Vroom's expectancy theory: what it is and what it says about work

Vroom's expectancy theory is contextualized within social psychology and organizations. It refers to human motivation, a concept widely studied in basic and social psychology.

This theory holds that motivation depends on three factors: expectancy, instrumentality, and valence. In this article we will learn about these components, the characteristics of the theory and how all of this is related to effort and work performance.

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Vroom's expectancy theory: characteristics

The theory was proposed by Victor Vroom, a psychology professor originally from Canada, in 1964. Through Vroom's expectancy theory, It is established that human motivation depends on three factors: expectation, valence and instrumentality.. v. Vroom focuses his theory on the field of organizations, and that is why he makes special allusions to motivation at work.

Thus, based on Vroom's Expectancy Theory, the following formula is proposed, which relates these three components: Motivational Strength = Expectation x Instrumentality x Valence. That is, it alludes to the three components mentioned for

explain what it depends on for a person to feel and exert said motivational force.

Components

The basic components that determine the motivation of workers are: expectation, instrumentality and valence. Let's see what each of them consists of:

1. Expectation

It consists of the expectation that by investing "X" effort, "X" results will be obtained. For this, it is essential that the employer knows what motivates his workers, so that he can motivate them properly.

Expectation has a lot to do with the concept of self-efficacy introduced by Albert Bandura., an important Canadian psychologist born in 1925. This concept refers to the perceived ability of the person to face obstacles and achieve what is proposed.

Another factor that has come into play in the expectation of the worker is the difficulty of the task; That is why the employer must ensure that the person, in addition to having the skills required to carry out the task, has the resources or support that he needs.

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2. instrumentality

Within Vroom's expectancy theory, and referring to the second essential element that leads to motivation, we find instrumentality. This has to do with the fact that each worker will have the function of him and will be an indispensable part for the whole gear to workthe organization itself as a whole.

The objective will be that the employee has a good performance, that allows to obtain the desired results; that is, it has to be a “functional” piece, which adds value. Hence the name of this concept.

3. Valencia

Finally, the third component of the Vroom expectancy theory formula is valence, and it has to do with what each employee values; there will be some who value salary more, others vacation days, others free time (which implies working fewer hours), etc.

The role of the employer, in this case, will be to discover what their workers value, in addition to knowing what value they place on their own results. That is, the results or performance obtained by each worker will be valued by each of them in a unique, idiosyncratic way.

Motivation and effort

Vroom knew that motivation was closely related to effort. Thus, and logically, the more motivated we are in relation to a task or an objective, the more we will strive to achieve it. And also, the fact that we are more or less motivated will be determined by the value that we give to said task or objective, that is, the personal value that it has for oneself.

It is a kind of intuitive sequence; the more value, the more motivation and by extension, the more effort. Thus, alluding to this concept, Vroom differentiates three elements: the individual effort that each person performs to achieve a goal, the performance they obtain and the final result of that task.

These three elements are connected and constantly interrelate, influencing each other.

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Decisions and personal factors

On the other hand, Vroom's expectancy theory states that workers will make the decisions depending on what motivates them the most in their work, and also, the more motivated they are, the more they they will strive

Besides, the personality of the person and his personal characteristics will also exert an influence when it comes to guiding the person himself in his decisions. According to Vroom, we behave by constantly choosing what we want, that is, deciding between different options or alternatives.

Fundamental ideas: how can the entrepreneur act?

Vroom's expectancy theory also relates some concepts already mentioned: effort, motivation and performance. But... what way?

According to Victor Vroom himself, and as we have already mentioned, a person will make more effort if he feels more motivated towards a certain task; Also, if he tries hard, his performance will be more likely to be good. They are, thus, factors that are interrelated, and although Vroom's expectancy theory focuses on the field of work, it can be extrapolated to the educational field, for example, or to others.

Self-efficacy and self-esteem

What can (or should) a boss do to motivate his employees? According to Vroom's expectancy theory, a good choice will be maintain a positive correlation between the performance / performance of the worker and his effort. That is, the worker feels that the more he tries, the better his job performance. In other words, that his feeling of self-efficacy is high (self-efficacy expectations), and that he sees himself capable of achieving what he sets out to do.

If this is applied correctly and constantly, the worker will end up trusting himself and his abilities, a fact that will maintain or increase his own self-esteem. All this will favor his personal and work well-being.

What we mentioned, in addition, it has to do with the perception that the person has of himself, of his work, of his achievements, etc., and this is why it is important to reinforce this positive correlation between effort and performance.

Processes in the field of work

Within Vroom's expectancy theory we can find three main processes that can be developed in the work context. These processes consist of relationships between different elements of the theory. Let's see them:

1. Relationship between effort and performance

As we have mentioned before, the theory makes this point; It is a relationship between worker effort and performance. This relationship is proportional; that is, the greater the effort, the greater the performance. We also see this outside of the workplace.Although we must bear in mind that there will always be strange variables that we cannot control that may interfere with our performance.

2. Relationship between performance and reinforcement

Vroom's expectancy theory also alludes to the relationship between performance and reinforcement or rewards ("rewards"). Maintains that the higher the performance, the greater the rewards we will obtain.

In the labor context, this can be related to the objectives established by some companies, which consist of rewarding the worker financially based on his performance; For example, if you reach the goal of selling "X" products, or billing "X" amount of money, he will reward you with a salary increase or extra pay that month.

3. Relation between reinforcement and value

The third point or process proposed by Vroom's expectancy theory is the relationship that appears between the reinforcement or reward received by the worker, and the value that he gives him.

In other words, the ideal is that the rewards are valued by the workers, because, as we have already seen, the more value the reward (or the objective, task, ...) for the worker, the more motivation he will have and the more effort he will invest to develop the task or the job.

Breach of processes

According to Vroom's expectancy theory, the three types of relationships that we have exposed are actually "conditions" to ensure good job performance. It is because of that if one of the three is not fulfilled, it will be very difficult to motivate the worker and, by extension, for him to be efficient or productive.

Bibliographic references:

• Hogg, M. (2010). Social psychology. Vaughan Graham M. Pan American. Publisher: Panamericana.
• Lawler III, E.E., and Suttle, J.L. (1973). Expectancy theory and work behavior. Organizational Behavior and Human Performance, 9(3), 482-503.
• Vroom, V.H. (1964). Work and motivation. Oxford, England: Wiley.