An Empirical Analysis of the Interrelationship between Motivation and Stress in the Computing Industry

Maitiú Ó Cuirrín

    Research output: Types of ThesisMaster's Thesis

    Abstract

    Although a great body of literature exists on the concepts of motivation and stress, no such study has examined the interrelationship between them. The objectives of this thesis are thus, to investigate the factors that motivate/demotivate and cause stress among recently employed computing graduates, as well as examining the implications of these factors both individually and interdependently for both the computing graduate and their employing organisation. An empirical quantitative approach of employee questionnaires (n=330) was used to assess the interrelationship between these concepts from the employees’ perspective. Nine dimensions (job security, social relationships, fiscal equity, skill variety, autonomy, advancement, recognition, task identity and feedback) were created in order to assess, both motivation and stress. T Tests, Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) and Tukey’s Honestly Significant Difference test (HSD) were undertaken to determine if any of the demographic variables were significantly related to either employee motivation or stress. A bivariate regression approach was utilised to assess the interrelationship between these concepts using the above nine dimensions. A semi-structured interview schedule was utilised to determine three managers’ perceptions of whether these nine dimensions are a motivator/demotivator or a cause of stress for employees. The employee results indicated that seven of the dimensions were significantly related (either positively or negatively) for the sources of motivation and the sources/levels of stress. The results also demonstrated that management were unaware of the factors that were a cause of motivation and stress for their computing subordinates. Thus, employers by thwarting the motivation needs of their employees, inadvertently or otherwise, may find that their employees experience significant increases in stress, with resulting individual and organisational consequences. That is, the employing organisation faces increased expenditure and reduced productivity to counter their employees’ higher stress levels and lowered motivation, while the employees’ physiological, psychological and behavioural wellbeing suffers. In conclusion employers and management need to be aware that any attempt at increasing motivation and decreasing stress should consider the impact of the interrelationship between the two variables, thus facilitating a more productive and satisfactory employment relationship for both the information technology graduate employee and employer.
    Original languageEnglish
    Awarding Institution
    Supervisors/Advisors
    • Nutty, Fiona, Supervisor
    Publication statusUnpublished - 2007

    Keywords

    • Stress

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