Goal setting theory

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The objective theory (Engl. Goal-setting theory- or short goal setting ) is a motivation strategy and is sometimes called motivation theory considered. Their central assumption is that motivation and performance are significantly influenced by goals and feedback on their achievement.

Major contributions to goal setting theory have been made by Edwin Locke and Gary Latham .

description

The basic message of goal setting theory is that goals motivate people and are direct regulators of human action. A state of tension should be created that activates actions. The goals should be designed to be challenging and precise. Feedback about the progress of the target should be given regularly.

Here, high specific goals influence performance through its effect on the effort (effort), the persistence (persistence), the direction (direction) and the (problem-solving) strategies. There is a significantly high correlation between difficult and at the same time specific goals and performance (correlations between .82 and .52), which was also demonstrated by Tubbs (1986) and Mento (1987) in meta-studies . According to the meta-studies carried out by Tubbs (1986) and Mento (1987), only difficult goals (without specification) yield correlations between .50 and .42.

The following five moderator variables can play a role in the goal setting process:

  1. Goal setting (= the determination to achieve a goal, no matter where the goal came from - Locke & Latham, 1990 / confirmed in meta-study by Klein, 1999)
  2. Task complexity (= the number and dependence of rules for tasks / effect size 0.4 for very high task complexity).
  3. Feedback (= feedback on the results / effect of feedback and goal setting vs. goal setting alone d = .63 according to Neubert, 1998 / the effect is stronger with complex tasks than with simple tasks).
  4. Participation (= the right of those affected to have a say in decisions, e.g. about the level of the goal).
  5. Self-efficacy (= a person's assessment of their ability to organize and carry out the necessary actions in order to achieve a certain level of performance (Bandura, 1986)).

People with high self-efficacy (Locke & Latham, 2002):

  • set higher goals for yourself
  • are more connected to set goals
  • find and use better problem solving strategies and
  • respond more positively to negative feedback.

The theory implies that goals should be realistically above the performance shown so far. The SMART rule is usually used for this. SMART stands for specific (specific), measurable (measurable), attainable (achievable), realistic (realistic) and time-phased (related to a specified period). Feedback should be constructive and specific, strengthen the expectation of self-efficacy, at best be regular informal and also refer to the process (and not just the result).

The balanced scorecard and management by objectives are used to determine the organizational goals.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Stock-Homburg, Ruth. Human resource management: theories-concepts-tools. Springer-Verlag, 2010. p. 84.

literature

  • Locke, EA, Frederick, E., Lee, C. & Bobko, P. (1984). Effect of Self-Efficacy, Goals and Task Strategies on Task Performance. Journal of Applied Psychology, 69, 241-251.
  • Locke, EA, Latham, GP (1990). A Theory of Goal-Setting and Task Performance. (Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall)
  • Locke, EA, Latham, GP (2002). Building a Practically Useful Theory of Goal Setting and Task Motivation. American Psychologist , 57 (9): 705-717.
  • Holling, H. (1999). Effectiveness through participatory productivity management: overview, new theoretical developments and European case studies. (Göttingen, Publishing House for Applied Psychology)
  • Kleinbeck, U. (1996). Work motivation: origin, impact and promotion. (Weinheim, Juventa-Verlag)

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