Expectancy Value Theory

Expectancy Value Theory

Expectancy Value Theory

Expectancy theory is among the more prominent theories of work motivation. Victor Vroom originally developed the theory in 1964. However the 1995 reprint of Work and Motivation may be of particular interest because the introduction includes Vroom's reflections, as at September 1994, on his theory and the subsequent research that it generated (VROOM). Although he acknowledges the unrealistic cognitive assumptions of the theory in that individuals are not always rational optimal decision makers, Vroom asserts that his model was intended to be of heuristic value by providing “a language for formulating questions” (p.xviii) about the work motivation process. In the introduction Vroom also acknowledges the importance of the extrinsic/intrinsic distinction in the work motivation process, and reasserts the significance of individual differences, as opposed to situational properties, in the motivation-job satisfaction relationship (Carver, 1999).

The introduction aside, the book contains Vroom's original work of which chapter 2 describes his expectancy theory of work motivation. Vroom specifies that motivation is the result of three different types of beliefs that individuals possess: (a) expectancy: the belief that one's effort will result in performance; (b) instrumentality: the belief that one's performance will be rewarded; and (c) valence: the perceived value of the rewards to the recipient. Importantly, Vroom posits that motivation is a multiplicative function of all three components. The remainder of the book is devoted to three closely related issues: (a) why people choose the jobs they do; (b) the factors that cause people to be satisfied with their work; and (c) the factors that influence individual's work performance. The literature relating to these three issues is very extensive and remains a useful reference for earlier works on work motivation (Fan, 2011).

Not so much a theory as a way of looking at motivation and behaviour. The essential notion here is that any organism (human or otherwise, although the theory is generally used to characterize human motivation) behaves in accordance with the expected outcomes of various courses of action and the values associated with each of those outcomes.

TAYLOR writes in an accessible style, acknowledging the difficulty in understanding the theoretical chapters of Vroom's book and the “frightening formulae” within. Taking an applied personnel management approach, Taylor defines the key variables of expectancy theory followed by a brief discussion on the implications of the model for personnel management. The article concludes with a warning that the model is ...