Question

Researchers posit that performance-related pay increases employee motivation which in turn leads to an

increase in job satisfaction. What kind of variable is ‘motivation”’ in this study?

(A) Extraneous

(B) Confounding

(C) Intervening

(D) Manipulated​

Answer 1

It is an intervening variable.

• Motivation is often thought of as an Intervening variable as it can often explain the relationship between the dependent and independent variables.
• It is the connection between coercion and a behaviour shift. Between stimuli and responses, it is thought to be a causal factor.
• The variable is inferred from behaviour rather than seen explicitly. It is not possible to infer intervening variables once stimulus response relationships have been formed.
• Similarly, employee motivation is increased as a result of performance-related compensation, which contributes to increased work satisfaction.