Fred Hertzberg (1923-2000)

Hygiene & Motivating Factors

Fred Hertzberg was a US clinical psychologist who became professor of management at the University of Utah.

He describes his work as originating in his World War 2 experiences as a US volunteer posted to the Drachau concentration camp after liberation. Here, he realised, that a society goes insane when the sane are driven insane.

He really made a major step forward in establishing what motivated people.

In the 1950's and 1960’s, he and colleagues carried out a number of studies centred around blue and white collar workers in Pittsburgh USA into Job Satisfaction.

In the survey two very simple but key questions were asked:

“When did you feel satisfied at work?"
“When did you feel dissatisfied at work?”

When they analysed the results, two groupings of factors identified:

81% of the factors contributing to job satisfaction were motivators, contributing to growth and development.
69% of the factors contributing to job dissatisfaction were hygiene factors, limiting growth and development.

The factors they identified as motivating factors leading to job satisfaction were:

achievement
recognition
work itself
responsibility
advancement

These factors motivated people - they switched them on. Giving people these motivated them, and the more they were given, the more motivated they became.

The factors they identified as hygiene factors leading to job dis-satisfaction were:

company policy & administration
supervision
salary
interpersonal relations
working conditions

These factors demotivated people - they switched them off.

The graph below shows the full results.

satisfaction & disatisfaction factors

Comment

These ideas are still valid and provide much of the theoretical background to current ideas on motivation, in particular the "One-Minute Manager" series by Ken Blanchard.