PSYCHOLOGY MASTER'S THESIS ABSTRACT

Ryan Long
Industrial/Organizational
Spring 2006

How Personality and Rewards Interact to Impact Performance and Satisfaction

    Individual task performance and task satisfaction were examines as a function of personality and incentive system.  More specifically, this study investigated the effects of participant individualism/ collectivism orientation in combination with the effects of three incentive system types: 1) rewards based on individual task performance, 2) rewards based on group task performance, and 3) no rewards.  It was hypothesized that participants in individual-based and group-based incentive conditions would perform significantly better in, and be significantly more satisfied with, the work task than would the participants in the no incentive condition.  Results supported this hypothesis for performance, but not for satisfaction.  It was also hypothesized that participant task performance and satisfaction rating would not vary as a function of individualism/collectivism orientation.  This hypothesis was supported.  Finally, it was hypothesized that incentive system type and individualism/collectivism ratings would interact to affect both participant task performance and task satisfaction ratings.  This hypothesis was not supported.

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