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When Empowering Employees Works, and When It Doesn’t

• Sara Willis,
• Amy Wei Tian

It’s great for boosting creativity, less so for improving routine performance.

Many leaders often try to empower their employees by delegating authority and decision-making, sharing information, and asking for their input. But a recent meta-analysis of 105 studies on this “empowering” leadership style found that it works best in motivating certain types of performance and certain types of employees. It found that first, empowering leaders are much more effective at influencing employee creativity and citizenship behavior (i.e., behavior that is not formally recognized or rewarded like helping coworkers or attending work functions that aren’t mandatory) than routine task performance. Second, by empowering their employees, these leaders are also more likely to be trusted by their subordinates, compared to leaders who do not empower their employees. Third, leaders who empowered employees were more effective at influencing employee performance in Eastern, compared to Western, cultures, and they had a more positive impact on employees who had less experience working in their organizations.

Research has regularly demonstrated that when employees feel empowered at work, it is associated with stronger job performance, job satisfaction, and commitment to the organization.

• Allan Lee , PhD, is a Senior Lecturer at the University of Exeter (UK). His research focuses on leadership within organisations and specifically examines the development and impact of leader-follower relationships. More information about his research is available here .
• SW Sara Willis is a lecturer in organizational psychology at Alliance Manchester Business School, The University of Manchester, UK. Her research explores the impact of leadership on work effectiveness, wellbeing and occupational safety.
• AT Amy Wei Tian is an Associate Professor in human resource management at the Curtin Business School, Curtin University in Perth Australia. Her research focuses on how strategic HRM and leadership affect people’s attitudinal and behavioral outcomes such as creativity and innovation. She also examines how multicultural employees, leaders and teams can contribute to team and organisational success.

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What keeps employees motivated

Psychologists are expanding their efforts to get research on what motivates people at work to employers at a time when the workplace is changing dramatically

Vol. 52 No. 7 Print version: page 52

• Personality
• Managing Human Capital

The upheaval of the working world since March 2020 has no precedent in living memory. Some people went home for what they thought would be weeks, only to still be working from home more than a year and a half later. Others were left to struggle through enormous stresses in front-line occupations. It was, in short, a tough year for workplace motivation.

Yet psychological research suggests that there are ways businesses can support their employees moving forward even as the pandemic slips into a new phase of uncertainty. Much of this work comes from decades of research on the impacts of stress in the workplace and how job pressures influence motivation, said James Diefendorff, PhD, an industrial and organizational (I/O) psychologist at the University of Akron.

“Those demands consume regulatory resources, lead to faster emotional exhaustion and depletion, and require more opportunities for replenishment,” Diefendorff said. “It’s just amped up in the context of working under the various additional stressors and demands that the pandemic has introduced.”

Motivation in a pandemic

One of the key findings from I/O psychology over the past several decades is that not all workplace stresses are created equal. Some stressors are hindrances, which are things outside of an employee’s control that feel like barriers to performance: red tape, lack of resources, conflicting goals. Others are challenges, which feel like tasks that a person can overcome while growing and improving. An example of a challenge stressor might be learning a new skill to take on a new job responsibility. A meta-analysis led by Jeffery LePine, PhD, a researcher in organizational behavior at Arizona State University, found that while hindrance stressors crush motivation, challenge stressors actually boost it ( Academy of Management Journal , Vol. 48, No. 5, 2005 ). Research further suggests that people find challenge stressors motivating because they expect that if they put the work in, they can achieve an outcome they value. Hindrance stressors, on the other hand, feel insurmountable—no matter how hard you work, a satisfactory result is out of reach.

Many of the stressors introduced by COVID-19 were hindrance stressors, said Thomas Britt, PhD, an I/O psychologist at Clemson University. This was particularly true in health care, where limited personal protective equipment early in the pandemic put workers at risk. Hindrance stressors also abounded in other professions, such as in education, where teachers had to try to teach in far-from-ideal remote-learning circumstances.

The impact of the pandemic on workers is also clear through the lens of self-determination theory , a framework for understanding motivation developed by psychologists Richard Ryan, PhD, a professor at Australian Catholic University, and Edward Deci, PhD, a professor emeritus at the University of Rochester. Research into self-determination theory finds that three main psychological needs support optimal motivation: autonomy, competence, and relatedness ( Annual Reviews of Organizational Psychology and Organizational Behavior , Vol. 4, 2017 ). The pandemic has been a disaster for all three, said Susan Fowler, a San Diego–based motivation consultant who uses self-determination theory as the basis for her work. Suddenly, many workers were being told they had no choice but to stay home, Fowler said. They were being asked to do things that made them feel bumbling and helpless, such as interacting solely via Zoom. And the necessity of social distancing meant they were often isolated from their colleagues.

At the same time, working from home reduced hindrance stressors—such as commutes—for some workers. Researchers, clinicians, and coaches alike are now tapping into basic research to show people how to connect with their own motivation and goals, especially when external circumstances challenge them.

“Motivation researchers are active in workplaces, classrooms, sports . . . pretty much anywhere people would be engaged,” Ryan said. “We want to find out, what are the internal factors that facilitate that engagement?”

Building optimal motivation

Research has turned up several good answers to that question. One of the most motivating experiences employees can have is making progress on a meaningful task, said Teresa Amabile, PhD, a social and organizational psychologist at Harvard Business School. Amabile and her colleagues asked more than 200 employees at seven companies in the tech, chemical, and consumer products industries to write daily diary entries describing events at work and rate their own feelings of intrinsic motivation, extrinsic motivation, creativity, and collegiality, among other measures. They also collected periodic ratings of the workers’ creativity from colleagues ( Administrative Science Quarterly , Vol. 50, No. 3, 2005 ).

“We could look at how the events that were occurring impacted their intrinsic motivation and their creativity,” Amabile said.

When people reported more intrinsic motivation, their creativity simultaneously rose, she said. So did other desirable states such as productivity, collegiality, and commitment to work. And what spurred intrinsic motivation? Amabile and her team found that the most powerful precursor was the feeling of making progress at meaningful work.

“Here’s what’s interesting: It doesn’t have to be a huge breakthrough,” Amabile said. “It can be small, almost trivial, steps forward.”

This finding fit with previous I/O psychology research. For example, job characteristics theory, developed in 1975 by Greg Oldham, PhD, an I/O psychologist now at Tulane University, and J. Richard Hackman, PhD, a social psychologist now at Harvard University, holds that meaningfulness is one of the three factors leading to motivation, along with responsibility and knowledge of results.

Anecdotal reports during the pandemic suggest that the winnowing effect of work-from-home policies actually boosted feelings of progress for many employees, Amabile said. With time freed from long commutes, random coworker interruptions, and morning makeup and hair-care routines, workers often felt they got more meaningful work done each day.

However, there are caveats to the benefits of meaningful work, said Britt. He and his colleagues surveyed U.S. working adults in multiple industries using Amazon’s Mechanical Turk website during the pandemic and found that mental health symptoms after hindrance stressors were more severe in those who felt a “calling” to their work ( Work & Stress , Vol. 35, No. 2, 2021 ). “Encountering these demands that you can’t control and that harm your performance is going to be particularly impactful for those who feel called to do the work and feel the work is highly important,” Britt said.

Furthermore, in a study of emergency department physicians, Britt and his colleagues found that a sense of meaning in work did not buffer doctors from mental health strain early in the pandemic ( Applied Psychology , online first publication, 2020 ). That was a surprise, Britt said, but it may indicate that when hindrance stressors become too overwhelming, a sense of purpose isn’t enough to rescue one’s sense of well-being at work.

Leading to motivate

One lesson from these findings is that workplaces need to make sure their employees have the basic resources they need to perform their job duties, Britt said. In times of crisis, workers also need extra time to rest and recover from stress. Listening to employee feedback and responding to their needs can help administrators and managers reduce hindrance stressors among their workers.

There are also strategies that workers themselves can use to boost their own motivation, Diefendorff said. These range from motivation-control strategies, such as setting subgoals and rewards for meeting them, to attention-control strategies to minimize disruptions and interruptions. Emotion-regulation strategies such as minimizing anxiety and worry can also be helpful for goal-setting, he said. But workers might also need to recognize when they’re too tapped out to use these strategies effectively. “You have to have self-compassion, which basically means cutting yourself some slack as a way to give yourself the time and space you need to try to recover your depleted resources,” Diefendorff said.

In general, Amabile said, managers can help by encouraging employees to see ways in which their work is meaningful and by providing clear goals and benchmarks for progress. Step back, micromanagers: The most motivationally beneficial leadership style is one that encourages employees to manage their own workflows and solve their own problems.

This style is called leader autonomy support, and it’s characterized by a manager who encourages their employees to self-initiate tasks, to share their own perspectives, and to make their own choices, while still stepping in to support them when needed.

A meta-analysis led by Ryan found that leader autonomy support fosters employees’ sense of autonomy, competence, and relatedness within the workplace, which boosts autonomous work motivation. This self-derived motivation, in turn, is linked to feelings of well-being and engagement as well as declines in distress and improvements in positive behaviors at work ( Motivation and Emotion , Vol. 42, No. 5, 2018 ). The meta-analysis included studies from multiple countries, including Iran, the Philippines, Korea, Bulgaria, Holland, China, New Zealand, and South Africa. Ryan said that this beneficial effect of leader autonomy support seemed to hold in workplaces worldwide and that autonomy improved productivity, commitment, and satisfaction with work in both collectivist and individualistic societies.

“Regardless of culture, if you don’t have a sense of freedom and choice in your work activities, your well-being is undermined,” Ryan said.

Putting research in action

With the onset of the pandemic, motivational experts, like many other workers, moved online. Ryan and his colleagues at his consulting business, motivationWorks , found themselves coaching business leaders dealing with vastly different circumstances. Managers suddenly working with largely remote teams had to find ways to support their employees’ sense of competence to help them tackle the challenges that remote work created, Ryan said. Managers overseeing essential workers, on the other hand, faced a different set of issues.

“Especially in the health care industry, where we are doing extensive work, job stressors were manifold,” Ryan said. “Here, again, autonomy-supportive leaders were better able to hear and respond to the needs of their employees, which was crucial during this challenging period.”

Motivation research applies to a broad range of workplaces, far beyond the stereotypical white-collar office setting. Ryan and his colleagues found, for example, that autonomy, feelings of competence, and feelings of relatedness or connection within the workplace all positively influence job satisfaction and general mental health in a factory setting ( Journal of Applied Social Psychology , Vol. 23, No. 21, 1993 ). A case study led by Philip Cheng-Fei Tsai, PhD, of Wenzao Ursuline University of Languages in Taiwan, that analyzed a Taiwanese manufacturing company undergoing a downsizing found that while managers thought factory workers were most motivated by the company’s salary and benefit structure and the opportunity for education and training, the factory workers were actually most driven by relationships with their colleagues and the extent to which their jobs allowed them to cultivate their relationships with their families ( Journal of World Business , Vol. 42, No. 2, 2007 ).

“In context where people can feel a sense of autonomy, where they can feel a sense of competence, and where they can feel connected and related to the people around them, that’s where they have the highest-quality motivation,” Ryan said.

Fowler saw a particularly emotional example of this in her work with a large construction firm during the pandemic. A supervisor she was working with noticed that one of his employees was frequently late and struggling at work. The supervisor made a stab at connection and asked the employee if he was homeschooling his kids, pointing out that remote learning was a struggle in his own home. The employee broke down. His wife was an emergency room nurse, he said. They had two kids in early elementary school and no family help. He was working around the clock to try to juggle it all.

The supervisor called together his team and explained the situation. Working together, the rest of the team shuffled their own schedules to make life easier for the struggling father. The result, the supervisor told Fowler, was that the entire staff felt like they were doing something good. Given choice and autonomy, they could support the family of a health care worker and feel a sense of connectedness rather than inconvenience.

“[The supervisor] said, ‘I learned that being empathetic and just having a casual conversation with someone may be one of the greatest gifts I can give my people as a leader,’” Fowler said.

Emotional connection can be powerful. In his work with business leaders, clinical and organizational psychologist and consultant George Kohlrieser, PhD, focuses on bonding. This can be a hard sell in some business cultures—he counts among his success stories a ­heavy-machinery dealership in South Carolina where he helped change the culture from one of aloof detachment to one where employees felt bonded to one another. Such connections foster employees’ sense of psychological safety, or the feeling that the workplace is a safe environment to take risks and be vulnerable.

With vaccination widely available in the United States, employers are increasingly calling workers back into offices. They’ll need to feel safe there—not only from new outbreaks of COVID-19 but also from the new uncertainties introduced by a year or more of remote work. Many industries are turning to hybrid solutions for employees who can work from home and who have realized that they don’t want to go back to cubicles and commutes, Ryan said.

“People have been able to experience firsthand that they can self-regulate their work efforts and also balance work demands with the things that matter most outside of work,” Ryan said. “Their horizons have been expanded, and I think we will see increasing demands for empowering work conditions.”

The key detail to making this work, Fowler said, is ensuring that every employee gets equal consideration, even if the ultimate workplace arrangement isn’t the same across the entire company. Some jobs require face time more than others, she said, but those employees should still have their needs considered and be offered as much autonomy as possible. Certain types of job training or mentoring, for example, might need to be done in person, but employees could still get opportunities to autonomously decide when or how they fulfill these responsibilities.

“Not everyone is going to get the same deal, but everyone should have the same consideration and conversation,” Fowler said.

Life span motivation

Not all workplace­relevant research starts out in studies of employees. Carol S. Dweck, PhD, a professor of psychology at Stanford University, did much of her early research on how the types of goals people have influence their levels of motivation in school. She found that when students were motivated by the desire to learn and become better at something, they bounced back from failure much more readily than when they were motivated by external carrots and sticks, such as the desire to get outside approval or avoid negative judgment ( Journal of Personality and Social Psychology , Vol. 54, No. 1, 1988 ). Out of this research, Dweck and her colleagues coined the well-known notion of a “growth mindset,” which views intelligence as malleable and failure as an opportunity to learn.

Expanding out of the educational system, Dweck and her colleagues have discovered that their growth mindset framework applies in workplaces. For example, they’ve found that the more that employees view their company leadership as cultivating a growth mindset—rather than a fixed mindset in which ability and intelligence are immutable—the greater trust and commitment they have in their organization ( Academy of Management Annual Meeting Proceedings , 2018 ).

Researchers who study motivation in schools also provide perspective on how to teach motivation habits early, as well as how to avoid squelching kids’ intrinsic motivation before they even get their first job interview. These lessons may be particularly important as children return to the classroom after a year of disruptions and remote learning.

“There is pretty strong research that shows that the motivation in academic subjects during adolescence is an extremely strong predictor of people’s career trajectories later in life,” said Eric Anderman, PhD, a professor of educational psychology at The Ohio State University. Unfortunately, the traditional incentives of education don’t do much to kindle that motivation.

“As kids move up through the grades, the focus of school—the purpose of school—becomes more about getting grades and doing well and less about learning,” Anderman said.

Paralleling Dweck’s findings, Anderman and his colleagues have found that taking a mastery-based approach to education rather than a reward-based approach can improve motivation-related outcomes like task efficacy, knowledge, and behavioral intentions ( Journal of Educational Psychology , Vol. 112, No. 5, 2020 ). The hope is that instilling these habits early can immunize people against the motivation-killing norms they might face in the work world.

“In terms of preparing people for the real world, we do have to acknowledge that workplaces are competitive and there are going to be extrinsic outcomes,” Anderman said. “But it’s how we train people to cope with it. We don’t want to send them out of school with the message that they have to be number one at everything.” 

Further reading

Mindfulness and its association with varied types of motivation: A systematic review and meta-analysis using self-determination theory Donald, J. N., et al., Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin , 2020

Toward a new curriculum of leadership competencies: Advances in motivation science call for rethinking leadership development Fowler, S., Advances in Developing Human Resources , 2018

Student motivation and associated outcomes: A meta-analysis from self-determination theory Howard, J. L., et al., Perspectives on Psychological Science , 2021

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Motivating workers: how leaders apply self-determination theory in organizations

Organization Management Journal

ISSN : 2753-8567

Article publication date: 14 December 2020

Issue publication date: 14 December 2020

Self-determination theory (SDT), offers a theoretical framework for enhancing employee motivation and stimulating positive outcomes such as commitment, well-being and engagement, in organizations. This paper aims to investigate the application of SDT among leaders and delineate practical managerial approaches for supporting basic psychological needs in the workplace.

Design/methodology/approach

Participants were 51 leaders who had personally applied SDT with their own followers. Data were collected via free-listing method and analysed to extrapolate examples of SDT-application that are both practically salient and aligned to theoretic tenets of SDT.

The findings reveal how SDT is operationalized by leaders to support basic psychological needs for autonomy, competence and relatedness in the workplace. The SDT-informed management strategies are discussed in relation to the literature and alongside case scenarios to illustrate approaches for integrating elements of SDT into day-to-day management activities.

Originality/value

Despite extensive literature support for SDT, very little empirical attention has been paid to examining how the theory is applied, interpreted and/or used by practitioners in real world settings. This research is the first to draw on the lived-experience of practitioners who have applied SDT, contributes previously unexplored strategies for supporting workers’ basic psychological needs and responds to calls for SDT research to identify a broader range of managerial behaviours that support employee motivation.

• Self-determination theory
• Basic psychological needs
• Organization
• Workplace motivation
• Employee motivation

Forner, V.W. , Jones, M. , Berry, Y. and Eidenfalk, J. (2020), "Motivating workers: how leaders apply self-determination theory in organizations", Organization Management Journal , Vol. 18 No. 2, pp. 76-94. https://doi.org/10.1108/OMJ-03-2020-0891

Emerald Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2020, Vivien Weisz Forner, Michael Jones, Yoke Berry and Joakim Eidenfalk.

Published in Organization Management Journal . Published by Emerald Publishing Limited. This article is published under the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY 4.0) licence. Anyone may reproduce, distribute, translate and create derivative works of this article (for both commercial and non-commercial purposes), subject to full attribution to the original publication and authors. The full terms of this licence maybe seen at http://creativecommons.org/licences/by/4.0/legalcode

Introduction

Understanding how to motivate organizational members is a critical component of effective management. The quality of workers’ motivation is predictive not only of their commitment and work effort but also their overall engagement, well-being and performance in their job ( Gagné et al. , 2014 ; Kuvaas et al. , 2017 ; Sisley, 2010 ; Springer, 2011 ). Leaders and managers play a pivotal role in shaping motivation in the workplace and facilitating these beneficial outcomes ( Graves and Luciano, 2010 ; Miniotaitė and Bučiūnienė, 2013 ; Oostlander et al. , 2014 ). However, despite their critical role in initiating and sustaining motivational processes, many leaders and managers are often unsure of what to say or do to effectively engage and motivate organizational members. Traditional management approaches ( Taylor, 1911 ) have tended to rely on leveraging authority and/or organizational reward systems to influence worker behaviour. Companies in the USA and Europe continue to increase their use ( Bryson et al. , 2012 ) and spend ( WorldatWork, 2018 ) on financial-based incentives to motivate employees. For example, employee equity ownership, just on the type of performance-pay incentive program, is estimated to be worth around $1,061bn in the USA alone (Day and Fitton, 2008 ). Developments in the field of motivation have questioned the effectiveness of extrinsic rewards as motivators and research has revealed leaders can achieve superior and sustained motivational outcomes by adopting supportive interpersonal approaches and creating a positive climate for their team members ( Deci et al. , 2017 ). The important question then becomes, what theoretically informed strategies can leaders and managers use to effectively motivate people in organizations?

Self-determination theory (SDT) (Ryan and Deci, 2019) is a prominent theory of motivation that offers leaders an evidence-based framework for how to effectively motivate workers. SDT delineates the social-contextual factors, including leaders’ interpersonal style, that predict high quality motivation in the workplace ( Deci et al. , 2017 ). The theory posits human beings have three basic psychological needs (autonomy, competence and relatedness) which are essential ingredients for motivation, well-being and optimal functioning ( Deci and Ryan, 2014 ). When workers’ basic psychological needs are met they are more likely to be autonomously motivated, that is they are personally invested in their work tasks and engage in their work activities willingly ( Deci and Ryan, 2014 ; Van den Broeck et al. , 2016 ). The satisfaction of worker’s basic psychological needs also stimulates a wide range of other beneficial work-related outcomes such as well-being, job satisfaction, commitment and performance ( Arshadia, 2010 ; Baard et al. , 2004 ; Deci and Ryan, 2014 ; Van den Broeck et al. , 2016 ). SDT provides a valuable theoretic model for understanding the social-psychological impact of management in an organization. The theory also has substantial utility for leaders seeking guidance on how to motivate their followers because the three basic psychological needs delineate dimensions of the environment and provide trigger points, that facilitate positive motivational outcomes ( Baard et al. , 2004 ).

Despite a large body of research support for SDT in the workplace, there is currently very little empirical guidance for leaders seeking to translate the theory into practice. To date, only a small number of articles have published practical strategies or managerial behaviours that satisfy basic psychological needs in organizations ( Baard and Baard, 2009 ; Stone et al. , 2009 ). Furthermore, recommendations offered by academics tend to be theoretical in nature and, while helpful, may not be fully relevant or applicable given the complexities of organizations and barriers faced by managers in the field. Addressing the future direction for SDT research, Deci and Ryan (2014) called for more exploration of how managers can carry out their specific functions in ways that are need supportive rather than thwarting. The current paper contributes to addressing this gap in the literature by examining the operationalization of SDT in organizations and investigating how leaders support workers’ needs for autonomy, competence and relatedness in-practice.

Self-determination theory and basic psychological needs

SDT ( Deci and Ryan, 1985 ) is an influential theory of motivation in the twenty-first century that is concerned with understanding how to facilitate and sustain high quality motivation. According to SDT, all human beings have three basic psychological needs: autonomy, competence and relatedness. Workers are optimally motivated and experience well-being to the extent that these three needs are satisfied in their work climate ( Ryan and Deci, 2002 ). Autonomy refers to workers’ need to experience choice in their role, have the freedom to make decisions, express their ideas and have input in deciding how their tasks get done. The primary focus of autonomy is on people’s need to be volitional and self-initiate their own actions, rather than be controlled and directed by others ( Deci and Ryan, 1987 ). Competence represents workers’ need to feel effective, successful and that they are good at their job ( Van den Broeck et al. , 2010 ). The need for competence is satisfied when workers have opportunities to use their skills and develop mastery of their tasks. Finally, humans are social creatures and relatedness reflects the need to experience a sense of belonging and feeling accepted and cared for by others ( Ryan and Deci, 2017 ). A worker’s need for relatedness is satisfied when they feel part of the group and have supportive relationships and friends at work. SDT considers autonomy, competence and relatedness to be essential ingredients for sustained motivation and nutrients for individual growth, well-being and thriving ( Ryan and Deci, 2002 ). Leaders who enable satisfaction of these three needs promote high quality motivation where workers personally endorse and willingly participate in their work activities.

Basic psychological needs: ingredients for autonomous motivation.

The satisfaction of a worker’s basic psychological needs affects the type of motivation the individual has towards their job activities. When managers support autonomy, competence and relatedness, employees are more likely to be autonomously motivated ( Van den Broeck et al. , 2016 ). Autonomously motivated employees engage in their work with a full sense of willingness, understand the worth and purpose of their job and are self-determined in carrying out work tasks ( Ryan and Deci, 2017 ). Autonomously motivated workers reliably perform better, learn better and are happier at work ( Deci et al. , 2017 ). In contrast, when a person’s basic psychological needs are not met their motivation deteriorates and becomes controlled. Controlled motivation is characterized by an employee doing an activity because they feel they “have to” and/or to obtain a separable outcome ( Ryan and Deci, 2017 ). Controlled behaviours are contingent on reward, power dynamics or driven by internal pressure such as guilt or to maintain self-esteem. Compared to controlled motivation, autonomous motivation yields better behavioural outcomes (e.g. sustained willing participation) positive subjective experiences, less job stress and higher satisfaction in the workplace ( Fernet and Austin, 2014; Gagné et al. , 2010 ).

Basic psychological needs and positive outcomes in the workplace.

SDT research in organizations has shown basic psychological need satisfaction to be associated with a wide range of positive employee outcomes, beyond autonomous motivation. The satisfaction of basic psychological needs has been associated with lower turnover, improved well-being, higher job satisfaction and positive job attitudes ( Gillet et al. , 2012 ; Vansteenkiste et al. , 2007 ). A recent meta-analysis of 99 studies reported that each of the three needs predicted lower turnover intention and were associated with higher job satisfaction, engagement and affective commitment ( Van den Broeck et al. , 2016 ). Beneficial outcomes of need satisfaction have also been found in studies conducted within the volunteer context ( Haivas et al. , 2012 ). For example, Boezeman and Ellemers (2009) examined the way in which volunteers derive their job satisfaction and intent to remain. The results showed that when volunteers experience the satisfaction of autonomy and relatedness needs during their volunteer work, they are more satisfied with their volunteer job and that this, in turn, enhances their intent to remain a volunteer with the volunteer organization.

Overall, SDT’s basic psychological needs have substantial application value because they offer leaders a simple framework outlining the conditions that promote high quality motivation and beneficial outcomes among their workers. The interpersonal approach of leaders, the way they communicate and relate to their followers, is considered paramount in creating a need-supportive climate and shaping motivation in an organization ( Deci et al. , 1989 ). The critical issue for leaders, therefore, becomes understanding how they can apply SDT and support basic psychological needs in their own organizations.

A gap between self-determination theory and practice in organizations.

A disconnect between theory and practice ( Van De Ven and Johnson, 2006 ; Zaccaro and Horn, 2003 ) within SDT research is currently limiting leaders from diffusing this valuable knowledge into managerial practice. SDT literature in the work domain has focused primarily on theoretical testing, measurement of SDT-related constructs and investigating the model’s nomological network ( Deci et al. , 2017 ; Gagné and Deci, 2005 ; Ryan and Deci, 2019 ; Van den Broeck et al. , 2016 ). In contrast, very little empirical attention has been paid to examining how the theory is applied, interpreted and/or used by practitioners in real world settings. Only a few SDT-based field experiments or quasi-experiments have been undertaken in the work domain ( Deci et al. , 1989 ; Forner, 2019 ; Hardré and Reeve, 2009 ; Jungert et al. , 2018 ), revealing that researchers have, thus far, done very little to integrate the theory into practically useful organizational interventions or actions. Tangible managerial behaviours or practical strategies that support workers basic psychological needs in the workplace are rarely published ( Baard and Baard, 2009; Stone et al. , 2009 ) and SDT researchers have called for studies to “examine concrete workplace tasks, characteristics and managerial behaviours” ( Deci et al. , 2017 , p. 37). The immense popularity of practitioner-oriented books on motivation ( Pink, 2009 ) highlights both the significance of this topic for business professionals and the opportunity for SDT scholars to have a greater impact on informing and shaping employee motivation practices in organizations. The current disconnect presents a problem for managers, HR professionals and fellow academics seeking to use SDT to solve real business problems because there is limited empirical guidance to help them operationalize the theory clearly, within the complexities of strategic organizations and to take appropriate and effective action. The present research contributes towards addressing this issue.

Present research.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the application of SDT among leaders and delineate practical managerial approaches for supporting basic psychological needs in the workplace. To investigate the phenomenon of SDT-based leadership the research asks: how do leaders apply SDT, when carrying out their day-to-day managerial functions, to support workers’ needs for autonomy, competence and relatedness? This study is the first draw upon the lived experience of practitioners, specifically organizational leaders, who have operationalized the theory into actions and have personally applied SDT in their organization. Consistent with engaged scholarship ( Van de Ven, 2007 ), the study aims to leverage theoretic knowledge of SDT scholars alongside the insights and applied experience of practitioners to delineate examples of basic psychological need support that are practically salient and aligned to the theoretic tenets of SDT. In doing so, this paper contributes to bridging the theory-practice gap and further expands our understanding of what leaders do to motivate organizational members.

Participants

Examples of SDT application were proposed by 51 leaders, who had learned and personally applied SDT with their own followers in the workplace. The participants were paid ( n = 22) and volunteer ( n = 29) leaders of emergency service organizations. They occupied leadership roles across various levels of the organization including, for example, group leaders, deputy local controllers, regional managers and managers of departments. The leaders had an average of six years (SD = 8) managerial experience in the volunteer/non-profit sector. A total of 76% had also gained managerial experience in corporate and public sector organizations, with an average of 8.4 years (SD = 10.2) managerial experience. They were aged between 25 and 62 years (M = 44, SD = 10) and had been members of the organization for an average of nine years (SD = 8). In total, 58% of the leaders were male and 42% were female.

Learning and application of Self-determination theory by leaders.

Prior to contributing to this study, the leaders spent nine weeks learning about and personally applying SDT in their organization. This process was facilitated through a structured SDT-based leadership intervention, comprising of three phases. The aim of the first phase was for leaders to learn the theory and consider how they would apply the model in their own organizational context. Leaders were introduced to SDT via a face-to-face training day where they received information, took part in workshop discussions, role plays and reflection exercises and created individual action plans for how they would support their followers’ basic psychological needs. The learning content and the conceptual definitions of key constructs were drawn from published research ( Deci et al. , 1989 ; Deci and Ryan, 2008 ; Stone et al. , 2009 ). Next, the leaders completed a nine-week on-the-job learning program. The purpose of this second phase was to prompt leaders to practice their new skills and knowledge in the workplace and for them to identify and try various strategies and approaches for supporting followers’ basic psychological needs during their day to day management activities and reflect on their outcomes. Leaders were facilitated through three cycles of experiential learning ( Kolb, 2014 ) where they implemented their action plan for supporting basic psychological needs, completed post-implementation reflection activities, received mentoring, revised their action plan and completed further theoretical readings. Practice-based learning and multiple delivery methods have been found to be critical for effective leadership learning ( Lacerenza et al. , 2017 ). The final phase comprising a community of practice ( Li et al. , 2009 ) where the leaders came together to share their experiences with each other, identify successful SDT application actions and discuss barriers and challenges they encountered. Further details and information on how the intervention was designed and delivered, including research evaluating its impact on leaders and followers, can be found in Forner (2019) . The quasi-experimental research, which included the sample of leaders in the present study, showed the nine-week intervention significantly changed leaders’ interpersonal orientation towards supporting basic psychological needs and improvement in the leaders was still evident one year after the training.

Data collection.

Data for this present study were collected from leaders at the end of the nine-week intervention using the free-listing methodology ( Quinlan, 2019 ). Free-listing is a well-established ethnographic method that, when coupled with an appropriate analytical technique, enables researchers to elicit and synthesize a coherent view of collective understanding of a domain and indicate which of those things are most important or salient within the group ( Quinlan, 2019 ; Thomson et al. , 2012 ; Weller and Romney, 1988 ). A free list is a mental inventory of items individuals think of within a given domain. In the generalized free-listing protocol ( Bousfield and Barclay, 1950; Thomson et al. , 2012 ) participants are directed to list as many items that “come to mind” within a constrained time-period. The elicited list items are then analysed together and “salience” of each item is calculated. The free-listing activity for the present study followed the generalized protocol and was facilitated as a face-to-face group session. The participating leaders were provided with information about the purpose of the activity and instructed to list strategies and actions detailing “what leaders […] can do to apply SDT and create an optimally motivating climate for their follower”. The exercise was constrained to 20 min and leaders were asked to draw upon their own experience of applying SDT to list as many SDT-informed actions that come to mind. The leaders developed their free lists in small groups of up to five people per group. Next, leaders were given 40 min to write short (one paragraph) case scenarios describing the implementation of two of the actions on their list. The free lists and case scenarios were written by the leaders on a paper-based template. Each group submitted a list of SDT-informed leader actions and two case scenarios. They were advised that the examples would be shared with other practising leaders to help illuminate how SDT is applied in organizations.

A total of 42 SDT-informed leadership examples were submitted across the free lists. The submissions were analysed to identify those SDT-informed leadership examples that were both practically salient to the leaders themselves and aligned to the theoretic tenets of SDT. Firstly, a practical salience score was derived for each submission. Free-listing practical salience score analysis exposes commonalities in the collective understanding of a domain and items that are most important or salient within the culture/group ( Quinlan, 2019 ; Thomson et al. , 2012 ). It is based on the premise that earlier listed items tend to be most familiar to the lister and also more likely to occur across multiple lists ( Bousfield and Barclay, 1950 ), signalling their cultural salience. Following Smith (1993) and Quinlan (2019) , the salience statistic was calculated by rating each submission according to its frequency , the number of times similar items occur across multiple lists and its rank , the order in which participants list their items. The frequency and rank values were combined to produce a practical salience score – an indicator of the submitted example’s practical significance to the leaders. The practical salience scores ranged between 2 and 70 with higher numbers indicating greater practical salience.

A theoretical fit score was also derived for each submission. Three experts, who had academic expertise in both SDT and leadership theory, independently evaluated the 42 free-list item submissions. Firstly, the expert categorized each submission by indicating which basic psychological needs they judged to best fit the example (i.e. autonomy, competence or relatedness). Next, they rated, on a scale from 1 (very weak fit) to 5 (strongly aligned to theory), the strength of that fit to the theory. For example, the expert rater may categorize an item to be most representative of support for autonomy, relative to competence or relatedness and might indicate that the item’s alignment to SDT’s conceptualization of autonomy is somewhat weak by, rating it a 2. Various methods have been proposed to combine experts’ ratings ( Uebersax, 1993 ). In the present study, there was 100% consensus amongst raters on the basic psychologist need category attached to each example. The theoretical fit rating across the three experts were therefore aggregated to produce a mean theoretical fit score.

Finally, the “practical salience” and “theoretical fit values” were standardized and combined to indicate a joint theoretical and practical appraisal of each submission. This was done by first converting raw scores into z -scores ( z = ( x – μ )/ σ ) and then summing the practical salience with theoretical fit z -score derived for each example. Sample means and standard deviations for standardizing practical salience were μ = 18.84, σ = 17.76 and theoretical fit were μ = 2.66, σ = 1.65, respectively. The z -score enables the comparison and in this instance combination, of two scores that are from different distributions and/or scales. By using standard scores, practical salience and theoretical fit had equal weighting when summed to produce the combined score. For example, a submission with low theoretical alignment ( x = 2, z = –0.4) but high practical salience ( x = 70, z = 2.9) had a combined score of 2.5. Higher combined scores indicate that the submission has strong practical significance and theoretical fit.

Results and discussion of findings

In this section, we present and discuss practical examples for how leaders support autonomy, relatedness and competence in the workplace. The examples and illustrative scenarios were provided by practising leaders and draws upon their lived experience of applying SDT and supporting the basic psychological needs of their team members. This section comprises two parts. The first part, Part A – How managers support basic psychological needs , presents the highest scoring examples for each of the basic psychological needs, autonomy, competence and relatedness. High scoring examples are those with both strong practical significance for leaders and good alignment to the theory. To provide easily digestible information for practitioners we focus on five examples for each of the basic psychological needs. Next, in Part B – exemplar case scenarios we present and discuss short scenarios illustrating how need-supportive actions are implemented by leaders in day-to-day managerial practice. Three cases, composed by leader participants, describe how they applied SDT in their organizational context and implemented actions to support the basic psychological needs of their followers. Each case scenario is accompanied by a theoretical interpretation, highlighting the basic psychological needs being supported. While, Part A focuses on examples of “what” leaders do to support basic psychological needs, Part B scenarios offer a description of “how” they do it. The examples are discussed in relation to SDT, the literature and practice.

Part A. How leaders apply the principals of basic psychological needs in the workplace

Autonomy represents workers’ basic need to experience a sense of freedom and choice when carrying out an activity and to have some level of control in how they go about their own work ( Ryan and Deci, 2000 ; Van den Broeck et al. , 2010 ). The hallmark of autonomy is an internal locus of causality ( De Charms, 1968 ) whereby people experience ownership of their behaviours and perceive them as being self-initiated. Five practical examples, proposed by organizational leaders and managers, for how to support workers’ basic psychological need for autonomy are presented in Table 1 .

The findings reveal leaders support workers’ need for autonomy by providing a platform for team members to express their ideas and suggestions. Two examples submitted by leaders included encourage innovation and provide workers with opportunities to express their ideas . Innovation is where team members generate and implement novel ideas, new processes or better ways of doing things which are useful to the team. Leadership styles that are constructive, empowering and transformational are positively associated with both creativity and innovation ( Hughes et al. , 2018 ). When leaders are open to their workers’ ideas and suggestions and provide a safe environment for people to express their opinions, they send a clear signal that innovation and creativity are encouraged ( Ye et al. , 2019 ). Leaders sustain and enhance motivation, creativity and innovation by listening to workers’ suggestions and empowering then to action their ideas or at least explore them further ( Liu et al. , 2011 ; Sun et al. , 2012 ).

Providing full freedom for workers to pursue their own ideas and interests is not always realistic or desirable in the workplace. Strategies were also provided for how leaders support followers’ need for autonomy when workplace tasks and decisions are handed down by the organization or manager. These examples were: consult with those who are affected by your decisions , be less prescriptive in assigning tasks and provide a rationale for decisions where possible . Leaders in the present study support autonomy by inviting others into the decision-making process and consulting with those who will implement or be affected by others’ decisions. Greater worker participation in decision-making has been linked to beneficial outcomes such as job satisfaction and improved performance in the workplace ( Grissom, 2012 ; Scott-Ladd et al. , 2006 ). Participative or consultative decision-making satisfies people’s need for autonomy by providing a platform for them to express their ideas and feelings, as well as having input and some control in their work activities. The language leaders use in communicating their decisions and assigning tasks is also critical for supporting autonomy ( Deci and Ryan, 1987 ). Providing a rationale or explanation for why a decision was made is one way that leaders support their followers to recognize the importance and value of a certain course of action. Previous laboratory research suggests that providing people with a meaningful rational helps them internalize the decision, come to accept it and even autonomously endorse it ( Deci et al. , 1994 ). When assigning tasks to members of the team, leaders can support autonomy and intrinsic motivation by avoiding controlling or enforcing language, such as “must” or “should” ( Ryan, 1982 ) and instead invite workers to decide how they go about achieving the task assigned to them.

Autonomy examples represented the smallest portion (19%) of the 42 SDT-informed actions submitted by leaders. This may reflect the contextual challenges of supporting autonomy in an organizational setting. Rather than being free to do as they wish, organizational members must operate within existing structures/processes and their tasks and responsibilities are set for them by the organization. The participants in this study, for example, led organizations where workers must adhere to strict safety procedures specifying how they must carry out their tasks. The small portion of submissions focusing on autonomy may suggest it is more challenging for leaders to implement this element of the theory as they must find a way to balance autonomy with organizational requirements. While providing full autonomy is not always possible, the examples above offer ways in which leaders can provide opportunities for autonomy as often as possible in the day-to-day running of the unit. Finally, it may be that the conception of autonomy need support, as it is described within the academic literature, is less clear and practitioners find this aspect of the theory more challenging to understand and operationalize. Indeed, it can be observed that the term autonomy is included within many theoretically distinct SDT constructs including, for example, autonomy: a basic psychological need ( Van den Broeck et al. , 2016 ), autonomy orientation: an individual difference in causality orientation ( Hagger and Chatzisarantis, 2011 ) and, autonomy-support: an interpersonal style ( Slemp et al. , 2018 ). To support the application of SDT, it may be necessary for scholars to recognize the potential for conceptual confusion or uncertainty and seek to emphasize the points of divergence across these constructs and accentuate these in their conceptualizations and definitions.

Competence.

The basic psychological need for competence represents workers’ desire to feel effective and successful in their role. According to SDT, leaders support competence by creating a positive learning environment and providing opportunities for others to use their skills and further develop them through optimally challenging tasks ( Deci and Ryan, 2014 ). Competence represented the largest portion of examples (48%) submitted by leaders in this study. This may indicate that leaders are more experienced in this area or that this element of SDT was more readily understood. Table 2 presents the five practical examples, proposed by organizational leaders and managers, for how to support workers’ basic psychological need for competence.

Leaders who participated in this study support competence by creating opportunities for followers to build their skills, capabilities and self confidence in a safe and supportive environment. Two examples provided by leaders included provide development and learning opportunities and let team members learn at their own pace . There are many ways leaders can offer workers opportunities for education and personal development and these have positive motivational effects ( Stone et al. , 2009 ). For example, leaders can facilitate on-the-job learning opportunities by providing optimally challenging workplace assignments, offering team members opportunities to take on new tasks, letting someone lead a project or providing an opportunity to take on increased responsibilities ( Berings et al. , 2005 ). Being considerate to also maintain autonomy, leaders should avoid imposing development activities without consultation or involvement from the follower. Rather, leaders might take time to understand the individual development interests and needs of their team members and involve them in devising ideas and suggestions for their own learning and development activities. By understanding each followers’ development aspirations, skill level and capabilities, leaders can support their followers to learn autonomously and at their own pace, further building motivational resources.

Leaders further support competence by helping build self-esteem and confidence , which represents another example provided by leaders in this study. Self-esteem refers to workers’ overall self-evaluation of their own competencies and capabilities. Self-esteem and confidence at work are known to be affected, in part, by an individual’s organizational experiences of success and communication and messages of their manager and peers ( Pierce and Gardner, 2004 ). Successful task/work experiences, such as completing a project or achieving a milestone, will bolster self-esteem, whereas failure has the opposite effect. Messages of value and respect for the worker from the manager also contributes towards workers coming to hold a positive image of themselves. To this end, it can help build people’s self-confidence in their own skills by providing optimally challenging yet achievable work goals, acknowledging progress, using people’s strengths and offering authentic non-judgemental support.

Another key strategy to support competence and promote motivation is through offering regular positive and constructive feedback . Positive feedback signals to the follower that they have performed well, are skilled and can succeed. Positive feedback or praise, relative to no feedback or negative feedback, is especially motivating and has been linked to higher levels of well-being, task interest and ongoing participation in the activity ( Deci et al. , 1999 ; Mouratidis, 2008 ). The language leaders use to communicate with their follower is critical and determines whether the feedback is received positively and builds self-confidence or perceived to be controlling and diminishes motivation ( Ryan and Deci, 2000 ). Communicating feedback in a supportive way involves being empathetic, acknowledging the follower’s feelings and difficulties and inviting them to provide their own views ( Carpentier and Mageau, 2013 ; Ryan and Deci, 2000 ). In contrast, feedback that conveys external pressure focuses on enforcing rules and uses language such as “should” or “must” is controlling and undermines motivation ( Ryan, 1981 ). Overall, both the type of feedback (positive vs negative) and the way in which it is delivered impacts upon people’s competence and motivation ( Mabbe et al. , 2018 ).

Leaders further recommend supporting competence by introducing mentoring opportunities . Mentoring involves a supportive relationship between two members of an organization where, traditionally, a senior worker provides a more junior worker with personal and professional development ( Kram, 1985 ). Mentoring may be formal, such as a structured program that pairs organizational members together or informally occurring across team members and networks of workers spontaneously ( Higgins and Kram, 2001 ). The fact that both members of the relationship benefit from this form of professional development is especially valuable ( Kram and Isabella, 1985 ). For example, the more senior worker is provided with an opportunity to demonstrate and be valued for their skills and experience while the junior member benefits by developing new skills and building their knowledge and capabilities. As such, it is expected that both parties are experiencing the satisfaction of their need for competence during mentoring activities.

Relatedness.

Humans are social beings and relatedness represents the need to experience a sense of belonging and to feel accepted and cared for by others. The need for relatedness is satisfied when workers develop close relationships in the workplace and see themselves as part of the group ( Van den Broeck et al. , 2016 ). Table 3 presents the five practical examples, proposed by organizational leaders and managers, for how leaders support workers basic psychological need for relatedness.

Positive social interactions and interpersonal relationships between leaders and their followers are responsible for shaping motivation and well-being at work ( Deci et al. , 2017 ; Weinstein and De Haan, 2014 ). The importance of high-quality and authentic relationships between leaders and their followers has been emphasized in various theories of leadership ( Gerstner and Day, 1997 ; Uhl-Bien, 2006 ). The examples provided by leaders in this study offer some simple interpersonal techniques for building relationships where the aim is to better understand and get to know the followers. Learning about the interests and circumstances of others provides opportunities to find common ground. These commonalities create opportunities for authentic conversations and create the basis for building a genuine relationship. Further to supporting basic psychological needs for relatedness, relationship building practices by leaders have other positive outcomes such as improved team effectiveness, job performance and engagement ( Dunst et al. , 2018 )

Leaders help facilitate high quality relationships among colleagues and team members by implementing team bonding activities, inducting new members into the team. A worker’s need for relatedness is satisfied when they feel such as they belong to the group, have people who care about them and are able to care for others ( Ryan and Deci, 2017 ). Having close friends at work has a positive impact on people’s experience and satisfaction in their job and colleagues provide an important source of basic psychological needs satisfaction and motivation in the workplace ( Jungert et al. , 2018 ; Moreau and Mageau, 2012 ). Leaders create opportunities for team socialization to facilitate the development of genuine and supportive relationships between team members. For example, social activities, such as team lunches or events, provide opportunities for new team members to interact in a relaxed and informal environment. The importance of inducting or onboarding new members into the team is also emphasized. Onboarding helps introduce and socialize newcomers and includes practices such as communication, making resources available, welcome activities, training and a guide or “buddy” assigned to help the new coming navigate their new workplace ( Klein et al. , 2015 ).

Leaders also take action to promote diversity and inclusion within their team, focusing on respecting others’ background and experience. Leaders are important role models of group expectations and may support diversity by respecting and valuing the unique strengths that members bring to the group and discussing the value and opportunities that can be realized through increased diversity. Researchers examining the interplay between leadership and team diversity stress the critical importance of matching leadership behaviours to the specific needs arising from diversity-related team processes and have proposed specific competencies, such as social perceptiveness, that allow leaders to shape the influence of diversity within the team ( Homan et al. , 2020 ). Leaders also play an active role in supporting HR diversity practices, such as ensuring that opportunities for promotion and training are equitably distributed, which is conducive for employees’ felt inclusion ( Buengeler et al. , 2018 ).

Part B. Exemplar case scenarios

Building on the examples presented in Part A, the following presents and discusses illustrative case scenarios detailing how the SDT-informed actions are implemented in organizations. Each scenario, submitted by the leaders, describes how a leader supports their followers’ basic psychological needs while carrying out day to day managerial activities. A theoretic interpretation is presented alongside each scenario to highlight where support for autonomy, competence and relatedness feature within the case. The case scenarios extend on the Part A results by offering richer more detailed depictions of need-supportive managerial behaviours and provide insights into how SDT is practised by leaders in organizations.

Scenario 1: Get to know your workers outside the work context

[Leader] Bill, embeds regular social events into the unit’s calendar. At the next team meeting, he invites suggestions for social event ideas and suitable dates from the members. The calendar is distributed to all team members and displayed at the unit. Bill personally attends all the events and supports his management team to also attend.

Scenario 1 focuses on building support for relatedness by intentionally creating opportunities for social interactions among team members. The need for relatedness is satisfied when people experience a sense of belonging and develop intimate relationships with others ( Ryan and Deci, 2000 ). Informal social interactions at work can provide a platform for developing such relationships, for people to feel connected to each other and for leaders to connect with and learn more about their followers. This scenario also demonstrates a strategy for supporting autonomy. Rather than the leader prescribing social activities and dates, he involves the members in the process, seeking their input and supporting them to participate in the process.

Scenario 2: Ownership of projects

[Leader] Susan invites an experienced team member to take on the lead role in developing a training course on a topic of their interest. She provides information on the context and desired outcome and seeks suggestions for suitable milestones from the volunteer. The outcome will be a training package developed by volunteers themselves which could be shared with neighbouring units.

The focus of Scenario 2 is autonomy. The need for autonomy is satisfied when people experience volition and freedom to pursue their interests and exercise choice (Deci and Ryan, 2000). Offering ownership of a task empowers the follower and enables them to unleash their ideas, provide input and drive the direction of the organization. The scenario also demonstrates how a leader may balance followers’ autonomy with organizational requirements. In this case, the leader provides information about organizational boundaries within which the follower will operate by outlining the context and desired outcome. The follower is then invited to contribute to developing the milestones for the project. In this manner, the leader outlines the organizational objective, together they agree on smaller goals and then the follower is empowered to lead the initiative. Support for competence is also evident in this scenario. Drawing on the volunteers’ expertise in an area of their interest enables them to exercise their existing skills and develop further in a domain of work they enjoy.

Scenario 3: Mentoring new and less experienced members

Josh has never been near a flood boat and now wants to be a flood boat operator. The leader pairs him with a mentor who is also a member of their team and an experienced flood boat operator. The mentor engages by sharing knowledge and assisting to develop the theoretical foundations prior to Josh attending a boat training course. After the course the mentor does some practical exercises with him and supports him on the job

Mentoring exercises provide an ideal opportunity to support a more experienced member’s competence through the sharing of knowledge and an acknowledgement of their skills and capabilities. It also serves to strengthen a sense of relatedness between members of the group over time, by providing opportunities for two members (who may not know each other well) to build a supportive and collaborative relationship.

Conclusions

SDT provides an evidence-based framework for how to effectively motivate workers in organizations ( Deci et al. , 2017 ). Organizational leaders establish an optimally motivating workplace climate through satisfying their workers’ basic psychological needs for autonomy, competence and relatedness ( Slemp et al. , 2018 ). The findings of this research delineate examples of SDT application from practising leaders to illustrate how SDT is applied and integrated into organizational leadership.

Extending on previous predominantly theoretic SDT research, this study is the first to draw upon the lived experience of leaders and managers who have implemented SDT in their workplace. In doing so, these findings provide new insights into how leaders interpret SDT and how the theory and its concepts are translated by practitioners in organizations. The present research departs from prior academic attempts to translate theoretically derived knowledge into recommendations and practical implication – which are increasingly criticized for being impractical, difficult to understand and underestimating the tensions and complexities that are basic conditions for managers in organizational settings ( Bartunek and Rynes, 2010 ; Schultz and Hatch, 2005 ). Responding to calls ( Bansal et al. , 2012 ; Gregory and Anderson, 2006 ; Van de Ven, 2007 ) for research studies to “shift from a logic of building practice from theory to one of building theory from practice” ( Schultz and Hatch, 2005 , p. 337), this study taps into the valuable knowledge and experiences of practitioners to extend and develop SDT to have enhanced validity and relevance in an applied setting. The findings of this study contribute previously unexplored strategies for supporting workers’ basic psychological needs and responds to calls for SDT research to identify a broader range of managerial behaviours that support employee motivation ( Deci and Ryan, 2014 ).

The widening disconnect between theory and practice is recognized as a persistent and difficult problem in management and applied psychology research ( Bansal et al. , 2012 ; Van De Ven and Johnson, 2006 ; Zaccaro and Horn, 2003 ). The present study contributes to bridging the gap from science to practice by expanding knowledge of how SDT is applied to management and leadership in the work domain. Using a collaborative form of research enquiry where researchers and practitioners co-produced knowledge (engaged scholarship; Van de Ven and Johnson, 2006 ), this study contributes to achieving the dual objective of both advancing a scientific discipline and enlightening professional practice ( Pettigrew, 2001 ). The findings leverage differences in the kinds of knowledge that SDT scholars and SDT practitioners from diverse background bring to identify examples of basic psychological need support that are practical salient, usable and aligned with the theoretic tenet of SDT. The study responds to ongoing calls for research to improve the exchange of knowledge between academics and practitioners and for scholars to shift research attention towards empirical studies of knowledge from practice ( Bansal et al. , 2012 ; Schultz and Hatch, 2005 ; Van De Ven and Johnson, 2006 ; Zaccaro and Horn, 2003 ). We propose that building knowledge and conceptual clarification about SDT application by leaders is a desirable outcome for both academics and practitioners and, therefore, much can be gained by coupling both parties in a task of mutual knowledge building. Research should continue to leverage practitioner perspectives due to their wide impact and insights they provide into the application and validity of academic constructs in highly complex and ever-changing organizations that we have today.

There are limitations of this study that must be acknowledged. Firstly, the data reflects the personal experiences of a distinct case of organizational leaders. Investigation of the phenomenon of SDT application in the present research is, therefore, constrained within the boundaries of the participants and their context. The sample of leaders who contributed the applied examples were from a very narrow sector/organizational context that may not be representative of leaders or managers in other organizations. Greater diversity of leader participants from different contexts and organizations may have provided different perspectives. The validity of the SDT application examples provided in this study is also noted as a limitation. The effect that these managerial strategies have on workers’ basic psychological need satisfaction require further empirical examination and future research should measure the motivational effects of the suggested strategies on followers.

Providing a practitioner perspective on SDT application to management, this paper bridges the gap from science to practise and from practise to science. Drawing on the lived experience of leaders who have applied SDT in the workplace, the findings illustrate how SDT is operationalized by organizational leaders and delineates practical managerial approaches for supporting employees’ basic psychological needs in the workplace. The strategies discussed in this paper offer guidance for those seeking to implement the theory in their organization. Leaders can adopt and further develop these approaches to motivate workers and improve the quality of people’s experience at work.

How leaders support followers’ basic psychological need for autonomy in the workplace

How leaders support followers’ basic psychological need for competence in the workplace

How leaders support followers’ basic psychological need for relatedness in the workplace

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported in part by the Bushfire and Natural Hazards CRC via a Project Grant titled “Improving the retention and engagement of volunteers in Emergency Service agencies” (2014–2017).

Corresponding author

About the authors.

Vivien W. Forner (PhD, BPsych) is an Organizational Psychologist and Researcher in the Faculty of Business at the University of Wollongong. Her research focuses on leadership, motivation and workplace contexts that promote human well-being and thriving. Vivien has over 10 years’ experience designing, implementing and evaluating leadership and applied psychology interventions within mental health, emergency management, insurance, aged care, education and not-for-profit organizations. She has held a state committee role within Australian Psychological Society’s (APS) College of Organizational Psychology and is a member of the International Positive Psychology Association and International Leadership Association.

Michael Jones [BComm (hons), PhD] is an Associated Professor and has been teaching and researching in areas of organization, business and management for 18 years. Michael has developed research interests in organizational behaviour, group dynamics, doctoral studies, organizational culture and motivation and commitment. Michael also has research strengths in areas of qualitative analysis and has written several papers on various qualitative methodologies and methods. He is a member of the Australia and New Zealand Academy of Management, the Australian Human Resources Institute and the Industrial Relations Society of Australia.

Yoke Berry (PhD) was Project Manager for a Bushfire and Natural Hazards Cooperative Research Centre grant in the Faculty of Business, University of Wollongong. In this function, she contributed to research into retention and engagement of volunteers in emergency service agencies. She has a PhD in Chemistry and has extensive experience in natural products, organic and protein chemistry. She is a qualified secondary school educator in science.

Joakim Eidenfalk (PhD) teaches and researches in the Faculty of Law Humanities and the Arts at the University of Wollongong. Joakim has been teaching and researching international relations, politics, history and security studies for 10 years. Joakim has an interest in foreign policy, security policy, political leadership, decision-making and international relations theory. He has a PhD in Politics, a master’s degree in International Relations and a master’s degree in Politics. Joakim is also interested in teaching improvement and innovation.

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A forum to discuss leadership and management issues, a mini case study on motivation.

On his first day back after his training, the plant manager noticed a Technical Service Executive in the lab having a discussion with an external contractor. While she was wearing safety glasses, the contractor was not. The manager has a no tolerance policy as far as safety is concerned and his normal response would be to call the technician to his office and in his words, “read her the riot act.”

According to the manager’s self-assessment: “I am known to blow a fuse (or two) when safety rules are flouted, however, I managed to keep my cool and decided to test my training.”

He asked the technician to his office and could see that she was worried about his reaction. But instead of leading with his dismay and disappointment, he started by explaining that he had just received some training on motivation. He shared key concepts with her. He then asked her if she thought that the rule to wear safety glasses, even when there was no experiment on, was “stupid” as there is no danger to the eyes. Did she feel imposed upon to wear safety glasses as she had no choice?

Since the technician was invited to have a discussion rather than “dressing down,” she was open and candid. She explained that she had a two-year old child and she was extremely concerned about lab safety as she wanted to reach home safe every evening. To the manager’s great surprise, she also shared that in certain areas, she would prefer even more, not less, stringent safety measures. For example, she suggested that safety shoes should be required for lab experiments that are conducted at elevated temperatures.

But when it came to wearing safety glasses when no experiments were being conducted, she just could not understand the rationale and did, indeed, resent the imposed rule. As a result, she didn’t feel compelled to enforce it, especially with an external contractor. The manager said he understood her feelings and went on to provide the rationale that the intention was that wearing glasses would become a force of habit, just like wearing a safety belt in the car.

The manager said he saw the light dawn in her eyes.

When it comes to your leadership and the motivation of those you lead, consider:

1. Self-regulation is a requirement if you want to lead differently—and better. Challenging your natural tendencies and patterns of behavior provides you with more options on how to lead. The new choices you make can be rewarding and productive for you, but especially for those you lead. As the plant manager reported: “I am sure if I had just followed my normal instincts and given her a piece of my mind, I would have been met with a hangdog look, profuse apologies, and a promise not to ever do this again. And it probably would have happened again. She would have gone away from my office with feelings of resentment and being imposed upon and I would also have had a disturbed day due to all the negative energy.”

2.  Admit when you are trying something new. Be honest about expanding your leadership skills. People will appreciate your sincere and authentic efforts. Says the plant manager: “Suffice it to say that in my view, my little experiment was a success. I have since shared what I learned with many of my team members and plan to have more Motivational Outlook Conversations with them in the coming weeks.”

3.  Remember that as a manager you cannot motivate anyone. What you can do is create an environment where an individual is more likely to be optimally motivated. Ask (and genuinely care about) how a person is feeling, help them recognize their own sense of well-being regarding a particular issue, and provide them with rationale without trying to “sell” it.

Other take-aways? Please share!

_____________________________________________________________________________________________

About the author:

Susan Fowler is one of the principal authors—together  with David Facer and Drea Zigarmi—of The Ken Blanchard Companies’ new  Optimal Motivation  process and workshop.  Their posts appear on the first and third Monday of each month.

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11 thoughts on “ a mini case study on motivation ”.

I’d add “Remember to listen to your team as they have a desire to be heard.” It’s motivating to know that you’ve been heard out by management and your thoughts were considered.

Wow this article hits home in so many ways. The thing I struggle most with is my natural tendencies to react without thinking as a manager. I was told in an impromptu conversation that I am not aware of the way I speak to people which is often very hostile. My boss gave me the best advice saying ‘write as if you were writing to your second favourite person in the world’, not the first because you may be too casual in your response. Self-regulation is indeed a requirement and we as managers cannot plead ignorance.

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Thanks for sharing, gonna put this in practice.

Nice i like it

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Motivational Leadership and Mukesh Ambani: A Case Study

Introduction.

“To make Reliance the world’s most healthy company, protecting, promoting, enhancing employee health and wellbeing; providing outstanding health services and operating an exemplary HSE management system in all sites, services, and offices of the enterprise, improving productivity and reducing health care costs; and with our results, inspiring our customers and partners”, is an endorsement of healthy workplace strategy at the highest level.”

– Mukesh Ambani, Chairman, and Managing Director, Reliance Industries Limited, in 2022

The eagerly anticipated Forbes Billionaires 2022 list highlighted that list of the world's wealthiest people was affected by the crisis in Russia and Ukraine, the coronavirus outbreak, and weak market conditions.

With a net worth of $100.1 billion, Mukesh Ambani, chairman of Reliance Industries Limited (RIL), is the only Indian to make it to the coveted top 10 list and is placed 10th richest on Forbes' list of billionaires for 2022. Reliance Industries, a $74 billion corporation with holdings in petroleum, oil and gas, telecommunication, and merchandising, is run by him as chairman and CEO. He is unquestionably among the most prosperous businesspeople in the history of commerce. Thanks to his tactics and vision, he has dramatically transformed the appearance of Indian industries and improved the nation's economy.

He is the sort of person who has big ideas. He has a gift for predicting the future. He is aware of the strategy that will support future business growth for the organisation. He is able to predict a company's potential and its survival span.

Mr. Mukesh Ambani supervised the construction of the largest grassroots petroleum refinery in the world at Jamnagar in Gujarat in the late 1990s and integrated it with petroleum, a sea port, and related infrastructure and also supervised the construction of a second refinery in Jamnagar. Along with developing Reliance's infrastructure, he oversaw the installation of a multi-format, organised retail network over all of India. Reliance Retail is currently India's biggest organised retailer. He has accomplished world firsts in client acquisition for Jio, Reliance's digital services endeavour. With end-to-end solutions that address the full value chain across a variety of digital services in crucial sectors of the public interest, including as entertainment, healthcare, security, and financial services, he directed and developed one of the largest 4G broadband wireless networks in the world.

Mr. Mukesh Ambani is a member of “The Foundation Board of the World Economic Forum” and a chosen foreign member of the prestigious “American National Academy of Engineering”. He is a member of the global advisory council for Bank of America.

In the past 15 years, a new category of leadership theory, instead referred to as “compassionate,” transformational,” “inclusive,” and “value-based,” has emerged in organizational works (Bass, 1985; Bennis & Nanus, 1985; Burns, 1978; Conger & Kanungo, 1987; House, 1977; Tichy & Devanna, 1986).

Beyond management is leadership. The goal of management is to accomplish tasks by utilizing organizational resources as well as the formal procedures and rules that are in place. On the other side, leadership occasionally entails implementing novel ideas and improvements that may not be well-liked by everyone. Depending on the leader's use of authority and the level of latitude granted to subordinates, a variety of techniques for facilitating change within an organization can be identified.

An authoritarian strategy entails a leader making choices alone and instructing followers on how to behave. A consultative strategy entails speaking with the individuals who will be affected by a decision, possibly soliciting their opinions and suggestions, and also alerting them of any changes that are likely to occur.

Giving people the opportunity to participate in decision-making, potentially through cooperation, is a democratic approach. The leader's task is to facilitate the formation of teamwork structures and to motivate the teams to assume accountability for decision-making.

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THE IMPACT OF LEADERSHIP ON EMPLOYEES' MOTIVATION - CASE STUDY PUBLIC UTILITIES COMPANIES IN KOSOVO

2020, THE IMPACT OF LEADERSHIP ON EMPLOYEES' MOTIVATION - CASE STUDY PUBLIC UTILITIES COMPANIES IN KOSOVO

In any activity, as well as in public services, employee motivation is a challenge. Seeing the importance of Human Resources in the growth and success of any organization, it is pushed to them to study leadership styles, which is used effective style to achieve the set goals and increase the effectiveness of the organization. Leadership has an impact on the company's success by aligning common goals of the organization and the individuals within it, this influence did empower individuals to take the necessary actions to achieve the goals. Through this research, different leadership styles will be studied to identify the most appropriate and influential style in motivating employees of the public utilities sector in Kosovo. Population of this research are the public utility sector employees in Kosovo, sample were 150 workers selected by random method. Data analysis was done by quantitative method using SPSS software. According to research results, based on multiple linear regression and correlation coefficient, we conclude that the leadership styles affect the motivation of workers. There are also statistically significant differences in employee motivation, depending on the type of leadership style used. Based on these results, this topic is particular importance as it not only measures the impact of leadership on employee motivation, but also identifies the most influential leadership style that contributes to creating the most successful model in employee motivation. Based on these results, this topic is particular importance, as it not only measures the impact of leadership on employee motivation, but also identifies the most influential leadership style that contributes to creating the most successful model in employee motivation.

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After the globalization, liberalization, and privatisation in 1991 value of human resource is realized by corporate sector in India. Every company wants to attract best human resource. All organization is in need of creative, innovative and hardworking employee. Industrial leaders are the main leader who attractsthese employees. It's on the shoulder of leaders to keep good working environment for the employees.This study will help the managers to understand the importance of leadership styles and its impact on employee motivation.It will create a base for researchers and academicians for further research.

Tanvir Hasan

Leadership and motivation are interactive as leaders are capable of motivating employees towards a certain goal (Shamir, Zakay, Breinin & Popper 1998:390).The basic principal of leadership is having an influential relationships between leaders and followers which provide more effective behavior towards the ultimate goal of the organization(Bennis & Nanus, 1985).The basic purpose of this paper is to analyze how leadership behavior may effect positively or negatively in motivating individuals of the organizations.In 1939, a famous psychologist named Kurt Lewin explained a different styles of leadership which was basically based on leader’s power and behavior and mainly consists of three key leadership styles such as autocratic leadership, democratic leadership and Laissez-faire leadership behavior (Akanpaadgi et al., 2014).The role of leader is really very important in motivating the employees towards the achievement of the organizations and the ultimate goal. In recent times all the successful business organizations such as Microsoft, Barclays, and Apple etc have great history of leadership.

Leadership and motivation are interactive as leaders are capable of motivating employees towards a certain goal.The basic principal of leadership is having an influential relationships between leaders and followers which provide more effective behavior towards the ultimate goal of the organization. The main purpose of this research paper is to analyze how leadership behavior may effect positively or negatively in motivating individuals of the organizations.The role of leader is really very important in motivating the employees towards the achievement of the organizations and the ultimate goal. In recent times all the successful business organizations such as Microsoft, Barclays, and Apple etc have great history of leadership. Leadership has been altered with the passage of time.

Editor IJSR

A boss has the title. A leader has the people"-Simon Sinek. This quote holds true irrespectively with the field of work. A leader"s most valuable asset is his disciple/follower (employees). For ages "Leadership" has been a topic for conversation and how different leadership style evokes distinct responses from the followers. For an organization to be effective, it has to have a perfect balance between the demands of various stakeholders (owners, Customers, Community, etc.) and the needs of its employees. Also, for a leader to be successful his/her leadership style matters the most. We believe that an appropriate leadership style influences and ensures the prosperity and the economic growth of the organization as well as its employees. Therefore, this research aims to explore the impact of leadership on the progress of the organization and growth & performance of the employees. Further the study aims to explore the outcome of leadership style on motivation and commitment of the workers and also as a predictor of the group. The primary goal of the descriptive study will be to track down the pattern of cause & effect. We aim to conduct a Qualitative research to analyze the claim. The Research is currently limited to Mumbai and Navi Mumbai region of the Maharashtra. The research is limited mainly to the employees from FMCG, Information Technology and Banking & Finance Sector where employees are exposed to leadership on a high frequency.

Addis Ababa University

Daremyelesh Mebrate

The study aimed to examine if there is a relationship between leadership style and employee's motivation, and weather the prevailing leadership styles in a given organization has a positive or negative relationship with employee motivation. To realize the objectives of the study a survey was conducted on 103 employees of a case company that is Geosynthetics Industrial Works PLC (GIW)’s. The employees were chosen to respond to a Multi Factor Leadership Questionnaire (MLQ) and Multidimensional Work Motivation Scale (MWMS) survey questionnaires with some adaptation of the instrument to fit into the context of the case company, and data from which was analyzed quantitatively. The questionnaire was prepared as close-ended questions (Likert model), in order to group responses in to the categories within the study. The respondents were chosen based on convenience and purposive sampling techniques to exclude the leaders from the sample and with simple random sampling among the purposive target groups. Descriptive as well as inferential statistics was used to analyze the data. Secondary data was accessed from the company’s data base and documentation was used to compliment data from the survey. The study findings revealed there indeed is a relationship between leadership style and employee motivation. It further identified the respective relationship of the three selected leadership styles to motivation. Accordingly, autocratic leadership style has a negative, democratic leadership style has a positive and strong bearing on employee motivation, while laissez-faire style has no significant relationship with employee motivation, along with the direction of the relation in the case organization. Based on the findings, the study recommends the management of the company to look into the company's dominant leadership style (Autocratic) which has a negative relationship to its employees’ motivation and to consider redesigning and nurturing the management style into a more democratic leadership style with a combination of revamping both the internal company culture as well as a deliberate focus on its recruitment to enrich its pool of managers with demonstrated track record of democratic leadership. Keywords: Democratic or Participative Leadership, Autocratic or Authoritarian Leadership, Laissez-Faire or Delegative Leadership, Employee Motivation.

Negash Eshetu

ABSTRACT The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of leadership styles on employees’motivation in public sectors of Adea Berga Woreda, west Shoa Zone of Oromia Regional state. The study adopted explanatory and descriptive research design with mixed method approach to answer the research question. Stratified random sampling method was applied and sample was taken from five public sectors. 1334 were study population and 177 employees and leaders were obtained as a sample for the study. To achieve the objective of these study quantitative data was collected in self-administered close ended questionnaire from employees and leaders who were selected as a sample. Qualitative data was also collected from participants using semi structured interview to validated quantitative result. Descriptive statistics and regression analysis methods were applied for data analysis with the help of SPSS version 20. The researcher found that the dominant leadership styles were democratic followed by transnational leadership style and employees’ motivation was moderately motivated. The result of regression shows that all independent variables had statistically significant positive effect on employees’ motivation. The study recommended that incorporation of democratic principles like the act of leaders always consider staffs as part of decision making process, leaders frequently communicate with their employees, developing and maintaining relationship between employees and leaders, employees are encouraged to share ideas and opinions motivate employees. Additionally application of transformational principles like idealized influencing, inspirational motivation, intellectual stimulation and individualized consideration has strong impact on employees’ motivation in public sectors. Key words: Autocratic, democratic, Transformational and Transactional leadership style and Employees‟ motivation

Hasanuddin Bua

Indonesian Journal Economic Review (IJER)

Rahmi Hajriyanti

The success of a company is largely determined by the role of motivation given by the leadership to its employees. With the motivation of employees, employees are expected to be able to work productively, thus providing benefits to the company. The purpose of this study was to determine the magnitude of the influence of leadership style on employee motivation. The employees involved as respondents in this study were 30 respondents, who were employees of PT. POS INDONESIA (Persero) Banda Aceh. Primary data was obtained using a closed questionnaire based on a Likert scale with five ranges. To process the data that has been collected, multiple linear regression analysis (Multiple Regression) is used with the formula Y = a + b1 X1 + b2 X2 + b3 X3 + e. The results showed that leadership style has a significant influence on employee motivation. This is indicated by the f-count of 6.88847 and the f-table of 2.92. Judging from the magnitude of the correlation coefficient (R) is 0.66546 and ...

Pawestri Winahyu

This study aims to determine and analyze the impact of leadership style, motivation and work environment on employee performance of Senyum Media Stationery Jember. The population in this study were all employees at Senyum Media Stationery Jember, located at Jln. Kalimantan No. 07, namely 80 employees and will be involved as respondents in this study, so this research can be said to be a census research. The validity test and the reliability test were conducted to test the measuring instrument in the form of a questionnaire. Descriptive analysis was used to recapitulate the respondent's description. Multiple linear regression analysis is used to determine the effect of independent variables on the dependent variable. The results of the study show that the leadership style variable has a coefficient of -0.007, the work motivation variable has a regression coefficient value of 0.360, and the work environment variable has a regression coefficient value of 0.682. Hypothesis test resu...

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How motivational leaders inspire loyalty and drive performance.

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Abstract concept of way to achieve business success and leadership. Diverse multiracial team of ... [+] specialists climbing mountain holding hands. Flat cartoon vector illustration with fictional characters

In today’s evolving work environment, leadership is no longer about simply issuing directives and overseeing tasks. Instead, effective leadership demands a dynamic blend of emotional intelligence, trust-building, and innovation. Motivational leaders understand that success lies in cultivating an atmosphere where employees feel valued and empowered to perform at their highest potential. The shift to more compassionate and adaptive approaches is helping reshape the modern workplace, ensuring that loyalty and high performance are the outcomes of authentic engagement and shared purpose.

The Shift from Authority to Compassion

Traditional leadership often relied on a top-down, authoritative model where decisions were made in isolation and then passed down to the team. However, this model has proven less effective in fostering long-term loyalty or high performance in today's workforce. Compassionate leadership, where leaders prioritize understanding their team members' motivations, challenges, and personal circumstances, has emerged as a powerful alternative.

Kenneth-Maxwell Nance

Kenneth-Maxwell Nance, founder of Leadership’s Grand Theory (LGT) and LGT Academy, emphasizes that "great leaders are not just commanders; they are connectors. Empathy helps to bridge the gap between leadership and followership, creating a collaborative environment where every team member feels seen and valued." Nance, whose career spans military and corporate sectors, has seen firsthand how empathetic leadership creates a foundation for stronger relationships, fostering both loyalty and performance.

According to Jennifer Garvey Berger, leadership expert and author of Unlocking Leadership Mindtraps , empathy is crucial because it allows leaders to "navigate complexity by seeing the world from others’ perspectives, helping them make more nuanced and informed decisions." This balance of empathy and strategy is essential for leaders aiming to inspire long-lasting commitment from their teams.

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One of the cornerstones of modern leadership is trust. Leaders who listen actively, provide transparent communication, and involve their teams in decision-making processes build a culture of trust that enhances engagement. When employees trust their leaders, they are more likely to remain loyal to the organization and to go above and beyond in their roles.

Nance’s Leadership’s Grand Theory advocates for trust as a critical element in leadership effectiveness. “Trust is the currency of leadership,” says Nance. “When team members feel that their leader has their best interests at heart, they are more likely to stay engaged and committed, even during challenging times.” Nance’s leadership approach has been shaped by his work with multinational organizations and his belief that trust-building is a continuous process that leaders must nurture.

Recognition as a Driver of Performance

Recognition is a powerful motivator in the modern workplace. Leaders who actively acknowledge and reward their employees for their contributions create a culture of recognition that encourages ongoing excellence. This culture not only boosts morale but also reinforces the actions and behaviors that align with the organization’s values and objectives.

“Recognition isn't just about handing out awards,” says Nance. “It's about creating an environment where employees feel their contributions are truly appreciated and where they can see how their work makes a difference.” In his leadership development work, Nance has shown how regular acknowledgment of team efforts leads to higher engagement and increased productivity.

Resilience and Adaptability in Leadership

Resilience has become a defining trait of modern leaders, particularly in navigating the unprecedented challenges brought on by global events such as economic shifts and technological disruption. Leaders who demonstrate resilience not only manage through crises but also inspire their teams to remain focused and perform under pressure.

Nance’s Leadership’s Grand Theory incorporates resilience as a core component of leadership, providing leaders with tools to remain adaptable and responsive during times of uncertainty. “Resilient leadership,” he notes, “is about being able to bounce back from setbacks and maintain focus on long-term goals, while also supporting your team in doing the same.” His work has helped leaders across industries develop the resilience needed to drive sustained performance, even in the face of adversity.

Encouraging Innovation through Collaboration

Innovation is often the product of a collaborative and inclusive work environment. Leaders who foster a culture of openness and psychological safety enable their teams to share ideas freely, experiment, and collaborate on new solutions. This collaborative spirit drives innovation and can be a key factor in enhancing overall performance.

Nance’s emphasis on collaboration is central to his leadership philosophy. “Innovation thrives in environments where diverse perspectives are welcomed and encouraged,” he explains. “Leaders must create spaces where individuals feel safe to contribute new ideas without fear of failure.” Nance’s experience in both the military and corporate worlds has shown that the most innovative solutions often come from teams that feel empowered to think outside the box.

In agreement, Amy Edmondson , professor of leadership at Harvard Business School , asserts that psychological safety is the foundation of innovation. When leaders foster an environment where employees feel safe to speak up, they unlock a wellspring of creativity and collaboration.

Modern leaders inspire loyalty and drive performance by cultivating empathy, trust, recognition, resilience, and collaboration. It is clear that effective leadership in the modern workplace is about more than authority—it’s about building meaningful connections, fostering trust, and nurturing a culture of continuous growth and innovation.

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Leadership Theories and Motivation Issues Case Study

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Introduction

Leadership theories, motivational theories.

Leadership and motivation assess human acts which people utilize when interacting with others. Thus, this analytical treatise attempts to explicitly review the leadership theories such as transformational and participatory leadership theories. Besides, the treatise reviews motivational theories such as the incentive and the arousal theories. These theories are related to leadership and motivation issues identified in the leadership and motivation case study .

Transformational leadership theory

Transformational leadership provides an opportunity to motivate employees to give a desired output. When the management embraces the principles of transformational leadership, it becomes easy to convince employees to be flexible to change.

For instance, Jonathan, who is Stephanie’s supervisor, has embraced transformational leadership skills and has empowered Alex’s friend to explore her full potential. The main characteristics of transformational leadership include adaptability, empowerment, commitment, contribution, and critical problem solving skills (Biswas, 2011).

Stephanie states that Jonathan has created a self inspired team who does not need constant supervision, unlike Dan’s team. Jonathan’s ten years experience as a supervisor in the supermarket has equipped him with admirable skills of controlling group behavior and inspiring change. Stephanie is inspired to meet the target without feeling any pressure and she describes herself as happy (Robbins, Judge, and Hasham, 2012).

Leadership expectancy theory

Expectancy theory in leadership functionality in an organization influences the behavior of a person making decision away from personal prejudice, stereotype, or emotions. The expectancy theory offers the most ethically viable option for proactive leadership management of behavior. This theory identifies the aspects of effort-performance expectancy, valence expectancy, and performance-outcome expectancy (Drake, Wong, and Salter, 2007).

Unlike Dan, Jonathan has inspired positive expectation among his team. They are constantly changed from one department to another and really feel appreciated. Within a month, Stephanie has moved to four departments and she feels like a member of Jonathan’s work family. Alex, who belongs to Dan’s team, is not motivated and expects nothing, hence the sluggish attitude towards work (Robbins et al., 2012).

Incentive theory

Incentive theory apprehends the perception that an individual holds in regards to performance reward. Thus, higher motivational expectation attracts better performance of such an individual in an organization. For instance, a quantifiable paradigm shift in perception can be linked to correlation between reward and performance in an organization. The incentive theory explores the weight an individual allocates to a reward in motivating performance (Drake et al., 2007).

Stephanie is expecting the seventy five dollars incentive for meeting her target of selling 10 bottles of truffle oil. On the other hand, Stephanie feels constantly threatened by the arrogant supervisor, who promoted employees such as Denise, who gets a pay rise of two dollars per hour for complementation her boss’ dressing style (Robbins et al., 2012).

Arousal theory

Arousal theory functions on communication culture to create structural goals which develop norms, expectations of specific behavior display, and appropriate guideline controlling interaction with one another. For instance, when the underlying command plans originate from the opinionated inclination of such an individual, the results would basically be aligned towards self contempt (Biswas, 2011).

Alex is aroused by her boss to develop a negative attitude towards her work, since Dan does not use professional language besides being too quick to criticize. Stephanie feels appreciated and is very happy with her boss for being professional, open minded and proactive towards his team (Robbins et al., 2012).

Biswas, S. (2011). Commitment, involvement, and satisfaction as predictors of employee performance. South Asian Journal of Management, 18 (2), 92-107.

Drake, A. R., Wong, J., & Salter, S. B. (2007). Empowerment, motivation, and performance: examining the impact of feedback and incentives on non management employees. Behavioral Research in Accounting, 2 (3), 1971-1989.

Robbins, S., Judge, T., & Hasham, E. (2012). Organizational Behavior (12 ed.). New York, NY: Pearson/Prentice Hall Publishing.

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The relationship between men’s health literacy levels and their health beliefs and attitudes towards prostate cancer screening: A case study in a rural area

• Published: 26 August 2024
• Volume 32 , article number  612 , ( 2024 )

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• Canan Sarı   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-3686-5343 1 ,
• Leyla Adıgüzel   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0001-8151-1723 2 &
• Birsel Canan Demirbağ   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-7533-7201 2  

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This study aimed to examine the relationship between health literacy level and health beliefs and attitudes regarding prostate cancer screening in males aged 40–70 who lived in rural areas and had not been diagnosed with prostate cancer. The sample of the study consisted of 379 men. The data were collected between January and December 2022 using the “Participant Information Form,” the “Turkey Health Literacy-32 Scale,” and the “Prostate Cancer Screening Health Belief Model Scale.” 58% of the participants are between the ages of 40–55. It was determined that 61.2% defined cancer as a fatal disease, only 14.2% had PSA in their blood and 21.6% had DRE. The average health literacy scale total score of the participants is 33.76 ± 11.55. The health literacy level of men was found to be limited in 14.8%. There was a negative relationship between the total scores of the health literacy scale and the susceptibility perception, seriousness perception, and barriers perception sub-dimensions of the Health Belief Model Scale of Cancer Screenings and a positive relationship between the total scores of the Health Literacy Scale and health motivation and benefits perception subdimensions ( p  < .001). As a result, men living in rural areas should be given individual counseling by health professionals to use screening tests for cancer symptoms and early diagnosis. In addition, men’s health literacy levels should be increased by providing planned and regular health education in order to create positive attitudes and perceptions regarding cancer screenings, especially prostate cancer.

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Canan SARI: conceptualization, data curation, formal analysis, investigation, methodology, project administration, supervision, validation, writing—original draft, and writing—review and editing.

Leyla ADIGÜZEL: conceptualization, data curation, formal analysis, supervision, and writing—review and editing in the article revision stage.

Birsel Canan DEMİRBAĞ: writing—review and editing in the article revision stage.

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Sarı, C., Adıgüzel, L. & Demirbağ, B.C. The relationship between men’s health literacy levels and their health beliefs and attitudes towards prostate cancer screening: A case study in a rural area. Support Care Cancer 32 , 612 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00520-024-08802-x

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Received : 05 January 2024

Accepted : 12 August 2024

Published : 26 August 2024

DOI : https://doi.org/10.1007/s00520-024-08802-x

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• Cancer screening
• Prostate cancer
• Health belief model
• Health literacy

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