Examples Of Expectancy Theory

Expectancy theory encompasses the mental process involved in choosing a behavior over another, based on the expectation from the results. Victor Vroom (1964) was the first to introduce an expectancy theory with direct application to work settings, which was later expanded and refined by Porter and Lawler (1968) and others (Pinder, 1987).

Expectancy theory is more concerned with the interrelated factors that go into motivation and the way they relate to each other. That is, it basically is a process theory which is based on the idea that employees believe there are relationships between the efforts they put in their work, the performance they gain form the effort and the rewards they achieve from their effort and performance. In essence, the motivation behind a behavior is the desirability of the outcome. The ultimate result is not the only determining factor in the decision of the resultant behavior because the person needs to evaluate whether or not his expectations will be fulfilled.

Expectancy theory is based on four assumptions-

1. People join a workplace with expectations about their wants, motivations and past experiences. These effect how they reaction to the organization.

2. An individual’s behavior is the result of their conscious choice which means, people have the freedom of choosing those behaviors that they think is best from their own expectancy calculations.

3. People’s want from the organization may vary. (examples- good salary, job security, discounts,