Background and Objective: The performance of organizations depends on the motivation of each individual to help improve the quality of services. The present study aimed to assess the correlation between job motivation and the motivational priorities of the employees working in hospitals affiliated to Golestan University of Medical Sciences, Iran.
Material and Methods: This cross-sectional study was performed on 367 hospital staff of Golestan University of Medical Sciences in 2016 during nine months. The participants were selected via stratified sampling and simple random sampling using the standard situational motivation scale (SIMS) and Lawrence Lindal motivational priorities. Data analysis was performed in SPSS version 20 using descriptive and analytical statistics.
Results: The mean age of the employees was 26-50 years, and their mean work experience was 11-30 years. In total, 258 participants (68.1%) worked in medical wards. The key motivating factor in the staff was interest in the job (n=84; 19.8%), which was considered the first priority. In addition, a significant difference was observed between the mean job motivation and ethnicity (P=0.012). However, Spearman’s test showed no significant correlation between job motivation and motivational priorities, except for mutual understanding (P=0.049).
Conclusion: According to the results, job motivation was desirable in the studied hospital staff, and the factor of interest in the job was the foremost priority of the staff. Therefore, managers should pay attention to the influential factors in the motivation of their employees.
