Motivation Theories Essay

This essay examines the impact of motivation on employee performance and analyzes two prominent theories: Adam's Equity Theory and Vroom's Expectancy Theory. It highlights the core principles of each theory, their strengths and limitations, and their implications for effective workforce management and achieving organizational goals.

MOTIVATION

TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................3
MAIN BODY...................................................................................................................................3
Adam’s Equity Theory................................................................................................................3
Vroom's expectancy theory..........................................................................................................5
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................7
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................8

INTRODUCTION
Motivation is the driving factor that influences person's performance and encourage
improving overall activities at a greater extent. A motivated workforce contributes in growth of
an organisations' functionality and assists in managing the profitability and productivity. This
essay is going to identify the impact laid by motivation, its importance will be examined for
employees' in organisation. Here, suitable motivational theories such as content and process
theories will be chosen for effective workforce encouragement.
MAIN BODY
Motivation is key factor that assists in proper management of the skills and performance
of an enterprise. This is a mental and physical state of a person and is deeply influenced by
significant factors such as culture, society, lifestyle and others (Herzberg, 2017). These methods
must be adopted and assimilated within firm to boost up the morale of work force and enhance
their effectiveness to achieve organisational objectives. This will inculcate motivational
emotions to encourage an employee to work efficiently.
For this purpose, various encouragement concepts can be placed for employee
encouragement. They are further classified in two categories: Process and content theory. It
includes several theories that help in proper placement of encouragement among the manpower
of firm. Some major motivational theories are:
Adam’s Equity Theory
This equity theory states that most of the people get motivated only if they are treated
equality and receive fair reward for their efforts and cost. This theory was proposed by Adam
and was based on Social exchange theory.
As per this theory most of the times people usually compare themselves, their
contribution of work, their action cost, benefits of the results they will contribute as well as
benefits of a reference person. If people feel that the ratio of their input and output is not equal to
other's input and output ratio then they will be motivated to reduce the inequality.

Illustration 1: Adams equity theory
(Source: Adams Equity theory, 2018)
In an organization all the employees put their input into their job for example their
experience, education, energy, efforts, responsibility and expectations in order to receive some
output such as rewards, salary, promotion, achievements, rewards, good working conditions,
security, bonus, verbal recognition, various kinds of challenges at work in equal amount.
This theory is not only applicable at workplaces but at schools as well. For example if an
oral exam is conducted and based on the performance of two students they get different marks
then the inequality exist. In this case student with less marks will be motivated to learn in order
to get better marks next time. But sometimes it can also demotivate someone, if a person who do
not perform well or put their efforts gets better results or marks as compared to the person who
has performed really well and put their best efforts. This inequality increases the amount of
distress on an individual which might demotivate the person who has put his best efforts.
So it can be sad that when inequality exists a person can either
 Reduce their efforts, inputs or quality and quantity of their work.
 Try to increase their output by asking pay rise etc.
 Adjust other persons' perception, their outputs or inputs.

 Quit the situation
 Change the other person.
The main problem with this theory is that it does not take into account all the differences in an
individual’s values, needs and personalities but this theory ensures that equity is essential for
motivation.
Vroom's expectancy theory
This theory states that motivation is based on the beliefs of a person. It involves three
factors:
Expectancy: It involves belief of person that more efforts lead to higher chances of success. In
other words, hard work leads to rise in performance. It is mainly based on the self-efficiency
which helps to improve workforce performance in regard to an organisation.
Instrumentality: This is based on the perception of a person to have a connection between
activities or actions and goals. If a person performs well, he/she gets rewarded and will achieve
personal or work based objectives in an enterprise.
Valance: It involves valuation of the reward or achievement gained by an individual or a team as
a whole. This is based on the behaviour of an individual or employees' towards the result of
efforts applied within an enterprise (Lepper and Greene, 2015).
The content theory will help in motivating the work force within the organisation. It
contributes in improving the efficiency of the work force and contributes to effective rise in
efficiency of manpower within a firm.
Illustration 2: Vroom's Expectancy Theory
(Source: Motivation theories, 2019)

Both the theories will lead to motivate work force in firm. It will assist in identifying the
needs or requirements of an employee or the entire manpower of an organisation. It helps to
encourage them for setting up suitable goals and implementation of proper efforts that will assist
individual to fulfil their job roles and organisation to achieve their business goals.
Comparative Analysis: Here, Adams equity theory focuses on the engagement of individuals in
social comparison by comparing their efforts and rewards with others efforts and rewards. The
fairness in ones rewards as compared to others influence the level of motivation in them
(Nicholls, 2017). On the other hand, Vroom's Expactancy Theory emphasised on measures or
behavioural aspects of motivation to help in suitable improvement in operations of firm.
Adams equity theory compares the input given by a person to the organization and the
output received by them with other input and output. (Wlodkowski and Ginsberg, 2017). This
comparison influences the level of motivation in an individual i.e. person can either feel
motivated or demotivated. In contradiction to this, Vroom's Expectancy Theory considered all
the three elements such as expectancy, instrumentality and valance are considered together in
combined form to sum up the motivation of an individual or entire workforce of an organisation.
In Adams equity theory all the external forces plays a crucial role as all the individuals as
said to compare their rewards with others in the society or in an organization. While in Vroom’s
Expectancy Theory all the external factors do not affect the motivation.
In Adams equity theory motivation is one of the third part constraint where employees
compare their input and output with others but in Vroom’s Expectancy Theory motivation occurs
due to personal efforts and reward system.
CONCLUSION
This can be summarised from above that motivation is an important aspect for an
enterprise that assist management to undertake suitable measures for assimilating motivation
within the workforce. Thus, both theories supported in establishing encouragement factor and
maintain positive business environment among the employees' with the help of using several
tools and techniques. Lastly, it is concluded that motivation maintains the standards of work
performance in direct manner.

REFERENCES
Books and Journals
Herzberg, F., 2017. Motivation to work. Routledge.
Leary, M.R. and Baumeister, R.F., 2017. The need to belong: Desire for interpersonal
attachments as a fundamental human motivation. In Interpersonal Development (pp. 57-
89). Routledge.
Lepper, M.R. and Greene, D., 2015. The hidden costs of reward: New perspectives on the
psychology of human motivation. Psychology Press.
Nicholls, J.G., 2017. Conceptions of ability and achievement motivation: A theory and its
implications for education. In Learning and motivation in the classroom (pp. 211-238).
Routledge.
Wlodkowski, R.J. and Ginsberg, M.B., 2017. Enhancing adult motivation to learn: A
comprehensive guide for teaching all adults. John Wiley & Sons.
Online
Adams Equity theory. 2018. [Online]. Accessed through:
<https://www.toolshero.com/psychology/theories-of-motivation/adams-equity-theory/>
Motivation theories. 2019. [Online]. Accessed through:
<https://www.tankonyvtar.hu/hu/tartalom/tamop412A/2011-0023_Psychology/
030300.scorml>