Exam 10: Motivating Employees

Gen Xers, Millennials, and Gen Zers often expect change and may find the lack of change questionable.

Rafael thinks he makes life easy on his employees. He tells them exactly what to do, how to do it, and when. He believes that most of his employees are lazy, and will go straight to their phones if he doesn't keep an eye on them. Therefore, he spends much of his time monitoring their work. When he finds an employee who is not performing up to his or her expectations, Rafael uses threats and punishment to increase the worker's motivation. Rafael is a Theory X manager.

Regardless of cultural background, most employees respond the same way to motivational approaches.

Which of the following problems would indicate that a manager failed to apply the basic concepts of expectancy theory?

The original results of the Hawthorne studies proved that employees were much more productive when they worked in well-lit areas than when they worked in poorly lit areas.

A strength of Generation X managers is likely to be their

Since hygiene factors do not motivate workers toward high achievement at work, managers can safely ignore these factors when trying to develop an effective work environment.

Peyton is disappointed with the effort his employees are putting forth. According to expectancy theory, Peyton could improve employee performance by setting more ambitious performance standards that exceed the ability of most employees to attain them.

In Maslow's hierarchy, ________ needs refer to the desire to reach one's fullest potential.

One of the original objectives of the Hawthorne studies was to determine the degree of lighting needed in the workplace to enable employees to achieve optimum productivity.

The findings of the Hawthorne studies led researchers to look more closely at how ________ could lead to better productivity.

________ is a system of goal setting and implementation that involves a cycle of discussion, review, and evaluation of objectives among top and middle managers, supervisors, and employees.

One implication of goal-setting theory is that goals should be

Job enrichment is based on Herzberg's higher motivators, such as responsibility, achievement, and recognition.

Margot finally finished her Ph.D. program. Although she has a great and secure teaching job at an urban college, she does not hold a faculty position at a prestigious university. It is obvious to her colleagues that Margot is unsatisfied with her position at work. She constantly gives coworkers subtle reminders of her superior academic credentials and only participates in work activities where she will assume a leadership role. Looking at Margot's situation using Maslow's hierarchy of needs, which of the following needs are unmet?

American employees put great value in being treated fairly. According to equity theory, if things seem unfair, they will do their best to make them equitable by withholding effort, increasing effort, or by rationalizing that they are undeserving of the same as others.

While Maslow's research categorized a person's needs in terms of higher-order and lower-order needs, Herzberg's research recognized that

As a manager, Avery works hard to ensure all of her employees are treated fairly. She still, however, gets feedback that implies that some employees don't believe she is fair. This problem most likely results from the fact that

Leighton has been an assistant at Security Financial for more than 14 years. She earns a good salary and has made friends at work, but she has been passed over for promotion twice and feels that no one appreciates her abilities and skills. Leighton is concerned with satisfying her

According to Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs theory, which of the following would be an issue that requires the fulfillment of a lower-order need?