Olafsen et al. (2015) – Show them the money? The role of pay, managerial need support, and justice in a self-determination theory model of intrinsic work motivation
View the publicationShort summary
The study investigates how salary, experienced fairness, and leadership behavior are related to intrinsic motivation. The focus is on the question of whether financial reward undermines intrinsic motivation or can support it when the context is autonomy-supportive.
Methodology
Longitudinal survey research within organizations with measurements over multiple time points.
Key findings
Reward in itself does not automatically undermine intrinsic motivation. When leaders support autonomy and fairness is experienced, intrinsic motivation remains intact or is even strengthened.
Practical implication for leadership
Reward systems must be embedded in need-supportive leadership. Control without fairness increases the risk of controlled motivation.
Meaning of INR
This study supports the INR framework’s assertion that external structures cannot be viewed in isolation from the experienced context. From the narrative perspective, this means that the same external reward can be interpreted differently depending on perceived autonomy and fairness.