SOAL-SOAL PSIKOLOGI INDUSTRI DAN ORGANISASI
Pertemuan 12 & 13:
Motivasi, Kepuasan kerja, dan Job Involvement
1. Explain the differences between content theories and process theories of motivation. Give an example of each. What do these types of theories have in common?
a. Content theories focus on the importance of work itself, dealing with the specific needs that motivate and direct behavior. Maslow’s hierarchy of needs theory is one such example.
b. Process theories deal with the cognitive processes we use in making decisions and choices about our work. One example is the equity theory of motivation which addresses the issue of fairness and equity in receipt of outputs from work itself.
c. Content and process theories share the common goal of trying to explain why people behave the way they do at work.
2. What two types of goals can satisfy the need for achievement?
a. Two types of goals can satisfy the need for achievement: mastery and performance.
b. Mastery refers to developing competence and self-satisfaction through acquiring knowledge and skills.
c. Performance goals involve developing competence by performing better than other people who are in the same situation.
3. Describe the characteristics of people who are high in the need for achievement.
a. They favor a work environment in which they can assume responsibility for solving problems.
b. They tend to take calculated risks and to set moderate, attainable goals.
c. They need continuing recognition and feedback about their progress so they will know how they are doing.
4. What are the needs in Maslow’s hierarchy of needs theory? Which needs can be satisfied on the job?
a. There are five needs: physiological, safety, belonging and love, esteem, and self-actualization.
b. In general, belonging, esteem, and self-actualization needs can be satisfied on the job if conditions are appropriate.
5. Distinguish between motivator and hygiene needs. Describe how each type affects job satisfaction.
a. The motivator needs motivate employees to high job performance. They are internal to the work itself, and include: nature of tasks, responsibility, achievement, recognition, advancement, and career development and growth. They motivate by their presence, but do not lead to dissatisfaction by their absence.
b. Hygiene needs produce job dissatisfaction by their absence. They are external to the tasks of a job, and include: work environment, company policy, supervision, interpersonal relations, working conditions, and salary and benefits. They do not produce motivation by their presence.
6. How would you enrich the job of an automobile assembly line worker?
a. The job could be enriched using job-characteristics theory.
b. An enriched job provides:
i. skill variety
ii. task identity
iii. task significance
iv. autonomy
v. feedback
c. The assembly line job could be designed to combine small, specialized tasks; arrange the tasks in natural meaningful work units; give the workers authority, responsibility, and control over tasks; and provide frequent feedback as to how they are doing.
d. A work team could perform interchangeably; allow the team to build the whole car; give the team authority to stop the line to correct deficiencies; place the team members names in the car once built; provide feedback as to the number and quality of cars produced as compared to other teams.
7. In what ways does the motivator-hygiene theory differ from the job-characteristics theory? In what ways are they similar?
a. Herzberg’s theory focused on the importance of internal job factors as motivating forces for employees.
b. The two theories are similar in that they both propose increasing motivation by adding challenge, complexity, and responsibility to jobs. Proper job enrichment involves more than giving the workers extra tasks - it also means expanding the level of knowledge and skills needed to perform the job.
c. Job characteristics theory went further and focused on which specific job characteristics could be enriched. It states that specific job characteristics lead to psychological conditions that lead, in turn, to higher motivation, performance, and satisfaction (if employees have a high growth need to begin with).
8. Give an example of how the VIE theory can be applied to your job as a student.
a. If you decide that a high grade is important, then that outcome has a high Valence (importance) for you. If you want high grades, you likely have developed the Expectancy that attending class and studying hard will be Instrumental in achieving good grades.
b. This process is multiplicative. If any of the factors is extremely low (or missing), the effort to study will be significantly diminished.
9. According to equity theory, what are three ways of responding to perceived equity or inequity? Which way best describes you?
a. Benevolent - altruistic individuals feel satisfied when under-rewarded and guilty when equitably rewarded or over-rewarded.
b. Equity sensitive - feel distressed when under-rewarded and guilty when over-rewarded.
c. Entitled - believe everything they receive is their due. They are satisfied only when they are over-rewarded and distressed when under-rewarded or equitably rewarded.
10. Can goal-setting theory be applied to the workplace? If so, give an example of how it would work.
a. Goal-setting theory is based on the idea that our level of motivation on the job is influenced by our desire to achieve a particular goal.
i. setting specific, challenging goals can motivate us
ii. difficult goals may stimulate our motivation to achieve at the expense of helping others
iii. individual goal commitment is the strength of our determination to reach our goal, and is influenced by external, internal, and interactive factors
b. The motivating effects of goal-setting are strongest for easy tasks rather than complex tasks
c. Management-by-objectives (MBO) is an application of goal-setting theory in the workplace, and involves a mutual agreement between employee and manager on goals to be achieved in a given period.
11. How can I-O psychologists measure job satisfaction? What personal characteristics can influence our level of job satisfaction?
a. The anonymous questionnaire is the most frequently used method to measure job satisfaction (e.g., Job Descriptive Index and the Minnesota Satisfaction Questionnaire). Personal interviews are sometimes used.
b. Personal characteristics linked with satisfaction include: age, gender, race, cognitive ability, job experience, use of skills, job congruence, organizational justice, personality, job control, and occupational level.
12. Describe some effects of losing one’s job. How does job loss affect the company employees who were not laid off?
a. Specific consequences of job loss include: feelings of guilt, resentment, depression, anxiety, physical complaints, alcohol abuse, drug abuse, divorce, spouse and child abuse, and thoughts of suicide.
b. Those left at work worry they may be next, resulting in increased stress, lower morale, and less commitment.
13. What is prosocial behavior? How does it relate to job satisfaction?
a. Prosocial behavior is that behavior directed toward supervisors, co-workers, and clients that is helpful to an organization.
b. Prosocial behavior correlates highly with job satisfaction.
c. Counterproductive behavior correlates highly with job dissatisfaction in older workers.
14. Discuss the relationship between job satisfaction and job performance for individual employees and for work groups.
a. Most job satisfaction research has focused on individual employees.
b. Recently, efforts have focused on collective (team) measures of job satisfaction.
c. Employee satisfaction at the collective level is positively related to customer satisfaction and loyalty, and to employee productivity and safety on the job. It is also related to reduced turnover rates.
15. Why is it difficult to conduct research on absenteeism? What organizational policies may contribute to high absenteeism rates?
a. Much of the research comes from self-reports, which can be inaccurate.
b. Individuals tend to self-report in a favorable light.
c. Attendance records are often not reliable if they exist at all.
16. Distinguish between functional turnover and dysfunctional turnover.
a. Functional turnover - when poor performers quit.
b. Dysfunctional turnover - when good performers quit.
17. How does a merit pay system differ from a wage-incentive pay system? What are problems with each of these approaches?
a. Merit pay is a wage system that is based on level of performance. Disadvantages include that greater pay for performance is valued more by employees who are introverted, pessimistic, and less energetic. Those with higher positive affectivity are more independent of the circumstances of their employment. Also, supervisors who receive a substantial pay raise are likely to reward their subordinates in kind. There is also disagreement as to the nature of behaviors that should be rewarded.
b. Wage-incentive system is the primary pay system for production workers, in which the more units produced, the higher the wage. Many groups establish their own standard of performance. Regardless of incentive, work will be spread out to comfortably fill the hours. Most workers prefer a straight hourly payment system.
18. What is the difference between job involvement and organizational commitment?
a. Job involvement is the intensity of a person’s psychological identification with the job.
b. Organizational commitment is related to both personal and organizational factors, and is the degree of psychological identification with or attachment to the company for which we work.
19. Discuss personal and organizational factors that can influence organizational commitment.
a. Personal factors include age, growth needs, and belief in the traditional work ethic.
b. Organizational factors include job enrichment, autonomy, opportunity to use skills, and positive attitudes toward the work group.
20. Describe three types of organizational commitment.
a. Affective (attitudinal) - the employee identifies with the organization, accepts its values, and complies with its demands
b. Behavioral (continuance) - the employee is bound by extrinsic factors (“golden handcuffs”)
c. Normative - involves a sense of obligation to the employer
21. What is organizational citizenship behavior? Give two examples of organizational citizenship behavior and tell what you think motivates it.
a. Organizational citizenship behavior involves putting forth extra effort, doing more than the minimum requirements for the job. Such behavior is consistent with that of a “model” employee.
b. Examples include taking on more assignments and voluntarily assisting others at work.
c. Some is self-serving; some is altruistic. Such individuals tend to be conscientious, extraverted, optimistic, and altruistic.