300? What are the outcomes that will follow? Are they going to give me a 2% pay raise? Am I going to be named the salesperson of the month? Am I going to receive verbal praise from my manager? If you believe that performing well is related to certain outcomes, instrumentality is high.
Valence: is the importance you place on the expected outcome of your performance. This often depends on your individual needs, goals, values and sources of motivation. For example, if you expect to be one of the top performers on your team, you may place high importance on achieving that goal, even if others don’t expect you to achieve this level of performance. How do I feel about the outcomes in question? Do I feel that a 2% pay raise is desirable? Do I find being named the salesperson of the month attractive? Do I think that being praised by my manager is desirable? If your answers are yes, valence is positive. In contrast, if you find the outcomes undesirable (you definitely do not want to be named the salesperson of the month because your friends would make fun of you), valence is negative.

If your answers to all three questions are affirmative—you feel that you can do it, you will get an outcome if you do it, and you value the reward—you are more likely to be motivated to put forth more effort toward selling more combos.

As a manager, how can you motivate employees? In fact, managers can influence all three perceptions (Cook, 1980).

Influencing Expectancy Perceptions

Employees may not believe that their effort leads to high performance for a multitude of reasons. First, they may not have the skills, knowledge, or abilities to successfully perform their jobs. The answer to this problem may be training employees or hiring people who are qualified for the jobs in question. Second, low levels of expectancy may be because employees may feel that something other than effort predicts performance, such as political behaviours on the part of employees. If employees believe that the work environment is not conducive to performing well (resources are lacking or roles are unclear), expectancy will also suffer. Therefore, clearing the path to performance and creating an environment in which employees do not feel restricted will be helpful. Finally, some employees may perceive little connection between their effort and performance level because they have an external locus of control, low self-esteem, or other personality traits that condition them to believe that their effort will not make a difference. In such cases, providing positive feedback and encouragement may help motivate employees.

Reinforcement Theory

Reinforcement theory is based on a simple idea that may be viewed as common sense. Beginning at infancy we learn through reinforcement. If you have observed a small child discovering the environment, you will see reinforcement theory in action. When the child discovers that twisting and turning a tap leads to water coming out and finds this outcome pleasant, he is more likely to repeat the behaviour. If he burns his hand while playing with hot water, the child is likely to stay away from the faucet in the future.

Despite the simplicity of reinforcement, how many times have you seen positive behaviour ignored, or worse, negative behaviour rewarded? In many organizations, this is a familiar scenario. People go above and beyond the call of duty, yet their actions are ignored or criticized. People with disruptive habits may receive no punishments because the manager is afraid of the reaction the person will give when confronted. Problem employees may even receive rewards such as promotions so they will be transferred to a different location and become someone else’s problem.

Reinforcement Interventions

How does a leader modify a team members’ behaviour so that the team member becomes more productive. ?

Reinforcement theory describes four interventions to modify employee behaviour. Two of these (Positive and Negative reinforcement) are methods of increasing the frequency of desired behaviours, while the remaining two (Punishment and Extinction) are methods of reducing the frequency of undesired behaviours.

Positive reinforcement is a method of increasing the desired behaviour (Beatty & Schneier, 1975). Positive reinforcement involves making sure that behaviour is met with positive consequences. For example, praising an employee for treating a customer respectfully is an example of positive reinforcement. If the praise immediately follows the positive behaviour, the employee will see a link between the behaviour and positive consequences and will be motivated to repeat similar behaviours.

Negative reinforcement is also used to increase the desired behaviour. Negative reinforcement involves removal of unpleasant outcomes once desired behaviour is demonstrated. Nagging an employee to complete a report is an example of negative reinforcement. The negative stimulus in the environment will remain present until positive behaviour is demonstrated. The problem with negative reinforcement is that the negative stimulus may lead to unexpected behaviours and may fail to stimulate the desired behaviour. For example, the person may start avoiding the manager to avoid being nagged.

Extinction is used to decrease the frequency of negative behaviours. Extinction is the removal of rewards following negative behaviour. Sometimes, negative behaviours are demonstrated because they are being inadvertently rewarded. For example, it has been shown that when people are rewarded for their unethical behaviours, they tend to demonstrate higher levels of unethical behaviours (Harvey & Sims, 1978). Thus, when the rewards following unwanted behaviours are removed, the frequency of future negative behaviours may be reduced. For example, if a co-worker is forwarding unsolicited e-mail messages containing jokes, commenting and laughing at these jokes may be encouraging the person to keep forwarding these messages. Completely ignoring such messages may reduce their frequency.

Punishment is another method of reducing the frequency of undesirable behaviours. Punishment involves presenting negative consequences following unwanted behaviours. Giving an employee a warning for consistently being late to work is an example of punishment.

An inspiring speech for your reflection

Jon Fisher (born January 19, 1972) is an entrepreneur, investor, author, speaker, philanthropist and inventor. Fisher is known for a viral commencement speech at the University of San Francisco. Here is an excerpt.

5.4 Motivation in Action: The Case of Trader Joe’s

Shopping here is fun and chatting with employees is a routine part of this experience. Employees are upbeat and friendly to each other and to customers. If you look lost, there is the definite offer of help. But somehow the friendliness does not seem scripted. Instead, if they see you shopping for big trays of cheese, they might casually inquire if you are having a party and then point to other selections. If they see you chasing your toddler, they are quick to tie a balloon to his wrist. When you ask them if they have any cumin, they get down on their knees to check the back of the aisle, with the attitude of helping a guest that is visiting their home. How does a company make sure its employees look like they enjoy being there to help others?

5.5 Conclusion

In this chapter, we have reviewed the basic motivation theories that have been developed to explain motivated behaviour. Several theories view motivated behaviour as attempts to satisfy needs. Based on this approach, managers would benefit from understanding what people need so that the actions of employees can be understood and managed. Other theories explain motivated behaviour using the cognitive processes of employees. Employees respond to unfairness in their environment, they learn from the consequences of their actions and repeat the behaviours that lead to positive results, and they are motivated to exert effort if they see their actions will lead to outcomes that would get them desired rewards. None of these theories are complete on their own, but each theory provides us with a framework we can use to analyze, interpret, and manage employee behaviours in the workplace.

Motivating workers: how leaders apply self-determination theory in organizations

Organization Management Journal

ISSN : 2753-8567

Article publication date: 14 December 2020

Issue publication date: 14 December 2020

Self-determination theory (SDT), offers a theoretical framework for enhancing employee motivation and stimulating positive outcomes such as commitment, well-being and engagement, in organizations. This paper aims to investigate the application of SDT among leaders and delineate practical managerial approaches for supporting basic psychological needs in the workplace.

Design/methodology/approach

Participants were 51 leaders who had personally applied SDT with their own followers. Data were collected via free-listing method and analysed to extrapolate examples of SDT-application that are both practically salient and aligned to theoretic tenets of SDT.

The findings reveal how SDT is operationalized by leaders to support basic psychological needs for autonomy, competence and relatedness in the workplace. The SDT-informed management strategies are discussed in relation to the literature and alongside case scenarios to illustrate approaches for integrating elements of SDT into day-to-day management activities.

Originality/value

Despite extensive literature support for SDT, very little empirical attention has been paid to examining how the theory is applied, interpreted and/or used by practitioners in real world settings. This research is the first to draw on the lived-experience of practitioners who have applied SDT, contributes previously unexplored strategies for supporting workers’ basic psychological needs and responds to calls for SDT research to identify a broader range of managerial behaviours that support employee motivation.

Self-determination theory
Basic psychological needs
Organization
Workplace motivation
Employee motivation

Forner, V.W. , Jones, M. , Berry, Y. and Eidenfalk, J. (2020), "Motivating workers: how leaders apply self-determination theory in organizations", Organization Management Journal , Vol. 18 No. 2, pp. 76-94. https://doi.org/10.1108/OMJ-03-2020-0891

Emerald Publishing Limited

Published in Organization Management Journal . Published by Emerald Publishing Limited. This article is published under the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY 4.0) licence. Anyone may reproduce, distribute, translate and create derivative works of this article (for both commercial and non-commercial purposes), subject to full attribution to the original publication and authors. The full terms of this licence maybe seen at http://creativecommons.org/licences/by/4.0/legalcode

Introduction

Understanding how to motivate organizational members is a critical component of effective management. The quality of workers’ motivation is predictive not only of their commitment and work effort but also their overall engagement, well-being and performance in their job ( Gagné et al. , 2014 ; Kuvaas et al. , 2017 ; Sisley, 2010 ; Springer, 2011 ). Leaders and managers play a pivotal role in shaping motivation in the workplace and facilitating these beneficial outcomes ( Graves and Luciano, 2010 ; Miniotaitė and Bučiūnienė, 2013 ; Oostlander et al. , 2014 ). However, despite their critical role in initiating and sustaining motivational processes, many leaders and managers are often unsure of what to say or do to effectively engage and motivate organizational members. Traditional management approaches ( Taylor, 1911 ) have tended to rely on leveraging authority and/or organizational reward systems to influence worker behaviour. Companies in the USA and Europe continue to increase their use ( Bryson et al. , 2012 ) and spend ( WorldatWork, 2018 ) on financial-based incentives to motivate employees. For example, employee equity ownership, just on the type of performance-pay incentive program, is estimated to be worth around $1,061bn in the USA alone (Day and Fitton, 2008 ). Developments in the field of motivation have questioned the effectiveness of extrinsic rewards as motivators and research has revealed leaders can achieve superior and sustained motivational outcomes by adopting supportive interpersonal approaches and creating a positive climate for their team members ( Deci et al. , 2017 ). The important question then becomes, what theoretically informed strategies can leaders and managers use to effectively motivate people in organizations?

Self-determination theory (SDT) (Ryan and Deci, 2019) is a prominent theory of motivation that offers leaders an evidence-based framework for how to effectively motivate workers. SDT delineates the social-contextual factors, including leaders’ interpersonal style, that predict high quality motivation in the workplace ( Deci et al. , 2017 ). The theory posits human beings have three basic psychological needs (autonomy, competence and relatedness) which are essential ingredients for motivation, well-being and optimal functioning ( Deci and Ryan, 2014 ). When workers’ basic psychological needs are met they are more likely to be autonomously motivated, that is they are personally invested in their work tasks and engage in their work activities willingly ( Deci and Ryan, 2014 ; Van den Broeck et al. , 2016 ). The satisfaction of worker’s basic psychological needs also stimulates a wide range of other beneficial work-related outcomes such as well-being, job satisfaction, commitment and performance ( Arshadia, 2010 ; Baard et al. , 2004 ; Deci and Ryan, 2014 ; Van den Broeck et al. , 2016 ). SDT provides a valuable theoretic model for understanding the social-psychological impact of management in an organization. The theory also has substantial utility for leaders seeking guidance on how to motivate their followers because the three basic psychological needs delineate dimensions of the environment and provide trigger points, that facilitate positive motivational outcomes ( Baard et al. , 2004 ).

Despite a large body of research support for SDT in the workplace, there is currently very little empirical guidance for leaders seeking to translate the theory into practice. To date, only a small number of articles have published practical strategies or managerial behaviours that satisfy basic psychological needs in organizations ( Baard and Baard, 2009 ; Stone et al. , 2009 ). Furthermore, recommendations offered by academics tend to be theoretical in nature and, while helpful, may not be fully relevant or applicable given the complexities of organizations and barriers faced by managers in the field. Addressing the future direction for SDT research, Deci and Ryan (2014) called for more exploration of how managers can carry out their specific functions in ways that are need supportive rather than thwarting. The current paper contributes to addressing this gap in the literature by examining the operationalization of SDT in organizations and investigating how leaders support workers’ needs for autonomy, competence and relatedness in-practice.

Self-determination theory and basic psychological needs

SDT ( Deci and Ryan, 1985 ) is an influential theory of motivation in the twenty-first century that is concerned with understanding how to facilitate and sustain high quality motivation. According to SDT, all human beings have three basic psychological needs: autonomy, competence and relatedness. Workers are optimally motivated and experience well-being to the extent that these three needs are satisfied in their work climate ( Ryan and Deci, 2002 ). Autonomy refers to workers’ need to experience choice in their role, have the freedom to make decisions, express their ideas and have input in deciding how their tasks get done. The primary focus of autonomy is on people’s need to be volitional and self-initiate their own actions, rather than be controlled and directed by others ( Deci and Ryan, 1987 ). Competence represents workers’ need to feel effective, successful and that they are good at their job ( Van den Broeck et al. , 2010 ). The need for competence is satisfied when workers have opportunities to use their skills and develop mastery of their tasks. Finally, humans are social creatures and relatedness reflects the need to experience a sense of belonging and feeling accepted and cared for by others ( Ryan and Deci, 2017 ). A worker’s need for relatedness is satisfied when they feel part of the group and have supportive relationships and friends at work. SDT considers autonomy, competence and relatedness to be essential ingredients for sustained motivation and nutrients for individual growth, well-being and thriving ( Ryan and Deci, 2002 ). Leaders who enable satisfaction of these three needs promote high quality motivation where workers personally endorse and willingly participate in their work activities.

Basic psychological needs: ingredients for autonomous motivation.

The satisfaction of a worker’s basic psychological needs affects the type of motivation the individual has towards their job activities. When managers support autonomy, competence and relatedness, employees are more likely to be autonomously motivated ( Van den Broeck et al. , 2016 ). Autonomously motivated employees engage in their work with a full sense of willingness, understand the worth and purpose of their job and are self-determined in carrying out work tasks ( Ryan and Deci, 2017 ). Autonomously motivated workers reliably perform better, learn better and are happier at work ( Deci et al. , 2017 ). In contrast, when a person’s basic psychological needs are not met their motivation deteriorates and becomes controlled. Controlled motivation is characterized by an employee doing an activity because they feel they “have to” and/or to obtain a separable outcome ( Ryan and Deci, 2017 ). Controlled behaviours are contingent on reward, power dynamics or driven by internal pressure such as guilt or to maintain self-esteem. Compared to controlled motivation, autonomous motivation yields better behavioural outcomes (e.g. sustained willing participation) positive subjective experiences, less job stress and higher satisfaction in the workplace ( Fernet and Austin, 2014; Gagné et al. , 2010 ).

Basic psychological needs and positive outcomes in the workplace.

SDT research in organizations has shown basic psychological need satisfaction to be associated with a wide range of positive employee outcomes, beyond autonomous motivation. The satisfaction of basic psychological needs has been associated with lower turnover, improved well-being, higher job satisfaction and positive job attitudes ( Gillet et al. , 2012 ; Vansteenkiste et al. , 2007 ). A recent meta-analysis of 99 studies reported that each of the three needs predicted lower turnover intention and were associated with higher job satisfaction, engagement and affective commitment ( Van den Broeck et al. , 2016 ). Beneficial outcomes of need satisfaction have also been found in studies conducted within the volunteer context ( Haivas et al. , 2012 ). For example, Boezeman and Ellemers (2009) examined the way in which volunteers derive their job satisfaction and intent to remain. The results showed that when volunteers experience the satisfaction of autonomy and relatedness needs during their volunteer work, they are more satisfied with their volunteer job and that this, in turn, enhances their intent to remain a volunteer with the volunteer organization.

Overall, SDT’s basic psychological needs have substantial application value because they offer leaders a simple framework outlining the conditions that promote high quality motivation and beneficial outcomes among their workers. The interpersonal approach of leaders, the way they communicate and relate to their followers, is considered paramount in creating a need-supportive climate and shaping motivation in an organization ( Deci et al. , 1989 ). The critical issue for leaders, therefore, becomes understanding how they can apply SDT and support basic psychological needs in their own organizations.

A gap between self-determination theory and practice in organizations.

A disconnect between theory and practice ( Van De Ven and Johnson, 2006 ; Zaccaro and Horn, 2003 ) within SDT research is currently limiting leaders from diffusing this valuable knowledge into managerial practice. SDT literature in the work domain has focused primarily on theoretical testing, measurement of SDT-related constructs and investigating the model’s nomological network ( Deci et al. , 2017 ; Gagné and Deci, 2005 ; Ryan and Deci, 2019 ; Van den Broeck et al. , 2016 ). In contrast, very little empirical attention has been paid to examining how the theory is applied, interpreted and/or used by practitioners in real world settings. Only a few SDT-based field experiments or quasi-experiments have been undertaken in the work domain ( Deci et al. , 1989 ; Forner, 2019 ; Hardré and Reeve, 2009 ; Jungert et al. , 2018 ), revealing that researchers have, thus far, done very little to integrate the theory into practically useful organizational interventions or actions. Tangible managerial behaviours or practical strategies that support workers basic psychological needs in the workplace are rarely published ( Baard and Baard, 2009; Stone et al. , 2009 ) and SDT researchers have called for studies to “examine concrete workplace tasks, characteristics and managerial behaviours” ( Deci et al. , 2017 , p. 37). The immense popularity of practitioner-oriented books on motivation ( Pink, 2009 ) highlights both the significance of this topic for business professionals and the opportunity for SDT scholars to have a greater impact on informing and shaping employee motivation practices in organizations. The current disconnect presents a problem for managers, HR professionals and fellow academics seeking to use SDT to solve real business problems because there is limited empirical guidance to help them operationalize the theory clearly, within the complexities of strategic organizations and to take appropriate and effective action. The present research contributes towards addressing this issue.

Present research.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the application of SDT among leaders and delineate practical managerial approaches for supporting basic psychological needs in the workplace. To investigate the phenomenon of SDT-based leadership the research asks: how do leaders apply SDT, when carrying out their day-to-day managerial functions, to support workers’ needs for autonomy, competence and relatedness? This study is the first draw upon the lived experience of practitioners, specifically organizational leaders, who have operationalized the theory into actions and have personally applied SDT in their organization. Consistent with engaged scholarship ( Van de Ven, 2007 ), the study aims to leverage theoretic knowledge of SDT scholars alongside the insights and applied experience of practitioners to delineate examples of basic psychological need support that are practically salient and aligned to the theoretic tenets of SDT. In doing so, this paper contributes to bridging the theory-practice gap and further expands our understanding of what leaders do to motivate organizational members.

Participants

Examples of SDT application were proposed by 51 leaders, who had learned and personally applied SDT with their own followers in the workplace. The participants were paid ( n = 22) and volunteer ( n = 29) leaders of emergency service organizations. They occupied leadership roles across various levels of the organization including, for example, group leaders, deputy local controllers, regional managers and managers of departments. The leaders had an average of six years (SD = 8) managerial experience in the volunteer/non-profit sector. A total of 76% had also gained managerial experience in corporate and public sector organizations, with an average of 8.4 years (SD = 10.2) managerial experience. They were aged between 25 and 62 years (M = 44, SD = 10) and had been members of the organization for an average of nine years (SD = 8). In total, 58% of the leaders were male and 42% were female.

Learning and application of Self-determination theory by leaders.

Prior to contributing to this study, the leaders spent nine weeks learning about and personally applying SDT in their organization. This process was facilitated through a structured SDT-based leadership intervention, comprising of three phases. The aim of the first phase was for leaders to learn the theory and consider how they would apply the model in their own organizational context. Leaders were introduced to SDT via a face-to-face training day where they received information, took part in workshop discussions, role plays and reflection exercises and created individual action plans for how they would support their followers’ basic psychological needs. The learning content and the conceptual definitions of key constructs were drawn from published research ( Deci et al. , 1989 ; Deci and Ryan, 2008 ; Stone et al. , 2009 ). Next, the leaders completed a nine-week on-the-job learning program. The purpose of this second phase was to prompt leaders to practice their new skills and knowledge in the workplace and for them to identify and try various strategies and approaches for supporting followers’ basic psychological needs during their day to day management activities and reflect on their outcomes. Leaders were facilitated through three cycles of experiential learning ( Kolb, 2014 ) where they implemented their action plan for supporting basic psychological needs, completed post-implementation reflection activities, received mentoring, revised their action plan and completed further theoretical readings. Practice-based learning and multiple delivery methods have been found to be critical for effective leadership learning ( Lacerenza et al. , 2017 ). The final phase comprising a community of practice ( Li et al. , 2009 ) where the leaders came together to share their experiences with each other, identify successful SDT application actions and discuss barriers and challenges they encountered. Further details and information on how the intervention was designed and delivered, including research evaluating its impact on leaders and followers, can be found in Forner (2019) . The quasi-experimental research, which included the sample of leaders in the present study, showed the nine-week intervention significantly changed leaders’ interpersonal orientation towards supporting basic psychological needs and improvement in the leaders was still evident one year after the training.

Data collection.

Data for this present study were collected from leaders at the end of the nine-week intervention using the free-listing methodology ( Quinlan, 2019 ). Free-listing is a well-established ethnographic method that, when coupled with an appropriate analytical technique, enables researchers to elicit and synthesize a coherent view of collective understanding of a domain and indicate which of those things are most important or salient within the group ( Quinlan, 2019 ; Thomson et al. , 2012 ; Weller and Romney, 1988 ). A free list is a mental inventory of items individuals think of within a given domain. In the generalized free-listing protocol ( Bousfield and Barclay, 1950; Thomson et al. , 2012 ) participants are directed to list as many items that “come to mind” within a constrained time-period. The elicited list items are then analysed together and “salience” of each item is calculated. The free-listing activity for the present study followed the generalized protocol and was facilitated as a face-to-face group session. The participating leaders were provided with information about the purpose of the activity and instructed to list strategies and actions detailing “what leaders […] can do to apply SDT and create an optimally motivating climate for their follower”. The exercise was constrained to 20 min and leaders were asked to draw upon their own experience of applying SDT to list as many SDT-informed actions that come to mind. The leaders developed their free lists in small groups of up to five people per group. Next, leaders were given 40 min to write short (one paragraph) case scenarios describing the implementation of two of the actions on their list. The free lists and case scenarios were written by the leaders on a paper-based template. Each group submitted a list of SDT-informed leader actions and two case scenarios. They were advised that the examples would be shared with other practising leaders to help illuminate how SDT is applied in organizations.

A total of 42 SDT-informed leadership examples were submitted across the free lists. The submissions were analysed to identify those SDT-informed leadership examples that were both practically salient to the leaders themselves and aligned to the theoretic tenets of SDT. Firstly, a practical salience score was derived for each submission. Free-listing practical salience score analysis exposes commonalities in the collective understanding of a domain and items that are most important or salient within the culture/group ( Quinlan, 2019 ; Thomson et al. , 2012 ). It is based on the premise that earlier listed items tend to be most familiar to the lister and also more likely to occur across multiple lists ( Bousfield and Barclay, 1950 ), signalling their cultural salience. Following Smith (1993) and Quinlan (2019) , the salience statistic was calculated by rating each submission according to its frequency , the number of times similar items occur across multiple lists and its rank , the order in which participants list their items. The frequency and rank values were combined to produce a practical salience score – an indicator of the submitted example’s practical significance to the leaders. The practical salience scores ranged between 2 and 70 with higher numbers indicating greater practical salience.

A theoretical fit score was also derived for each submission. Three experts, who had academic expertise in both SDT and leadership theory, independently evaluated the 42 free-list item submissions. Firstly, the expert categorized each submission by indicating which basic psychological needs they judged to best fit the example (i.e. autonomy, competence or relatedness). Next, they rated, on a scale from 1 (very weak fit) to 5 (strongly aligned to theory), the strength of that fit to the theory. For example, the expert rater may categorize an item to be most representative of support for autonomy, relative to competence or relatedness and might indicate that the item’s alignment to SDT’s conceptualization of autonomy is somewhat weak by, rating it a 2. Various methods have been proposed to combine experts’ ratings ( Uebersax, 1993 ). In the present study, there was 100% consensus amongst raters on the basic psychologist need category attached to each example. The theoretical fit rating across the three experts were therefore aggregated to produce a mean theoretical fit score.

Finally, the “practical salience” and “theoretical fit values” were standardized and combined to indicate a joint theoretical and practical appraisal of each submission. This was done by first converting raw scores into z -scores ( z = ( x – μ )/ σ ) and then summing the practical salience with theoretical fit z -score derived for each example. Sample means and standard deviations for standardizing practical salience were μ = 18.84, σ = 17.76 and theoretical fit were μ = 2.66, σ = 1.65, respectively. The z -score enables the comparison and in this instance combination, of two scores that are from different distributions and/or scales. By using standard scores, practical salience and theoretical fit had equal weighting when summed to produce the combined score. For example, a submission with low theoretical alignment ( x = 2, z = –0.4) but high practical salience ( x = 70, z = 2.9) had a combined score of 2.5. Higher combined scores indicate that the submission has strong practical significance and theoretical fit.

Results and discussion of findings

In this section, we present and discuss practical examples for how leaders support autonomy, relatedness and competence in the workplace. The examples and illustrative scenarios were provided by practising leaders and draws upon their lived experience of applying SDT and supporting the basic psychological needs of their team members. This section comprises two parts. The first part, Part A – How managers support basic psychological needs , presents the highest scoring examples for each of the basic psychological needs, autonomy, competence and relatedness. High scoring examples are those with both strong practical significance for leaders and good alignment to the theory. To provide easily digestible information for practitioners we focus on five examples for each of the basic psychological needs. Next, in Part B – exemplar case scenarios we present and discuss short scenarios illustrating how need-supportive actions are implemented by leaders in day-to-day managerial practice. Three cases, composed by leader participants, describe how they applied SDT in their organizational context and implemented actions to support the basic psychological needs of their followers. Each case scenario is accompanied by a theoretical interpretation, highlighting the basic psychological needs being supported. While, Part A focuses on examples of “what” leaders do to support basic psychological needs, Part B scenarios offer a description of “how” they do it. The examples are discussed in relation to SDT, the literature and practice.

Part A. How leaders apply the principals of basic psychological needs in the workplace

Autonomy represents workers’ basic need to experience a sense of freedom and choice when carrying out an activity and to have some level of control in how they go about their own work ( Ryan and Deci, 2000 ; Van den Broeck et al. , 2010 ). The hallmark of autonomy is an internal locus of causality ( De Charms, 1968 ) whereby people experience ownership of their behaviours and perceive them as being self-initiated. Five practical examples, proposed by organizational leaders and managers, for how to support workers’ basic psychological need for autonomy are presented in Table 1 .

The findings reveal leaders support workers’ need for autonomy by providing a platform for team members to express their ideas and suggestions. Two examples submitted by leaders included encourage innovation and provide workers with opportunities to express their ideas . Innovation is where team members generate and implement novel ideas, new processes or better ways of doing things which are useful to the team. Leadership styles that are constructive, empowering and transformational are positively associated with both creativity and innovation ( Hughes et al. , 2018 ). When leaders are open to their workers’ ideas and suggestions and provide a safe environment for people to express their opinions, they send a clear signal that innovation and creativity are encouraged ( Ye et al. , 2019 ). Leaders sustain and enhance motivation, creativity and innovation by listening to workers’ suggestions and empowering then to action their ideas or at least explore them further ( Liu et al. , 2011 ; Sun et al. , 2012 ).

Providing full freedom for workers to pursue their own ideas and interests is not always realistic or desirable in the workplace. Strategies were also provided for how leaders support followers’ need for autonomy when workplace tasks and decisions are handed down by the organization or manager. These examples were: consult with those who are affected by your decisions , be less prescriptive in assigning tasks and provide a rationale for decisions where possible . Leaders in the present study support autonomy by inviting others into the decision-making process and consulting with those who will implement or be affected by others’ decisions. Greater worker participation in decision-making has been linked to beneficial outcomes such as job satisfaction and improved performance in the workplace ( Grissom, 2012 ; Scott-Ladd et al. , 2006 ). Participative or consultative decision-making satisfies people’s need for autonomy by providing a platform for them to express their ideas and feelings, as well as having input and some control in their work activities. The language leaders use in communicating their decisions and assigning tasks is also critical for supporting autonomy ( Deci and Ryan, 1987 ). Providing a rationale or explanation for why a decision was made is one way that leaders support their followers to recognize the importance and value of a certain course of action. Previous laboratory research suggests that providing people with a meaningful rational helps them internalize the decision, come to accept it and even autonomously endorse it ( Deci et al. , 1994 ). When assigning tasks to members of the team, leaders can support autonomy and intrinsic motivation by avoiding controlling or enforcing language, such as “must” or “should” ( Ryan, 1982 ) and instead invite workers to decide how they go about achieving the task assigned to them.

Autonomy examples represented the smallest portion (19%) of the 42 SDT-informed actions submitted by leaders. This may reflect the contextual challenges of supporting autonomy in an organizational setting. Rather than being free to do as they wish, organizational members must operate within existing structures/processes and their tasks and responsibilities are set for them by the organization. The participants in this study, for example, led organizations where workers must adhere to strict safety procedures specifying how they must carry out their tasks. The small portion of submissions focusing on autonomy may suggest it is more challenging for leaders to implement this element of the theory as they must find a way to balance autonomy with organizational requirements. While providing full autonomy is not always possible, the examples above offer ways in which leaders can provide opportunities for autonomy as often as possible in the day-to-day running of the unit. Finally, it may be that the conception of autonomy need support, as it is described within the academic literature, is less clear and practitioners find this aspect of the theory more challenging to understand and operationalize. Indeed, it can be observed that the term autonomy is included within many theoretically distinct SDT constructs including, for example, autonomy: a basic psychological need ( Van den Broeck et al. , 2016 ), autonomy orientation: an individual difference in causality orientation ( Hagger and Chatzisarantis, 2011 ) and, autonomy-support: an interpersonal style ( Slemp et al. , 2018 ). To support the application of SDT, it may be necessary for scholars to recognize the potential for conceptual confusion or uncertainty and seek to emphasize the points of divergence across these constructs and accentuate these in their conceptualizations and definitions.

Competence.

The basic psychological need for competence represents workers’ desire to feel effective and successful in their role. According to SDT, leaders support competence by creating a positive learning environment and providing opportunities for others to use their skills and further develop them through optimally challenging tasks ( Deci and Ryan, 2014 ). Competence represented the largest portion of examples (48%) submitted by leaders in this study. This may indicate that leaders are more experienced in this area or that this element of SDT was more readily understood. Table 2 presents the five practical examples, proposed by organizational leaders and managers, for how to support workers’ basic psychological need for competence.

Leaders who participated in this study support competence by creating opportunities for followers to build their skills, capabilities and self confidence in a safe and supportive environment. Two examples provided by leaders included provide development and learning opportunities and let team members learn at their own pace . There are many ways leaders can offer workers opportunities for education and personal development and these have positive motivational effects ( Stone et al. , 2009 ). For example, leaders can facilitate on-the-job learning opportunities by providing optimally challenging workplace assignments, offering team members opportunities to take on new tasks, letting someone lead a project or providing an opportunity to take on increased responsibilities ( Berings et al. , 2005 ). Being considerate to also maintain autonomy, leaders should avoid imposing development activities without consultation or involvement from the follower. Rather, leaders might take time to understand the individual development interests and needs of their team members and involve them in devising ideas and suggestions for their own learning and development activities. By understanding each followers’ development aspirations, skill level and capabilities, leaders can support their followers to learn autonomously and at their own pace, further building motivational resources.

Leaders further support competence by helping build self-esteem and confidence , which represents another example provided by leaders in this study. Self-esteem refers to workers’ overall self-evaluation of their own competencies and capabilities. Self-esteem and confidence at work are known to be affected, in part, by an individual’s organizational experiences of success and communication and messages of their manager and peers ( Pierce and Gardner, 2004 ). Successful task/work experiences, such as completing a project or achieving a milestone, will bolster self-esteem, whereas failure has the opposite effect. Messages of value and respect for the worker from the manager also contributes towards workers coming to hold a positive image of themselves. To this end, it can help build people’s self-confidence in their own skills by providing optimally challenging yet achievable work goals, acknowledging progress, using people’s strengths and offering authentic non-judgemental support.

Another key strategy to support competence and promote motivation is through offering regular positive and constructive feedback . Positive feedback signals to the follower that they have performed well, are skilled and can succeed. Positive feedback or praise, relative to no feedback or negative feedback, is especially motivating and has been linked to higher levels of well-being, task interest and ongoing participation in the activity ( Deci et al. , 1999 ; Mouratidis, 2008 ). The language leaders use to communicate with their follower is critical and determines whether the feedback is received positively and builds self-confidence or perceived to be controlling and diminishes motivation ( Ryan and Deci, 2000 ). Communicating feedback in a supportive way involves being empathetic, acknowledging the follower’s feelings and difficulties and inviting them to provide their own views ( Carpentier and Mageau, 2013 ; Ryan and Deci, 2000 ). In contrast, feedback that conveys external pressure focuses on enforcing rules and uses language such as “should” or “must” is controlling and undermines motivation ( Ryan, 1981 ). Overall, both the type of feedback (positive vs negative) and the way in which it is delivered impacts upon people’s competence and motivation ( Mabbe et al. , 2018 ).

Leaders further recommend supporting competence by introducing mentoring opportunities . Mentoring involves a supportive relationship between two members of an organization where, traditionally, a senior worker provides a more junior worker with personal and professional development ( Kram, 1985 ). Mentoring may be formal, such as a structured program that pairs organizational members together or informally occurring across team members and networks of workers spontaneously ( Higgins and Kram, 2001 ). The fact that both members of the relationship benefit from this form of professional development is especially valuable ( Kram and Isabella, 1985 ). For example, the more senior worker is provided with an opportunity to demonstrate and be valued for their skills and experience while the junior member benefits by developing new skills and building their knowledge and capabilities. As such, it is expected that both parties are experiencing the satisfaction of their need for competence during mentoring activities.

Relatedness.

Humans are social beings and relatedness represents the need to experience a sense of belonging and to feel accepted and cared for by others. The need for relatedness is satisfied when workers develop close relationships in the workplace and see themselves as part of the group ( Van den Broeck et al. , 2016 ). Table 3 presents the five practical examples, proposed by organizational leaders and managers, for how leaders support workers basic psychological need for relatedness.

Positive social interactions and interpersonal relationships between leaders and their followers are responsible for shaping motivation and well-being at work ( Deci et al. , 2017 ; Weinstein and De Haan, 2014 ). The importance of high-quality and authentic relationships between leaders and their followers has been emphasized in various theories of leadership ( Gerstner and Day, 1997 ; Uhl-Bien, 2006 ). The examples provided by leaders in this study offer some simple interpersonal techniques for building relationships where the aim is to better understand and get to know the followers. Learning about the interests and circumstances of others provides opportunities to find common ground. These commonalities create opportunities for authentic conversations and create the basis for building a genuine relationship. Further to supporting basic psychological needs for relatedness, relationship building practices by leaders have other positive outcomes such as improved team effectiveness, job performance and engagement ( Dunst et al. , 2018 )

Leaders help facilitate high quality relationships among colleagues and team members by implementing team bonding activities, inducting new members into the team. A worker’s need for relatedness is satisfied when they feel such as they belong to the group, have people who care about them and are able to care for others ( Ryan and Deci, 2017 ). Having close friends at work has a positive impact on people’s experience and satisfaction in their job and colleagues provide an important source of basic psychological needs satisfaction and motivation in the workplace ( Jungert et al. , 2018 ; Moreau and Mageau, 2012 ). Leaders create opportunities for team socialization to facilitate the development of genuine and supportive relationships between team members. For example, social activities, such as team lunches or events, provide opportunities for new team members to interact in a relaxed and informal environment. The importance of inducting or onboarding new members into the team is also emphasized. Onboarding helps introduce and socialize newcomers and includes practices such as communication, making resources available, welcome activities, training and a guide or “buddy” assigned to help the new coming navigate their new workplace ( Klein et al. , 2015 ).

Leaders also take action to promote diversity and inclusion within their team, focusing on respecting others’ background and experience. Leaders are important role models of group expectations and may support diversity by respecting and valuing the unique strengths that members bring to the group and discussing the value and opportunities that can be realized through increased diversity. Researchers examining the interplay between leadership and team diversity stress the critical importance of matching leadership behaviours to the specific needs arising from diversity-related team processes and have proposed specific competencies, such as social perceptiveness, that allow leaders to shape the influence of diversity within the team ( Homan et al. , 2020 ). Leaders also play an active role in supporting HR diversity practices, such as ensuring that opportunities for promotion and training are equitably distributed, which is conducive for employees’ felt inclusion ( Buengeler et al. , 2018 ).

Part B. Exemplar case scenarios

Building on the examples presented in Part A, the following presents and discusses illustrative case scenarios detailing how the SDT-informed actions are implemented in organizations. Each scenario, submitted by the leaders, describes how a leader supports their followers’ basic psychological needs while carrying out day to day managerial activities. A theoretic interpretation is presented alongside each scenario to highlight where support for autonomy, competence and relatedness feature within the case. The case scenarios extend on the Part A results by offering richer more detailed depictions of need-supportive managerial behaviours and provide insights into how SDT is practised by leaders in organizations.

Scenario 1: Get to know your workers outside the work context

[Leader] Bill, embeds regular social events into the unit’s calendar. At the next team meeting, he invites suggestions for social event ideas and suitable dates from the members. The calendar is distributed to all team members and displayed at the unit. Bill personally attends all the events and supports his management team to also attend.

Scenario 1 focuses on building support for relatedness by intentionally creating opportunities for social interactions among team members. The need for relatedness is satisfied when people experience a sense of belonging and develop intimate relationships with others ( Ryan and Deci, 2000 ). Informal social interactions at work can provide a platform for developing such relationships, for people to feel connected to each other and for leaders to connect with and learn more about their followers. This scenario also demonstrates a strategy for supporting autonomy. Rather than the leader prescribing social activities and dates, he involves the members in the process, seeking their input and supporting them to participate in the process.

Scenario 2: Ownership of projects

[Leader] Susan invites an experienced team member to take on the lead role in developing a training course on a topic of their interest. She provides information on the context and desired outcome and seeks suggestions for suitable milestones from the volunteer. The outcome will be a training package developed by volunteers themselves which could be shared with neighbouring units.

The focus of Scenario 2 is autonomy. The need for autonomy is satisfied when people experience volition and freedom to pursue their interests and exercise choice (Deci and Ryan, 2000). Offering ownership of a task empowers the follower and enables them to unleash their ideas, provide input and drive the direction of the organization. The scenario also demonstrates how a leader may balance followers’ autonomy with organizational requirements. In this case, the leader provides information about organizational boundaries within which the follower will operate by outlining the context and desired outcome. The follower is then invited to contribute to developing the milestones for the project. In this manner, the leader outlines the organizational objective, together they agree on smaller goals and then the follower is empowered to lead the initiative. Support for competence is also evident in this scenario. Drawing on the volunteers’ expertise in an area of their interest enables them to exercise their existing skills and develop further in a domain of work they enjoy.

Scenario 3: Mentoring new and less experienced members

Josh has never been near a flood boat and now wants to be a flood boat operator. The leader pairs him with a mentor who is also a member of their team and an experienced flood boat operator. The mentor engages by sharing knowledge and assisting to develop the theoretical foundations prior to Josh attending a boat training course. After the course the mentor does some practical exercises with him and supports him on the job

Mentoring exercises provide an ideal opportunity to support a more experienced member’s competence through the sharing of knowledge and an acknowledgement of their skills and capabilities. It also serves to strengthen a sense of relatedness between members of the group over time, by providing opportunities for two members (who may not know each other well) to build a supportive and collaborative relationship.

Conclusions

SDT provides an evidence-based framework for how to effectively motivate workers in organizations ( Deci et al. , 2017 ). Organizational leaders establish an optimally motivating workplace climate through satisfying their workers’ basic psychological needs for autonomy, competence and relatedness ( Slemp et al. , 2018 ). The findings of this research delineate examples of SDT application from practising leaders to illustrate how SDT is applied and integrated into organizational leadership.

Extending on previous predominantly theoretic SDT research, this study is the first to draw upon the lived experience of leaders and managers who have implemented SDT in their workplace. In doing so, these findings provide new insights into how leaders interpret SDT and how the theory and its concepts are translated by practitioners in organizations. The present research departs from prior academic attempts to translate theoretically derived knowledge into recommendations and practical implication – which are increasingly criticized for being impractical, difficult to understand and underestimating the tensions and complexities that are basic conditions for managers in organizational settings ( Bartunek and Rynes, 2010 ; Schultz and Hatch, 2005 ). Responding to calls ( Bansal et al. , 2012 ; Gregory and Anderson, 2006 ; Van de Ven, 2007 ) for research studies to “shift from a logic of building practice from theory to one of building theory from practice” ( Schultz and Hatch, 2005 , p. 337), this study taps into the valuable knowledge and experiences of practitioners to extend and develop SDT to have enhanced validity and relevance in an applied setting. The findings of this study contribute previously unexplored strategies for supporting workers’ basic psychological needs and responds to calls for SDT research to identify a broader range of managerial behaviours that support employee motivation ( Deci and Ryan, 2014 ).

The widening disconnect between theory and practice is recognized as a persistent and difficult problem in management and applied psychology research ( Bansal et al. , 2012 ; Van De Ven and Johnson, 2006 ; Zaccaro and Horn, 2003 ). The present study contributes to bridging the gap from science to practice by expanding knowledge of how SDT is applied to management and leadership in the work domain. Using a collaborative form of research enquiry where researchers and practitioners co-produced knowledge (engaged scholarship; Van de Ven and Johnson, 2006 ), this study contributes to achieving the dual objective of both advancing a scientific discipline and enlightening professional practice ( Pettigrew, 2001 ). The findings leverage differences in the kinds of knowledge that SDT scholars and SDT practitioners from diverse background bring to identify examples of basic psychological need support that are practical salient, usable and aligned with the theoretic tenet of SDT. The study responds to ongoing calls for research to improve the exchange of knowledge between academics and practitioners and for scholars to shift research attention towards empirical studies of knowledge from practice ( Bansal et al. , 2012 ; Schultz and Hatch, 2005 ; Van De Ven and Johnson, 2006 ; Zaccaro and Horn, 2003 ). We propose that building knowledge and conceptual clarification about SDT application by leaders is a desirable outcome for both academics and practitioners and, therefore, much can be gained by coupling both parties in a task of mutual knowledge building. Research should continue to leverage practitioner perspectives due to their wide impact and insights they provide into the application and validity of academic constructs in highly complex and ever-changing organizations that we have today.

There are limitations of this study that must be acknowledged. Firstly, the data reflects the personal experiences of a distinct case of organizational leaders. Investigation of the phenomenon of SDT application in the present research is, therefore, constrained within the boundaries of the participants and their context. The sample of leaders who contributed the applied examples were from a very narrow sector/organizational context that may not be representative of leaders or managers in other organizations. Greater diversity of leader participants from different contexts and organizations may have provided different perspectives. The validity of the SDT application examples provided in this study is also noted as a limitation. The effect that these managerial strategies have on workers’ basic psychological need satisfaction require further empirical examination and future research should measure the motivational effects of the suggested strategies on followers.

Providing a practitioner perspective on SDT application to management, this paper bridges the gap from science to practise and from practise to science. Drawing on the lived experience of leaders who have applied SDT in the workplace, the findings illustrate how SDT is operationalized by organizational leaders and delineates practical managerial approaches for supporting employees’ basic psychological needs in the workplace. The strategies discussed in this paper offer guidance for those seeking to implement the theory in their organization. Leaders can adopt and further develop these approaches to motivate workers and improve the quality of people’s experience at work.

How leaders support followers’ basic psychological need for autonomy in the workplace

How leaders support followers’ basic psychological need for competence in the workplace

How leaders support followers’ basic psychological need for relatedness in the workplace

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported in part by the Bushfire and Natural Hazards CRC via a Project Grant titled “Improving the retention and engagement of volunteers in Emergency Service agencies” (2014–2017).

Corresponding author

About the authors.

Vivien W. Forner (PhD, BPsych) is an Organizational Psychologist and Researcher in the Faculty of Business at the University of Wollongong. Her research focuses on leadership, motivation and workplace contexts that promote human well-being and thriving. Vivien has over 10 years’ experience designing, implementing and evaluating leadership and applied psychology interventions within mental health, emergency management, insurance, aged care, education and not-for-profit organizations. She has held a state committee role within Australian Psychological Society’s (APS) College of Organizational Psychology and is a member of the International Positive Psychology Association and International Leadership Association.

Michael Jones [BComm (hons), PhD] is an Associated Professor and has been teaching and researching in areas of organization, business and management for 18 years. Michael has developed research interests in organizational behaviour, group dynamics, doctoral studies, organizational culture and motivation and commitment. Michael also has research strengths in areas of qualitative analysis and has written several papers on various qualitative methodologies and methods. He is a member of the Australia and New Zealand Academy of Management, the Australian Human Resources Institute and the Industrial Relations Society of Australia.

Yoke Berry (PhD) was Project Manager for a Bushfire and Natural Hazards Cooperative Research Centre grant in the Faculty of Business, University of Wollongong. In this function, she contributed to research into retention and engagement of volunteers in emergency service agencies. She has a PhD in Chemistry and has extensive experience in natural products, organic and protein chemistry. She is a qualified secondary school educator in science.

Joakim Eidenfalk (PhD) teaches and researches in the Faculty of Law Humanities and the Arts at the University of Wollongong. Joakim has been teaching and researching international relations, politics, history and security studies for 10 years. Joakim has an interest in foreign policy, security policy, political leadership, decision-making and international relations theory. He has a PhD in Politics, a master’s degree in International Relations and a master’s degree in Politics. Joakim is also interested in teaching improvement and innovation.

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Motivation to learn: an overview of contemporary theories

David a cook.

1 Mayo Clinic Online Learning, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine, Rochester, Minnesota, USA

2 Multidisciplinary Simulation Center, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine, Rochester, Minnesota, USA

3 Division of General Internal Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota, USA

Anthony R Artino, Jr

4 Division of Health Professions Education, Department of Medicine, Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, Bethesda, Maryland, USA

Associated Data

Table S2. A research agenda for motivation in education.

To succinctly summarise five contemporary theories about motivation to learn, articulate key intersections and distinctions among these theories, and identify important considerations for future research.

Motivation has been defined as the process whereby goal‐directed activities are initiated and sustained. In expectancy‐value theory, motivation is a function of the expectation of success and perceived value. Attribution theory focuses on the causal attributions learners create to explain the results of an activity, and classifies these in terms of their locus, stability and controllability. Social‐ cognitive theory emphasises self‐efficacy as the primary driver of motivated action, and also identifies cues that influence future self‐efficacy and support self‐regulated learning. Goal orientation theory suggests that learners tend to engage in tasks with concerns about mastering the content (mastery goal, arising from a ‘growth’ mindset regarding intelligence and learning) or about doing better than others or avoiding failure (performance goals, arising from a ‘fixed’ mindset). Finally, self‐determination theory proposes that optimal performance results from actions motivated by intrinsic interests or by extrinsic values that have become integrated and internalised. Satisfying basic psychosocial needs of autonomy, competence and relatedness promotes such motivation. Looking across all five theories, we note recurrent themes of competence, value, attributions, and interactions between individuals and the learning context.

Conclusions

To avoid conceptual confusion, and perhaps more importantly to maximise the theory‐building potential of their work, researchers must be careful (and precise) in how they define, operationalise and measure different motivational constructs. We suggest that motivation research continue to build theory and extend it to health professions domains, identify key outcomes and outcome measures, and test practical educational applications of the principles thus derived.

Short abstract

Discuss ideas arising from the article at www.mededuc.com discuss.

Introduction

The concept of motivation pervades our professional and personal lives. We colloquially speak of motivation to get out of bed, write a paper, do household chores, answer the phone, and of course, to learn. We sense that motivation to learn exists (as opposed to being a euphemism, intellectual invention or epiphenomenon) and is important as both a dependent variable (higher or lower levels of motivation resulting from specific educational activities) 1 and an independent variable 2 (motivational manipulations to enhance learning) 3 , 4 , 5 . But what do we really mean by motivation to learn, and how can a better understanding of motivation influence what we do as educators?

Countless theories have been proposed to explain human motivation. 6 Although each sheds light on specific aspects of motivation, each of necessity neglects others. The diversity of theories creates confusion because most have areas of conceptual overlap and disagreement, and many employ an idiosyncratic vocabulary using different words for the same concept and the same word for different concepts. 7 Although this can be disconcerting, each contemporary theory nonetheless contributes a unique perspective with potentially novel insights and distinct implications for practice and future research.

Previous reviews of motivation in health professions education have focused on practical implications or broad overviews without extended theoretical elaborations, 2 , 3 or focused on only one theory. 4 , 8 , 9 , 10 , 11 , 12 , 13 , 14 , 15 , 16 A review that explains and contrasts multiple theories will encourage a more nuanced understanding of motivational principles, and will facilitate additional research to advance the science in this field.

The purpose of this cross‐cutting edge article is to succinctly summarise five contemporary theories about motivation to learn, clearly articulate key intersections and distinctions among theories, and identify important considerations for future research. We selected these theories based on their presence in recent reviews; 6 , 17 , 18 , 19 we sought but did not find other broadly‐recognised modern theories. Our goal is not to present a comprehensive examination of recent evidence, but to make the theoretical foundations of motivation accessible to medical educators. We acknowledge that for each theory we can scarcely scratch the surface, and thus suggest further reading for those who wish to study in greater depth (see Table 1 ).

Summary of contemporary motivation theories

AT = attribution theory; EVT = expectancy‐value theory; GOT = goal orientation theory; SCT = social‐cognitive theory; SDT = self‐determination theory.

For this review we define motivation as ‘the process whereby goal‐directed activities are instigated and sustained’, 6 (pg 5) Although others exist, this definition highlights four key concepts: motivation is a process; it is focused on a goal; and it deals with both the initiation and the continuation of activity directed at achieving that goal.

Common themes

We have identified four recurrent themes across the five theories discussed below, and believe that an up‐front overview will help readers recognise commonalities and differences across theories. Table 1 offers a concise summary of each theory and Table 2 attempts to clarify overlapping terminology.

Similar concepts and terminology across several contemporary theories: clarifying confusable terminology

All contemporary theories include a concept related to beliefs about competence . Variously labelled expectancy of success, self‐efficacy, confidence and self‐concept, these beliefs all address, in essence, the question ‘Can I do it?’. However, there are important distinctions both between and within theories, as elaborated below. For example, self‐concept and earlier conceptions of expectancy of success (expectancy‐value theory) viewed these beliefs in general terms (e.g. spanning a broad domain such as ‘athletics’ or ‘clinical medicine’, or generalising across time or situations). By contrast, self‐efficacy (social‐cognitive theory) and later conceptions of expectancy of success viewed these beliefs in much more task‐ and situation‐specific terms (e.g. ‘Can I grade the severity of aortic stenosis?’).

Most theories also include a concept regarding the value or anticipated result of the learning task. These beliefs include specific terms such as task value, outcome expectation and intrinsic versus extrinsic motivation. All address the question, ‘Do I want do to it?’ or ‘What will happen (good or bad) if I do?’. Again, there are important distinctions between theories. For example, task value (expectancy‐value theory) focuses on the perceived importance or usefulness of successful task completion, whereas outcome expectation (social‐cognitive theory) focuses on the probable (expected) result of an action if full effort is invested.

Most theories discuss the importance of attributions in shaping beliefs and future actions. Learners frequently establish conscious or unconscious links between an observed event or outcome and the personal factors that led to this outcome (i.e. the underlying cause). To the degree that learners perceive that the underlying cause is changeable and within their control, they will be more likely to persist in the face of initial failure.

Finally, all contemporary theories of motivation are ‘cognitive’ in the sense that, by contrast with some earlier theories, they presume the involvement of mental processes that are not directly observable. Moreover, recent theories increasingly recognise that motivation cannot be fully explained as an individual phenomenon, but rather that it often involves interactions between an individual and a larger social context. Bandura labelled his theory a ‘social‐cognitive theory’ of learning, but all of the theories discussed below include both social and cognitive elements .

Again, each theory operationalises each concept slightly differently and we encourage readers to pay attention to such distinctions (using Table 2 for support) for the remainder of this text.

Expectancy‐value theories

In a nutshell, expectancy‐value theories 20 , 21 identify two key independent factors that influence behaviour (Fig. 1 ): the degree to which individuals believe they will be successful if they try (expectancy of success), and the degree to which they perceive that there is a personal importance, value or intrinsic interest in doing the task (task value).

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Expectancy‐value theory. This is a simplified version of Wigfield and Eccles's theory; it does not contain all of the details of their theory and blurs some subtle but potentially important distinctions. The key constructs of task value and expectancy of success are influenced by motivational beliefs, which are in turn determined by social influences that are perceived and interpreted by learner cognitive processes

Expectancy of success is more than a perception of general competence; it represents a future‐oriented conviction that one can accomplish the anticipated task. If I do not believe I will be successful in accomplishing a task, I am unlikely to begin. Such beliefs can be both general (e.g. global self‐concept) and specific (judgements of ability to learn a specific skill or topic). According to Wigfield and Eccles, 20 expectancy of success is shaped by motivational beliefs that fall into three broad categories: goals, self‐concept and task difficulty. Goals refer to specific short‐ and long‐term learning objectives. Self‐concept refers to general impressions about one's capacity in this task domain (e.g. academic ability, athletic prowess, social skills or good looks). Task difficulty refers to the perceived (not necessarily actual) difficulty of the specific task. Empirical studies show that expectancy beliefs predict both engagement in learning activities and learning achievement (e.g. test scores and grades). In fact, expectancy of success may be a stronger predictor of success than past performance. 20

According to expectancy‐value theorists, however, motivation requires more than just a conviction that I can succeed; I must also expect some immediate or future personal gain or value. Like expectancy of success, task value or valence is perceived (not necessarily actual) and at times idiosyncratic. At least four factors have been conceived as contributing to task value: a given topic might be particularly interesting or enjoyable to the learner (interest or intrinsic value ); learning about a topic or mastering a skill might be perceived as useful for practical reasons, or a necessary step toward a future goal (utility or extrinsic value ); successfully learning a skill might hold personal importance in its own right or as an affirmation of the learner's self‐concept (importance or attainment value ); and focusing time and energy on one task means that other tasks are neglected (opportunity costs ). Other costs and potential negative consequences include anxiety, effort and the possibility of failure. For example, a postgraduate physician might spend extra time learning cardiac auscultation simply because he finds it fascinating, or because he believes it will help him provide better care for patients, or because he perceives this as a fundamental part of his persona as a physician. Alternatively, he might spend less time learning this skill in order to spend more time mastering surgical skills, or because he simply doesn't feel it is worth the effort. Although some evidence suggests that these four factors (interest, utility, importance and cost) are distinguishable from one another in measurement, 20 it is not yet known whether learners make these distinctions in practice. Task value is, in theory, primarily shaped by one motivational belief: affective memories (reactions and emotions associated with prior experiences). Favourable experiences enhance perceived value; unfavourable experiences diminish it.

The motivational beliefs that determine expectancy of success (goals, self‐concept and task difficulty) and task value (affective memories) are in turn shaped by life events, social influences (parents, teacher or peer pressure, professional values, etc.) and the environment. These shaping forces are interpreted through the learner's personal perspectives and perceptions (i.e. cognitive processes). It is perception, and not necessarily reality, that governs motivational beliefs.

Empirical studies (nearly all of them outside of medical education) show that both expectancy of success and value are associated with learning outcomes, including choice of topics to study, degree of involvement in learning (engagement and persistence) and achievement (performance). Task value seems most strongly associated with choice, whereas expectancy of success seems most strongly associated with engagement, depth of processing and learning achievement. 20 In other words, in choosing whether to learn something the task value matters most; once that choice has been made, expectancy of success is most strongly associated with actual success.

Attribution theory

Attribution theory (Fig. 2 ) explains why people react variably to a given experience, suggesting that different responses arise from differences in the perceived cause of the initial outcome. Success or failure in mastering a new skill, for example, might be attributed to personal effort, innate ability, other people (e.g. the teacher) or luck. These attributions are often subconscious, but strongly influence future activities. Failure attributed to lack of ability might discourage future effort, whereas failure attributed to poor teaching or bad luck might suggest the need to try again, especially if the teacher or luck is expected to change. Attributions directly influence expectancy of future success, and indirectly influence perceived value as mediated by the learner's emotional response to success or failure.

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Attribution theory. This is a simplified version of Weiner's theory; it does not contain all of the details of his theory and blurs some subtle but potentially important distinctions. The process begins with an event; if the outcome is expected or positive, it will often directly elicit emotions (happiness or frustration) without any further action. However, outcomes that are unexpected, negative or perceived as important will often awaken the inquisitive ‘naïve scientist’ who seeks to identify a causal explanation. The individual will interpret the outcome in light of personal and environmental conditions to ‘hypothesise’ a perceived cause, which can be organised along three dimensions: locus, stability and controllability. Stability influences perceived expectancy of success. Locus, controllability and stability collectively influence emotional responses (which reflect the subjective value) and these in turn drive future behaviours

Attribution theory postulates that humans have a tacit goal of understanding and mastering themselves and their environment, and act as ‘naïve scientists’ to establish cause‐effect relationships for events in their lives. The process of attribution starts with an event, such as receiving a grade or learning a skill. If the result is expected and positive, the learner is content and the naïve scientist is not aroused (i.e. there is nothing to investigate). Conversely, if the result is negative, unexpected or particularly important, the scientist begins to search (often subconsciously) for an explanation, taking into account personal and environmental factors to come up with an hypothesis (i.e. an attribution: ability, effort, luck, health, mood, etc.). However, attributions do not directly motivate behaviour. Rather, they are interpreted or reframed into psychologically meaningful (actionable) responses. Empirical research suggests that such interpretations occur along three distinct conceptual dimensions: locus (internal to the learner or external), stability (likely to change or fixed) and controllability (within or outside the learner's control). For example, poor instructional quality (external locus) might be stable (the only teacher for this topic) or unstable (several other teachers available), and controllable (selected by the learner) or uncontrollable (assigned by others), depending on the learner's perception of the situation. Bad luck is typically interpreted as external, unstable and uncontrollable; personal effort is internal, changeable and controllable; and innate skill is internal, largely fixed and uncontrollable.

Weiner linked attributions with motivation through the constructs of expectancy of success and task value. 22 Expectancy of success is directly influenced by perceived causes, primarily through the stability dimension: ‘If conditions (the presence or absence of causes) are expected to remain the same, then the outcome(s) experienced in the past will be expected to recur. … If the causal conditions are perceived as likely to change, then … there is likely to be uncertainty about subsequent outcomes’. 22 Locus and controllability are not strongly linked with expectancy of success, because past success (regardless of locus orientation or degree of controllability) will predict future success if conditions remain stable.

By contrast, the link between attributions and ‘goal incentives’ (i.e. task value) is less direct, being mediated instead by the learner's emotions or ‘affective response’. Weiner distinguishes the objective value of achieving a goal (e.g. earning a dollar or learning a skill) from the subjective or affective value of that achievement (e.g. happiness or pride), and argues that there is ‘no blatant reason to believe that objective value is influenced by perceived causality … but [causal ascriptions] do determine or guide emotional reactions, or the subjective consequences of goal attainment’. 22 Other emotional reactions include gratitude, serenity, surprise, anger, guilt, hopelessness, pity and shame. Cognitive processes influence the interplay between an event, the perceived cause and the attributed emotional reaction, with complex and often idiosyncratic results (i.e. how we think influences how we feel). ‘For example, a dollar attained because of good luck could elicit surprise; a dollar earned by hard work might produce pride; and a dollar received from a friend when in need is likely to beget gratitude’, 22 although it might also beget shame or guilt. Weiner distinguishes outcome‐dependent and attribution‐dependent emotions. Outcome‐dependent emotions are the direct result of success (e.g. happiness) or failure (e.g. sadness and frustration). Attribution‐dependent emotions are, as the name implies, determined by the inferred causal dimension: pride and self‐esteem (‘internal’ emotions) are linked with locus; anger, gratitude, guilt, pity and shame (‘social’ emotions) are connected with controllability; and hopelessness and the intensity of many other emotions are associated with stability (i.e. one might feel greater gratitude or greater shame because of a stable cause).

Attribution theory proposes several ‘antecedent conditions’ that influence the attributional process. Environmental antecedents include social norms and information received from self and others (e.g. feedback). Personal antecedents include differences in causal rules, attributional biases and prior knowledge. Attributional biases or errors include: the ‘fundamental attribution error’, in which situation or context‐specific factors are ignored, such that a single event is extrapolated into a universal trait of the individual; self‐serving bias, in which success is ascribed to internal causes and failure is ascribed to external causes; and actor‐observer bias, in which the learner's actions are situation specific and the actions of others are a general trait.

Social‐cognitive theory

Social‐cognitive theory is most generally a theory of learning. It contends that people learn through reciprocal interactions with their environment and by observing others, rather than simply through direct reinforcement of behaviours (as proposed by behaviourist theories of learning). 23 As regards motivation, the theory emphasises that humans are not thoughtless actors responding involuntarily to rewards and punishments, but that cognition governs how individuals interpret their environment and self‐regulate their thoughts, feelings and actions.

Bandura 23 theorised that human performance results from reciprocal interactions between three factors (‘triadic reciprocal determinism’): personal factors (e.g. beliefs, expectations, attitudes and biology), behavioral factors, and environmental factors (both the social and physical environment). Humans are thus proactive and self‐regulating rather than reactive organisms shaped only by the environment; they are ‘both products and producers of their own environments and of their own social systems’. 24 Consider, for example, a medical student in a surgery clerkship that is full of highly competitive peers and is run by a physician with little tolerance of mistakes. Such an environment will interact with the student's personal characteristics (e.g. his confidence, emotions and prior knowledge) to shape how he behaves and whether or not he learns. At the same time, how he behaves will influence the environment and may change some of his personal factors (e.g. his thoughts and feelings). Thus, the extent to which this student is motivated to learn and perform is determined by the reciprocal interactions of his own thoughts and feelings, the nature of the learning environment and his actions.

The active process of regulating one's behaviour and manipulating the environment in pursuit of personal goals is fundamental to functioning as a motivated individual. Whether or not people choose to pursue their goals depends, in no small measure, on beliefs about their own capabilities, values and interests. 24 Chief among these self‐beliefs is self‐efficacy, defined as ‘People's beliefs about their capabilities to produce designated levels of performance that exercise influence over events that affect their lives’. 25 Self‐efficacy is a belief about what a person can do rather than a personal judgement about one's physical or psychological attributes. 26 In Bandura's words, ‘Unless people believe they can produce desired effects by their actions, they have little incentive to act’. 27 Thus, self‐efficacy forms the foundation for motivated action.

Unlike broader notions of self‐concept or self‐esteem, self‐efficacy is domain, task and context‐specific. For instance, a medical student might report fairly high self‐efficacy for simple suturing but may have much lower self‐efficacy for other surgical procedures, or might have lower self‐efficacy in a competitive environment than in a cooperative one.

Self‐efficacy should not be confused with outcome expectation – the belief that certain outcomes will result from given actions 18 (i.e. the anticipated value to the individual). Because self‐efficacy beliefs help to determine the outcomes one expects, the two constructs are typically positively correlated, yet sometimes self‐efficacy and outcome expectations diverge. For example, a high‐performing, highly efficacious college student may choose not to apply to the most elite medical school because she expects a rejection. In this case, academic self‐efficacy is high but outcome expectations are low. Research indicates that self‐efficacy beliefs are usually better predictors of behaviour than are outcome expectations. 26 , 27 Ultimately, however, both self‐efficacy and favourable outcome expectations are required for optimal motivation. 18

Bandura, Zimmerman and Schunk have identified the key role of self‐efficacy in activating core learning processes, including cognition, motivation, affect and selection. 6 , 25 , 28 , 29 Learners come to any learning task with past experiences, aptitudes and social supports that collectively determine their pre‐task self‐efficacy. Several factors influence self‐efficacy during the task (Fig. 3 ), and during and after the task learners interpret cues that further shape self‐efficacy. 27 Among these sources of self‐efficacy, the most powerful is how learners interpret previous experiences (so‐called enactive mastery experiences ). Generally speaking, successes reinforce one's self‐efficacy, whereas failures weaken it. In addition, learners interpret the outcomes of others’ actions ( modelling ). Learners may adjust their own efficacy beliefs based on such vicarious experiences, particularly if they perceive the model as similar to themselves (e.g. a near‐peer). The influence of verbal persuasion (‘You can do it!’) appears to be limited at best. Furthermore, persuasion that proves unrealistic (e.g. persuasion to attempt a task that results in failure) can damage self‐efficacy and lowers the persuader's credibility. Finally, physiological and emotional information shapes self‐efficacy beliefs: enthusiasm and positive emotions typically enhance self‐efficacy whereas negative emotions diminish it. 24 , 27

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Social‐cognitive model of motivated learning. This is adapted from Schunk's model of motivated learning; it incorporates additional concepts from Bandura and other authors. Learners begin a learning task with pre‐existing self‐efficacy determined by past experiences, aptitudes and social supports. Learners can perform the task themselves or watch others (e.g. instructor or peer models) perform the task. During the task, self‐efficacy, together with other personal and situational factors, influences cognitive engagement, motivation to learn, emotional response and task selection. During and after the task, learners perceive and interpret cues that influence self‐efficacy for future tasks. Zimmerman defined a three‐phase self‐regulation cycle that mirrors this model, comprised of forethought (pre‐task), performance and volitional control (during task) and self‐reflection (after task)

One way in which social‐cognitive theory has been operationalised for practical application involves the concept of self‐regulation, which addresses how students manage their motivation and learning. Zimmerman proposed a model of self‐regulation 30 comprising three cyclical stages: forethought (before the task, e.g. appraising self‐efficacy, and establishing goals and strategies), performance (during the task, e.g. self‐monitoring) and self‐reflection (after the task). Self‐regulation is an area of active investigation in medical education. 14 , 15

Goal orientation (achievement goal) theories

The meaning of ‘goals’ in goal orientation theories 31 , 32 , 33 , 34 (also called achievement goal theory) is different from that in most other motivation theories. Rather than referring to learning objectives (‘My goal is to learn about cardiology’), the goals in this cluster of theories refer to broad orientations or purposes in learning that are commonly subconscious. With performance goals the primary concern is to do better than others and avoid looking dumb: ‘I want to get a good grade’. Mastery goals , by contrast, focus on the intrinsic value of learning (i.e. gaining new knowledge or skills): ‘I want to understand the material’. These broad orientations lead in turn to different learning behaviours or approaches. Dweck's theory of ‘implicit theories of intelligence’ takes these two orientations further, suggesting that they reflect learners’ underlying attributions (‘mindsets’, or dispositional attitudes and beliefs) regarding their ability to learn (Fig. 4 ).

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Goal orientation theory and implicit theories of intelligence. This is a simplified illustration of Dweck's theory; it does not contain all of the details of her theory and blurs some subtle but potentially important distinctions. Learners tend toward one of two implicit self‐theories or mindsets regarding their ability. Those with an entity mindset view ability as fixed, and because low performance or difficult learning would threaten their self‐concept they unconsciously pursue ‘performance’ goals that help them to look smart and avoid failure. By contrast, those with an incremental mindset view ability as something to be enhanced with practice, and thus pursue goals that cause them to stretch and grow (‘mastery’ goals). Evidence and further theoretical refinements also support the distinction of performance‐approach goals (‘look smart’; typically associated with high performance) and performance‐avoidance goals (‘avoid failure’; invariably associated with poor performance)

Learners with performance goals have a (subconscious) self‐theory that intelligence or ability is a stable fixed trait (an ‘entity’ mindset). People are either smart (or good at basketball or art) or they're not. Because this stable trait cannot be changed, learners are concerned about looking and feeling like they have ‘enough’, which requires that they perform well. Easy, low‐effort successes make them feel smarter and encourage continued study; challenging, effortful tasks and poor performance are interpreted as indicating low ability and lead learners to progressively disengage and eventually give up. Learners with this entity mindset magnify their failures and forget their successes, give up quickly in the face of challenge, and adopt defensive or self‐sabotaging behaviours. A strong belief in their ability may lead them to persevere after failure. However, low confidence will cause them to disengage into a ‘helpless’ state because it is psychologically safer to blame failure on lack of effort (‘I wasn't really trying’) than on lack of intelligence. Dweck noted, ‘It is ironic that those students who are most concerned with looking smart may be at a disadvantage for this very reason’. 32

Learners with a mastery goal orientation, by contrast, have a self‐theory that intelligence and ability can increase or improve through learning (an ‘incremental’ mindset). People get smarter (or better at basketball or art) by studying and practising. This mindset leads people to seek learning opportunities because these will make them smarter. They thrive on challenge and even initial failure because they have an implicit ‘No pain, no gain’ belief. In fact, even learners with low confidence in their current ability will choose challenging tasks if they have an incremental mindset. Learners with an incremental mindset feel smart when they fully engage in learning and stretch their ability (the mastery goal orientation); easy tasks hold little or no value and failure is viewed as simply a cue to look for a better strategy and exert renewed effort.

Mindsets are related to the controllability and stability dimensions of attribution theory: entity mindsets lead to attributions of fixed and uncontrollable causes (e.g. ability), whereas incremental mindsets lead to attributions of controllable and changeable causes (e.g. effort). 31 , 35 Mindsets are typically a matter of degree, not black‐and‐white, and appear to be domain and situation specific: a learner might have predominantly entity beliefs about procedural tasks but incremental beliefs about communication skills. Mindsets change with age: young children typically have incremental mindsets, whereas most people have shifted toward entity mindsets by age 12. 32

Researchers building on the work of Dweck and others 33 , 36 , 37 have separated performance goals into those that make the learner look good (performance ‘approach’ goals such as trying to outperform others) and those in which the learner tries to avoid looking bad (performance ‘avoidance’ goals such as avoiding challenging or uncertain tasks). 38 , 39 Empirical results from real‐world settings differ for different outcomes: performance‐approach goals are consistently more associated with higher achievement (e.g. better grades) than are mastery goals, whereas mastery goals are associated with greater interest and deep learning strategies. These empirical observations require further explanation but could reflect shortcomings in mastery‐oriented study strategies (i.e. learners focus on areas of interest rather than studying broadly) or grading systems that favour superficial learning. 40 Performance‐avoidance goals, by contrast, are consistently associated with low achievement and other negative outcomes.

One of the most compelling findings of Dweck's theory is that the incremental mindset is teachable. Randomised trials demonstrate that teaching students that the brain is malleable and has limitless learning capacity leads them to seek more, and more difficult, learning opportunities and to persevere in the face of challenge. 32 The duration of this effect and its transfer to future tasks remain incompletely elucidated.

Unfortunately, the entity mindset also appears to be teachable, or at least unintentionally reinforced by individuals and learning climates that encourage competition, frame abilities as static or praise quick and easy success. Feedback intended to boost a learner's confidence (‘You did really well on that test; you must be really smart!’) may inadvertently encourage an entity mindset. Rather than emphasising innate ability, teachers should instill confidence that anyone can learn if they work at it.

Other motivation theories attempt to explain other aspects of goals, such as goal setting and goal content. 6 , 41 Goal orientation theories focus on the why and how of approach and engagement. Goal setting theories focus on the standard of performance, exploring issues such as goal properties (proximity, specificity and difficulty) and the factors that influence goal choice, the targeted level of performance and commitment. 42 Goal content theories focus on what is trying to be achieved (i.e. the expected consequences). Ford and Nichols 41 developed a content taxonomy of 24 basic goals that they categorised as within‐person goals (e.g. entertainment, happiness and intellectual creativity) and goals dealing with interactions between the person and environment (e.g. superiority, belongingness, equity and safety).

Self‐determination theory

Self‐determination theory (Fig. 5 ) posits that motivation varies not only in quantity (magnitude) but also in quality (type and orientation). Humans innately desire to be autonomous – to use their will (the capacity to choose how to satisfy needs) as they interact with their environment – and tend to pursue activities they find inherently enjoyable. Our highest, healthiest and most creative and productive achievements typically occur when we are motivated by an intrinsic interest in the task. Unfortunately, although young children tend to act from intrinsic motivation, by the teenage years and into adulthood we progressively face external (extrinsic) influences to do activities that are not inherently interesting. These influences, coming in the form of career goals, societal values, promised rewards, deadlines and penalties, are not necessarily bad but ultimately subvert intrinsic motivation. Strong evidence indicates that rewards diminish intrinsic motivation. 43 Deci and Ryan developed self‐determination theory to explain how to promote intrinsic motivation and also how to enhance motivation when external pressures are operative.

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Self‐determination theory. This is adapted from Ryan and Deci's theory. Self‐determination theory hypothesises three main motivation types: amotivation (lack of motivation), extrinsic motivation and intrinsic motivation, and six ‘regulatory styles’ (dark‐background boxes). Intrinsic motivation (intrinsic regulation) is entirely internal, emerging from pure personal interest, curiosity or enjoyment of the task. At the other extreme, amotivation (non‐regulation) results in inaction or action without real intent. In the middle is extrinsic motivation, with four regulatory styles that vary from external regulation (actions motivated purely by anticipated favourable or unfavourable consequences) to integrated regulation (in which external values and goals have become fully integrated into one's self‐image). The transition from external to integrated regulation requires that values and goals become internalised (personally important) and integrated (fully assimilated into one's sense of self). Internalisation and integration are promoted (or inhibited) by fulfillment (or non‐fulfillment) of three basic psychosocial needs: relatedness, competence and autonomy

Intrinsic motivation is not caused because it is an innate human propensity, but it is alternatively stifled or encouraged by unfavourable or favourable conditions. Cognitive evaluation theory , a sub‐theory of self‐determination theory, proposes that fulfillment of three basic psychosocial needs will foster intrinsic motivation: autonomy (the opportunity to control one's actions), competence (self‐efficacy) and relatedness (a sense of affiliation with or belonging to others to whom one feels [or would like to feel] connected). Autonomy is promoted by providing opportunities for choice, acknowledging feelings, avoiding judgement and encouraging personal responsibility for actions. Rewards, punishments, deadlines, judgemental assessments and other controlling actions all undermine autonomy. Competence is supported by optimal challenge, and by feedback that promotes self‐efficacy (as outlined above) and avoids negativity. Relatedness is promoted through environments exhibiting genuine caring, mutual respect and safety.

In activities motivated by external influences, both the nature of the motivation and the resultant performance vary greatly. The motivation of a medical student who does his homework for fear of punishment is very different from motivation to learn prompted by a sincere desire to provide patients with optimal care. Deci and Ryan proposed that these qualitative differences arise because of differences in the degree to which external forces have been internalised and integrated (assimilated into the individual's sense of self). A second sub‐theory, organismic integration theory, explains these differences.

Organismic integration theory identifies three regulatory styles: intrinsic motivation at one extreme (highly productive and spontaneous), amotivation at the other extreme (complete lack of volition, failure to act or only going through the motions) and extrinsic motivation in between (actions prompted by an external force or regulation). Extrinsic motivation is divided, in turn, into four levels that vary in the degree to which the external regulation has been internalised (taking in a value or regulation) and integrated (further transformation of that regulation into their own self). 44 , 45 The lowest level is external regulation: acting only to earn rewards or avoid punishment. Next is introjected regulation: acting to avoid guilt or anxiety, or to enhance pride or self‐esteem. The regulation has been partially internalised but not accepted as a personal goal. Identified regulation suggests that the external pressure has become a personally important self‐desired goal, but the goal is valued because it is useful rather than because it is inherently desirable. Finally, with integrated regulation the external influences are integrated with internal (intrinsic) interests, becoming part of one's personal identity and aspirations. Regulatory forces with identified and integrated regulation reflect an internal locus of causality (control) and behaviours are perceived as largely autonomous or self‐determined, whereas both external and introjected regulation reflect an external locus of causality. ‘Thus, it is through internalisation and integration that individuals can be extrinsically motivated and still be committed and authentic.’ 45 Research suggests that the same three psychosocial needs described above promote the internalisation and integration of extrinsic motivations, with relatedness and competence being particularly important for internalisation, and autonomy being critical for integration.

Because optimal motivation and well‐being require meeting all three needs, ‘Social contexts that engender conflicts between basic needs set up the conditions for alienation and psychopathology’. 45 The importance of these needs has been confirmed not only in education, but also in workplace performance, patient compliance and overall health and well‐being. 46

Integration across theories

Over the past 25 years, contemporary motivation theories have increasingly shared and borrowed key concepts. 17 For example, all five theories discussed herein acknowledge human cognition as influencing perceptions and exerting powerful motivational controls. All also highlight reciprocal interactions between individuals and their socio‐environmental context. Definitions of expectancy have evolved to reflect substantial overlap with self‐efficacy. Attribution theory emerged from earlier expectancy‐value theories in an effort to explain the origins and antecedents (the ‘Why?’) of expectancies and values, ultimately emphasising the temporal sequence of events and the importance of emotions. Goal orientation theory merged early goal theories with the concept of implicit attributions. Self‐determination theory emphasises both autonomy (locus and control in attribution theory) and competence (very similar to self‐efficacy). With this conceptual overlap, it is easy to get confused with the terms as operationally defined within each theory. Table 2 attempts to clarify these areas of potential confusion.

Through this effort we have identified four recurrent themes among contemporary theories: competence beliefs, value beliefs, attribution and social‐cognitive interactions. We do not suggest that these theories can be reduced to these four concepts, but that these foundational principles underpin a more nuanced understanding of individual theories. Research conducted using one theoretical framework might also yield insights relevant to another.

Given the progressive blurring of boundaries and increasing conceptual overlap, can – or should – we ever achieve a grand unified theory of motivation? We note that each theory shines light on a different region of a larger picture, and thus contributes a unique perspective on a complex phenomenon involving individual learners and varying social contexts, topics and outcomes. Moreover, despite our and others’ efforts 7 , 47 to clarify terminology, conceptual differences among theories run much deeper than dictionary definitions can resolve. Even within a given theoretical domain, different investigators have operationally defined concepts and outcome measures with subtle but important distinctions that lead to vastly different conclusions. 31 , 37 , 39 The degree to which these differences can be both theoretically and empirically reconciled remains to be seen. 17 For now, we encourage maintaining theoretical distinctions while thoughtfully capitalising on overlapping concepts and explicit theoretical integrations for the enrichments they afford.

Implications and conclusions

Other authors have identified practical applications of motivation theory, most often instructional changes that could enhance motivation. 3 , 4 , 6 , 16 , 32 In Table S1 (available online) we provide a short summary of these suggestions, nearly all of which warrant investigation in health professions education. Educators and researchers will need to determine whether to apply these and other interventions to all learners (i.e. to improve the overall learning environment and instructional quality) or only to those with specific motivational characteristics (e.g. low self‐efficacy, entity mindsets, maladaptive attributions or external motivations). 17 , 48 , 49

We will limit our further discussion to considerations for future research. Pintrich 50 identified seven broad questions for motivation research and suggested general research principles for investigating these questions; we summarise these in Table S2 (available online). By way of elaboration or emphasis, we conclude with four broad considerations that cut across theoretical and methodological boundaries.

First, motivation is far from a unitary construct. This may seem obvious, yet both lay educators and researchers commonly speak of ‘motivation’ without clarity regarding a specific theory or conceptual framework. Although different theories rarely contradict one another outright, each theory emphasises different aspects of motivation, different stages of learning, different learning tasks and different outcomes. 17 , 19 , 51 To avoid conceptual confusion and to optimise the theory‐building potential of their work, we encourage researchers to explicitly identify their theoretical lens, to be precise in defining and operationalising different motivational constructs, and to conduct a careful review of theory‐specific literature early in their study planning.

Second, measuring the outcomes of motivation studies is challenging for at least two reasons: the selection of which outcomes (psychological constructs) to measure and the choice of specific instruments to measure the selected outcomes. The choice of outcomes and instruments, and the timing of outcome assessment, can significantly influence study results. For instance, results (and thus conclusions) for mastery and performance‐approach goal orientations vary for different outcomes. 39 Schunk identified four general motivation outcomes (choice of tasks, effort, persistence and achievement) and suggested tools for measuring each of these. 6 Learners can also rate how motivating they perceive a course to be. 52 The outcome(s) most relevant to a given study will depend on the theory and the research question. In turn, for each outcome there are typically multiple measurement approaches and specific instruments, each with strengths and limitations. For example, behaviour‐focused measures diminish the importance of cognitive processes, whereas self‐report measures are limited by the accuracy of self‐perceptions. For all instruments, evidence to support the validity of scores should be deliberately planned, collected and evaluated. 53 , 54

Third, researchers should test clear, practical applications of motivation theory. 50 , 55 , 56 Each of the theories discussed above has empirical evidence demonstrating theory‐predicted associations between a predictor condition (e.g. higher versus lower expectancy of success) and motivation‐related outcomes, but the cause‐effect relationship in these studies (often correlational rather than experimental) is not always clear. Moreover, the practical significance of the findings is sometimes uncertain; for example, does a change in the outcome measure reflect a meaningful and lasting change in the learner, or is it merely an artifact of the study conditions? Well‐planned experiments can strengthen causal links between motivational manipulations and outcomes. 57 We can find examples of interventions intended to optimise self‐efficacy, 28 task value, 5 attributions 17 and mindsets, 32 but research on motivational manipulations remains largely limited in both volume and rigour. 17 Moreover, moderating influences such as context (e.g. classroom, clinical or controlled setting) and learner experience or specialty can significantly impact results. Linking motivational concepts with specific cognitive processes may be instrumental in understanding seemingly inconsistent findings. 17 , 39 Finally, real‐world implementations of research‐based recommendations may be challenged by resource limitations, logistical constraints or lack of buy‐in from administrators and teachers; research on translation and implementation will be essential. 58

Lastly, we call for research that builds and extends motivation theory for education generally 50 and health professions education specifically. Theory‐building research should investigate ‘not only that the intervention works but also why it works (i.e., mediating mechanisms) as well as for whom and under what conditions (i.e., moderating influences)’. 17 Such research not only specifies the theoretical lens, interventions and outcomes, but also considers (and ideally predicts) how independent and dependent variables 2 interact with one another and with the topic, task, environment and learner characteristics. 59 Harackiewicz identified four possible relationships and interactions among motivation‐related variables:

additive (different factors have independent, additive effects on a single outcome),
interactive (different factors have complex effects on a single outcome),
specialised (the impact of a given intervention varies for different outcomes) and
selective (outcomes for a given intervention vary by situation, e.g. context or topic). 39

We encourage would‐be investigators to further explore theory‐specific literatures to understand conceptual nuances, current evidence, potential interactions, important outcomes and timely questions. 47 , 60

Only research grounded in such solid foundations will provide the theoretical clarity and empirical support needed to optimise motivation to learn in health professions education.

Contributors

DAC and ARA jointly contributed to the conception of the work, drafted the initial manuscript, revised the manuscript for important intellectual content and approved the final version. ARA is an employee of the US Government. The views expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, Department of Defense, nor the US Government.

Conflicts of interest

the authors are not aware of any conflicts of interest.

Ethical approval

as no human subjects were involved, ethical approval was not required.

Supporting information

Table S1. Summary of practical applications of motivation theory.

Acknowledgments

we thank Kelly Dore for her contributions during the conceptual stages of this review and Adam Sawatsky and Dario Torre for their critiques of manuscript drafts.

The copyright line for this article was changed on 6 October 2016 after original online publication.

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Motivation in Action: Case Study Examples

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This program presents four case studies of people with a variety of motivational problems. In each case, the viewer is left to consider what the problem is and what might be done to solve it.

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Students’ Motivation Strategy: Action Research Case Study

Area of focus statement, problem: interest, problem: background, problem: prior interventions, participant description, participant justification, research questions.

The purpose of this study is to gather insights on the issue of students’ motivation and seek a deeper understanding of it, developing a motivation strategy to implement in practice. I want to find out what encourages students to learn and helps to keep them motivated while learning. The goal can be achieved through both the review of data and the observation of a participant.

First of all, the topic of the study is inspired by my son, who is 17-year-old adolescent and is a junior in high school. He has only a year left before he graduates, and that is the time when he needs to be motivated in order to make better grades. Even though we are already trying various techniques to raise his motivation, those do not bring significant results so far. That is what has led me to find out ways to motivate my 17-year-old son better. In addition to my personal interest in the study, it will also be useful for other parents, who have children of this age, as well as educators, who work with these children. The review of data I have made so far has only confirmed the need to conduct the research on this topic. Adolescents turn out to be very hard to motivate, which has been proven in many studies.

To start with, I currently work as a case manager for social services where I help people in need providing fuel and food assistance, Medicaid, etc. As soon as I get my master’s degree, I am going to start searching for a job as an elementary teacher. Presently, I do not work as an educator and have no classroom experience yet. Nevertheless, I have a 17-year-old son, who is a junior in high school, and whom I need to push and encourage to learn constantly. That is what makes me interested in the topic of the study and stimulates to find out more about motivation strategies.

Even though my son is a smart student, he is also a lazy one, which is why he usually lags behind the class and fails his exams. The biggest problem so far is that he does not seem to be motivated in his pre-calculus class. I think that the main reason for that is his primary interest in sports and a desire to join the military after graduation. Perhaps, he simply does not think that he will need high grades to achieve his goals in the future. That is why I need to motivate and encourage him, reminding about countless opportunities that the high school and college education bring.

In my attempts to improve the situation with pre-calculus class, I have contacted my son’s teacher several times. She seems confusing when it comes to asking her students to turn in their assignments. She also uses quizzes to help them to prepare for the exams. However, many students still do not cope with those, and my son does not either.

I regularly do something to motivate my son in his learning process. First of all, since positive relationships have a significant influence on motivation, I encourage and support him (Sullo, 2009). I show enthusiasm and interest in his problems because there is a direct connection between these factors and students’ motivation as well (Brown, Hughes, Keppell, Hard, & Smith, 2015; Wiesman, 2012).

I never refuse to help my son with any confusion or conflict he has since otherwise that can lower his self-esteem and hinder the process of learning even more (Wiesman, 2012, p. 104). Additionally, I teach him about real life scenarios and explain what he can do with the high school and college education. I try a lot of creative techniques: use videos, YouTube, visual charts, etc. Many of these work, and I see a positive tendency of change.

At the same time, we are currently trying a tutor, but it does work well enough. Even though my son seems to understand his pre-calculus work, he is still failing the exams. With this in mind, I begin to wonder if a tutor does not cope with his work or that is the problem of motivation.

For this study, I have decided to focus on only one participant, who is my son. As it has already been mentioned above, he is 17 years old, and he is currently studying in high school. My son is an athlete (baseball) and is in Air Force ROTC. He is interested in joining the military after high school unless he gets a full ROTC scholarship to college. He is an A/B honor roll student in honors classes.

As I can conclude, the participant is quite a lazy student. Nevertheless, he is very smart as well. Even though he does not always do what is expected of him and not always keeps up with the class because of his laziness and the lack of motivation, he usually can easily pick up on what he is learning. I have to push him to do his best in studying, but when he actually does, he gets good results. Considering how hard he is trying as an athlete and how much he can do when he is interested enough, it can be concluded that the primary problem with his learning process is that of motivation.

The first reason that justifies the participant I have chosen for the study is his age. As Brown, Hughes, Crowder, and Brown (2015) state in their article, “no other age level is of more enduring importance”, and I agree (p. 1). Since he is 17 years old, and he will graduate from high school soon, he needs motivation in his studies to complete the training with better grades, which is essential for the further education. That is the reason why many parents and educators will find the study interesting: it will help them to motivate their own children or students.

The second reason that justifies my choice of a participant is that it will make the observation and evaluation process considerably easier for me as a researcher. Since the participant is easy to reach, the process of primary data collection will be accelerated, and that, in its turn, will let me draw conclusions sooner. In addition, the costs of the research will be significantly reduced.

The future study aims to address two following research questions:

Is there a positive correlation between the motivation of a student to learn and his success in the learning process?
Which strategies to motivate students are the most efficient in practice?
Do regular motivational exercises have a better effect on the students’ performance if compared with occasional ones?

Brown, K. B., Hughes, A. J., Crowder, I. G., & Brown, P. M. (2015). Hunting for Treasures Through Learning: Using Geocaching to Motivate Young Adolescent Learners. Gifted Child Today, 38 (2), 95-102. Web.

Brown, M., Hughes, H., Keppell, M., Hard, N., & Smith, L. (2015). Stories from Students in Their First Semester of Distance Learning. International Review of Research in Open and Distributed Learning, 16 (4), 1-17. Web.

Sullo, R. A. (2009). The Motivated Student: Unlocking the Enthusiasm for Learning . Alexandria, VA: ASCD. Web.

Wiesman, J. (2012). Student Motivation and the Alignment of Teacher Beliefs. The Clearing House, 85 (3), 102–108. Web.

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Motivation in Action: Case Study Examples
Motivation in Action: Case Study Examples. Search streaming video, audio, and text content for academic, public, and K-12 institutions. Alexander Street is an imprint of ProQuest that promotes teaching, research, and learning across music, counseling, history, anthropology, drama, film, and more.
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Trader Joe's sells cheap organic food, but they are not "cheap" when it comes to paying their employees. Employees, including part-timers, are among the best paid in the retail industry. Full-time employees earn an average of $40,150 in their first year and also earn average annual bonuses of $950 with $6,300 in retirement contributions.
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Motivation in action. Motivation is a driving force within an individual to do something well. Motivation is particular to an individual so it is important to find out what factors drive each person. Some employees may be motivated by working in a team whereas others could be driven by a desire to make a difference.
PDF Case Study Motivational Theories in Action
As the study of management practices and motivational theory continued, more ideas about worker motivation began to supplant previous concepts. In 1943, the American psychologist Abraham Maslow created one of the most enduring theories in the study of human motivation and psychology - Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs (Figure 1).
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http://www.tvchoice.uk.com - 29 mins, 2012Key Topics Motivation Religion People Problems Worker Participation Human Resource Management Per...
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5.4 Motivation in Action: The Case of Trader Joe's Figure 5.6 Paul L Dineen - shopping cart harmonic convergence II - CC BY 2.0. People in Hawaiian T-shirts. Delicious fresh fruits and vegetables. A place where parking is tight and aisles are tiny. A place where you will be unable to find half the things on your list but will go home ...
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Self-determination theory (SDT) (Ryan and Deci, 2019) is a prominent theory of motivation that offers leaders an evidence-based framework for how to effectively motivate workers. SDT delineates the social-contextual factors, including leaders' interpersonal style, that predict high quality motivation in the workplace ( Deci et al., 2017 ).
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Motivation in Action Case Study Examples /. This program presents four case studies of people with a variety of motivational problems. In each case, the viewer is left to consider what the problem is and what might be done to solve it. Other Authors: Infobase,, TV Choice Productions. Format:
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The key to catalyzing intrinsic motivation is to satisfy human beings' three intrinsic needs: autonomy (personal accountability), competence (capability and effi cacy), and purpose (personal identity). Satisfaction of the three intrinsic needs helps people and their organizations thrive. Autonomy and competence are defi ned in this case as ...
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In expectancy‐value theory, motivation is a function of the expectation of success and perceived value. Attribution theory focuses on the causal attributions learners create to explain the results of an activity, and classifies these in terms of their locus, stability and controllability. Social‐ cognitive theory emphasises self‐efficacy ...
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Abstract. This chapter discusses and synthesises the key findings across the two cases reported in chapter three both in terms of the motivation of learners and the ways in which certain social ...
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Motivation in Action: Case Study Analysis Motivation stands as a cornerstone of productivity and employee satisfaction in the workplace. As organizations strive for growth and success in an increasingly competitive environment, understanding the intricacies of motivation becomes imperative. The ability to inspire and engage employees is not merely a desirable trait but a strategic advantage ...
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Motivation in Action: Case Study Examples. 3-Year Streaming Price: $169.95 Add to Cart. Add to Cart; Add to Wish List; Share by Email; Share . Description. This program presents four case studies of people with a variety of motivational problems. In each case, the viewer is left to consider what the problem is and what might be done to solve it.
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The goal of this paper is to investigate the motivation of employees of one Slovenian company. The research was carried out on a sample of 50 employees in a Slovenian company. The company in which the research was conducted is focused on the distribution of computer equipment. The research was conducted in November 2018 in a Slovenian company ...
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1 Motivation in Action: Case Study Analysis Rebecca McGuire University of Arizona Global Campus MGT 425 Dr. Jodi Feikema May 15, 2023. 2 Motivation in Action: Case Study Analysis Motivating people and helping them understand the reasons why is vital to developing commitment and willpower to achieve average life goals, both personal and ...
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Motivation in Action: Case Study Examples. 1. Describe each of the four cases. 1. Carla's Little Secret 2. Alison: too Much Caring? 3.Joe's Leaving Soon & 4.Imran: Everything's Fine. 2.Identify the potential root cause(s) for each case. 2a.Consider individual motivations, job design, goals, involvement, pay structure, and rewards systems. 3.
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Shockingly Good Protection in Action: Examples and Case Studies
For example, the pin breakdown voltage of the victim circuitry may not be known. A good starting point is to check the max ratings table for the maximum voltages allowed on a pin. We can see in Figure 3 that the max ratings table for ADM2867E gives a max value of 14 V on a certain pin and a normal operating voltage of 12 V.

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5.5 Motivation in Action: The Case of Trader Joe’s

Discussion Questions

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Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs

John Stacy Adams- Equity Theory

Frederick Herzberg

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Chapter 5: Theories of Motivation

Introduction

What Is Intrinsic Motivation?

What Is Extrinsic Motivation?

5.1 A Motivating Place to Work: The Case of Rogers Communications Inc

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs

Acquired-Needs Theory

5.3 Process-Based Theories

Equity Theory

What Are Inputs and Outcomes?

Who is the Referent?

Reactions to Unfairness

Fairness Beyond Equity: Procedural and Interactional Justice

Expectancy Theory

Influencing Expectancy Perceptions

Reinforcement Theory

Reinforcement Interventions

An inspiring speech for your reflection

5.4 Motivation in Action: The Case of Trader Joe’s

5.5 Conclusion

Motivating workers: how leaders apply self-determination theory in organizations

Design/methodology/approach

Originality/value

Introduction

Self-determination theory and basic psychological needs

Basic psychological needs: ingredients for autonomous motivation.

Basic psychological needs and positive outcomes in the workplace.

A gap between self-determination theory and practice in organizations.

Present research.

Participants

Learning and application of Self-determination theory by leaders.

Data collection.

Results and discussion of findings

Part A. How leaders apply the principals of basic psychological needs in the workplace

Competence.

Relatedness.

Part B. Exemplar case scenarios

Scenario 1: Get to know your workers outside the work context

Scenario 2: Ownership of projects

Scenario 3: Mentoring new and less experienced members

Conclusions

Acknowledgements

Corresponding author

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Motivation to learn: an overview of contemporary theories

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Conclusions

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Introduction

Common themes

Expectancy‐value theories

Attribution theory

Social‐cognitive theory

Goal orientation (achievement goal) theories

Self‐determination theory

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Implications and conclusions

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