THE IMPORTANCE OF PAY IN EMPLOYEEMOTIVATION: DISCREPANCIES BETWEENWHAT PEOPLE SAY AND WHAT THEY… 1 answer below »

THE IMPORTANCE OF PAY IN EMPLOYEE MOTIVATION: DISCREPANCIES BETWEEN WHAT PEOPLE SAY AND WHAT THEY DO Sara L. Rynes, Barry Gerhart, and Kathleen A. Minette A majority of human resources professionals appear to believe that employees are likely to over- report the importance of pay in employee surveys. However, research suggests the opposite is ac- tually true. We review evidence showing the discrepancies between what people say and do with respect to pay. We then discuss why pay is likely to be such an important general motivator, as well as a variety of reasons why managers might underestimate its importance. We note that pay is not equally important in all situations or to all individuals, and identify circumstances under which pay is likely to be more (or less) important to employees. We close with recommendations for implementing research findings with respect to pay and suggestions for evaluating pay sys- tems. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. It is easy to overestimate the frequency more likely to underreport than to overreport with which adults actually go to the opera the importance of pay as a motivational fac- and underestimate the frequency with tor in most situations. Put another way, re- which they watch TV cartoons on Satur- search suggests that pay is much more im- day mornings, based on their self-reports. portant in people’s actual choices and (Nunnally & Bernstein, 1994, p. 383) behaviors than it is in their self-reports of what motivates them, much like the cartoon Rynes, Colbert, and Brown (2002) pre- viewers mentioned in the quote above. Yet, sented the following statement to 959 mem- only 35% of the respondents in the Rynes et bers of the Society for Human Resource al. study answered in a way consistent with Management (SHRM): “Surveys that di- research findings (i.e., chose “false”). rectly ask employees how important pay is to Our objective in this article is to show them are likely to overestimate pay’s true im- that employee surveys…