EMPLOYING HERZBERG'S TWO-FACTOR MOTIVATION THEORY TO IDENTIFY THE COMPONENTS OF EMPLOYEE MOTIVATION

 

Introduction 

‘Competition as a result of globalisation, information technology and industrialisation has compelled managers all over the world to seek to motivate their employees in order to get the best out of them and to stay competitive’ (Dartey-Baah and Amoako 2011, pg. 1)

Motivation among employees plays a necessary part in the success of a business as it affects three parts. There are overall performance, job satisfaction, and productivity. Organizations looking to maximize employee engagement and advance a healthy work environment must understand what motivates their employees. The fundamentals that affect worker motivation and job satisfaction are clarified by Herzberg's Two-Factor Theory of Motivation.

According to Robbins (2009), Motivating and Hygiene Factors are the two categories of factors that Frederick Herzberg's 1959 Two-Factor Theory identifies as influencing employees' attitudes and performance. It is necessary to address motivation elements, according to Herzberg, and having an ample supply of hygiene factors does not guarantee an increase in job satisfaction. 

The Two-Factor Theory, which was created by psychologist Frederick Herzberg in the 1950s, makes a distinction between two categories of factors: motivators and clean factors. When present, hygiene factors—also referred to as dissatisfiers—are critical for minimizing workplace discontent but may not always result in higher motivation. These variables include things like pay, benefits, job security, working conditions, corporate regulations, and the caliber of supervision.

However, when present, motivators—also known as satisfiers—are fundamental to the work itself and have a direct impact on worker motivation and satisfaction. Achievement, acknowledgment, accountability, progress, and the nature of the work itself are all examples of motivators. According to Herzberg, these elements are crucial for determining job satisfaction and have the potential to boost workers' motivation and output.

Ozsoy (2019) Suggests that, At present in leadership and organizational psychological studies and real-world practices, employee motivation has become a highly regarded and popular topic. Any issues in employee motivation will have a direct and critical impact on the overall performance of the organization because the employees’ performance will purely rely on their level of motivation (Yusoff, Kian and Idris 2013). Throughout the years, many theories emerged which are either related or has a direct impact on employee motivation that are categorized into three categories namely ‘content theories, process theories, and contemporary theories’ (Badubi 2017, pg. 1).

Herzberg's Two-Factor Motivation Theory

Management should be concerned with the nature of the work itself—the chances it gives workers to advance in their careers, take on greater responsibility, and realize their own potential—if they wish to see an improvement in employee job satisfaction. On the other side, management needs to concentrate on the work environment, including rules, practices, oversight, and working conditions, if it hopes to lower employee unhappiness. Managers need to be aware of both sets of job characteristics to guarantee a contented and effective workforce.

Robbins (2009) concluded that The two-factor theory, similar to Maslow's hierarchy of needs, suggests that meeting lower-level needs (extrinsic or hygiene factors) will prevent dissatisfaction but not motivate employees to exert effort. To motivate employees, organizations should focus on providing intrinsic or motivational factors, as meeting extrinsic factors will only prevent dissatisfaction. 

Amongst the researchers and practitioners, Herzberg’s two-factor theory is commonly called the Motivation-hygiene theory or Herzberg’s dual-factor theory (Alshmemri, Shahwan-Akl and Maude 2017).

According to Herzberg's theory, motivators and cleanness factors are two different categories of factors that affect employee motivation. There are Sanitation factors, often called dissatisfiers, are aspects of the workplace that, if they are absent, may give rise to employee discontent. These cover things like pay, benefits, job security, working conditions, corporate policy, and the standard of supervision. Although their absence can cause dissatisfaction, their presence does not always result in increased drive.

 In this investigation, we examine the difficulties of Herzberg's Two-Factor Theory, breaking down each element to highlight its importance in determining worker motivation. Our objective is to offer practical guidance for adopting a dynamic and productive workforce by clarifying how companies may utilize this framework to maximize employee satisfaction and engagement.

In 1957 Buhl Foundation based in Pittsburgh, sponsored the research that proposed the two-factor theory in 1956 which the participants were instructed to ‘rate incidents according to its impact on job attitude’ and labeled the high sequence events as hygiene factors where those did not result motivation when existing but caused in unhappiness when lacking and low sequence events were labeled as motivators caused motivation when exist and caused no dissatisfaction when absent (Sanjeev and Surya 2016, pg. 4).

Summary of the Factors in Herzberg’s Theory / Source: (Alshmemri, Shahwan-Akl and Maude 2017, pg. 13)

Herzberg mentioned six motivation factors, which are as follows:

 

 1)Recognition

2) Advancement

3) Responsibility

4) Achievement

5) Possibility of growth

6) Job content or work itself

Similarly, Herzberg mentioned ten hygiene or maintenance factors, which are as follows:

 

(i) Company policy and administration

(ii) Technical supervision

(iii) Interpersonal relations with subordinates

(iv) Salary

(v) Job security

(vi) Personal life

(vii) Working conditions

(viii) Status

(ix) Interpersonal relations with supervisors

(x) Interpersonal relations with peers

 Herzberg’s Theory of Motivation (2014)(With Diagram). [online] Available at: https://www.yourarticlelibrary.com/entrepreneurship/motivation-entrepreneurship/herzbergs-theory-of-motivation-with-diagram/45065

Critical Evaluation of Herzberg’s Theory:

Herzberg's theory, based on field research, is the first to understand motivation in the work environment and recommends actions for managers to improve it.

While Herzberg’s Two-Factor Theory has been influential in understanding employee motivation, it is not without its analyses and limitations. Below are some critical evaluations of the theory.

Herzberg's idea has been criticized for the following reasons, although all of its advantages

•       Its methodology places limitations on it. When something goes well, people usually claim the credit. On the other hand, they blame the outside environment for failures.

•       Herzberg’s model talks more about job satisfaction than about job motivation.

•        Herzberg's methodology focuses only on job satisfaction, rather than production, even though the theory suggests a relationship between job satisfaction and productivity.

Conclusion

Herzberg's Two-Factor Theory is a usually used motivational theory that incorporates natural and extrinsic motivation factors. It covers various industries and generations, and its motivation and hygiene factors are similar to other theories. Herzberg's motivation factors include responsibilities, achievements, growth, promotion, recognition, and work itself, while hygiene factors include relationships, personal life, supervision, status, power, pay, benefits, work conditions, job security, and company policy.

Borkowski, (2011) explained that Motivation and hygiene factors introduced by Herzberg have found similarities among other motivation theories under content theories as each theory carries various employees’ needs for motivation in similar terms (Borkowski, 2011).

Reference List

• Dartey-Baah, K. and Amoako, G.K. (2011). Application of Frederick Herzberg’s Two-Factor theory in assessing and understanding employee motivation at work: a Ghanaian Perspective. European Journal of Business and Management, 3(9), pp.1–8.

• Ozsoy, E. (2019). An empirical test of Herzberg’s two-factor motivation theory. Marketing and Management of Innovations, 1(1), pp.11–20. doi:10.21272/mmi.2019.1-01.

• Yusoff, W.F.W., Kian, T.S. and Idris, M.T.M. (2013). HERZBERG’S TWO FACTORS THEORY ON WORK MOTIVATION: DOES ITS WORK FOR TODAYS ENVIRONMENT? Global Journal of Commerce and management Perspective, 2(5), pp.18–22.
• Badubi, R.M. (2017). Theories of Motivation and Their Application in Organizations: A Risk Analysis. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF INNOVATION AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, [online] 3(3), pp.44–51. doi:10.18775/ijied.1849-7551-7020.2015.33.2004.
• Stephen P. Robbins (2009). Organizational Behaviour: International Version, 13/E. Pearson Higher Education
• Your Article Library. (2014). Herzberg’s Theory of Motivation (With Diagram). [online] Available https://www.yourarticlelibrary.com/entrepreneurship/motivation-entrepreneurship/herzbergs-theory-of-motivation-with-diagram/45065.
• Alrawahi, S., et.al. (2020). The application of Herzberg’s two-factor theory of motivation to job satisfaction in clinical laboratories in Omani hospitals. Heliyon, [online] 6(9), p.e04829. doi:10.1016/j.heliyon.2020.e04829
• Nancy Borkowski, (2011). Organizational Behavior in Health Care (2nd ed.) United Kingdom, Jones and Bartlett Publisher International.