People at Work

Introduction

Expectancy theory is a process theory which explains that the motivation of any individual relies on the goal and the strength of his expectation of achieving it (Rao, 2010). In our video illustration, we made use of two contrasting scenarios to explain the mechanism and effects of this theory, as well as how it can possibly manifest in reality.

Expectancy

This part of the theory relates to how probable an individual’s effort can translate to task performance, or the first-level outcome (Rao, 2010). The level of perceived probability is usually based on one’s past experience, self-confidence and perceived difficulty of the goal (Scholl, 2002).

In our video, we used two contrasting examples: Dejing and Yunhan. Both of them are keyboard salesmen. However, Dejing has a higher expectancy due to the fact that his keyboard is of a higher quality and the economy was doing relatively well, making it easier for his hard work to translate to better sales performance. On the other hand, Yunhan has a lower expectancy as his poorly constructed keyboard is unpopular with customers and the economic climate, in his case, was undesirable. Thus, it is harder for his effort to translate to sales performance

Instrumentality

Instrumentality refers to the probability of a first-level outcome leading to a second-level outcome (Rao, 2010).

References

Rao, P. (2010). Motivation. In Organisational behaviour. Mumbai (India): Himalaya Pub.                           House.

Scholl, Richard. "MOTIVATION: EXPECTANCY THEORY." 2002. Accessed 2015. http://www.uri.edu/research/lrc/scholl/webnotes/Motivation_Expectancy.htm