Hertzberg’s Two-Factor Theory
Analyzing the responses of 200 accountants and engineers who were asked about their positive and negative feelings about their work, psychologist Frederick Hertzberg found 2 factors that influence employee motivation and satisfaction.
- Motivator factors – Simply put, these are factors that lead to satisfaction and motivate employees to work harder. Examples might include enjoying your work, feeling recognized and career progression.
- Hygiene factors – These factors can lead to dissatisfaction and a lack of motivation if they are absent. Examples include salary, company policies, benefits, relationships with managers and co-workers.
• High Hygiene + High Motivation: The ideal situation where employees are highly motivated and have few complaints.
• High Hygiene + Low Motivation: Employees have few complaints but are not highly motivated. The job is viewed as a paycheck.
• Low Hygiene + High Motivation: Employees are motivated but have a lot of complaints. A situation where the job is exciting and challenging but salaries and work conditions are not up to par.
• Low Hygiene + Low Motivation: This is the worst situation where employees are not motivated and have many complaints.
Ref: Wikipedia