When it comes to negotiating a salary package, employers love to hear prospective workers mouth the sentiments of the Beatles lyrics, “I don’t care too much for money, money can’t buy me love”. However, there are still some employers who think that one sure-fire way to boost the commitment and contentment of their staff is simply to pay them more money. But according to new research, this could actually have precisely the opposite effect.
Workers who value material success, status and power more than helping their colleagues or developing their talents are more likely to be dissatisfied with life, endure more work-life conflict and are less committed to their organisation. This is the finding of Maarten Vansteenkiste from the University of Leuven, Belgium.
He asked 885 Belgium workers, representing different levels of employment, age and gender, about their attitudes to work and what aspects were most important to them i.e. good pay or better holiday entitlement. Some employees viewed their job as an opportunity to exercise their competencies and skills, pursue personal interests and make meaningful contributions to society, while others focused primarily on financial success, having control and influence over others and occupying a prestigious position at work.
The results showed that workers who are motivated more by material rewards, extra money or status, had negative feelings about work. These workers reported feeling exhausted and unsatisfied by work and were more likely to consider quitting than workers who are more concerned with self-development and growth. Interestingly the negative outcomes were also related to workers mental health with these workers experiencing more work-family conflict and general life dissatisfaction.
Dr Vansteenkiste said: “The current ethos in many organisations today is to reward workers with material benefits but this research shows this could be counter productive for both the organisation and the employee. Although these benefits may appear to be great motivators they, rather paradoxically, are not. This is because material rewards divert employees away from recognising/attaining other less tangible goals that are important to maintain good mental health such as good working relationships with colleagues, autonomy and job satisfaction.”
Reference: Vansteenkiste, M., Neyrinck, B., Niemiec, C.P., Soenens, B., De Witte, H., & Van de Broeck, A. (2007). On the relations among work value orientations, psychological need satisfaction and job outcomes: a self-determination theory approach. Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology, 80, 251-277.
