The expectancy theory explores motivation through rewards that focus on Victor Vroom’s theory of expectancy, instrumentality, and valence concepts. The concepts or components correlate further into key factors of effort-performance, performance-reward, and rewards-personal goals relationships. This theory can be seen as a model for behavioral choice, that is, as an explanation of why workers choose one behavioral option over other available options and the level of effort the worker is willing to exert (Wikipedia, 2012). The theory only explains the behavioral process a worker experiences by how they make decisions to achieve the goals they value, but it does not explain what motivates them.
Expectancy is the first component of the theory that explains the relationship between the level of effort and the level of performance outcome. Effort-performance relationship can further be explained by how the worker’s perception of the amount of effort put in will result in a certain level of job performance (Redmond, 2012). For example, if the worker presumed that their effort will lead to a certain level of performance then their Expectancy will be high. On the other hand, if the worker believes there is no chance that effort will result in certain level of performance than their expectancy level will be low.
Instrumentality is the second component to the Expectancy Theory that explains the association between a certain level of job performance and the acceptance of a specific outcome. It is based on the performance-reward relationship that correlates to the workers perception about the extent to which performance of behaviors will lead to the attainment of desired organizational rewards (Wikipedia, 2012). Hence, when the worker perceives that their performance will guarantee a specific reward than Instrumentality will be high. However, it will be low when the worker perceives that performance would not result in attainment of reward.
Valence is the third...