1. Introduction

Employee motivation refers to the drive employees have toward completed work-related tasks. Employee motivation is an essential component that every employer needs to secure to encourage the completion of tasks in a dignified and effective manner. Employee motivation is influenced by intrinsic and extrinsic factors that influence the work environment in which an employee executes their mandate and is innately related to the quality of their output [1]. Employee motivation affects different aspects of the business environment, and thus, employers need to understand their causes, how they affect employees’ performances, and other relevant considerations. Businesses will likely accrue positive benefits such as increased productivity, loyalty and creativity if they can facilitate motivated employees. Employee motivation is influenced by factors internal to the employee, which influence their reaction to their external workplace factors that can determine how motivated they are to deliver the mandates.

This research mainly discusses the use of dispositional attribution and situational attribution in attribution theory to analyze the initial determinants of employee motivation and the occurrence of benign and deviant citizenship behaviors in organizations under the influence of psychological, biological and sociological factors, and how internal and external organizational factors and mechanisms influence employee motivation. This paper aims to help managers and employers understand the causes of employee motivation and how to help them maximize their abilities after understanding employee motivation, thereby promoting the development of the organization.

2. Original Determinants of Employee Motivations under Attribution Theory

Attribution theory deals with how people respond to the causes of behaviors and events. Attribution theory is divided into two to help explain employee motivation and its origins. Dispositional attribution credits employee behavior and motivation to internal factors such as personality, intellect, or belief [2]. Dispositional attribution acknowledges the individual factors as the primary cause of the employee’s motivation to execute their mandate at the workplace. According to the dispositional attribution theory, people’s innate characteristics determine their motivation levels and how they respond to the workplace environment [2]. For instance, when one considers the theory, a person with a positive and friendly personality will be more motivated to work as part of a team in the workplace than someone with a reclusive personality. The theory effectively explores the cause of workplace motivation to each individual’s internal factors. The theory can explain why there are often different levels of performance for employees facing the same situations in one workplace setting. The theory has viable shortcomings, mainly because it needs to be more balanced with the external environment at the workplace and its influence on the individual. The theory also ignores the different backgrounds and other factors that often shape people’s internal traits as they experience life.

Contrasting dispositional attribution is the situational attribution theory, which credits employee motivation to external factors as the main determinants of employee motivation. Situational attribution theory highlights external factors, which are aspects beyond the individual’s control as the primary determinant of the behavior [2]. For instance, consider a situation where rainfall creates power outages and disrupts employee’s ability to deliver their reports on time. A power outage can create a demoralizing environment that dampens employee’s motivation. The situational attribution approach absolves the employees of any blame and firmly places it on external factors. The theory needs to be stronger because it undermines the internal factors employees might have to influence how they react to the external environment [2].

When analyzing employee motivation, dispositional attribution and situational attribution are indispensable. They interact and complement each other [3]. For example, an employee with high expressiveness and high performance finds a job in a company that pays wages according to individual performance, or in a company with relatively high competitiveness among employees, because this person believes that working in such a high-stress environment will bring unlimited personal benefits to oneself. This seems to be employee motivation driven by the personality that this employee has a competitive personality and hopes to maximize his own interest, but it also shows that this employee believes working in this environment can improve his personal abilities and independent skills, which refers to situational attribution. Therefore, the causes of employee motivations should be attributed to internal and external factors. Employers should find a balance and understand how situational and dispositional attribution interact and their influence on employee motivation. Acknowledging both the external and internal factors can help employers find a balance and create a conducive work environment that allows the employees to utilize their internal factors and mitigates the impacts of the external factors. Providing a workplace that considers both aspects can foster employee motivation.

3. Causes Analysis of Citizenship Behavior (Benign & Deviant)

Considering the significance of Organizational Citizenship Behavior (OCB) and Workplace Deviance Behavior (WDB), it’s crucial to grasp how thoughts and emotions play a role in these behaviors. Some work-related actions are a direct response to how employees feel at work, while others are mainly shaped by their thoughts and assessments of the workplace. Although understanding the root motives for a specific behavior is most accurate when you consider the context, it’s worth noting that some work behaviors appear to be more strongly influenced by emotions than others [4]. Causes of citizen behavior as benign or deviant appreciate the citizen’s willingness to engage in deviant behaviors. Deviance refers to the citizen’s willingness to act against the norm [5]. The causes of deviant behavior are often attributed to numerous psychological, biological and sociological factors. Psychological theories suggest that behaviors originate from an individual’s psychological capacity, like learning behavioral patterns as they grow [5]. The behavior can also come from biological factors, which acknowledge the role of genes in shaping a person and their behaviors, and sociological approaches, which suggest that one molds their behaviors according to societal norms. Analyzing behaviors in benign and deviant dimensions is crucial when understanding employee motivations because it introduces different aspects that can help employers understand employee behaviors and motivations [5]. For example, consider the argument that biological factors determine employee behavior. The theory suggests that employees and the traits they exhibit might come from biological factors they inherited genetically. People might need to be more active because they inherited the gene from their ancestors; thus, motivating such an individual would be challenging. Understanding the origins of deviance can help organizations shape employee benign motivations.

The deviance approach is essential because it shows that behavior and its origins determine employees’ motivation at the workplace. An individual’s willingness to oppose the norm and explore the unknown can determine how they respond to motivation [5]. Therefore, individuals’ motivations are closely associated with their behavior and how they developed such attributes. The deviance behavior theory is holistic compared to the attribution theory because it acknowledges internal and external factors as the primary basis for determining employee motivations. The behavioral theory approach shows that internal factors can affect how one responds to external factors, and external factors can shape internal factors. The approach appreciates both the external and internal aspects and how they interact to showcase how employees’ motivations originate. The theory helps employers understand that, at times, creating a conducive workplace setting may need to be improved. An individual’s internal factors can influence how they respond to motivation. Employers must find interventions addressing internal and external factors when introducing motivation strategies. The approach also helps employers appreciate that individuals will react differently to the interventions despite working in the same workplace.

4. Internal & External Factors in Organizations

Internal organizational factors can shape employee motivations. International organizations are aspects the organization controls that can influence employee behavior and their motivations [6]. The internal environment within the organization can create a facilitating environment that can motivate employees to work toward the organization’s preset goals [6]. For instance, internal organization factors like the company’s reward system can motivate employees and influence their behavior. How the company incentivizes its employees can determine their motivation levels. For instance, if the company pays their employees according to output, for example, for every ten units one produces, the company pays an extra amount. Such an arrangement can influence employees’ motivation to achieve set goals. The example shows how the internal organizational environment can influence employee motivation and behavior. The internal setup of an organization can determine if the workplace environment can help motivate employees to work towards set objectives. It is essential to note the organizational internal structure provides a conducive environment. However, the employees’ internal factors, like their personality, will determine if they will be motivated to exploit the conducive environment the corporation creates.

External organizational factors are relevant to operations beyond the company’s control [6]. The organizations react to the external environment by changing their internal structures to accommodate the change. External organizational factors can affect employee motivation [6]. For example, external factors like government policies can dampen employee motivation. Consider a situation where a federal policy renders the company’s operations illegal. Implementing the legislation will render all employees redundant and the factory closed. Such an external interference creates worry among the employees, and the company may register a go-slow. Employees react to external organizational factors in ways that determine their motivation. Therefore, the organization should ensure employees are well-trained and adaptable to external factors to mitigate their impacts on the organization’s operation. External organizational environments affect employee motivation. The employees’ internal factors and how they guide their response to the issues determine their motivation and productivity. Considering the example, the employees might still be motivated to work until the company’s closure, delivering the same levels of output they did before the legislation was passed. The example shows that the individual’s internal factors that shape how they respond to the external determines their response.

5. Solutions Based on Above Analysis

Considering all the different explanations of employee motivation and its origins, it becomes apparent the individual’s response to the environment is the main underlying factor. How the individual reacts to the external environment determines how motivated an individual can become. The factors determining an individual’s response can often be explained using multiple theories. Whether their response is influenced by psychological, genetic or social factors, the individual’s response to their external environment will determine how they navigate the situation. All the theories acknowledge the individual’s response is the primary determinant of how motivated they are likely to become in response to external stimuli. Motivating employees, therefore, depends on an individual’s internal factors. Therefore, organizations need to find ways of completing the individual’s internal factors to ensure they can positively influence their motivations. The business should conduct proper investigations into an individual’s personality to ensure they hire suitable candidates that are easy to motivate, thus ensuring they can maintain their productivity.

Motivating employees correlates to their performance and productivity. Organizations must find ways to ensure their employees’ motivation efforts are adequate to engage them in productive tasks. Companies must appreciate the factors influencing an individual’s response to motivation before engaging in various activities. Motivating employees is crucial and can help the company meet its objectives. Other considerations that can affect motivation, like leadership, should be considered. Leaders can influence the effectiveness of motivation interventions. Leaders with good motivational skills can help employees change attitudes and become responsive to the interventions. Influential leaders can help companies implement their motivational strategies and help them increase their effectiveness. Other factors like organizational culture, the reward system, work design, and the general outlook of the workplace that can influence employee motivation should be considered when designing a motivation intervention. The factors should be considered and customized to complement the individual’s internal factors influencing their response to the motivations.

6. Conclusion

In conclusion, employee motivation is attributed to internal and external factors, and understanding the origins of employee deviant behavior can help organizations shape employees’ positive motivations. Internal and external factors in an organization can affect employees’ work motivation, and motivating employees is a significant undertaking every company should facilitate if they are to accrue the benefits of motivated employees. Motivating the employees can increase their engagement and productivity, which helps organizations meet set goals. Motivating an individual primarily relies on factors internal to them, which determine how they respond to the external environment. The attribution theory helps managers and organizations understand that an individual’s external and internal factors determine how they respond to motivational efforts. The deviance theory explaining how humans develop behavior shows that external and internal environments are significant considerations when designing motivation interventions. Therefore, any motivational intervention should consider an employee’s factors to ensure its success and positive impact on the company and its operations.