Motivation, Culture, and the Workforce

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Analyze motivation from a cultural perspective
Differentiate the experience of emotion across cultures
Apply concepts of cross-cultural psychology
Demonstrate an understanding of cross-cultural perspectives on motivation, behavior, and emotion

Discussion: Motivation, Culture, and the Workforce
Have you ever considered what motivated you? Pause to consider that question as it is key to this Discussion. For example, are you driven by the need for security or by a sense of duty? Do you see recognition or self-actualization? Are you motivated to achieve my inner drives or by external sources like your family? We all have our unique set of motivations, but we don’t always consider the role of culture in shaping them. Our like experiences shape us in many ways, and you have most likely met a number of people with motivations similar to your own and many with very different motivations. When we are dealing with people from different cultural backgrounds there is an increased chance that our motivations will differ. Motivational theory can be applied in many settings, but in this Discussion let’s focus on achievement. This covers what you want to accomplish in work settings, school settings, and with your life in general. As you read this week’s resources, begin to reflect on times and situations when you have found yourself puzzled—or downright frustrated—by the attitudes, priorities, and behavior of other people. They could be co-workers, friends, family, strangers, or classmates. It is always easiest to simply observe what people choose to do, but it can be much more interesting to understand why they do it!

Sample Solution

Culture itself has a significant role in providing a framework in which motivational factors work. In addition to motivation, organizational culture facilitates the crucial aspects of organizational life, such as unity among employees and the general welfare. The literature defines different types of traditional motivational practices that are seen as connected to the system of rewards such as promotion, holidays, pay-for-performance and personal achievements. Innovative motivational practices are, on the other hand, described as improvements of the working environment, work organization and the job itself. The reason why these new practices were introduced is that they are related to productivity and employee satisfaction.

Undoubtedly, migration leads to a loss of productivity and decrease in the labour force in the source economy. But remittances offset these losses in the long run. Households receive adequate sums of money, which leads to an increase in both consumption expenditure and investments, which in turn fuels the economy. Above this, emigrants are more keen on investing in new real estate, institutions, technology and better infrastructure— education and healthcare facilities— in their home countries. Remittances also substantially increase the inflow of foreign exchange and help tide over periods of income shocks for families. When the financial troubles are greater, remittances increase, and tend to decrease by a lesser degree during times of financial stability. In this way, it acts as a form of insurance and encourages activities that are imperative for long term economic growth (Collier 211). These activities include entrepreneurial ventures and better human capital development, factors that are key to increase the GDP of a country in the long run (Ratha).

Trends over several years indicate that these foreign remittances actually exceed the sums received as portfolio investments and official development assistance, and are only second to foreign direct investments in low and middle income countries (Figure 2) (“Migration and Development Brief 30”). Remittances help maintain foreign exchange reserves in the country, which become vital for trade.

Despite its advantages, a highly pressing issue that accompanies these remittances is the pressure it puts on economic inequalities within the source country. Migration in itself is a large investment, that only those who are relatively better off can make. This in turn means that remittances only reach the already well to do households, which increases the gap between the rich and the poor. Development activities fueled by remittances do provide greater employment, but this is rarely sufficient to narrow an already widening gap (Ratha).

From the above discourse, stems certain socio-political consequences of migration. When oppressive political regimes and poor economic conditions overlap, emigration means the loss of those people who are affluent and have the influential positions in society. On the other hand, when these migrants return after receiving foreign education or understanding the economic and social systems of their host countries, they have the power of knowledge and new ideas. They can put this to use in their own countries by taking on new ventures and roles in top pos

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