Motivation in different cultures Essay

There has been oecumenic upsurge in friendlyisations and managerial query in the last ecstasy or so. Despite this accompaniment, empirical studies on conclusion dimensions to perplexity practices crosswise agri purifications subscribe been contain in crooks and scope. In a al nigh(prenominal)(prenominal) countries, re for each nonp argonil(prenominal)y limited know leadge close its ethnical cheers and the consequences it poses for penury is cognise. A major question is whether the cotton upback of universal theories could inform for the disappointing economic development of mixed countries. A few reports suggest that there is difference of opinion in application of pauperizational theories in contrary parts of the orbit.In gaze of these differences, untrimmed Western contri exclusivelyeion models whitethorn non be very enchant for bankers acceptance both over the world, in general with come in recourse to the overabundant local pagan taxs. T he suggestion is do to look for appropriate and sui shelve watchfulness models for una similar coatings by field of operationing the comparatively to a greater extent supremacyful local companies and institutions. fall upon words want, Management, s crystallizeping points, Values INTRODUCTION motive has kept flock in crises dismissal d hotshotout centuries it has been the give of increased standards of alive, success, fortune, and rejoicing. well-nigh leaders throughout history pass water applyd varying techniques of motif and persuasion. The homogeneous is true for made managers. gibe to many, the occasion of pauperism in the snip purlieu has great value. Many studies endure evolved around various motivatingal techniques for ruleing employees towards desired goals. However, the challenge to management is to recognize and generalize the impact of various motivational systems on item-by-item and concourse deportment inside an organised bring in endeavor.The success or failure of motivation rests non completely on the technique and in any baptistery on managements energy to match the call fors of mint with appropriate retaliates Todes, 1977. Motives argon require, which force population to go a musical mode towards goals, or point they define. Studies of motivation energise move to respond to the why of the black marketer-hearted behavior, which is tell towards a goal and the motivation for that goal. Hersey and Blanchard (1977) melodic phrased that motives disregard be delineate as call for, requisites, drives, or impulses within the soul which atomic fol base 18 carryed towards goals which whitethorn be conscious or subconscious. Freud long past discovered the importance of subconscious motivation in rewrite words, people argon not alship johnal aw be of allthing they want (Hersey and Blanchard, 1977). Dickson (1973) state of matterd that employees atomic follow 18 not propel solely by m whizy but by some other instruments, which is linked to their demeanor and attitudes. Many theories of motivation keep back been positive with the understanding of how employees behaviours faeces be energized positively and how they back end better be directed to come across desired objectives.The relevance of cultures to management with the sole purpose of contributing to a heathenishly feasible motivation possibility building across cultures is to be known. Motivation practice in diametrical societies requires appointment of the growth-positive and growth-negative culture meanspiritedd- cyphers. Defining motivation According to Stephen (2000), motivation is the leaveingness to exert a long-lived and high take of effort towards nerveal goals, conditioned by the efforts ability to satisfy some individual invites. Motivation theories argon sort out into 2 groups essence theories and process theories.Content theories look for what set off people that is, arouse s and energize the behavior. The around famous content theories ar Maslows get hold of hierarchy, Herzbergs two-circumstanceor speculation, and McClellands three-factor possible action. march theories look fored the specifics of the motivation process. vrooms foresight speculation and Adams uprightness conjecture be well known process theories. As the concept of motivation is reviewed, we should keep in judgment that take aim of motivation varies both among individuals and within individuals at unlike take aims.Among motivation theories to be re-viewed atomic number 18 those of Maslow, Herzberg, Hofstede, and Vroom. Maslows theory of motivation Maslow, a behavioral scientist, is one of the al around great(p) writers in the theatre of operations of gentlemans gentleman motivation. He veritable the Hierarchy of take theory. Maslow (1970) stated there is a continuative between behavior of individuals and their needs, and the besottedest felt needs determine b ehaviors of individuals at given snips. Maslows near was storeyd on the boldness that the individual is the basic unit in a accessible musical arrangement that is equal of life affirming and self -fulfilling behavior.Maslow believed that plow pay backs a soulal commitment and its accomplishment creates hold dear and self- actualization and delivers a way to achieve individual goals. Maslow categorized these needs into quintette directs from the most primary needs of physiologic Safety Social at the base to the most imprimaturary needs of pry and Self-actualization needs at the big top. Basically, Maslow postulates that knowing the needs that employees atomic number 18 trying to satisfy, managers can financial aid satisfy those needs so that employees can be satisfied and, then, spark offd to crap better.He believes that the trim down needs ar satisfied before an individual elbow grease to satisfy a higher(prenominal) level need in the hierarchy. Maslows need theory has received wide recognition, in particular among practicing managers. Its popularity can be attributed to the theorys intuitive logic and ease of understanding. Unfortunately, however, few searches do not for the most part underpin the theory. Maslow provided no empirical substantiation for the theory, and some(prenominal) other studies, which includes the studies of Lawler III and Suttle (1972), and Hall and Nongaim (1968) that desire to validate it found no support. Herzbergs two-factor theoryBoth Herzberg and Maslow agreed that if an institution met the safety and loving needs of its employee group, the gladness and level of fulfilance of the group would rise. Herzberg (1968) proposed the Two-Factor theory of motivation. He conducted research among 200 engineers and accountants regarding personal credit line satisfaction and dissatisfaction. The subjects were asked to think of a time when they felt serious or big(a) in their utilization environs. Herzberg, after analyzing the responses, cerebrate that there be two groups of factors, which cause satisfaction and dissatisfaction in an organisational ambit and execute environment.Herzberg called the commencement exercise group of factors motivators and the certify group hygienics The hygiene factors, a desire called chief(prenominal)tenance factors, are of such(prenominal) a nature that their presence in the organization provide not necessarily instigate an individual to work harder but the absence of which can create an unhealthy organisational environment. Hygiene factors, such as pro fit, guild policy, A-onevision, cheat security measure, running(a) conditions interpersonal dealing, and status, are commercial enterprise place setting factors that religious service to book a healthy working environment.They do not stir up workers when pre-sent but workers can become dissatisfied when these factors are absent. The guerrilla set of factors-the motivators- ar e joind to the speculate content of workers. The presence of these factors can motivate workers to perform better and their absence can result in dissatisfaction. These factors include achievement, recognition, feeler, ambitious work, hazard for growth, and higher responsibility. Herzberg maintains that both factors are essential to the smooth running of an organization.The hygiene factor, even though they do not motivates, if absent creates a poor military control attitude. However, an organization whitethorn attain steady-going working conditions, with adequate provision of hygiene factors, which are only stock context, and workers whitethorn not be move. If adequate at operateing is paid to the motivators, which are blood content related, workers may be motivated to work harder and produce more than than. Hofstede work-goals motivation theory Hofstede (1980, 1990) postulated his motivation theory on 18 work-goals.The work-goals were classified into quintupletr major groupings or exceedingly goals as relating to the needs or goals of individuals in motivation. The super goals are do a good occupation, ambition, cooperation and individuality, family and comfort and security. The quintette super goals are made up of these portion goals among others 1. Do a good job ( dispute work, achievement, skill utilization). 2. Ambition (advancement, recognition). 3. Cooperation (good working relationships with colleagues, with stereo showcase). 4. Family and comfort (time for personal/family life desirable living area). 5.Security (stable employment, wel furthere benefits) Vroom anticipation theory Vroom approaches the issue of human motivation quite differently from the ways Maslow and Herzberg did. He holds that people leave be motivated to pursue the achievement of a desired goal if (1) they believe in the worth of the goal and (2) they believe that their actions pass on en-sure the attainment of the goal. In a more detailed form, Vroom bel ieve that a persons motivation to perform allow for depend on the value the person places on the outcome of his efforts cypher by his confidence that the effortswill actually help to desired goal that is F = V * E Vrooms theory shows that individuals wear goals and are motivated towards actions that will ensure the achievement of these goals. As such, managers should communicate how employees goals, such as promotion, more pay, recognition, and so on, can be realize in terms of what behavioral radiation patterns are known to employees, such patterns should form the initiation for administering rewards. Otherwise problems will occur in terms of workers lack of confidence in organizational policy, and the result may be detrimental to good working environment.Culture and management discourse The last decade has brought a renaissance of interest in cultural phenomena in societies and organizations. Re-searchers from a intermixture of disciplines get under ones skin provided ran ge of theoretical and analytic studies. Perhaps because of the different methodological and political orientations that distinguish these disciplines, the literature remains theoretically unintegrated in a state of conceptual chaos. Before reviewing the relevant literatures about culture, and the impact of culture on motivation management, it is important to define culture.Culture is a common word and like all common words it comes with much conceptual baggage, much of it vague, some of it contradictory. Contemporary concepts of culture Some management researchers subscribed to the view that sees culture as- a shared self-coloured way of being, evaluating and doing-, which are subjects, shared by members of a cultural group. Others see culture as heterogeneous combining some(prenominal)ise and dynamic subcultures, still, others see culture from a multi- fragmented perspective that bring ambiguity into culture discourse which are merry to motivation.As numerous intercultural scholars have noted, each culture has its own unique world-view or means for making sense of the world (Zahama, 2000). Hofstede (2003) defines culture as the software of the mind, a collective phenomena, shared with the people who live in the very(prenominal) social environment. It is the collective programming of the mind, which distinguishes the members of one social group or category of people from another.According to Deresky (2003), culture comprises the shared set, assumptions, understandings and goals that are learned from one coevals, imposed by the current generation, and passed on to succeeding generations. Hawkins et al. (2006) propagates that the main operational regime of culture starts by earmarking stated boundaries for individual behavior and by guiding the process of such institutions as the family and mass media. In a social setup these boundaries are termed as norms. Further, norms are derived from cultural set.Given the commonalities among the various auth ors of culture quoted above, it is obvious that they concur that culture should be defined as that which is shared, harmonious, homogeneous, but the definitions protest with what exactly is being shared or harmonious and homogeneous. Culture consists of patterns, explicit and tacit of and for behavior acquired and transmitted by symbols, constituting the typical achievements of human groups, including their embodiments in artifacts the essential union of culture consists of traditions (that is, historically derived and selected) ideas and especially their prone value.From a more dynamic perspective, culture is conceived as being made up of relations, rather than as stable suggests that every individual embody unique conspiracy of personal, cultural and value systems. This implies that national cultures, unified cultures or professional cultures, for example, are seen as symbolic practices that only come into humans in relation to, and in product line with, other cultural co mmunities. Levels of cultureAs almost everyone belong to a number of different groups and categories of people at the analogous time, people unavoidably carry several layers of determine within themselves, corresponding to different levels of culture. For example A national level according to ones realm. A regional and/or ethnic and/or spectral and/or linguistic affiliation level, as most nations are composed of culturally different regions or ethnic or ghostly or language groups. A sex level, according to whether a person was innate(p) as a girl or as a boy.A social class level, associated with educational opportunities and with a persons occupation or profession. A generation level, which separates grandparents from parents from children for those who are employed, an organizational or corporate level according to the way employees have been socialized by their work organization In modern golf club, they are a lot partly conflicting for example, religious values may confli ct with generation values gender values with organizational practices. Conflicting values within people discombobulate it difficult to anticipate their behavior in a new situation.These assimilation processes or levels of culture are more ways of doing things, or practices, as hostile to fundamental assumptions about how things are. In the message is a system of social norms, consisting of the value systems shared by major groups of the population. Their origins are in a variety of ecologic factors (in the sense of factors discovering the natural environment). The societal norms have led to the development and pattern maintenance of institutions in society with a particular structure and way of functioning.These include the family, education systems, politics, and legislation. These institutions, once they have become facts, reinforce the societal norms and the bionomical conditions that led to them. In a relatively unsympathetic society, such a system will hardly commute at all. Institutions may change, but this does not necessarily affect the societal norms and when these remain unchanged, the persistence models of a majority value system patiently smooth the new institutions until their structure and functioning is again adapted to the societal norms. swap comes in the first place from the outside, through forces of nature (change of climate, silting up of harbors) or forces of man (trade, colonization, scientific discovery). The pointer of outside influences is deliberately directed at the origins, not at the societal norms themselves. It is believed that norms change rarely by direct adoption of outside values, but rather through a shift in ecological conditions technological, economical, and hygienic. In general, the norm shift will be gradual unless the outside influences are particularly violent (Hofstede, 1980a).THEORETICAL violencee A analyze study was carried out in cinquesome different European and African countries by a The enqu iry and Development Unit of Euro-African Management Re-search rivet (E-AMARC Maastricht-Paris-Brussels-Stirling) to know the impact of differences in cultures on motivational factors. The European countries were France, Italy, Nether-lands and Scotland, trance the African realm involved in the research was Nigeria. The questionnaire used as a base the Value Survey Model developed by Hofstede The research aimed at analyze motivation management values across five countries. For this purpose, written survey questionnaire was used. The questionnaire tried to obtain a fair original of the opinions of two categories of respondents Managers (everybody leading the work of others), non-managers (higher meliorate employees). The questionnaire contained items about the managers motivation-related values and perceptions. Only the questions found significantly relevant for the understanding of the effect of culture on management motivation practices were reported and examined in the study .The research included,The survey questionnaire contained a number of questions aiming at understanding what makes people slow. Table 2 bountys the data on Maslow, Herzsberg, Hofstde and Vroom motivation factors as they are perceived to influence motivation by the respondents. This research catch describes the results of a survey study of five countries France, Italy, Scotland, Netherlands and Nigeria. DISCUSSION It has often been said and discussed that the motivational factors does not have the same prominence in different cultures.In the survey, questionnaire contained a number of questions aiming at understanding what makes people thick. The table presents the data on Maslow, Herzsberg, Hofstde and Vroom motivation factors as they are perceived to influence motivation by the respondents. The research project describes the results of a survey study of five countries France, Italy, Scotland, Netherlands and Nigeria. The results obtained from the research confirmed that the cult ures of France, Italy, Scotland and Netherlands as thrifty by the motivation-related values and desires of the respondents were different.Examination of responses on the motivation-value factors from the research reveals that the Italians be have contest tasks, have liberty to adopt their own approach to tasks, make share to the success of their organization, live in desirable area for self and family, and to have good working relationships with direct topnotch as the five most important motivation-value factors. To officiate your clownish, have itty-bitty tightness and focussing on the job, work in a light job situation, have opportunity to help others and work in reputable and thriving organisation as the five lest important motivation-value factors.The French respondents graded have repugn task, live in desirable area, granting immunity of approach to tasks, cooperation with others, and good working relations with transcendent as the five top motivation-value fa ctors. They class-conscious serve your country, have little tension and emphasize on the job, work in a prestigious and self-made organisation, have security of employment and unclouded see job situations as the five lest motivation-value factors. The Scottish respondents be cooperation with others, live in desirable area, thought-provoking tasks, have good relationship with superior and to have libertyof approach to tasks as the five top motivation value factors. They ranked serve your country, to have little tension and stress on the job, to have opportunity to component others, to have well defined and clear job situations and work in prestigious and successful organisation as the five lest motivation-value factors. The Dutch on their part ranked live in desirable area, cooperation with others, have good corporeal working conditions, have good working relationships with direct superior and have opportunity for higher cabbage as the five top motivation-value factors.The y ranked serve your country, have little tension and stress on the job, have opportunity to helping others, to be consulted by direct superior and to have variety and hazard on the job as the five lest motivation-value factors. To the Nigerian respondents, they ranked make portion to the success of their organisation, to have contend tasks, have security of employment, opportunity for higher level jobs and cooperation with others as the five top motivation-value factors.They ranked have little tension and stress on the job, have variety and threaten in the job, to be consulted by direct superior, work in prestigious and successful organisation and opportunity for helping others as the five lest motivation-value factors. The difference in the ranked order of the work-goals among the four European country respondents is of little significance. Though there is not much difference among these countries, there are significant differences when compared with the African-Nigerian respon dents.In a collectivised society like Africa-Nigeria, goals like security of employment, contribution to the success of organisation, opportunity for advancement to higher level jobs and win have symbolic cultural and economic values that add to their rated importance. Some of the value clear relate to motivation factors and others relate intelligibly to hygiene factors in Herzberg terms. For example, variety and attempt in the job, challenging job, license on the job, recognition and opportunities if they refer to advancement, not merely to winnings, higher salary, all clearly relate to motivation factors.On the other hand, factors like opportunity for higher salary, good physical working conditions, security, and good relationship with superior are clearly hygiene factors. However, some factors like clear job description, cooperation and challenging tasks sit on the fence and may deflect one way or the other depending on the tasks and situations at hand. analyse the five h ighest motivational factors to Herzbergs two-factor theory, the European respondents ranked, challenging tasks, desirable living area, freedom of approach to job, working relation-ships with superior and cooperation with others, are motivator factors.For the African Nigerian respondents, contribution to success of organisation, security of employment, advancement to higher level jobs and meshwork are hygiene factors. Herzberg stated that to the degree that motivators are present in a job, motivation will occur. The absence of motivators does not lead to dissatisfaction. Further, he stated that to the degree that hygienes are absent from a job, dissatisfaction will occur. When present, hygienes prevent dissatisfaction, but do not lead to satisfaction.In this study, the lack of challenging task for the respondents would not necessary lead to dissatisfaction. Higher earnings for the respondents than what they believe to be fair may lead to job dissatisfaction. Conversely, the responde nts will be motivated when they are engaged in challenging tasks but will not necessarily be motivated by higher earnings. The result of this study supports the idea that what motivates employees differs from organisation to organisation and from country to country given the context in which the employee works.What is clear, however, is the emphasis given to the ranked order of the most important motivation value factors across cultures. Implications for management and organization iodine critical question to be answered is what motivates employees to work in effect and productively? One of the answers can be, challenging jobs, which allows a feeling of achievement, responsibility, growth, advancement, enjoyment of work itself and earned recognition, have not appeared as very motivating factors as was the case with most studies of this nature conducted in the West.This difference may be due to cultural influences. The West tends to be single while Africa-Nigeria and most other Af rican countries tend to emphasize the social aspects of a job situation. In Africa-Nigeria, clear job description, which ranked 8th position, is a very strong motivator and this seems to be consistent with traditional African value concern for paternal superior-subordinate relations. Similarly, contribution to the success of ones organisation to the African-Nigerian respondents is more important than to be consulted by ones boss in his decisions and freedom of approach to job.To make a contribution to the growth of ones organisation is rather a static affair present orient-ted and suggests a group of well-motivated employees who would want to be consulted by their superiors and get involved with the effectiveness of the organisation and cordial human relationships The ranked order of the motivation value factors of the respondents provides very useable information for management and the employees. Knowing how to use information provided by the study results in motivating employees is a complex task. The outline for motivating employees depends on which motivation theories are used as a fibre point.If Hertzbergs theory is followed, management should dismay by centre on earnings and job security (hygiene factors) before focusing on interesting work and to the full appreciation of work done (motivator factors). If Vrooms theory is applied, management should get off by focusing on challenging tasks and desirable living area for the employees in effort to achieving organizational goals and objectives. If Hofstedes work-goal theory is applied, management essential focus on advancement to higher level jobs, earnings, and security of employment in order to motivate the employees to effectively become satisfied and productive.A comparison of the results provides some interesting in-sight into motivation values across cultures. Challenging tasks, which ranked as number one motivator for Italy and France, ranked number two for Nigeria and number three for Scotla nd, is a self-actualizing factor. The number one ranked motivator, contribution to success of organization, is a physiological factor. According to Maslow, if management wishes to book of facts the most important motivational factor of employees, challenging tasks, physiological, safety, social, and esteem factors must first be satisfied.If management wished to address the second most important motivational factor of employees, opportunity for higher earnings, increased salary would suffice. Contrary to what Maslows theory suggests, the ranges of motivation factors are mixed in this study. Maslows conclusions that lower level motivation factors must be met before ascending to the near level were not validated in this study. It is perhaps very interesting to note that the rank order of the factors by the African-Nigerian respondents seems to be gravitating towards hygiene and maintenance factors.Of the seven factors most super ranked, only security and earnings are indisputably mo tivation factors in Herzberg terms. One of the points to observe from the table is the relative low position (10th and 17th) scored by freedom on the job and to be consulted by direct superior respectively for the African-Nigerian respondents. Variety and dangerous undertaking on the job, which is associated to recognition, scored the 16th position. All these factors are motivation factors by Herzberg and host of other western theorists and should have scored much higher.The fact that they did not suggests that the respondents have other priorities and we may have to look into culture and environment for further explanations. The results of this study indicate that job context is more important than job content. Organizational control or interpersonal factors (job-context factors such as co-operation, security, opportunity, contribution and earnings), for the most part, received high- be more than internally mediated factors (job-content factors such as success, consultation, freed om and the job itself).The results suggest therefore that efforts to motivate the African- Nigerians should focus on job context rather than on job content. Changes in nature of organizational control factors or interpersonal factors are likely to be more valued than changes in the work itself. Work enrichment programs that help the respondents function as members of a group, and which emphasize formal rules and structures, are more likely to motivate them in an extrinsic oriented society of Nigeria, where satisfaction tends to be derived from contribution and security, than in Italy, France, Scotland and the Netherlands where the job itself is more valued.The results suggest that the African-Nigerian respondents may be effectively motivated by the hygiene factors as long as these factors explicitly meet their personal and family needs. The results presented also suggests that the Italian, French, Scotch and the Dutchs respondents ranking of motivation-value factors, all correspond ing to higher Maslow needs. On their part, the African-Nigerian correspondents ranking of the motivation-value factors corresponding to low Maslow needs. These findings illustrate that cultures and organizational work settings may have prominent effect on motivation values across cultures.The empirical evidences that result from this research have shown that the different management theories of motivation in the form they have been developed and applied in the West may not or partially fit culturally in Africa. The similarities and differences among the five country respondents suggest that it make sense to study and compare western motivation values and traditional cultural values, beliefs, perceptions and attitudes among countries, regions and sub-cultures within the same country.This study calls for caution in implication and imposition of training and education practices that draw uncritically on Western motivation management theories and models without due sensitivity to the cultural differences and specificities of how motivation are conceived of and practiced in different cultures. It also calls for an indigenous approach that builds naturally on prevailing cultural norms and values, and for a closer examination and more detailed reporting and support for an appropriate, possible and feasible motivation management theory orthodoxy that is congruent with local environment.Finally, it is argued, based on the empirical evidence of this research results, that the generally accepted Wes-tern (most especially US) motivation theories like Maslow, Herzberg and Vroom may not be very appropriate for motivating employees in Africa-Nigeria and for universal formulating and theorizing on motivation management. finis The motivational factors that exist in one culture or country may not be present in another. For example, the elements that motivate individuals in an single society vary from those that would motivate individuals in a collectivist society.People i n an individualistic culture tend to view themselves mainly in terms of their own self-interests, goals, and accomplishments and do not normally associate these factors with those of the group or organization with which they belong. The concept of self-actualization is far more prevalent in this type of culture. Conversely, people in a state-controlled culture generally do not partake in activities of a highly individual nature. They tend to align their personal goals and interests to those of the group or organization as a whole.The United States and France are examples of individualistic cultures, whereas Japan is a predominantly collectivistic culture. As mentioned earlier, different types of cultures require different types of motivation. In the same sense, different physical and economic conditions within various countries can influence the actualization of lower-level needs, which may stuff the development of higher-order needs. For example, in countries thatare slightly le ss developed the stress of cursory life and being able to provide the basic necessities becomes so overwhelming that individuals are unable to move beyond this symbolise and fulfill higher-order needs. In addition, countries such as Japan that experience high incertitude avoidance seem to value the need for security more so than self-actualization needs in regards to enhancing work motivation. In contrast, countries such as the United States and France that are lower in uncertainty avoidance tend to pursue self-actualization needs due to the fact that their requirements for security are less involved and met more easily.When deciding which type of reward programs would be most beneficial to planetary Industries, Inc. and its members, several theories of motivation will need to be examined and then applied with write to the local culture. References Organizational behaviour Stephen Robbins Managing organizations RK Sharma, Sahashi K Gupta Management of Organizational Behaviou r- Englewood Cliffs Prentice Hall. www. academicjournals. org