Q. A situational combination of rewards and punishments can effectively motivate men, Is the statement true or false. Explain.
Ans. This statement can be considered true as well as false depending on the situation and also the leadership style that theCo., adopts to get the job done from its employees in the most fruitful way. In some cases this situation will work and in some cases it may not. Hence as a general statement it cannot be wholly considered true or wholly considered false. Every human being needs to be motivated to work in a desired way and give a desired output. Motivation is derived from the word Motive. Motive is an inner state that energizes, activates or moves and directs or channels behaviour towards goals”.
Motivation represents an unsatisfied need which creates a state of tension or disequilibrium causing the individual to move in a goal directed pattern towards restoring a state of equilibrium by satisfying the need. It is a degree of readiness of an organization to pursue some designated goal and implies the determination of the nature and locus of the forces, including the degree of readiness.
The Basic Process of Motivation = Needs——————àDrives———————-à Goals/Incentives
(Deficiency) Deficiency with Direction Reduction of drives
& fulfils deficiencies.
To understand the relationship of rewards and punishments tactic used to motivate men one must understand the Objective of motivation. It is a bare fact that most of us use only a small portion of our mental and physical abilities. To exploit the unused potential in people they are to be motivated. Such exploitation leads to greater efficiency, higher production and better standards of living of the people. To achieve this un tapped potential one must either use the rewards or punishment way to achieve the desired goals.
Types of motivation: There are two ways by which people can be motivated. One is a positive approach or pull mechanism which can be considered as a reward approach and the second is a negative approach or push mechanism which can be considered as punishment tactic.
Positive Motivation (Reward): People are said to be motivated positively when they are shown a reward and the way to achieve it. Such a reward way may be financial or non-financial. Monetary motivation may include different incentives, wage plans, productive bonus schemes etc. Non-monetary motivation may include praise for work, participation in management, social recognition etc. Monetary incentives provide the worker a better standard of life while non-monetary incentives satisfy the ego of a man. Positive motivation seeks to create an optimistic atmosphere in the enterprise. Human beings also have an inherent desire to prosper, and be financially strong. To achieve this psychological need an employee would work hard to achieve desired goals and in such a case the Reward mechanism will work to motivate him and prove an efficient worker.
Negative Motivation (Punishment): By installing fear in the minds of people, one can get the desired work done. In this method of motivation, fear of consequences of doing something or not doing something keeps the worker in the desired direction. This method has got several limitations. Fear creates frustration, a hostile state of mind and an unfavorable attitude towards the job which hinders efficiency and productivity. So the use of it should be kept minimum. It may work in a small organization but it is a very risky strategy to adopt in a unionized firm.
In short a combination of rewards and punishment is not the only way to effectively motivate an employee. An employee responds very well only if rewards are seen. He may be demotivated when punishment is used. It he is fearless, and a trouble maker and have a backing by the union he may not fear any punishment. He may influence the others who are afraid of the punishment not to perform. In such a situational there will be difference of opinion, industrial dispute, and unrest at the work place. In such a situation meeting deadline and goals of theCo., will go in the background.
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