'I really lack motivation. What I need is ERG: existence, relatedness and growth.'

Mark scheme

Marking points from the official mark scheme (Feb/Mar 2019). The mark or mark type is shown in brackets.

1. [1] A need is something that is necessary to live a healthy life.
2. [1] This includes essential 'physical' needs for survival (e.g., air, water, food, warmth) and 'subjective' needs (e.g., social needs, self-actualisation), which can vary culturally.
3. [2] Similarity: Both Maslow's and Alderfer's theories are need theories and posit that needs must be satisfied. They both identify similar needs, just using different terminology (e.g., physiological and safety needs in Maslow's hierarchy are covered by ERG 'existence' needs).
4. [2] Difference: Maslow's hierarchy has five (or eight) needs, whereas Alderfer's ERG theory has three needs (Existence, Relatedness, Growth).
5. [2] Difference: Maslow suggests a person stays at a need level until it is fulfilled before moving up, while Alderfer's ERG theory allows a person to have more than one need active at a time.
6. [2] Difference: Maslow's theory is a hierarchy where a person moves up, but Alderfer's ERG theory includes a frustration-regression component, meaning a person may revert to a lower need if a higher one is frustrated.
7. [4] Cognitive/rational theories of motivation view workers as rational, decision-making beings who cognitively assess (think about) the costs and benefits before acting.
8. [4] Goal-setting theory by Latham and Locke believes that people can be motivated by setting goals and when it is achieved a sense of achievement results. Goal-setting has five principles: Clarity, challenge, commitment, effectiveness and task complexity.
9. [4] The VIE (or expectancy) theory (Vroom, 1964) believes that workers are rational and decision making is guided by potential costs (negative outcomes) and rewards (positive outcomes) M = E × I × V or motivation = expectancy × instrumentality × valence.
10. [4] Equity theory (Adams) When people feel fairly treated they are more likely to be motivated; when they feel unfairly treated they are prone to feelings of disaffection and demotivation. Employees seek to maintain equity between the inputs that they bring to a job and the outcomes that they receive from it against the perceived inputs and outcomes of others.
11. [1] Advantages: Asking people directly means that participants are given the opportunity to express their feelings and explain their behaviour rather than the researcher trying to work out reasons for their behaviour from other methods.
12. [1] Advantages: Relatively large numbers of participants can be done relatively easily.
13. [1] Advantages: Questionnaires are easy to replicate. Same for telephone interviews.
14. [1] Advantages: Data can be qualitative, but may also be quantitative depending on type of question.
15. [1] Disadvantages: Some participants may provide socially desirable responses; not give truthful answers; respond to demand characteristics.
16. [1] Disadvantages: Closed/fixed choice questions may force people into choosing answers that do not reflect their true opinion and therefore may lower the validity.
17. [1] Disadvantages: Researchers have to be careful about use of leading questions; it could affect the validity of the data collected.
18. [1] Conclusion: Any appropriate conclusion drawn from the discussion.