Which one of the following is not a ‘hygiene factor’ of Herzberg's Two Factor theory ?
Responsibility
Responsibility — option 3. It is a motivator, not a hygiene factor.
The theory. Frederick Herzberg asked accountants and engineers to describe times when they felt exceptionally good and exceptionally bad about their work. The striking finding was that the two lists named different things — the causes of satisfaction were not simply the opposites of the causes of dissatisfaction. He concluded that two separate sets of factors are at work.
| Hygiene factors (maintenance) | Motivators (satisfiers) | |
|---|---|---|
| Relate to | The context of the job — the environment in which the work is done | The content of the job —> the work itself |
| Examples | Company policy and administration, supervision, interpersonal relations, working conditions, salary, status, job security | Achievement, recognition, the work itself, RESPONSIBILITY, advancement, growth |
| If absent | Dissatisfaction | No satisfaction — but not dissatisfaction |
| If present | No dissatisfaction — but not satisfaction | Satisfaction and motivation |
The central claim, which is what the question tests. Satisfaction and dissatisfaction are not two ends of one scale but two separate continua :
| Continuum | Runs from | To | Governed by |
|---|---|---|---|
| First | Dissatisfaction | No dissatisfaction | Hygiene factors |
| Second | No satisfaction | Satisfaction | Motivators |
So improving pay or working conditions removes discontent but does not motivate; only the content of the work does that. Herzberg’s phrase for merely improving hygiene was “KITA” — movement, not motivation.
Why the three distractors are hygiene factors. Interpersonal relations, working conditions and job security all describe the surroundings of the work rather than the work itself. Responsibility, by contrast, is something the job gives the person to do, which is why it sits with achievement and advancement among the motivators.
What follows for practice. The theory is the direct source of job enrichment — adding planning and control responsibilities to a job vertically, rather than merely adding more tasks of the same kind, which is job enlargement. It also underlies the design of the Job Characteristics Model of Hackman and Oldham.
The criticisms are examinable: the sample was narrow, the critical-incident method invites people to claim credit for good outcomes and blame the environment for bad ones, and satisfaction was assumed to translate into productivity without being measured.
Hence, the answer is Responsibility.
Similar Questions
An individual's involvement in work primarily indicates his/her:
When an individual is motivated to approach two or more positive but mutually exclusive goals, he is facing which one type of the following conflicts ?
According to Vroom’s theory of motivation, which one of the following is correct ?
A theory of motivation that is concerned with the beneficial effects of intrinsic motivation and the harmful effects of extrinsic motivation, is termed as :
Which of the following is not perceived as the basic element of motivation ?
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Statement (I): “Motivation is a continuous, complex and dynamic process”.
Statement (II): “As compared to other industries, extra motivation is required in service sector industries”.
Give the correct order of stages in goal setting theory.
Which among the following is not a hygiene factor ?
Boss offers an employee a promotion which has huge increase in salary along with a new title. It also requires employee to work ten hours more per week along with shifting to a remote place. It is an example of which one of the following?
Important Questions from Motivation
- Match List I with List Il related to content Theories of Motivation
List I (Exponent) List II (Theory) (a) Abraham Maslow (i) Two-factor Theory (b) Herzberg (ii) Achievement Theory (c) Aldufer (iii) Need Hierarchy Theory (d) Mcclelland (iv) ERG Theory - Mechanistic view of motivation can be characterised as :
(a) S-O-R explanation.
(b) Direction of behaviour is determined by bonds between stimulus and response or habits.
(c) Probability of elicitation of various habits depend upon prior reinforcement contingencies.
(d) Behaviour once elicited persists until the removal of sustaining stimuli. - Which of the following sequence is correct in case of steps in a goal-setting program for students ?
- According to self-determination theory ______ and _____ form the basis for intrinsic motivation.
Match List-I with List-II and select the correct answer by choosing from the codes given below :
List – I
(Concept)List – II
(Explanation)a. Fixed Action Pattern i. When two incompatible response tendencies are simultaneously aroused, the organisms may display behaviours that appear to be irrelevant to the situation. b. Displacement Activity ii. Highly stereotyped responses that are assumed to be genetically programmed reactions that occur in the presence of a particular ‘sign’ stimulus. c. Hedonic Bias iii. A state in which a person performs an action because the act itself is satisfying or rewarding internally. d. Intrinsic motivation iv. Tendency to take more credit for success than to take responsibility for failure.
