Workplace Motivation Paper - Essay Example

? Workplace Motivation here PSY number here July 31, here Workplace Motivation Motivation is a theoretical hypothesis that is neither seen nor touched. Observation and measurement of motivational levels are through effects and byproducts (Jex, 2002). Behavior in the workplace helps with the determination of factors that need change. The motivational process explains the intensity, direction, and persistence of an individual, group or organizational effort toward attaining a goal (Robbins & Judge, 2011). Intensity measures how hard a person tries. Direction measures adherence to organizational goals. Persistence measures how long the individual will retain an effort to complete the task. Observation of work-related direction, duration, procedure, and intensity helps determine which motivational theory is most effective. Motivational theories help predict outcomes relevant to nationality, performance, and assist with stabilizing the organization’s culture. The organization must define and understand which behaviors it wishes to influence. This paper will examine a nursing home’s management philosophy, efforts to improve employee performance, types of resistance, examples of resistance management, and a theoretical application of two motivational theories to the nursing home. Management philosophy Most nursing homes have a philosophy is to provide a caring environment that offers residents opportunities to develop their own potential and the freedom to choose their own course of action. Laws protect the freedom of religious spiritual beliefs and the right to have visits from family and friends. A full service nursing home in New York wants to promote an environment that treats residents with respect in a warm, friendly and homely surrounding. The focus is on privacy, dignity, and independence. Providing round the clock practical nursing care allows peace of mind for residents and families. The home offers a hair salon, activities, exercise regiments, trips, menu selection (diet planning), gardens and walks. Offering the assurance of approachable, friendly, and happy staff is one of the attractions that encourage many to join this nursing home. Effort to improve performance The maintenance of a culture requires the counterbalance of change as it occurs. The full service nursing home’s neighborhood ambiance rather than a hospital approach is very innovative. The organization’s cultural revisions include using keywords and innovative event presentations. The staff and residents are culturally diverse. The use of several phrases and terminologies directly relating to individual backgrounds and nationalities are in use throughout the organization. Examples include the following: Senior employees use the term patient and newer employees use the term resident; and, some employees sometimes use endearing terms like sweetie or honey when addressing a resident. The organization wants a unified communicational culture using keywords and phrases. Some keyword examples are the use of first names instead of endearing terms, neighbor instead of resident, desk instead of nurse’s station, and helper instead of certified nurse’s aide (CNA). One event presentation is to have the CNAs serve the meals in the dining room using a restaurant presentation where food service is from a buffet cart similar to dining out at a restaurant. The CNAs must serve the food, and bust the tables. Previously, the CNAs would do the food service from trays similar to a hospital room service. The CNA would place the tray on the table and later just remove it. Because everything was already on the tray, busting and cleaning the table was not necessary. Resistance Resistance is an internal force of change that can be individual or organizational. Sources of resistance that individuals experience relate to security, economic habit, economic factors, fear of the unknown, and selective information processing (Robbins & Judge, 2011). Change confronts the natural tendency to react in an accustomed manner creating resistance. Some individuals have a high need for confidence. Confidence creates security. Change threatens the feeling of safety and creates resistance. Habit is a programmed response that individuals use as a coping mechanism. The economic fear is based on individual concerns that he will not be able to perform the new task. Fear rises when pay is tied to productivity. Change alternates to doubt and uncertainty becoming a fear of the unknown. Individuals like to keep their perceptions unharmed. Sometimes individuals choose to selectively learn information and ignore things that challenge current idealisms. Organizational sources of resistance relate to structural inertia, limited focus of change, group inertia, threat to expertise, and threat to established power relationships (Robbins & Judge, 2011). Organizations have regulations, policies, and procedures that provide stability this is called structural inertia. Change is counterbalanced by this structural inertia to maintain stability within the organization. The interdependent subsystems of organizations are affected by change. Limited focus of change occurs when the domino effect of subsystems is not considered during the change strategy process. Group inertia occurs when individuals want to change but constraints are related to the group norms. Over time specialized groups become expert at their tasks. Changes to task patterns threaten their area of expertise. Redistribution of the authority to make decisions creates threat to power relationships. Managing resistance Overcoming resistance is accomplished by managing change with an action plan. There are many ways to manage resistance. Lewin’s three step model suggests the unfreezing of the current situation, movement to goal, and refreezing the new situation (Robbins & Judge, 2011). The nursing home has many employees with over 20 years of service. They are resistant to learn the new keyword system. They do not understand why it is important to have uniform communication within the organization. Education and communication of the new keyword system before and during the change clears up misunderstandings. The training of group leaders to manage employee concerns in a group setting assists with the fear of the unknown and economic fear. During the meetings the encouragement of positive relationship building assists with group inertia. The CNAs are resistant to revising the food presentation. They think it is more work without more pay. The source of this resistance is both individual (economic fear) and organizational (group inertia). The nursing home leaders offer incentives to create compensation for the added task. The incentive is an organized group effort of a sharing this added responsibility. The CNA group inertia is eased through a joint effort that entails assistance from employees who belong to other units to assist the CNAs during this time period. Motivational theories The nursing home should try the employment of a traditional job characteristics motivational theory. Jex (2002) explains that the job characteristics theory is a revision to the motivational-hygiene theory. The revision is a set of procedures that teach the organization a practical approach to motivation. The essential task attributes are autonomy, feedback, skill variety, task identity, and task significance (Jex, 2002). The practical approach describes the motivational process using a flow chart. The flow chart explains how the motivational force affects both employees and management. The goal is to add as many of these tasks to the job description to produce critical psychological states such as meaningfulness, responsibility, and knowledge of results (Jex, 2002). Thus the job characteristics theory of motivation creates job satisfaction and quality performance. The addition of a contemporary theory at the nursing home may further motivate employees such as Albert Bandura’s self-efficacy theory (Robbins & Judge, 2011). The self-efficacy theory, also known as the cognitive theory or social learning theory, is based on the individual’s belief that the task can be performed. For example, people with low self-efficacy reduce efforts and people with high self-efficacy increase efforts. Research supports that people with high self-efficacy increase effort and motivation in response to negative feed-back (Robbins & Judge, 2011). Managers utilize the self-efficacy theory by applying it to goal setting concepts. In theory, self-efficacy works as the manager sets higher goals for employees. An employee with high self-efficacy will think the manager has confidence in him. The employee will motivate himself based on a rise in his own confidence. Increasing self-efficacy is done using the following techniques, arousal, enactive mastery, verbal persuasion, and vicarious modeling (Robbins & Judge, 2011). Arousal is energizing a state to complete a task. Enactive mastery is confidence building. Verbal persuasion is having others motivate the employee. Vicarious modeling is confidence building by simulating a desired state. A practical application is employee training through classes programs, and group meetings to build confidence and increase self-efficacy. Self-efficacy should be an additional motivational theory because it works best with conscientious and emotionally stable individuals. References Jex, S. M. (2002). Organizational Psychology: A scientist-practitioner approach. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley. Robbins, S. P., & Judge, T. A. (2011). Organizational Behavior (14th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson-Prentice Hall. Read More