Motivation in theory: Taylor, Mayo, Maslow and Herzberg

Why motivation matters

Motivation is the will to work and achieve goals. Motivated employees:

• Are more productive (more output per worker), lowering unit costs.
• Produce better quality work and customer service.
• Have lower absenteeism and labour turnover, saving recruitment and training costs.
• Are more willing to accept change and contribute ideas.

So motivation can be a source of competitive advantage.

Taylor: scientific management

F. W. Taylor's *The Principles of Scientific Management* was published in 1911. Key ideas:

• Workers are motivated mainly by money (economic man).
• Managers should study tasks scientifically (time and motion studies) to find the 'one best way' of doing each job.
• Break work into simple, repetitive tasks; select and train workers for them; supervise closely.
• Pay by results, such as piece rates, so harder work earns more.

Implications: high productivity in routine work, link to piecework. Limitations: ignores social and psychological needs; repetitive work causes boredom and conflict; less suitable for skilled, creative or service work.

Mayo: human relations theory

Elton Mayo's research at the Hawthorne plant of the Western Electric Company in the USA found that productivity rose when workers were given attention, consulted and worked in groups, whatever the changes in physical conditions (the 'Hawthorne effect').

Key ideas: workers have social needs; group norms and team spirit affect output; managers should communicate, take an interest in staff and involve them.

Implications: teamwork, consultation, social facilities. Limitations: the research methods have been criticised; groups can also set norms that restrict output.

Maslow: hierarchy of needs

A. H. Maslow's paper 'A Theory of Human Motivation' (Psychological Review, 1943) argued that 'the basic human needs are organized into a hierarchy of relative prepotency'. From the bottom:

1. Physiological: food, water, shelter (at work: basic pay).

2. Safety: security and freedom from danger (job security, safe conditions, pensions).

3. Love / social: belonging (teamwork, friendly colleagues).

4. Esteem: recognition, status, respect (praise, job titles, promotion).

5. Self-actualisation: reaching full potential (challenging work, development).

A need that is satisfied no longer motivates; people move up to the next level. Implications: managers identify each worker's level and meet it. Limitations: people may not move up in strict order; needs differ between individuals and cultures; hard to measure.

Herzberg: two-factor theory

Frederick Herzberg divided factors at work into two groups:

• Hygiene factors: pay, working conditions, company policy, supervision, relationships, job security. If inadequate they cause dissatisfaction, but improving them only removes dissatisfaction; it does not motivate.
• Motivators: achievement, recognition, responsibility, the work itself, advancement and personal growth. These create real job satisfaction and motivation.

Implications: get hygiene factors right, then motivate through job enrichment (more challenging, responsible work), recognition and empowerment. Limitations: based on a small sample of professional workers; pay may motivate some workers more than Herzberg suggests.

Worked example

A warehouse pays above-average wages, yet staff are bored and many leave. Use Herzberg's theory to explain why and suggest an improvement.

1. Pay is a hygiene factor: good pay prevents dissatisfaction but does not motivate.
2. The work lacks motivators: responsibility, recognition and interesting tasks.
3. Improvement: job enrichment and rotation, team leader roles, recognition schemes.

Answer: Hygiene factors are met but motivators are missing; add responsibility, recognition and variety.

Check yourself

1. Which theorist believed workers are motivated mainly by money and favoured piece-rate pay?
   • Mayo
   • Maslow
   • Taylor
   • Herzberg
   Show answer

   Taylor. Scientific management: economic man.

2. Mayo's research suggested productivity rose mainly because
   • workers were given attention and worked as social groups
   • pay was increased
   • lighting was improved
   • supervision was tightened
   Show answer

   workers were given attention and worked as social groups. The Hawthorne effect: social needs and attention.

3. In Maslow's hierarchy, which need comes directly above safety?
   • Esteem needs
   • Self-actualisation
   • Love (social) needs
   • Physiological needs
   Show answer

   Love (social) needs. Physiological, safety, love, esteem, self-actualisation.

4. According to Herzberg, which is a hygiene factor?
   • Recognition
   • Working conditions
   • Responsibility
   • Achievement
   Show answer

   Working conditions. Hygiene factors relate to the job environment.

5. According to Herzberg, why might a pay rise fail to motivate workers in the long term?
   Show answer

   Pay is a hygiene factor: raising it removes dissatisfaction but does not create satisfaction; real motivation comes from motivators such as responsibility and recognition.. Pay is a hygiene factor; motivators motivate.

6. Give one way a manager could meet employees' esteem needs.
   Show answer

   By giving public recognition and praise for good work, such as an employee of the month award, or a promotion with a new job title.. Recognition and status meet esteem needs.

7. What is a limitation of Taylor's approach in a modern design agency?
   • It pays workers too little
   • It focuses too much on social needs
   • It requires workers to set their own targets
   • Creative staff want autonomy and interesting work, not repetitive tasks and close supervision
   Show answer

   Creative staff want autonomy and interesting work, not repetitive tasks and close supervision. Scientific management suits routine work, not creative work.

8. Maslow's 'A Theory of Human Motivation' was published in which year?
   • 1911
   • 1959
   • 1943
   • 1990
   Show answer

   1943. Psychological Review, volume 50, 1943.

Practise with instant feedback Print this lesson

Sources

• Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Subsidiary/Advanced Level in Business specification (2018)
• F. W. Taylor (1911), The Principles of Scientific Management (Project Gutenberg)
• A. H. Maslow (1943), A Theory of Human Motivation, Psychological Review 50 (Classics in the History of Psychology)

Last updated 8 November 2026. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.