Integrating implicit motives, explicit motives, and perceived abilities: the compensatory model of work motivation and volition

The compensatory model of work motivation and volition synthesizes some previously unrelated lines of research. The structural components of the model are implicit motives, explicit motives, and perceived abilities; the functional processes are voli-tional regulation (compensating for inadequate motivation) and problem solving (compensating for inadequate perceived abilities). Propositions that integrate, chal-lenge, and extend existing conceptions are derived. Moreover, the framework of the compensatory model suggests an agenda for future research. Why do some individuals reach their goals easily, whereas others, equally skilled, struggle and fail? Why do individuals sometimes not like the goals they voluntarily set? Which mecha-nisms allow a person to strive for aversive goals, and how can these mechanisms be im-proved? These questions are of theoretical and practical relevance, pertaining to work-related issues such as job design, recruitment, compen-sation, leadership, organizational behavior modification, and organizational development. However, current approaches to work motivation do not address these questions. To overcome this limitation, we need new the-ories of work motivation based on the distinc-tion between implicit and explicit motive sys-tems that has stimulated recent research in basic motivational psychology (Brunstein