What motivates us on a daily basis? And how do we motivate others? Two essential questions in the world of work. Jacques Forest, psychologist and professor at UQAM, helps us answer them in his latest book. A reference for managers!
Jacques Forest is an exceptional popularizer. Which makes sense when you’re both a scientist (psychologist) and a teacher/lecturer. We’ve been able to see this for ourselves on Isarta on numerous occasions, from a 2019 event on the relationship between salary and happiness to, more recently, the Vecteur H program on motivation.
On this occasion, the professor in the Department of Organization and Human Resources at ESG UQAM talked about his new book, co-written with three experts in self-determination theory. We’ve read it, and here are the main points.
1. We all naturally have the energy to motivate ourselves
A word about Self-Determination Theory (SDT), the main thread and scientific basis of the book. This theory, based on the work of two American psychologists from the University of Rochester (New York State), Edward Deci and Richard Ryan, in the early 1970s, states that the best motivation does not come from external pressure (the carrot or the stick) but the feeling of “being autonomous, competent and in the right place”. This driving energy is available to everyone.
This radically changes the approach to motivation: the question to ask is no longer “How can I motivate my people?” but rather “How can I create the conditions for my employees to motivate themselves?” Note that this reasoning works for the professional world… but also in the other spheres of our lives (school, parenthood, sports, leisure…).
2. The 3 psychological needs
The question at this point is: what conditions need to be in place for teams to be motivated? According to Jacques Forest, we need to satisfy three psychological needs, which are universal, innate and equally important:
- Autonomy
This is the feeling of being free to make choices within a framework of rules, “of being able to do things voluntarily and not against one’s will”. Note: it’s important to distinguish between autonomy and independence, the ability to decide everything for oneself. Indeed, having no rules often turns into chaos and frustrates our need for autonomy.
- Belonging
This is the feeling of being part of a group (feeling appreciated, being able to trust, etc.). The opposite? Isolation.
- Competence
It’s about overcoming challenges and, quite simply, being able to do your job. The opposite is professional failure.
The task of managers is to create a working environment that not only satisfies these three essential psychological needs of every human being, but also limits the obstacles to these needs.
3. Motivation: a world of difference between “want” and “have to
There are several types of motivation, which can be divided into two groups: controlled motivation and autonomous motivation.
- Controlled motivation (“I must”)
This is extrinsic motivation that responds to external constraints. Extrinsic in the sense that motivation does not come from the pleasure of doing the task itself.
And external constraints can come either from ourselves (pressure we put on ourselves not to feel ashamed or guilty about not doing a task well) or from another person (sanction, reward…). Here we find the motivation to do something out of duty (for pay, to please someone, not to lose face…).
- Autonomous motivation (“I want to”)
This is either intrinsic motivation (we enjoy doing the task in question) or extrinsic motivation linked to the meaning we give to the task (the task isn’t fun in itself, but we’re aware of its added value – like brushing our teeth, for example!) Here, motivation comes from an internal desire.
Obviously, according to the theory of self-determination, autonomous motivation is what ensures better performance and greater well-being in the long term. For managers, the challenge is either to make their teams’ tasks more interesting… or to make them aware of the meaning of their actions. According to the authors, satisfying the 3 psychological needs generally leads to improved autonomous motivation.
In short, a book packed with examples and case studies for managers who want to get the best out of their teams!
