MOTIVATING THE FILIPINO WORKER

Ma. Ligaya M. Menguito

Motivation
● Force that drives a person to satisfy a need and is constituted of psychological
processes that energize (Payos 2010)
● Cause the arousal, direction and persistence of voluntary actions that are goal directed
(Kreitner and Kinicki 2007)
● Intensity of the effort exerted, direction towards the effort and persistence of the person
(Robbins and Judge 2011)
● Intrinsic inducement that propels an individual to think, feel and perform in certain ways
(Martires 1988)
● Driving force that dictates their flow of thought, emotions and actions

Work motivation then is defined as a willingness to exert a high level of effort to reach
organizational goals (Corpuz 2000)

An Overview of Western Theories of Motivation

Content - needs as source of motivation. BEH is motivated by desire to satisfy needs

Abraham Maslow’s Needs Hierarchy

● Each step needs to be fulfilled before you can move to the next
● The first four levels are often referred to as deficiency needs (D-needs), and the top level
is known as growth or being needs (B-needs)
 ● *** not in book MAslow’s later research (1987) shows that the steps are not strict and
that BEH is multi motivated

The updated model of Maslow’s motivation

Alderfer’s ERG Theory

Alderfer expanded on Maslow’s Hierarchy of needs and categorized them into
ERG but posits that a person regresses to a lower level need when unable to satisfy a higher-
level need, known as the frustration-regression process
● Existence
○ physiological and safety
● Relatedness
○ belongingness
● Growth
○ higher-ranking esteem and self-actualization
McClelland Need Theory
People have learned needs that they developed as a result of their interaction with others
1. Need for Achievement (nAch) - desire to accomplish goals through own effort
2. Need for Affiliation (nAff) seek approval from others Filipinos score very high on this
need
3. Need for Power (nPo) - desire to control the people and the ENV

Process - propose that a person’s perceptions, thoughts, and beliefs influence motivation

Herzberg's motivation-hygiene theory

states that there are certain factors in the workplace that cause job satisfaction while a separate
set of factors causes dissatisfaction, all of which act independently of each other.

Adam’s Equity Theory of Motivation

people maintain a fair relationship between the performance and rewards in comparison to
others. In other words, an employee gets demotivated by the job and his employer in case his
inputs are more than the outputs.

Victor Vroom’s Expectancy Theory

assumes that behavior results from conscious choices among alternatives whose purpose it is
to maximize pleasure and to minimize pain. Vroom realized that an employee's performance is
based on individual factors such as personality, skills, knowledge, experience, and abilities. He
stated that effort, performance, and motivation are linked in a person's motivation
● Expectancy
○ More effort = better performance
○ Affected by resources, skills, and support
● Instrumentality
○ If I perform better = better outcome
○ Affected by an understanding of performance and outcome, trust and
transparency
● Valence
○ Perceived value on the outcome

Edwin Locke’s Goal Setting Theory

People are motivated to achieve specific and difficult goals when they are given feedback on
their performance.
five principles of effective goal setting
1. Clarity. A goal must be specific and clear.
2. Challenge. An easy or tedious goal is demotivating. But keep a realistic balance: don’t
expect anyone on your team to spin straw into gold.
3. Commitment. Your employees have to understand and buy in to the goal from the
outset.
4. Feedback. Provide regular feedback throughout the whole process. This helps to keep
the goal on track.
5. Task complexity. Think about realistic timescales, and break down the process into sub-
goals with regular reviews.

Hackman and Oldham’s Job Characteristics Model

Based on the idea that the task itself is key to employee motivation. Specifically, a boring and
monotonous job stifles motivation to perform well, whereas a challenging job enhances
motivation.
● SKill variety - the amount of activities that will tap different talents
● Task identity - contribution of one’s task to the whole of the work
● Task significance - impact of the job on other people
● Autonomy - degree of discretion
● feedback
Understanding Filipino Work Motivation
- Pagkakamag-anak - sense of familism
- Promote the interest of the immediate smallgroup
- pagsusumikap—a valued social trait (Jocano, 2001)
- Tenacity to improve one’s self and their condition in the society
- Kaunlaran
- advancement to improve lot
- Para hindi nakakahiya sa ibang tao

Filipino Needs Theory of Motivation (Ilagan et al, 2014)

Job-related
- Specific to the workers immediate tasks
Organization-related
- Looks at the larger work ENV (role modeling to others)
Family’s needs
- Welfare of family (good pay and benefits)
Person’s career
- Own personal development

Total Rewards for Filipino Employees

Implications

1. Identify the most pressing needs of employees.

2. Introduce challenging activities where the employee can potentially learn a new skill or
acquire a new set of knowledge
3. Give meaningful rewards
4. Respect the cultural norms and behavior that they have and use these as a vehicle to get
through them
5. Harness Congenial Relationships
6. Build relationships with leaders and employees.