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Thelma Landeros
Motivation And The Theories Utilized At South Texas College
Capstone II - ORG 4361
Dr. Rebecca Lynch
July 05, 2019
Motivation And The Theories Utilized At South Texas College 2
Colleagues, staff members and teachers around my employer at South Texas College
(STC) have given me a greater appreciation of what it means to live in an ethical community.
Research about the theorists Elton Mayo, Henri Fayol, and Douglas McGregor’s organizational
approaches for management thinking and practice, will be explained. This paper includes the
biographies and theories, research about each theory from the three theorists that assisted me to
focus, highlight the motivation and support, given to me as an employee at the Center for
Learning Excellence department. The motivation received from STC as an organization has
persuade a positive effect to employees, which in return greet, smile, make eye contact, and
overall gives back support to students and future professionals. These are great tools in preparing
Approaches for management thinking and practice, are central theories at STC to
motivate and provide a better work environment, performance, and customer service. First,
Psychologist Elton Mayo (1880-1949) was born in Adelaide, Australia. He lectured on logic,
ethics, and psychology in Australia before emigrating to the United States in 1922, where he
taught at Harvard Business School from 1926 through 1947. He explored the work processes and
was more focused on the relationship between managers and workers. Elton M. is best
remembered for his experimental studies at Western Electric's Hawthorne III plant where he
Other methods in the work environment were developed to carry out the demanding
assignments of business organizations. Henri Fayol (1841-1925) was born to a family of the
French lower middle class. He was educated at the National School of Mines at St. Étienne and
at the age of nineteen graduated as a mining engineer. Moreover, in 1860 he accepted a job in the
Motivation And The Theories Utilized At South Texas College 3
show interest in management (Lynch, 2019). Henri F stayed with the same employer until his
retirement in 1918. His concepts were mostly strategic, holding the top director’s view and
attempting to integrate the entire company from the leading position of a manager to the rest of
theorist and educator, interested in management approaches and practices. He taught psychology
and industrial management at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology from 1937 through
1948, and later from 1954 through 1964. Growing in his profession, he was very engaged in his
studies and practice and became the president of Antioch College from 1948 through 1954. His
book “Human Side of Enterprise” from 1960 changed American management practices and led
to the human potential movement by proposing the "Theory Y," which is a humanistic view of
behavior and motivation, opposing the traditional "Theory X" that viewed employees as lazy,
unmotivated, and needing strict control. (Cutcher-Gershenfeld, 2000). The overall past research
in management thinking and practice, implies that theorists Elton Mayo observed that
productivity depended on staff members morale. Henri Fayol explains that control is exercised
McGregor described two different practices where any person as an employee can take
Currently, Elton Mayo is best known for a series of experiments conducted at the
Western Electric Company between 1924 and 1932, called the Hawthorne Studies. These
projects showed that when workers perceived that management cared about them and when they
felt they were getting special treatment, morale and productivity increased (McKee, 2014). These
Motivation And The Theories Utilized At South Texas College 4
findings are relevant today. The Hawthorne studies were also critical in the creation of the social
exchange theory (SET) which was created by George Homans who was a student from Elton M.
The SET theory helped explain the findings by providing an overarching theory on how groups
influence behavior (Muldoon, 2019). SET has been used to describe a wide variety of
conformity with the plans adopted, the instructions issued, and principles established (Graham,
1968). This means, the dynamism of any employee in a working setting of an organization
depends on how control is exercised. In present day, organizations consider the general
principles that are recommended by Henri F. For example, the nursing management is currently
applying the administrative theory for interviews. The questions scripts consist of 25 questions
based on Henri F’s general management principles (1989) which was developed to assess the
clarity of the instrument’s questions (Araújo, et.al., 2014). The present study aims, to identify
the extent to which these representations are associated with the general principles of the
Classical Management Theory, include a formal structure of the work organization with the
adoption of principles, and administrative functions. This supports the current management
In today’s workforce, leaders must reinforce the distinctive efforts and successful
performances of the personnel. This shows that by enforcing meaningful and interesting work, it
management styles introduced more than 50 years ago, explains that money, good benefits, and
even a good relationship with management are not effective means to motivate employees to
align with organizational goals (Sanford, 2012). In today’s organizations such as retail stores,
schools, and even hospitals, leaders can practice Douglas M’s theory X and Y management
approaches. In this case, it would be essential to develop better relationships with employed
managers by understanding what motivates them. This is meaningful, because coordinators are
motivated when they can learn or have interesting and challenging work.
The movement to empower people in organizations has been popular for many years for
several good reasons, such as making decisions, fewer people are doing more work, and
managers are often extremely busy (McKee, 2014). This means that it is important for a leader to
create resonant environments at work to inspire the workforce, with a result of an exceptional
business performance. Moreover, having a responsible attitude can cause people to feel more
involved at work. Researcher Douglas McGregor, “Theory X” views employees to be lazy, are
incapable of self-direction and autonomous work behavior, and have little to offer in terms of
organizational problem solving. This theory will not provide the productive results for the
organization. In addition, Douglas McGregor, developed “Theory Y” which states that workers
are not inherently lazy, incapable of self-direction and self-control, and are capable of providing
important ideas or suggestions that will improve organizational effectiveness (Davis, et. al.,
2008). For this reason, when organizations practice Theory Y beliefs about people.
Motivation is the result of a complex set of psychological influences and external forces
or conditions that causes a person to behave in a certain way while maintaining a certain level of
effort and persistence (McKee, 2014). This means that motivation, creativity, and adding
meaning in my position as tutor, involves harnessing talent and energy in providing a service of
Motivation And The Theories Utilized At South Texas College 6
performing well at work. Learning to motivate can take place in a classroom, through life
experience, or on the job. South Texas College (STC) was founded in 1993, and currently is
composed of five campuses, two higher education centers and one virtual campus. This
teaching and learning, workforce development, cultural enrichment, community service, and
regional and global collaborations. Moreover, STC’s core values are student success, excellence,
opportunity, community, and integrity, which have supported me with the professors, staff and
with a job by building a strong self-confidence to become a supplemental instruction leader (SI).
STC as an organization has great incentive factors such as salary, supervision working
conditions, relationships with coworkers, and level of job security. These factors can affect
employees in a positive way, where they tend to be motivated by achievement, recognition, and
the ability to grow and advance in their careers (Davis, 2008). Coordinators at STC support
school department such as the tutoring sector named The Center for Learning Excellence. The
supervisors provide projects for tutors such as intercampus tutoring or by providing workshop
sessions for students. This allows for tutors to achieve their own goals and effectively
accomplish the organization’s goals at the same time. Working as a math tutor has kept me
motivated and enabled me to keep climbing in its workforce ranks. STC has provided me a
family environment that fosters professional development and has opportunities for me to
continue growing.
Motivation And The Theories Utilized At South Texas College 7
People, technology, and our very lives are constantly changing, and South Texas College
remains current by having coordinators and staff that encourage innovation, creativity, and an
throughout the process of any given project. STC’s human resources department consists of
employee relations, benefits information, forms, guidelines, procedures, and orientation. The
department of employee relations guides and trains employees about employment law, labor
relations, policies, and procedures. During staff training, yearly information is given about Title
IX, complaint forms, core values and professional ethics is provided to all employees through the
provide the best service. They have a sense on how to treat employees with fair and consistent
treatment to its employees. Also, this organization has valued creativity, by providing resources,
programs and trust in personal ideas such as mentoring other tutors and students.
South Texas College has provided training, education, and skill development
opportunities, involving employees in decision making, and foster challenging and stimulating
work opportunities. Employees are now responsible for growing in their own careers, taking
initiative, and participating in organizational decision making (Sandford, 2012). From this
Hierarchy of Needs Theory. This concept follows human needs, where people are motivated to
Moreover, Abraham M’s theory can be comparable with Douglas McGregor’s Theory “X and
Y.” For instance, leaders can relate Theory “X” only with the “Physiological and Safety” human
needs, where the management style would be lacking several other employee necessities. This
Motivation And The Theories Utilized At South Texas College 8
reason why McGregor associated Theory “Y” with the “Belonging, Esteem, and Self-
Actualization” concepts of the Needs Theory. Analyzing these two concepts will assist me to
reach a higher level of interest to work hard and be productive in my job as a tutor and future
professional.
Afterwards it is important working with ideal supervisors that motivates employees with
the self-determination theory (SDT). This relate with people’s need for empowerment and
relatedness, denoting that their excitement influence people, which grow as a result (McKee,
2014). This means that as an STC employee, my managers have used McGregor’s Theory “Y”
manager style. Coordinators and specialists at the CLE that emphasize in employees to start
having confidence in themselves given tasks that highlight the staff potential for that growth.
McGregor also noted that some businesses are adopting practices that could be expected to yield
superior results, such as decentralization and delegation, job enlargement, participative with
consultative management, and performance appraisal (Davis, 2008). Letting the personnel know
they are valued and contributed, where their input is valued and needed, usually has them rise to
assist.
Interpersonal trust is the essence that binds work environments together, and provides a
sense of interdependence, to assist one another, and be eager to learn and take tasks. This
and desires of the student during a session or workshop presentation. South Texas College as my
employer has practiced organizational ethics by training their employees with high standards and
outstanding performance. Many ethical strategies and actions, such as empowering staff, creating
a sense of shared mission and values, truth telling, rewarding moral behavior, including
Motivation And The Theories Utilized At South Texas College 9
demonstrating concern for employees has improved tutor commitment and productivity at the
CLE. This improves as a result, the productivity of the entire organization (Johnson, 2016).
Additionally, STC has prepared me to give back to student success by working among
management and tutors that motivate me, giving positive reminders when having a stressful day.
For instance, motivating a student or team to continue their careers. Moreover, to achieve
excellent results by building resumes, letter writing, pushing them to get into a masters’ program
so that they can continue building and growing themselves, even if they have to leave the
company one day. As a future teacher, the most beautiful motivation given by STC as my
organization is that education comes first. That assisted me as a tutor and future professional to
create a plan of approach, encourage discussion and delegation of tasks, and encouragement
throughout a tutoring session, or workshop presentation for the students, which benefit with class
In conclusion, enthusiasm, vision, and the ability to communicate are qualities that
strengthen the technical knowledge. Leaders in today’s business organizations such as South
Texas College must respond positively, powerfully, and ethically to the many situations arising
in today’s industry. Douglas McGregor’s Theory X and Y has contributed to STC leaders,
employees, business, and their communities. This transpires in ideas, approaches, and by
involving the school organization workers leadership, students, and me as a future professional.
Motivation And The Theories Utilized At South Texas College 10
REFERENCES
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Graham, G. (1968). The Theory of Organization: A Note. Public Administration, 46(2), 191–
201. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9299.1968.tb01361.x
Johnson, C. (2016). Improving Group Ethical Performance. Organizational Ethics A Practical
Approach Third Edition (p. 209). Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications Inc.
Kopelman, R. E., Prottas, D. J., & Davis, A. L. (2008). Douglas McGregor’s Theory X and Y:
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