Herzberg’s framework is compatible with Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. Maslow referred to the needs or motives, whereas, Herzberg dealt with goals or incentives which tend to satisfy those needs. To illustrate, hygiene or maintenance factors of Herzberg are satisfied by physiological, safety and belongingness needs of Maslow, while motivation factors of Herzberg tend to be satisfied by self-esteem and self-actualization needs of Maslow. Comparison between Maslow and Herzberg’s Models are given below:
It is for this reason Herzberg’s theory is often considered, as an extension of Maslow’s Need Hierarchy Theory. Despite such similarities, there are some major differences between the two theories.
Maslow’s need hierarchy is a sequential arrangement of needs, whereas, Herzberg’s model does not have any such hierarchical arrangement. Maslow believed that any unsatisfied need, irrespective of its level of hierarchy, can be a potential motivation. On the contrary, Herzberg believed that only the higher-order needs serve as motivators.
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Richard Hackman and Greg Oldham (1975) developed a Job Characteristic Model on Herzberg’s Two-Factor Theory, showing how a good job design can lead to internal motivation of the employees and contribute to better job performance. The theory postulates that five job characteristics lead to three psychological states, which affect the motivation and satisfaction of the employees. The five job characteristics are: skill variety, task identity, task significance, autonomy and feedback.
Skill variety is the extent or range of skills, abilities and talents of employees. The more they are able to utilize skills in the job, the greater their level of satisfaction. Hence, jobs are to be designed in a way that ensures the utilization of wide variety of skills of individuals. Task identity signifies the extent of involvement of employees in the job.
This enables an individual to identify himself in the total creation, which gives him a sense of pride and satisfaction. Task significance, on the other hand, denotes significance of a job on the life of others—both within and outside the organization.
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A positive significance of a job gives psychological satisfaction to the person who does it. Autonomy is the extent of freedom given for a job. The degree of autonomy depends on the extent of independence given to an employee in deciding about job scheduling, formulating the procedures, decision making without interference of others. The more the job autonomy, the greater the job satisfaction and so also motivation. Feedback provides the opportunity to assess the right or wrong for doing a job.
The three psychological states, which an individual experiences are as follows:
Skill variety, task identity and task significance provide experienced meaningfulness. Autonomy provides ‘experienced responsibility’, whereas; feedback ensures ‘experienced knowledge of results’.
Once an employee experiences arousal of these three psychological states, they feel intrinsically rewarded, which results into intrinsic motivation.
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Hackman and Oldham developed a Motivating Potential-Score (MPS), based on their study, which measures the propensity of a job to become motivating. The formula is presented below:
MPS= [Skills variety +Task identity + Task significance] x (Autonomy) x (Feedback)
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