Can budget ambiguity crowd out intrinsic motivation? Longitudinal evidence from federal executive departments
| Published date | 01 March 2020 |
| Author | Jongmin Shon,Gregory A. Porumbescu,Robert K. Christensen |
| Date | 01 March 2020 |
| DOI | http://doi.org/10.1111/padm.12618 |
ORIGINAL ARTICLE
Can budget ambiguity crowd out intrinsic
motivation? Longitudinal evidence from federal
executive departments
Jongmin Shon
1
|Gregory A. Porumbescu
1,2
|Robert K. Christensen
3
1
School of Public Affairs and Administration,
Rutgers University Newark, Newark, NJ, USA
2
Department of Public Administration, Yonsei
University, Seoul, Republic of Korea, East Asia
3
Department of Public Administration,
Brigham Young University Marriott School of
Management, Provo, UT, USA
Correspondence
Gregory A. Porumbescu, School of Public
Affairs and Administration, Rutgers University
Newark, 111 Washington Street, Newark, NJ
07102, USA.
Email: greg.porumbescu@rutgers.edu
Funding information
National Research Foundation of Korea,
Grant/Award Number: NRF-
2017S1A3A2065838
Abstract
While some scholars have assessed how various features of
organizational structure shape intrinsic motivation, the role
of budgets and, in particular, programme funding has been
overlooked. To address this gap in the literature, we exam-
ine how programme funding decisions impact employee
motivation. Referencing previous work, we hypothesize
that funding choices that emphasize some programmes over
others signal clearer organizational goals for employees,
thereby increasing intrinsic motivation. In contrast, depart-
ments that do not use their budgets to signal clear goals can
run the risk of reducing their employees’intrinsic motiva-
tion. We empirically investigate this hypothesis within the
context of the US Federal executive departments, con-
structing a longitudinal dataset (2010–15) from multiple
sources. Findings support our hypothesis. Employees in
departments that more evenly fund their programmes
report lower levels of intrinsic motivation.
1|INTRODUCTION
Intrinsic motivation is commonly tied to a host of desirable outcomes. For example, employees who exhibit higher
levels of intrinsic motivation tend to possess higher levels of organizational commitment (Moon 2000) and satisfac-
tion (Cho and Perry 2012), and they perform better than employees who are less intrinsically motivated (Rasul and
Rogger 2016). Because of these diffuse benefits, there have been a number of attempts to identify antecedents of
intrinsic motivation among public employees.
Intrinsic motivation is understood as ‘the desire to expend effort based on interest in and enjoyment of the work
itself’(Grant 2008, p. 49). This study adds to the body of literature that attempts to explain levels of intrinsic
Received: 30 July 2018Revised: 5 June 2019Accepted: 22 June 2019
DOI: 10.1111/padm.12618
194 © 2019 John Wiley & Sons LtdPublic Administration. 2020;98:194–209.wileyonlinelibrary.com/journal/padm
motivation among public employees. To do so, we focused on the role that budget structure plays in shaping intrinsic-
motivation levels among public employees. Budget structure is relevant to understanding levels of intrinsic motivation
because of its role in shaping organizational goals and priorities and, therefore, employee behaviour (Marginson and Ogden
2005). Yet, despite the important, far-reaching implications of budgets for individual behaviours, we are unaware of attempts
to directly tie the composition of public organization budgets to employees’intrinsic motivation (Deci 1971; Thomas 2000).
Targeting this gap in the literature, we reasoned that budget changes constitute a form of influence that can
either increase or decrease levels of intrinsic motivation among public employees. Specifically, budgets that call for
more equal funding of a department's programmes are predicted to reduce levels of intrinsic motivation. Our reason-
ing was that shifting budget allocations toward a more even distribution of department programme funding will
obscure employees’understanding of where and how their work in a particular programme relates to their organiza-
tion's priorities and vision. Conversely, shifting toward greater budgetary inequality of programme funding increases
levels of intrinsic motivation over time. The reason is that such changes to allocation patterns sharpen hierarchies of
programme priorities in an agency, making it easier for employees to understand how the work they are engaged in
moves their organization forward. This study addressed the following research question: How do changes in the
structure of department budgets, as determined by prioritizing the funding of certain department programmes,affect
levels of intrinsic motivation among public sector employees?
To empiricallyinvestigate this research question, we constructeda longitudinal dataset using datafrom the Federal
Employee ViewpointSurvey (FEVS); the Federal Workforce Information Data system (FWID), retrieved from the US
Office of PersonnelManagement (OPM); and the federalbudget of the Office of Managementand Budget. Of primary
interest to this study wasthe association between individual employees’intrinsicmotivation and shifts in the levels of
department programme funding over time. Since the primary variables are at different levels (employee level versus
department level),this study employs hierarchical linear models(HLM), and we use the Federal Workforce Information
Data to controlfor the differences across federal executive departments used inour analyses.
2|LITERATURE REVIEW AND HYPOTHESES
The question what motivates individuals to engage in specific forms of behaviour is of longstanding interest. Ryan
and Deci (2000a, p. 54) take stock of decades of motivation research and observe that ‘motivation is hardly a unitary
phenomenon. People have not only different amounts, but also different kinds of motivation.’Extant research has
identified two general categories of motivation. The first category, extrinsic, refers to actions that are driven by some
form of external reward, such as money, a promotion, or praise (Ryan and Deci 2000b). The second category, intrin-
sic, refers to actions that are driven by rewards perceived to arise from engaging in the work itself, such as intellec-
tual curiosity or a sense of accomplishment.
Studies have shown that individuals with higher levels of intrinsic motivation outperform their peers who score
higher in terms of extrinsicmotivation (Grant 2008; Kanferet al. 2017). For this reason, a great deal of effort has been
exerted tryingtoidentify factorsresponsible for shaping levels of intrinsicmotivation among public employees(Bertelli
2006; Jacobsen et al. 2014). Within this extensive body of research, a persistent theme is that mechanisms that
enhance employees’sense of self accomplishment by crystalizingtheir understanding of how and why theirwork mat-
ters to advancingorganizational objectivestend to be effective in enhancing levelsof intrinsic motivation. Inthis study,
we argue that budgetsand the signal they send about programmepriorities play a criticalrole in shaping levels of intrin-
sic motivationamong public employees by clarifyinghow their work matters to their organization.
2.1 |Why agency programme funding matters for intrinsic motivation
O'Toole and Meier (1999, p. 508) defined hierarchy as ‘a stable set of relations in which the positions are arrayed in
a pattern of formally superior–subordinate authority links’. In this way, hierarchies help communicate priorities to
SHON ET AL.195
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