Herzberg's Two-Factor Theory Of Motivation And Job Dissatisfaction

Herzberg’s Two-factor Theory The Two-factor Theory was developed by Herzberg, Mausner, and Snyderman (1959), following an investigation into the sources of job satisfaction and dissatisfaction, and included 200 accountants and engineers from Pittsburgh, America. Applying the critical incident technique, the study’s subjects were asked to tell their interviewers about the times that they felt exceptionally good or bad about their present jobs or any previous jobs. They were also requested to provide reasons and a description of the sequence of events that gave rise to that feeling. The participants’ responses were tabulated and categorised. These responses were consistent across the study, and revealed that there were two sets of factors affecting motivation and work. This led to the Two-factor Theory of motivation and job satisfaction (Herzberg, et al., 1959).
The first set of factors, if present, caused happy feelings or positive attitudes. These factors, on the whole, were …show more content…
According to Herzberg (1966), intrinsic factors such as the work itself, achievement in the work, the possibilities of personal growth and recognition, and being charged with important responsibilities, seemed to result from the human ability to personally advance and grow. He called these factors motivators, satisfiers or intrinsic factors, and posited that they led to job satisfaction. On the other hand, extrinsic factors were those elements that prevented job satisfaction and employee growth. The extrinsic factors such as working conditions, salary, job security, and relationships with others are not part of the work, but they refer to the environment, and prevent job dissatisfaction. Herzberg calls these factors hygiene, dis-satisfiers or maintenance factors, and proposed that, if absent, it led to job dissatisfaction (Herzberg,