Scale library · HRM & organizational behavior

Work motivation scale (MWMS): Gagné et al. (2015)

The MWMS was developed by Gagné et al. (2015) from Self-Determination Theory and measures why people put effort into their work. It distinguishes six types of motivation ordered from least to most autonomous: amotivation, social extrinsic regulation, material extrinsic regulation, introjected regulation, identified regulation and intrinsic motivation. The 19-item version was validated with 3,435 workers in seven languages and nine countries. It suits theses on the motivation of office staff, teachers and healthcare workers and on how leadership style or rewards affect each type of motivation.

Cite the original, not the blog.

Original English items

Items marked (R) are reverse-coded: recode them before computing reliability or scale scores. Replace bracketed placeholders such as [system] with the name of the system, brand or organization you study.

Amotivation (AM, 3 items)

Code Item wording Reverse-coded
AM1 I don't, because I really feel that I'm wasting my time at work. No
AM2 I do little because I don't think this work is worth putting efforts into. No
AM3 I don't know why I'm doing this job, it's pointless work. No

Extrinsic Regulation – Social (ESO, 3 items)

Code Item wording Reverse-coded
ESO1 To get others' approval (e.g., supervisor, colleagues, family, clients …). No
ESO2 Because others will respect me more (e.g., supervisor, colleagues, family, clients …). No
ESO3 To avoid being criticized by others (e.g., supervisor, colleagues, family, clients …). No

Extrinsic Regulation – Material (EMA, 3 items)

Code Item wording Reverse-coded
EMA1 Because others will reward me financially only if I put enough effort in my job (e.g., employer, supervisor …). No
EMA2 Because others offer me greater job security if I put enough effort in my job (e.g., employer, supervisor …). No
EMA3 Because I risk losing my job if I don't put enough effort in it. No

Introjected Regulation (IJ, 4 items)

Code Item wording Reverse-coded
IJ1 Because I have to prove to myself that I can. No
IJ2 Because it makes me feel proud of myself. No
IJ3 Because otherwise I will feel ashamed of myself. No
IJ4 Because otherwise I will feel bad about myself. No

Identified Regulation (ID, 3 items)

Code Item wording Reverse-coded
ID1 Because I personally consider it important to put efforts in this job. No
ID2 Because putting efforts in this job aligns with my personal values. No
ID3 Because putting efforts in this job has personal significance to me. No

Intrinsic Motivation (IM, 3 items)

Code Item wording Reverse-coded
IM1 Because I have fun doing my job. No
IM2 Because what I do in my work is exciting. No
IM3 Because the work I do is interesting. No

Response scale

7-point scale, not an agreement scale: 1 = Not at all … 7 = Completely, in answer to the stem asking why you put (or would put) effort into your current job. Compute a separate mean for each type of motivation; do not sum all 19 items into one score.

Licence and permission

The Center for Self-Determination Theory holds the copyright and allows any academic use after accepting the terms on its website; commercial use requires permission. Cite Gagné et al. (2015).

Sources (APA 7)

Vietnamese translation

A Vietnamese translation of every item, with sample-size advice and studies that used the scale, is on the Vietnamese page for this scale.

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