Vroom's Expectancy Model

Vroom's Expectancy Model suggests that people choose among alternative behaviors because they anticipate that particular behaviors will lead to one or more desired outcomes and that other behaviors will lead to undesirable outcomes.

Expectancy is the belief that effort will lead to first-order outcomes, any work-related behavior that is the direct result of the effort an employee expends on a job.

Equity is the perception of fairness involved in rewards given. A fair or equitable situation is one in which people with similar inputs experience similar outcomes. Employees will compare their rewards with the rewards received by others for their efforts. If employees perceive that an inequity exists, they are likely to withhold some of their contributions, either consciously or unconsciously, to bring a situation into better balance.

Reinforcement involves four types of consequence.

1. Positive reinforcement creates a pleasant consequence by using rewards to increase the likelihood that a behavior will be repeated.

2. Negative reinforcement occurs when a person engages in behavior to avoid unpleasant consequences or to escape from existing unpleasant consequences.

3. Punishment is an attempt to discourage a target behavior by the application of negative outcomes whenever it is possible.

4. Extinction is the absence of any reinforcement, either positive or negative, following the occurrence of a target behavior.