Chapter 1

THE PROBLEM AND ITS BACKGROUND

Introduction

A great amount of worldwide wealth occurs in a form of human capital.

Therefore managing human resources plays a crucial role in a process of

increasing companies’ effectiveness. The role of the Human Resource Manager

is evolving with the change in competitive market environment and the realization

that Human Resource Management must play a strategic role in the success of

an organization. Organizations that do not place emphasis on attracting and

retaining talents may find themselves in dire consequences, as their competitors

may be outplaying them in the strategic employment of their human resource

(Storey ,1992).

The one of the most important functions of HRM is motivation. The

importance of motivating people at work is noticeable at all levels of organization.

Starting from managers who need to be aware of factors that motivate their

subordinates to make them perform well, through employees who need to think

through what expectations they have of work, ending up with HR professionals

who have to understand motivation to effectively design and implement reward

structure and systems. It seems to be obvious that companies need motivated

1
employees and without any doubts motivation is an important aspect of HRM,

specifically Tower Club in this study.

Tower Club is a highly exclusive, premium business club for the country's

top executives. With members comprised of notable leaders and society figures,

the Club maintains supremacy through our ability to address the needs of today's

businessman.

Background of the Study

Work offers products and services, which correspond to the basis for a

company's success (Steers, 1991), but it is also an important and highly central

aspect in the lives of individuals (Hall, 1994) due to several reasons. First,

persons accept some kind of reward, extrinsic (such as money) or intrinsic

(satisfaction coming from the work), in exchange for their performance (Steers

and Porters, 1991). The individual holds certain personal expectations in terms of

form and amount of reward, which he/she should receive for the provided

service. Thereby, the performance of a person as well as the decision to remain

in the company is influenced by the extent to which such expectations are met

(Steers, 1991). Second, the workplace imparts possibilities for socialization with

other people (Hall, 1994). Third, the job is often a source of rank, or status, in the

society in general (Steers, 1991). In other words, the work may provide a source

of social differentiation. Fourth, Steers and Porter (1991) pointed out that work

has an individual meaning for each person. This can range from a source of

2
identity and self-esteem, to a source of frustration, boredom, and a feeling of

meaninglessness, caused by the nature of the task and the characteristics of the

person.

As mentioned before, for some people work is a source of great

satisfaction; for many others it is the reason for dissatisfaction. Regarding the

fact that employees spend a large part of a day at work for 40 to 45 years, it is

important that those employees experience positive feelings towards their tasks.

Otherwise, it would be a long time to be frustrated, dissatisfied and unhappy.

Moreover, these negative feelings may affect the family or social life as well as

the physical and emotional health of an individual (Schultz and Schultz, 1998).

Herzberg, Mausner, and Snyderman (1999) pointed out that an employee,

irrespective of if he/she is working in an office or on a bench, will experience

his/her tasks, as well as the workday totally differently if the attitudes toward the

job are good or if they are bad. In addition, they argued that the employees'

feelings toward their work have a significant influence on the success and failure

of the company. For instance, during hard times the level of morale within the

work force may determine whether a company will survive. In other words,

motivated employees contribute to a company's survival. Employees are

indispensable resource that may be a factor in several different ways to a

company's activities, provided that the company gives them an appropriate

chance (Morgan, 1997).

In order to be successful, a company needs employees who act toward

the goals of the organization and have a strong desire to remain in the company

3
(Molander, 1996). Such loyalty and commitment may be generated by

motivation. Furthermore, motivation is aimed to achieve increases in work

productivity and job satisfaction (Schultz and Schultz, 1998). Particularly, the

impacts of motivation on the work performance and productivity attracted

attention towards motivation in the work environment (Huddleston and Good,

1999). Highly motivated persons tend to work harder and perform more

effectively in their jobs than less motivated individuals.

Motivation is the fire that drives people to succeed. It is the process that

energizes and directs behavior. It is a crucial function as a life line of any

organization. Many theories exist about motivation and most differs in what they

implicitly suggest an organization should do to obtain the most effective

performance from their employees. Most successful organization however have

learn by experience that people are very responsive to praise and

encouragement, express not only on words but also in action to give their best

effort to the organization (Dubnick, 2005). Every organization either public or

private is goal oriented and all efforts are gear towards the successful attainment

of those of those goals and objectives. Therefore, for any organization to record

any degree of meaningful success in the pursuit of its goals and aspiration, its

most have the ability to create values (motivation) enough to compensate for the

burden imposed upon employees. Such values or motivation can come in any

form of good training policies, facilities or incentives such as fringe benefits,

promotion etc. so as to satisfy the need of the employees for enhanced

performance (Dodlova, and Yudkevich, 2009).

4
For an employee to be motivated, he/she perceive that their want are being met.

Thus, the satisfactions of the employees represent an indispensable dimension

of the motivational process. A satisfied individual would certainly contribute

positively to the realization of organizational goals and objectives while a

dissatisfy employee may not only contribute but can even act in such a way that

the realization of such goals and objectives could be completely destroyed.

These underline the importance of employees’ satisfaction in the organization

(Houston, 2011).

However, because of a complex nature of human behaviour, motivation is

not easy to understand and to use. Despite many studies on that topic managers

today are no closer to understand employees’ motivation than their counterparts

more than a half of century ago (Kovach, 1980). Although, some of research

suggested that money is not as potent as it seemed to be, many companies tried

to implement monetary incentives as their main tool to motivate employees.

Performance related pay became the new mantra that was used unquestionably

by plenty of companies (Frey & Osterloch, 2002). Recently, as a result of a

financial crisis, many large and small organizations had to cut costs through

reduction of employees’ salaries and bonuses. The question that has arisen is if

there are other options of motivating employees that would be equally effective

but more costs efficient.

Hygiene factors do not motivate employees; however, they may reduce

the extent of dissatisfaction experienced by the individuals. That means if these

factors are not present, or are mismanaged, they may cause dissatisfaction on

5
the job. In an optimal situation, regarding the presence of hygiene factors, the

employee will not experience dissatisfaction, but neither will he/she develop

positive attitudes toward the work. Hygiene factors are related to the job context.

They are the major environmental aspects of the work, in other words, they are

extrinsic factors of the job.

Herzberg (1966) and Herzberg et al. (1999) identified company policy and

administration, supervision, interpersonal relations, working conditions, and

salary as hygiene factors. The other set of factors, called motivators, satisfies a

person's need for self-actualization in his/her job and, therefore, leads to positive

feelings towards the work. The motivators are related to the job content, in other

words, they are intrinsic. Job related factors that promote job satisfaction are

achievement, recognition, work itself, responsibility and advancement (Herzberg,

1999).

This study entitled “The Hierarchy of Needs and Job Performance of

Tower Club Employee: Inputs to Human Resource Management”, seeks to

answer what motivation factors play in enhancing performance in organization. In

order to be effective in its role, its employees of Tower Club must be capable and

committed in their mission to perform their job performance well. A prerequisite to

such service would be a certain level of motivation among its employees. The

information regarding motivation may provide insights on how to help employees

attain a level of satisfaction in their work.

6
Theoretical Framework

Maslow (1943, 1954), found the following:

There are at least five basic needs, which all individuals uphold. These are

physiological, safety, love, esteem, and self- actualizing. Physiological

needs are for instance food, drink, oxygen, sex, and sleep. In short, all

needs, which present the basis for life. Safety needs include security, the

need for a safe, predictable and organized world, and the avoidance of

pain and physical attacks. Love needs refer to affection and

belongingness needs. That means a person will strive for good relations

with people and a place in his/her group. Thereby, special attention is

given to friends, sweetheart, wife, and children. In addition, all individuals

hold the need for a stable and high evaluation of themselves, self-esteem,

and respect given to them by other persons. Esteem needs may be

categorized into (1) the desire for strength, for achievement, for

independence and freedom, and (2) the desire for prestige and respect

from other persons, recognition, attention, importance and appreciation.

The fifth needs level, the self-actualizing needs, represents the desire for

personal development and accomplishment. The form of these needs

differs from person to person. As an example, some persons experience

these needs in the desire to be a perfect mother, whereas other people

express self-actualization in form of painting pictures. All five basic needs

are arranged in a hierarchy of importance. Thereby, physiological needs

7
represent the starting point for the motivation theory at the lowest level. In

a situation when all needs are unsatisfied and the human being is

dominated by the physiological needs, the other needs do not seem to

exist or are pressed in the background. When physiological needs are

satisfied, new and higher needs such as safety needs will emerge and

dominate the individual. When these new needs in turn are gratified, again

new and higher needs such as love needs will appear, and so on. The

hierarchy of the basic needs ranges from physiological needs through

safety needs, love needs, and esteem needs, to the needs of self-

actualizing at the highest level.

8
Maslow's hierarchy of needs

Self-Actualization

Esteem

Love

Safety

Physiology

Figure 1 Linking Maslow's Theories of Motivation

Research Paradigm

Respondents Employees
Length of
Service Needs

- Basic
Needs
TC Position Inputs to
Employees - Security Human
Needs Resource
- Marketing
Management
- Social towards
- Operation Gender an Improved
Organizational
-HRMD
Performance
Employee's
Job
Marital Performance
Status

Figure 2 Research Paradigm of the Study

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 The study assessed the needs of Tower Club employees under the

following variables, namely; Basic Needs, Security Needs, Social, Esteem and

Self-Actualization. The assessment of the needs was treated separately per

variable and the analysis was done per sub-variable and likewise per indicator

basis. Afterwards, the test of significant difference using profile of the

respondents, (length of service, position, gender and marital status) was

determined under the five hierarchy of needs variables. Further, the job

performance of the employees for the year 2015 was correlated with hierarchy of

needs variables.

The assessment on the five groups of variables, the test of significant

differences using the profile of respondents and the correlation between

hierarchy of needs and job performance of the employees were used in the

analysis and interpretation of data, the results of which were used in drawing

inputs to human resource management. The aim of the human resources

management is to help boost the productivity of Tower Club employees towards

an improved organizational performance.

Statement of the Problem

The aim of this study is to investigate and assess employees’ attitudes

toward motivation that could affect their job performance. This study also

10
attempts to examine motivational differences between genders at Tower Club.

More specifically, this study sought the following questions:

1. What is the relevance of participants’ profile to the present study in

terms of:

1.1. Length of Service

1.2. Position

1.3. Gender

1.4. Marital Status

2. What is the assessment of the respondents on their hierarchy of

needs in terms of:

2.1. Basic Needs

2.2. Security Needs

2.3. Social

2.4. Esteem

2.5. Self-Actualization

3. Are there significant differences on their assessment of

respondents on their hierarchy of needs when their profiles are

taken as test factors?

4. What is the performance rating of Tower Club employees for the

year 2017?

5. Is there significant relationship between the respondents’ hierarchy

of needs and their performance rating?

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 6. What inputs to Human Resources Management can be developed

from the study?

Research Hypothesis

The hypothesis to be tested at .05 level of significance is:

There is no significant difference on the assessment of the respondents

on their hierarchy of needs in terms of the following:

1. Basic Needs

2. Security Needs

3. Social

4. Esteem

5. Self-Actualization

Significance of the Study

This study will benefit the following people, as it will give them a clearer

view of the significance of motivation and its relation with performance rating of

Tower Club employees.

The Human Resource Manager. To formulate plans, programs and

strategies geared towards in motivating and improving the self-esteem of its

employees.

The Employees. To look at this study as a reflection of them so that they

may become aware or conscious of the profession they are in and therefore be

more equipped and empowered.

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 The Researcher. To broaden their knowledge on human behavior in

organization, thus helping them become more effective supervisors and

managers in the future.

Scope and Limitation

The study presents a model of “The Hierarchy of Needs and Job

Performance of Tower Club Employee: Inputs to Human Resource

Management”, using the descriptive approach. This approach would be

discussed extensively in Chapter 3, on the study’s research methodology.

The sample consists of Tower Club’s employees with the age range of 20-

60 years old within the selected departments, namely – Marketing, HR, and

Operational. Due to the nature of the sample, the results may not be

representative of the rest of other corporations in the Philippines’ savings and

loan setting. Only employees in selected institution served as the respondents of

the study. Exempted from the study are other employees that do not work in this

institution.

The time frame for The Hierarchy of Needs and Job Performance of

Tower Club Employee: Inputs to Human Resource Management is from October

to December 2017 covering the data gathering period and January - March 2018

for processes and analysis, writing up for the report and final thesis. Thus, any

or all developments that occurred thereafter are deemed excluded. These

developments may contain situations in the savings and loan settings and other

13
future trends that may influence the findings, observations and recommendations

of the study.

Definition of Terms

Motivation: Motivation by definition refers to what activates, directs

human behavior and how this behavior is sustained to achieve a particular goal.

Also it can be defined as the set of processes that arouse, direct and maintain

human behavior towards attaining some goals. Jones (1955) argues that”

Motivation is concerned with how behavior gets started, is energized, is

sustained, is directed, is stopped and what kind of subjective reaction is present

in the organization while all this is going on.“ (Gibson, Ivancevick, Donnelly

(Organisations: processes, structure, behavior p214)

Employee satisfaction: This refers to the positive or negative aspects of

employee’s altitude towards their jobs or some features of the job Ivancevich etal

(p448)

Employee attitudes: Mental state of readiness for motive arousal.

Performance: the act of performing; of doing something successfully;

using knowledge as distinguished from merely possessing it; A performance

comprises an event in which generally one group of people (the performer or

performers) behave in a particular way for another group of people.

Physiological needs: are the physical requirements for human survival. If

these requirements are not met, the human body cannot function properly and

14
will ultimately fail. Physiological needs are thought to be the most important; they

should be met first.

Safety: is the state of being "safe", the condition of being protected from

harm or other non-desirable outcomes

Social needs: are those related to interaction with other people and may

include, need for friends, need for belonging, need to give and receive love

Esteem: presents the typical human desire to be accepted and valued by

others

Self-actualization: is the summit of Maslow's hierarchy of needs. It is the

quest of reaching one's full potential as a person. Unlike lower level needs, this

need is never fully satisfied; as one grows psychologically there are always new

opportunities to continue to grow.

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 Chapter 2

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE AND STUDIES

This chapter presents concepts, theories, opinions, viewpoints, and

insights of related literature and studies. It is organized in the following manner.

First, it will give a summary of frameworks of reference where a discussion on

the theories and importance of Maslows Hierarchy of Needs, differences of

motivation based on gender, and understanding of employee performance.

Secondly, it will give a summary of studies on how demographic profiles related

to employee motivation and employee motivation related to job satisfaction.

Third, the study will give the historical background of Tower Club. Finally, it will

give a summary explaining the salient differences of the present study from the

others.

Summary of Frameworks

Motivation

Motivation is a highly complex phenomenon (Bent, et al., 1999) that

influences and is influenced by a large number of factors in the organizational

environment (Porter and Steers, 1991). The study of motivation is concerned with

why individuals think and behave as they do (Mullin, 1999; Weiner, 1992;

Wagner, 1999). A great amount of definitions are presented by literature, e.g.

Vignali (1997) points out that motivation are a process that triggers individuals to

act as they do. Analoui (2000) sees motivation as a drive within the individual

16
necessary to direct that person's actions and behavior towards the achievement

of some goals, and focuses, according to Luthans (1995) and Mullins (1999), on

the fulfillment of certain needs and expectations.

Moreover, Westerman and Donoghue refer to motivation as

"…a set of processes which energize a person's behavior and direct him

or her towards attaining some goal, or put more simply getting people to

do willingly and well those things which have to be done." (1989, p. 79).

Generally, motivation deals with forces, which initiate, direct and sustain

behavior towards the attainment of certain goals (Bent et al., 1999). Particularly,

in terms of the organizational aspect, motivation focuses, according to Molander

(1996), on an individual's willingness to put efforts into his/her work, and on the

amount of efforts, which are made in order to obtain incentives or a special form

of incentives. Molander's definition of motivation represents the basis for this

study.

The discussion of motivation in the literature (recent and less recent)

refers to three aspects:

(1) what is the arousal or energizing source of the individual behavior,

(2) what directs or channels such behavior (Vroom, 1964; Wagner, 1999;

Atkinson et al., 1975), and

(3) the maintenance and sustain of this behavior (Bent et al., 1999).

17
 The first issue deals with driving forces inherent in the individual that leads

to certain behavior, and with environmental forces that often cause these drives

(Porter and Steers, 1991). The second feature involves the direction of behaviour

towards a goal (Wagner, 1999). Furthermore, Porter and Steers (1991) refer to

the third matter as forces within the individual and environmental forces that

provide the individual with feedback. This feedback either strengthens the

individual to deepen his/her need and the direction of his/her energy, or

discourages the individual to pursue his/her course of action and redirects his/her

efforts.

Steers (1991) argued that this model assumes that individuals hold a

number of needs, desires and expectations in varying strengths. Based on these

needs and expectations, people act or behave in a certain way that they believe

will lead to the desired goal.

Thus, according to Steers and Porter (1991), the individual will be

presented with feedback about the impact of his/her behavior. That, in turn may

induce the individual to alter his/her present behavior, or may reassure the

individual that his/her current way of acting is correct and may confirm the person

in pursuing this course of action.

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 result in to achieve

NEEDS OR DRIVING DESIRED

EXPECTATIONS FORCE GOALS

NEEDS OR
EXPECTATIONS
feedback which provide

Figure 3 A simplified illustration of the basic motivational model

(Source: Mullins, 1999, p. 407)

The motivational development is not as simple and straightforward as it

seems. It is, according to Atkinson et al. (1975), a far more complex study. Porter

and Steers (1991) agree to Dunnette and Kirchner (1965) and others who

identified four aspects, which complicate the simplicity of the model.

The first part refers to the fact that motives cannot directly be observed and

therefore a need to infer them exists (Baron, 1983). However, the inference of

motives from observed behavior is associated with difficulties traced back to at

least five reasons mentioned by Atkinson et al. (1975).

These five reasons are: (1) a number of motives may be expressed

through any single action; (2) motives may take place in disguised forms; (3)

comparable or identical actions may represent several motives; (4) different

behavior may embody similar motives; and (5) the modes of expression of

certain motives may be mitigated by personal and cultural variations.

19
 The second impediment of the model deals with the fact that any person

has a host of motives. These motives may change over time and conflict with

each other (Baron, 1983).

Third, Porter and Steers (1991) indicate that the selection of certain

motives over others, as well as the intensity with which such motives are

pursued, may differ from person to person. In addition, they refer to the fourth

complication, the fact that an attainment of certain needs, desires and

expectations may prompt a person to direct his/her attention to other motives, or

to intensify the pursuit of these motives.

Maslows Hierarchy of Need Theory

The “motivation to work” published by Maslow probably provided the field

of organizational behavior and management with a new way of looking at

employees job altitudes or behaviors in understanding how humans are

motivated. Probably the best-known conceptualization of human needs in

organizations has been proposed by this theory. Abraham Maslow was a clinical

psychologist who introduced his theory based on personal judgment, which was

generally known as the need hierarchy theory. According to him if people grew in

an environment in which their needs are not met, they will be unlikely to function

as healthy individuals or well-adjusted individuals. This idea was later applied to

organizations to emphasize the idea that unless employees get their needs met

on the job, they will not function as effectively as possible.

20
 Specifically Maslow theorized that people have five types of needs and

that these are activated in a hierarchical manner. This means that these needs

are aroused in a specific order from lowest to highest, such that the lowest-order

need must be fulfilled before the next order need is triggered and the process

continues. If you look at this in a motivational point of view Maslow’s theory says

that a need can never be fully met, but a need that is almost fulfilled does not

longer motivate. According to Maslow you need to know where a person is on the

hierarchical pyramid in order to motivate him/her. Then you need to focus on

meeting that person’s needs at that level (Robbins 2001)

According to Greenberg and Baron (2003,p192) the five needs identified

by Maslow corresponds with the three needs of Alderfers ERG theory. Where as

Maslow theory specifies that the needs be activated in order from lowest to

highest Alder’s theory specifies that the needs can be activated in any order. His

approach is much simpler than Maslows. Alder specifies that there exist three

main needs as opposed to five postulated by Maslow. This human basic needs

include existence, relatedness and growth. These needs according to Alder need

not necessarily activated in any specific order and may be activated at any time.

According to him Existence needs corresponds to Maslows physiological needs

and safety needs. Relatedness needs corresponds to Maslows social needs and

growth needs corresponds to esteem and self-actualization needs by Maslow

Below is a summary of these needs that in this thesis are divided into

Deficiency needs (psychological, safety, social needs) and Growth needs

(esteem, self-actualization needs).

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Factors Explanation

o Physiological needs are the need at the bottom of the triangle and include

the lowest order need and most basic. This includes the need to satisfy

the fundamental biological drives such as food, air, water and shelter.

According to Maslow organizations must provide employees with a salary

that enable them to afford adequate living conditions. The rationale here is

that any hungry employee will hardly be able to make much of any

contribution to his organization. Safety needs this occupies the second

level of needs. Safety needs are activated after physiological needs are

met. They refer to the need for a secure working environment free from

any threats or harms. Organizations can provide these need by providing

employees with safety working equipment e.g. hardhats, health insurance

plans, fire protection etc. The rationale is that employees working in an

environment free of harm do their jobs without fear of harm.

o Social needs: This represents the third level of needs. They are activated

after safety needs are met. Social needs refer to the need to be affiliated

that is (the needed to be loved and accepted by other people). To meet

these needs organizations encourage employees participation in social

events such as picnics, organizations bowling etc.

o Esteem needs this represents the fourth level of needs. It includes the

need for self-respect and approval of others. Organizations introduce

awards banquets to recognize distinguished achievements.

22
 o Self-actualization: This occupies the last level at the top of the triangle.

This refers to the need to become all that one is capable of being to

develop ones fullest potential. The rationale here holds to the point that

self-actualized employees represent valuable assets to the organization

human resource.

Most research on the application of need theory found that although lower-

level managers are able to satisfy only their deficiency needs on the jobs,

managers at the top level of organisations are able to satisfy both their deficiency

and growth needs (Greenberg &Baron 2003 p.194) this view was supported by

Shipley & Kiely (1988, p.18) Shiply & Kiely (1988,p.18) argue that as “ need

satisfaction is an attitude, and that it is perfectly possible for a worker to be

satisfied with his/her need, but not be motivated the reverse of which holds

equally true. Hence, need satisfaction and motivation are not synonymous and

both need fulfillment and un-fulfillment can have negative as well as positive

influence on motivation

Organizational /Managerial Applications of Maslows Need theory

The greatest value of Maslows need theory lies in the practical

implications it has for every management of organizations (Greenberg & Baron

2003 p.195). The rationale behind the employees or subordinates becomes self-

actualized. This is because self-actualized employees are likely to work at their

maximum creative potentials. Therefore it is important to make employees meet

23
this stage by helping meet their need organizations can take the following

strategies to attain this stage

 Recognize employee’s accomplishments: Recognizing employee’s

accomplishments is an important way to make them satisfy their esteem

needs. This could take the form of awards, plagues etc.. According to

(Greenberg & Baron 2003, p197) research carried out in GTE Data

services in Temple Terrace, Florida shows that awards are given to

employees who develop ways of improving customer’s satisfaction or

business performance. But it should be noted that according to Greenberg

&Baron awards are effective at enhancing esteem only when they are

clearly linked to desired behaviors. Awards that are too general fail to

meet this specification.

 Provide financial security: Financial security is an important type of safety

need. So organizations to motivate their employees need to make them

financially secured by involving them in profit sharing of the organization.

In a research carried out with AT&T and Wang showed that 50% of their

employees received financial outplacement services to assist laid-off

employees in securing new jobs.

 Provide opportunities to socialize: Socialization is one of the factors that

keep employees feel the spirit of working as a team. When employees

work as a team they tend to increase their performance. Research

conducted on IBM shows that it holds a “family day” picnic each spring

near its Armonk, New York headquarters.

24
  Promote a healthy work force: Companies can help in keeping their

 Employees physiological needs by providing incentives to keep them

healthy both in health and mentally. In a research carried out at the

Hershey Foods Corporation and Southern California Edison Company

showed that Employees are provided with insurance rebates with health

lifestyles while extra premiums were given to those with risk habits like

smoking.

Differences of motivation by gender

The Simons and Enz (1995) study indicated that there is no difference of

motivation factors by gender. Male and female may require similar, not different,

treatment for optimal workplace motivation.

The study conducted by Reiger and Rees in 1993 reflected that years of

experience significantly affected the motivational levels of teachers. However, no

significant differences were found in relation to gender, age or race. Wong, Siu

and Tsang (1999) reviewed the study of Komives from 1991 and noted that

motivation is not affected by gender as it relates to leadership and performance

in residence hall assistants.

However, the study of Wong, Siu, and Tsang (1999) found that female

employees had a high preference for several job-related motivators, including

interesting work, feeling of being involved, good working environment and

appreciation and praise for work done. This study indicated that gender does

have a role in influencing employees’ perceptions of various workplace

25
motivational factors. This 1999 study indicated that female employees prefer

more care and recognition from employers than their male counterparts.

Employees’ Performance

Employee’s performance refers to the observable behaviors and actions,

which explain how the job is to be done, plus the results that are expected for

satisfactory job performance (Alder, 2001). Performance is the extent to which an

individual is carrying out his or her assignment or task, i.e. the degree of the

accomplishment of the task that makes up an employee’s job (Ojo, 2009). It

indicates to the employee what a good job looks like (Alder, 2001). This implies

that employees must know what they need to do to perform their jobs

successfully (Ojo, 2009).

Gruman and Saks (2010) argue that performance management is a critical

aspect of organizational effectiveness, therefore it needs close monitoring. Alder

(2001) believes that organizations are naturally interested in monitoring their

employees’ performance, and thus employee’s performance monitoring permits

organizations to assess whether or not the organization is getting what it is

paying for. Measures for performance can be conducted through the following

indicators: profit; revenues; accounting measures return on capital employed,

profit margin; shareholder value the share price multiply by the number of shares

issued also known as the company value; growth in sales, size, market share

and share price.

26
 Employees usually feel that profit sharing and gain sharing are good for

personal effort, company growth and productivity, and for the workplace

atmosphere (Blinder, 1990). Employee commitment is no longer something that

an employer can take for granted, but have to put in great effort to achieve

(Senyucel, 2009). By increasing employee participation, the firm will benefit from

increased employee productivity and performance due to increased employee

commitment (William et al., 1994). This explains the fact that employee’s

performance is a dependent variable that must be motivated by the

organizational culture and HRM in order to produce the desired outcomes.

Summary of Studies

Relationships between demographic variables and employee motivation

Several studies has provided some insight into worker motivation and how

it may be affected by personal characteristics such as age, gender, education

level and job tenure. Although no age-motivation relationship was recorded in a

number of similar studies (Bhargava & Kelkar, 2000; Gouws, 1995; Jernigan,

Beggs & Kohut, 2002), other data suggested that older adults, and therefore

adults in the later stages of their careers, are less driven by the need to prove

themselves through their achievements, which is generally accompanied by

competitive behaviour at work, and that they might be more driven by aspects

such as meaningful work (Tolbert & Moen, 1998).

In an examination of motivational traits and tendencies in achievement

settings in the workplace, Heckhausen (1997) found that middle-aged adults

27
(defined as 30 years and older) and older adults (defined as 40 years and older)

were less likely to have the same achievement-oriented motive strength than

younger adults. Supporting findings came from Bellenger, Wilcox and Ingram

(1984), as well as from Kanfer and Ackerman (2000), who reported significant

age differences between adults younger and older than 30 years on all but one of

the appetitive motivational traits measured. The differences related to ‘Desire To

Learn’, ‘Mastery / Achievement’, ‘Other Referenced Goals’, ‘Competitiveness’,

‘Worry’ and ‘Emotionality / Fear Of Failure’.

The latter trait did not register significant differences between the age

groups studied, but younger adults recorded much higher numerical averages on

this trait than older adults. Kovach (1995) also found significant differences

between age groups, in that the under-30 group placed high value on good

wages, whereas the 31 to 40 group regarded job security as highly important.

The over-50 workers attached most importance to support with their personal

problems. It appears that as employees age, they are less motivated by pay and

the desire to achieve and master new skills, and less likely to compete with their

colleagues than younger employees. A plausible reason may be that older

employees have generally already satisfied their basic needs, such as adequate

pay, and have already competitively pursued work achievements during the

earlier phases of their careers when they were also younger. It may also be that

they focused on other goals in their later careers, for example on building and

supporting their families, contributing towards community life, and preparing for

retirement. If this is indeed the case, some support is also provided for the finding

28
that workers in their late career stage are more interested in praise than money

(Bellenger et al., 1984; Huddleston, Good & Frazier, 2002), since they would

have already laid the financial foundation for their future. These authors suggest

that recognition may not be as highly valued among those in mid-career as other

types of rewards, as this is a time in life when employees may have financial

obligations which make financial rewards more desirable than those not

accompanied by money.

Explaining the lower value of rewards, or ‘Reward Valence’ scenario,

which was found by some authors (Bellenger et al., 1984; Huddleston et al.,

2002) for people just starting out in their careers, is a little more problematic

though, since one would expect them to be more anxious to establish themselves

financially as soon as possible. Perhaps it can be argued that less tenured

employees have a stronger need to feel successful and competent in their work

than to earn impressively, and that they gain this feeling largely from the positive

feedback received from others in the workplace. Once they have established

themselves as successful and competent, which generally happens later in their

work lives, a focus shift towards a preference for monetary reward occurs.

Consequently, it seems reasonable to think that younger and less tenured

employees might also be more achievement-focused than higher tenured people.

Although some support was recorded (Bellenger et al., 1984; Huddleston et al.,

2002), several studies found no significant relationship between job tenure and

employee motivation (Bhargava & Kelkar, 2000; Gouws, 1995; Jernigan et al.,

2002; Kovach, 1995; Moon, 2000).

29
 Kanfer and Ackerman (2000), Meyer and Braxton (2002), and Tolbert and

Moen (1998) found significant differences in the motivational drives of men and

women at work, in that female employees obtained much higher numerical

scores than males on all the achievement-oriented traits mentioned earlier, with

statistically significant differences in the first-mentioned study recorded for

‘Mastery’ and ‘Emotionality’. It follows from these findings that women at work are

driven by a need to master their tasks to a larger extent than their male

colleagues. A problematic element is, however, introduced by women’s

considerably higher levels of ‘Emotionality’. The high-score combination of

‘Mastery’ and ‘Emotionality’ may lead to considerable work stress in females, as

the positive effects of pursuing goals are offset by the intensified fear of failure

experienced during such goal striving. It is possible that the two to one ratio of

females to males in the sample introduced a bias towards the female scenario,

and that the differences in the scores of the motivational traits between the two

genders might not have been that pronounced had the sample been more

equally divided between males and females.

Huddleston et al. (2002) found that female employees showed a stronger

preference for aspects of their jobs that relate to security, such as pay and job

security. Kovach (1995) found that women in the workplace attached

considerably more importance to interpersonal relationships and communication

than men, and related the finding to women’s continuing endeavors to cope with

their dual role of homemaker and employee, where both these aspects demand

attention. From these results it seems that although women are more strongly

30
motivated by goal achievement, they are simultaneously more fearful of failure

than men, and also more inclined to focus on interpersonal and security-related

characteristics of the job than men. This suggests that women may feel that they

need to work harder than men to achieve the same outcomes (Huddleston, et al.,

2002). Their stronger preference for rewards that bolster their security situation

may relate to the notion that women generally earn less than men, and are less

likely to find suitable alternative employment, especially as they age (Huddleston,

et al., 2002).

Relationships between employee motivation and job satisfaction

The basis upon which relationships between employee motivation and job

satisfaction and corporate culture are observed is provided by the notion that

people’s perceptions and behaviour in the workplace are driven by a set of

personal, innate needs (Maslow, 1968), and by their perceptions of numerous

job-related and organisation-related aspects (Du Toit, 1990; Gouws, 1995;

Rothmann & Coetzer, 2002).

A number of studies have shown that the extent to which people are

motivated by challenging tasks (Du Plessis, 2003; Maslow, 1968; Rothmann &

Coetzer, 2002; Stinson & Johnson, 1977) and by the sense that their abilities are

being stretched, directly impact on the job satisfaction they experience.

According to goal-setting theory, people are motivated by their internal intentions,

objectives and goals (Spector, 2003). In a study aimed at assessing the effect of

perceived quality of work life on job satisfaction, Coster (1992), for example,

31
found a positive correlation between goal involvement in the execution of tasks

and job satisfaction.

Corroborating results came from the work of Bellenger at al. (1984) and

Strydom and Meyer (2002), who rated the experience of success through goal

attainment as the most important source of job satisfaction. Although the sample

in the latter study consisted of only 29 middle-level managers, support for its

findings was provided by the former study, where the sample was considerably

larger and more representative of a broader spectrum of employee categories.

These results are easily explained by the significant contribution that success

and achievement make towards a person’s self-esteem (Beach, 1980), and

which also reinforce his or her sense of making a positive contribution towards

the organization.

People with a need for achievement and who experience success in this

regard acquire a stronger belief and confidence in themselves, which encourages

them to contribute towards the goals and objectives of the organization.

A need for achievement is often linked to a need for power in the

workplace. Many employees are motivated by opportunities for exercising

authority, taking responsibility, negotiating, and being in a position to influence

others. This follows from the thinking of theorists like McClelland (1987), who

postulated through the theory of learned needs that achievement-oriented people

tend to be driven by the need for power more than others. A relationship between

this motivational dimension and job satisfaction has been shown by authors such

as Becherer, Morgan and Richard (1982), who demonstrated that the stronger

32
the experience of responsibility, or the ability to control and influence others, and

therefore power, was in the workplace, the higher the level of job satisfaction

tended to be.

Similar findings were produced by Coster (1992), and by Hoole and

Vermeulen (2003), who found that the authority to take action and to exercise the

accompanying responsibility, resulted in enhanced job satisfaction. Together

these findings lend credence to the concept that power is a significant predictor

of job satisfaction in those workers who are motivated by it.

Certain needs or motives on the part of employees determine the level of

synergy between their motivational drive system and the characteristics of their

work environment. From the work of Cohen-Rosenthal and Cairnes (1991),

Hoole and Vermeulen (2003), Strydom and Meyer (2002), Van Vuuren (1990)

and Visser et al. (1997) it was deduced that many employees experience job

satisfaction because their need for interaction with others at work is being

satisfied to some extent. Hoole and Vermeulen (2003) found, for example, that

pilots who enjoyed more social interaction with colleagues, staff and clients

experienced significantly higher levels of job satisfaction than those who did not

have much social contact with others at work. Social relations with clients and

subordinates were also found to elevate the job satisfaction of a small group of

managers from a variety of industries (Strydom & Meyer, 2002).

An impressive finding in this regard was that, next to the experience of

success, the affiliation motive was found to be a significant contributor towards

job satisfaction. This result came from a large study (Visser et al., 1997) that

33
measured several dimensions of job satisfaction in the workplace. The needs

theories (Alderfer, 1969; Herzberg, 1966; Maslow, 1968; McGregor, 1960)

emphasise that people need and appreciate the support they receive from those

they share their work environment with, and that this support and interaction

make them feel much happier at work.

History of Tower Club

The Tower Club was established in 2001 as the sole executive business

club in the Philippines. With its decorum of exclusivity and privacy, the Club

provided a premier venue for meetings of eminent business groups as well as for

social gatherings.

The club is owned by Tower Club Inc., a corporation duly organized and

existing under Philippine law and incorporated on August 3, 2001. It is governed

by a Board of Governors whose vision and ideals provide essential direction and

leadership for the Tower Club. This, complemented with the owner's commitment

to help maintain the club's exquisite standards, contributed to the growth in the

roster of distinguished men and women who accepted the Tower Club's invitation

for membership (https://towerclub.com.ph/about-us).

34
 Chapter 3

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

This chapter presents the methodology of the study. Specifically, it

discusses the research design, population, sample and sample techniques,

research instruments, data gathering procedure, and the statistical tools used in

data analysis.

Research Design

The research used descriptive research. Descriptive study describes and

interprets information in an attempt to answer the “what is” question. It is

concerned with the conditions that exists, processes that are going on, effects

that are evident, or trends that are developing. It is primarily concerned with the

present, although it often considers past events and influences as they relate to

current conditions (Best and Khan, 2003). Since the study will be employing the

survey method to explore the relationship of motivation and performance rating of

employees in Tower Club, the descriptive research method is most applicable.

Population, Sample and Sampling Techniques

The respondents of this study will be thirty employees of Tower Club. This

selection is based on the belief of the researcher that the specified employees

35
are mature enough to involve themselves in the improvement of their motivation

factors and job performance.

The respondents are selected using the purposive sampling technique

where the researcher selected those individuals who could provide richer and

more significant information about the study. Purposive sampling is a technique

where the “researcher intentionally select individuals and sites to learn and

understand the central phenomenon (Creswell, 2005)”.

Research Instruments

A survey instrument will be administered containing questions covering

variables to determine the relationship between motivation factors and

performance rating among employees of Tower Club. As shown in Appendix A,

the survey questionnaires have three parts.

Part I contains information with regards to employee’s length of service,

gender and marital status.

Part II consists of Motivation factors.

Part III consists of Performance rating.

The researcher will used Lickert Scale method to tabulate the results of

the evaluation on the MF and PR. The following point-scale values with their

equivalent interpretation are used.

36
 Ranges Interpretation

4.51 – 5.00 Strongly Agree

3.51 – 4.50 Agree

2.51 – 3.50 Uncertain

1.51 – 2.50 Disagree

1.00 – 1.50 Strongly Disagree

The questionnaires will be disseminated to fifty (50) employees who are

respondents and the same time the beneficiaries of the study.

Validation of Instruments

The survey instruments that will be used in the study, both for motivational

factor and performance rating are adopted from internet (www.project4mba.com),

and therefore there is no need of getting the Chronbach Alpha and validation of

the said instruments.

Data Gathering Procedures

Preparation of Materials

There will be 50 copies of the questionnaire, which contains the Motivation

Factors and Performance Rating. Fifty participants will be Tower Club

employees. Approximately, thirteen boxes of Monggol pencils will be prepared for

the utilization of the participants during the testing procedure.

37
Experiment Proper

Preparation of the Participants

A letter of request was submitted along with a sample of the questionnaire

to the President of the institution to ask for their permission in conducting the

study. The letter contains the need for the participation of the employees to a

study which aims to determine factors that could influence employees’ perception

of their life and their work. The letter would state that the study aimed to

contribute to existing literature on how the institution can be more helpful to

individual growth and well-being. The subjects will be given consent forms, which

included various information and data regarding the study. Only those who

agreed to sign the consent forms were included in the study.

Administration of the MF and PR

The questionnaire, which contained the combined measure of the

Motivation Factors and Performance Rating, will be given to the participants. A

maximum of 20 minutes will be allotted for the participants to complete their

answers.

Data gathered will be edited, tabulated/encoded, processed and

interpreted/analyzed.

38
Statistical Treatment

The data that were obtained from the instrument used in the survey were

treated independently. The following statistical tools were used in the

interpreting the data.

The Lickert Scale

It was used to describe the relevance of the respondents’ answer. The

weighted mean (x) is the sum of the weighted mean (∑fw) (WM) divided by the

number of items (N). This is measured of central tendency or the point where

most of the scores cluster.

Weighted Mean

In order to give quantities being averaged in their proper degree of

importance, it is necessary to assign them weight and then calculate the

weighted mean. It was used to determine the adequacy of the questionnaires.

X = ∑WM

The mean was used to measure and determine the average assessment

of the Tower Club employees on the relationship between motivation and

performance rating.

39
Standard Deviation

The method was used to gain an indication of the spread of observation

about the mean. The researchers measured the scatter observation. Standard

deviation is defined as the square root of the arithmetic mean of the squared

deviations (www.animatedsoftware.com/statgios).

T-Test

A hypotheses test in which the alternative hypotheses is two-sided and in

which the null hypotheses, therefore, is rejected for values of the test statistic

located either tail of that statistics sampling distribution (Dr. Coronel, 2004).

The T- Test is used to test the null hypothesis. It determines whether to

accept or reject the null hypothesis.

F-Test

Is any statistical test in which the test statistic has an F-distribution under

the null hypothesis. It is most often used when comparing statistical models that

have been fitted to a data set, in order to identify the model that best fits the

population from which the data were sampled.

Pearson Correlation Coefficient (r)

Is a measure of the linear correlation between two variables X and Y,

giving a value between +1 and −1 inclusive, where 1 is total positive correlation,

0 is no correlation, and −1 is total negative correlation. It is widely used in the

sciences as a measure of the degree of linear dependence between two

variables.

40
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