Reinforcement Strategies

Reinforcement Strategies

Motivational theories allow organizations to develop and implement plans for employee motivation. Motivation is often said to be the reason or reasons for engaging in human behavior. The individual behavior of a person or motivation could be for reasons such as ideas, needs, drive, goals, achievements, or simply a state of being. Conversely, one must also understand the concepts of encouraging positive work behavior and discouraging negative work behavior. Organizational behavior modification, "Involves the use of four basic reinforcements strategies: positive reinforcement, negative reinforcement (or avoidance), punishment, and extinction" (Schermerhorn, Hunt, Osborn, & Uhl-Bien, 2010, p. 99). Good introduction.

Positive Reinforcement

Positive reinforcement is defined as "the administration of positive consequences that tend to increase the likelihood of repeating the desirable behavior in similar settings" (Schermerhorn, et al., 2010, p. 99).

Positive reinforcement can be used in different ways. One strategy that may be employed is Shaping. Shaping is "positive reinforcement of successive approximations to the desired behavior" (Schermerhorn, et al., 2010, p. 100). In other words, positive reinforcement is used when an employee is praised in stages. An employee is given positive reinforcement for each phase of a projects completed properly.

There are two types of positive reinforcement: continuous reinforcement and intermittent reinforcement. Continuous reinforcement is "administered each time a desired behavior occures, and intermittnt reinforcement is "administered only periodically" (Schermerhorn, et al., 2010, p. 100).

Some managers utilize both types of reinforcement strategies. This writer, as a shift supervisor, praises his employees at the end of every shift for a job well done and thanks the employees for ensuring the shift ran without any major problems. This writer also uses intermittent reinforcement for accomplishements, such as discovering contraband within a designated housing area within a correctional facility. Even though the employee's actions are expected, the employee may have found something that was well hidden and the officer went the extra mile to find the contraband. To document an employees outstanding work performance, some supervisors will note the accomplishment on an "employee performance log" or recommend the employee for "Employee of the Month." Along with employee of the month the employee may get paid time off for their efforts.

Based on this writer's experience as shift supervisor in a correctional facility, positive reinforcement, if used properly, is very effective. However, if over used, the sincerity is greatly diminished. As part of this writer's positive reinforcement strategy, this writer utilizes the following scenario: If more than enough employees show up for work to cover the shift, this writer will offer employees the opportunity to take an extra day off. Because attendance is a major issue at the facility, this writer will offer time off to employees who do not have a history or pattern of excessive call-ins. Because of this strategy, this writer has one of the lowest call-in rates at the facility.

Negative Reinforcement

The purpose of the negative reinforcement in an organization is to remove an unwanted behavior, respectively a less qualitative performance that could hinder on an organization's mission, goals, values, and performance indicators. Trotman (2011) explains, "Negative reinforcement is the removal of a contingency but with the same goal of increasing a target behavior such as removing a boot from a car after a fine is paid" (p. 236).

Managers attempt to motivate employees by selecting certain officers to attend special training courses to enhance the latter one's existing skills in performing their duties. Most officers want to attend training courses that require them to travel to other locations away from the organization. When an employee has been providing substandard performance a door opens for the negative reinforcement approach. For instance, the manager announces in a large forum that those to be selected first for the training session will be those who achieve or exceed the performance requirements for his or her duties. This can be a negative motivation tactic if used properly and understood by the one intended for. By not selecting the officer with a lower performance indicator to attend a training course that he has wanted to go to will reinforce that good performance is rewarded and acknowledged by the management. Low performance is also acknowledge therefore a reward such attending training will be avoided by not selecting the officer who needs to work on his or her shortcomings and understand that good performance is rewarded.

Another negative reinforcement strategy used to motivate employees may include things such as the yearly pay increases, which determines how much of a pay raise the officer will receive. Many employees view this as an expected action and disassociate the pay increase with work merits during the yearly evaluation period. Removing an employee from an increase in pay perhaps he or she will understand that the performance delivered during a period of a year has not been the desired one. An employee who has experienced low pay increases because of a lack of desirable work performance should try to improve. When the performance evaluations show acceptable work the employee can be given a higher merit pay increase to reward the desired behavior that has been demonstrated, thus avoiding the undesirable consequence of not getting a raise.

One last example of negative reinforcement for police officers is the assignment to work on running a radar car. Avoiding in selecting an employee Awkward. and at the same time explaining the reasons of not assigning him or her to use a radar car, respectively that his or her performance is lacking will trigger the desired behavior. The next reaction expected would be that during the next work rotation the same officer corrects the accuracy of the information in the narration portion of his or her accident report throughout the entire shift. During the next shift roll call, the supervisor announces to the squad that this officer will be assigned to operate the radar car for the upcoming shift.

Punishment

A longstanding but controversial type of reinforcement strategy in the workplace is that of punishment. According to Schermerhorn, et al., (2010) punishment is the "administration of negative consequences or the withdrawal of positive consequences that tend to reduce the likelihood of