Goal Setting Theory And Maslow's Hierarchy Theory

Niamh Sweeney(15495172)

According to the English Dictionary (Collins English Dictionary, 2009),motivation is defined as reason for a course of action. Understanding motivation benefits managers as it produces the best results within a workplace. If a manager understands motivation, he/she can use it to inspire his/her workers, resulting in the production of greater work.

In this essay I will be outlining two theories of motivation: the goal-setting theory and Maslow’s hierarchy theory. I will discuss each theory, apply them to the workplace and explain how these theories help managers motivate employees in the workplace. For my conclusion I will compare and contrast both theories.

Maslow’s hierarchy of needs theory:

Maslow’s theory makes

In my mind, employees whose lowest level needs haven’t been met, will generate job decisions based on compensation, safety and stability. I think Managers must learn more about their employees in order to motivate them. They should listen, observe and ask ,then use this information to pinpoint each employees most important needs. From here managers can give the employee what is important to them and not the manager!.

Maslow’s five level of needs can be applied to the workplace as so;

1)Physiological needs-survival issues( salary, stable employment)

2)Security/Safety-stable work environment, fair work practice, benefits and work safety.

3)Belongingness-social concerns(cooperative peers, good boss, quality relationships)

4)Esteem-social acceptance, respect, acknowledgement)

5)Self-Actualization-Achievement concerns ,being all that we can, realizing career potential, individual development and growth.

Also, from my point of view managers should keep employees in the loop about what is happening to the organization and the future of it. Many employees could feel left out resulting in poor work ethic/lack of motivation. Finally I think managers must frequently adapt to the changing needs of their employees in order to keep their workforce

I think the goal setting theory can be used in two different ways; short-term and long-term. The short term version includes goals we set ourselves on an everyday basis such as doing the washing or cleaning the house. These goals are like a list of things to do, easily reached and reoccur often in our lives. On the other hand long-term goals are the ones we set ourselves to reach in the future, a few months or a couple of years away. We spend most of out time working towards them and there is usually a main goal such as your career goal, e.g. mine is to become a pilot. This type of goal requires a lot of hard work and dedication to reach. I have applied the goal setting theory to my studies by setting myself the long-term goal of becoming an airline pilot specifically. By setting myself this goal I motivate myself to get coursework done and do the best that I can because I know if I don’t then I will never reach this goal. This especially works when I am studying the business type modules that I have no interest in. I frequently remind myself of my long-term goal and why I’m at college. This motivates me to finish the work I have started or read that chapter that I wasn’t going to