Lyman W. Porter and Edward E. Lawler Expectancy Theory

Porter and Lawler used Victor Vroom’s expectancy theory as a foundation to develop their expectancy model. Similar to Vroom’s theory Porter and Lawler concluded that an individual’s motivation to complete a task is affected by the reward they expect to receive for completing the task. However Porter and Lawler introduced additional aspects to the expectancy theory.

Reward

Porter and Lawler categorised the reward as intrinsic and extrinsic

Intrinsic rewards are the positive feelings that the individual experiences from completing the task e.g. satisfaction, sense of achievement.

Extrinsic rewards are rewards emanating from outside the individual such as bonus, commission and pay increases.

Porter and Lawler’s model suggested that an individual’s view regarding the attractiveness and fairness of the rewards will affect motivation.

Ability & Perception

Porter and Lawler said that motivation is also affected by

   1. the individual’s ability to perform the task and
   2. their perception of the task