Driven to Service: Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivation for Public and Nonprofit Managers

Abstract

This research draws upon a survey of nonprofit and state government managers to examine the role service motivation plays in both sectors. The research addresses three main research questions: 1) What are the main motivational dimensions and constructs of managers in the public and nonprofit sectors? 2) How are these different types of work motivations related to each other? and 3) What differences exist between these sectors in terms of level of intrinsic and extrinsic work motivation? Our findings suggest there are four different motivational constructs and in many ways public and nonprofit managers are similar in terms of the importance of intrinsic rather than extrinsic motivation. While the mean level of extrinsic motivation in the public sector is statistically higher than in the nonprofit sector, certain types of extrinsic motivation such as advancement motivation and WLB motivation are highly correlated with intrinsic motivation in both the public and nonprofit sectors. Finally, directions for future research and practical implications are also discussed.