Select one aspect of organisational behaviour with references to at least five recent journal articles evaluate recent developments within the area and consider the implications which these have for effective and efficient management practice.
...vational style to the particular group of employees and the specific job being carried out by the employees. There are two main types of motivation theories, which are; the content theories and the expectancy theories. Content theories define motivation in terms of need satisfaction. Content theories assume that people strive to satisfy a variety of deep-rooted needs. While expectancy theories define motivation as a rational cognitive process occurring within the individual. Maslow, Hertzberg and McClellend are major theorists who fall under the category of content motivation theories. While, Vroom and Adams are the main expectancy theorists in the field of motivation under expectancy theories. There is many more motivation theorist such as: Seebhon Rowntree, Elton Mayo, Kurt Lewin, George Humans William Whyte. McGregor’s theory X and theory Y. Theory X. Theory X assumes that employees are lazy, dislike work to the extent that they will avoid it by any means, there is no ambition in the employees, and they have no initiative and avoid responsibility. All the employees want is security in their job. For managers to get work out of their theory X employees, the employees must be rewarded, coerced, intimidated and punished. Managers have to constantly “police” their staff whom they believe cannot be trusted and who refuse to cooperate. Theory Y Theory Y managers believe that their employees want to learn and that work a natural activity to the extent that cash payments is not seen as a reward as much as the freedom to do difficult and challenging work by themselves. For managers with theory Y employees their job is to allow self-development into the organisations need for maximum productivity. Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs. According to Maslow, there are five needs; physiological, safety, social, esteem, and self-actualisation. Maslow believes that there are five needs for any employee and as each need is met the next need becomes priority. This theory is based on the assumptions that human needs are inexhaustible. Also relative importance of needs changes during the psychological developments of the individual. For managers this theory is based on the employees and their wants and how they can achieve them personally. Hertzberg’s Two Factor Theory. This motivation theory is based on research and analysis of 200 interviews carried out on engineers and accountants in the Pittsburgh area of America. Hertzberg avoids using the word ‘need’ and believes that in any work situation one can distinguish between two sets of factors. This theory believes that employees work firstly for their own self-enlightened interest achieving this through their work leaving them happy and mentally healthy. Hertzberg divided peoples needs into two categories; hygiene factors and motivators. Included in the hygiene factors are Supervision, interpersonal relations, working conditions, and salary. While included in the motivators are recognition, work, responsibility and advancement. There is a similarity between Hertzberg’s hygiene factors and Maslow’s lower level needs while the motivators are similar to the higher level needs in Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs. Alderfer’s ERG Theory. Alderfer’s existence, relatedness and growth theory gives its beliefs to that more than one need can be operative at the same time and that the desire to fulfil a lower need grows if one cannot fulfil a higher need. This theory places Maslow’s hierarchy into three levels. According to Alderfer individuals progress through the ERG hierarchy although it is a continuum more so than a hierarchy. The main needs of the ERG are existence; provision o...