Two-factor theory (job satisfaction)
The Two-factor theory, also known as the motivation-hygiene theory, was developed by psychologist Frederick Herzberg in 1959 to explain job satisfaction and employee motivation. The theory posits that there are two distinct sets of factors that influence workplace attitudes: satisfiers, which lead to job satisfaction, and dissatisfiers, which do not necessarily motivate but can lead to a lack of satisfaction if present. Satisfiers, or motivators, relate to the job content and include elements like achievement, recognition, and opportunities for growth. In contrast, dissatisfiers, or hygiene factors, pertain to external job elements such as company policies, work conditions, and salary, and while they do not actively promote satisfaction, their presence can detract from overall job fulfillment.
Herzberg’s research indicated that job satisfaction and dissatisfaction are not direct opposites; rather, they exist on separate continua. His findings emphasize the importance of addressing both sets of factors for optimal employee motivation. While the theory has faced criticism for its generalizations and assumptions about personal growth as a universal motivator, it has significantly shaped the understanding of job satisfaction and influenced subsequent workplace management theories. Overall, the Two-factor theory underscores the complexity of employee motivation and the need for a tailored approach to enhance job satisfaction in diverse work environments.
Two-factor theory (job satisfaction)
The two-factor theory, also known as the motivation-hygiene theory and the dual-factor theory, states that two sets of factors exist within the workplace that either satisfy or do not satisfy employees. Frederick Herzberg developed the theory in his 1959 book The Motivation to Work. The book establishes two factors for understanding employee attitudes and incentive: satisfiers and dissatisfiers. Satisfiers lead to job satisfaction. Motivators also promote job satisfaction by inspiring work motivation in employees. Dissatisfiers do not motivate people nor do they create job satisfaction. However, they do not necessarily lead to job dissatisfaction. Herzberg's theory asserts that only the addition of satisfiers and the elimination of dissatisfiers lead to true job fulfilment.
Brief History
American psychologist Frederick Herzberg introduced the two-factor theory in his findings published in The Motivation to Work (1959). He based his research on Abraham Maslow's hierarchy of needs, a psychology theory that outlines humankind's most fundamental needs. Herzberg sought to understand employee satisfaction and assist management with its supervisory effectiveness by applying this framework. He conducted extensive research on how attitude affects motivation. Herzberg asked hundreds of professionals about what makes their jobs satisfying and what makes their jobs dissatisfying. Herzberg found that what people listed as positive and negative aspects greatly differed from each other. He concluded that job satisfaction and job dissatisfaction are not opposites. Rather, the opposite of satisfaction is no satisfaction, and the opposite of dissatisfaction is no dissatisfaction. He chose to focus on the optimization of satisfaction and resolutions for lack of satisfaction. Herzberg also discovered that some factors lead to the satisfaction of higher-level needs while others satisfy lower-level needs.
The Two Factors
Herzberg categorized the workplace qualities that lead to job satisfaction under satisfiers and dissatisfiers. Satisfiers gratify high-level needs. They relate to the content of the job and encompass the self-rewarding factors of achievement, recognition, challenging work, responsibility, and the opportunity for advancement. Satisfiers include the use of motivators to promote job success. The presence of motivators also leads to the satisfaction of higher-level needs. Motivated employees value their jobs and desire recognition and advancement. Employer motivators allow employees to do interesting work with the expectation of promotion.
Employment must also meet lower-level needs to either provide satisfaction or eliminate dissatisfaction. Dissatisfiers do not necessarily make a job unsatisfying, but they also do not satisfy workers. Dissatisfiers involve external job elements and settings. Dissatisfiers include coworker and employer relationships, work conditions, company policy and administration, job security, and salary. Dissatisfiers involve external rewards and therefore do not lead to individual job satisfaction, which is an internal process. Although salary can work to satisfy an employee, money does not always provide job fulfillment and so remains a dissatisfier. Dissatisfiers can also be small frustrations or inconveniences unrelated to the actual job.
Elements of Job Satisfaction
Employers can create an optimal work environment to help increase job performance, but work conditions do not always produce better employee results. External appeasement may soothe employees, but only satisfiers and motivators can enhance job performance. Job dissatisfiers include hygiene factors, which are workplace factors that can reduce employee satisfaction. Hygiene factors are outside an employee's control such as company policy and supervisory practices. Many hygiene factors are intended to motivate employees, but these can have the opposite effect by creating job pressure or employee frustration that can cause dissatisfaction.
Eliminating dissatisfiers falls to employers. Poorly structured company policy often leads to job dissatisfaction. Overbearing supervision can intimidate an employee and hinder job performance. Lack of job security and salary benefits also inhibit employee motivation. Employers can maximize employee performance by creating a dignified work environment that fosters mutual respect.
Once all job dissatisfiers have been removed, employers must focus on the creation of working conditions that lead to job satisfaction. Employers should examine what motivates and satisfies their employees and incorporate these elements into the workplace. Ideal work conditions are free of dissatisfiers and offer other incentives. Employers can improve employee performance by rewarding those who excel. Incorporating motivators such as salary competition and achievement recognition into company policy also creates incentive for employees to produce quality work in anticipation of their reward. When workers believe their duties are meaningful, performance improves further and ultimately leads to total job satisfaction.
Criticism
Herzberg focused a great deal of his theory on personal growth as a major motivator. Critics argue that personal growth is not a job goal for many people. Some employees are not interested in enriching their work lives. Others are not skilled enough to advance to jobs requiring greater aptitude and responsibility. Others criticized the generalized nature of Herzberg's satisfiers and dissatisfiers, noting that what satisfies and dissatisfies one person does not work in the same way for others. Herzberg also did not question the cause of need for motivators, further generalizing his theory. He claimed that his findings led to a greater understanding of primitive man, presupposing that humans are motivated by nature.
Since the publication of Motivation at Work, researchers have conducted many studies to try to replicate Herzberg's results as a way of testing his theory. Studies that used his critical incident framework methodology produced results that were consistent with his original results, while studies that used different methodologies supported the traditional view that satisfaction and dissatisfaction in the workplace are interdependent.
While other theories of motivation have overtaken Herzberg's two-factor theory, it still has influenced subsequent theories and methodologies involved in the study of workplace management.
Bibliography
Hollway, Wendy. Work Psychology and Organizational Behaviour: Managing the Individual at Work. SAGE, 1991.
Cooper, Cary, and Ian Rothmann. Organizational and Work Psychology: Topics in Applied Psychology. Routledge, 2013.
"Herzberg's Motivation-Hygiene Theory (Two Factor Theory)." NetMBA.com, www.netmba.com/mgmt/ob/motivation/herzberg. Accessed 11 July 2024.
"Herzberg's Motivators and Hygiene Factors." Mind Tools, www.mindtools.com/pages/article/herzberg-motivators-hygiene-factors.htm. Accessed 11 July 2024.
Jex, Steve M., and Thomsa W. Britt. Organizational Psychology: A Scientist-Practitioner Approach. 3rd ed., Wiley, 2014.
Landy, Frank J., and Jeffrey M. Conte. Work in the 21st Century: An Introduction to Industrial and Organizational Psychology. 4th ed., Wiley, 2012.
Nickerson, Charlotte. "Herzberg's Two-Factor Theory of Motivation-Hygiene." Simply Psychology, 28 Sept. 2023, www.simplypsychology.org/herzbergs-two-factor-theory.html. Accessed 11 July 2024.
Schultz, Duane, and Sydney Ellen Schultz. Psychology and Work Today. 10th ed., Routledge, 2010.