Motivational and Semantic Relations of the Individual: Psychological Aspects of Managerial Control in Professional Activity

Kamalova Oksana Maksimovna Postgraduate student of the Institute of Foreign Languages of the Patrice Lumumba Peoples' Friendship University of Russia 117198, Russia, Moscow, Miklukho-Maklaya str., 9, building 4 mak-kom25@mail.ru Other publications by this author

Currently, the increasing role of managerial control in the organization is becoming particularly relevant due to the need to create favorable conditions for the development of professional and personal qualities of employees. Management control is one of the important tools for influencing employees, contributing to the formation of responsibility and discipline of employees, influencing their motivation and personal meaning.

The relevance of the research is to study various types of managerial control and to establish their influence on the orientation of motivational and semantic relations of employees, which will allow to identify problematic psychological aspects of managerial control and assess their impact on the motivation and personal meanings of employees of the organization.

A study to determine the psychological aspects of management control will allow us to understand which types of management control have a favorable or negative impact on the formation and development of motivational and semantic relations of employees in professional activities.  

The works of domestic and foreign scientists show that the motivational and semantic sphere of personality plays an important role in the regulation of human activity and behavior (V.S. Ageev, F.E. Vasilyuk, L.S. Veresov N.N., Vygotsky, F. Herzberg, A.N. Leontiev, D.A. Leontiev, E. Lok, A. R. Lurii, A. Maslow, V.N. Myasishchev, B.A., etc.).

Motivational and semantic relations of a person are an important component of professional activity characterized by the presence of motivation based on personal meaning and encouraging human activity. Motivational and semantic processes that accompany and support a person throughout his or her work activity are at the heart of motivational and semantic relations of a personality ^[9].

Personality motivation forms the motivational structure of human behavior, which includes various types of motives and their correlation. Motivation is a management process that includes psychological reasons that encourage people to take action to meet their needs. Thus, motivation can be conscious or unconscious and manifested in the form of internal needs, interests, desires, goals and intentions.

In the theory of "Hierarchy of needs", A. Maslow identified five groups of needs that are constantly inherent in people. In his opinion, unsatisfied needs encourage people to take active action, and satisfied ones cease to motivate, and other unsatisfied needs take their place ^[13].

In a two-factor model, F. Herzberg showed that people's behavior is influenced not only by satisfaction, but also by dissatisfaction with certain needs. F. Herzberg believed that high activity of performers is achieved when the following conditions are met: work has meaning and social significance, is not primitive and does not kill self-interest, allows you to develop abilities and achieve success ^[19].

E. Locke's concept of "Setting goals" is based on the fact that people can perceive the goals of an organization as their own and try to achieve them, getting satisfaction from the work done. The higher the goals, the more a person will work hard despite obstacles, and the more success he will be able to achieve, provided he has a good organization of work and the appropriate abilities ^[6].

Motivational and semantic relationships of a person also include both external factors and internal personality characteristics that affect a person's behavior, character and emotional state. The psychological state of employees, in turn, has a special impact on their motives, goals and personal relationships.

Personal meaning plays an important role in the motivational and semantic relations of a person. Thus, according to A.N. Leontiev, personal meaning is present in a person's consciousness, the relationship between motivation and meaning in a person has its own characteristics, depending on the social status of a person in society and on a set of possible motives for activity determined by this status ^[11].

When conducting a study to establish the psychological aspects of managerial control on the motivational and semantic relationships of a person, it is important to consider the structure of managerial control in an organization. Properly organized management control contributes to improving the efficiency of the organization and employee satisfaction, as well as contributes to the development and self-realization of the individual in the professional field.

Management control in an organization is an integral part of the organization's activities and has a great impact on the success and competitiveness of the organization.

According to N.N. Veresov, each manager chooses his own types of managerial control, the importance of which lies in what psychological consequences the choice of one type or another will entail and their impact on the motivational and semantic relations of employees of the organization. In turn, managerial control should not be excessive or too loose, among the most common among managers are such forms of control as effective, total, lack of control, superficial control, etc. ^[4].

Effective management control is based on commitment, consistency, regularity and objectivity in the implementation of managerial functions. An important result in the application of this type of control is the creation of a favorable environment associated with the development of positive motivational and semantic relationships of a person in professional activity. Favorable motivational and semantic relations of employees contribute to the formation of employees' awareness of the value and significance of their work. In addition, the professional and personal growth of employees increases.

When considering the degree of influence of total control on the activities of an organization, it can be said that the main functions of total control are a system of restrictions and rules that have both positive and negative effects on human behavior and activity in the working environment. Under the pressure of control, a person may show great motivation and desire to achieve their goals, however, on the other hand, total control can have a negative impact on the motivational and semantic relations of employees.

The uncontrolled type of management implies the absence of strict control and restrictions on the part of the head, which allows employees to feel more freedom and responsibility for their actions. This approach to management can also have a positive impact on the motivation and personal meanings of employees, as they feel more autonomous and important to the organization. However, at the same time, an uncontrolled method can lead to insufficient organization and inefficiency of the team's work ^[4].

Thus, an important component of the successful work and well-being of the organization is the choice of effective types of management control that have a positive impact on the motivational and semantic relations of employees. The purpose of the study is to establish the factors of influence of various types of managerial control on the motivational and semantic relations of personality and to determine the psychological aspects of managerial control that influence the formation of motivation and personal meaning of employees in the organization.

In order to study the motivational and semantic relations of personality and their significance in the professional activities of employees, we have developed an author's questionnaire, with the help of which an empirical study was conducted on the basis of the Republican Forestry Agency for the Republic of Buryatia. 207 forestry agency employees aged 20 to 65 years took part in the survey.

The employees of the organization are faced with questions aimed at determining the psychological aspects of management control that affect the motivational and semantic relations of employees, as well as the establishment of employee relations to management control in the organization. The results of the study are presented in Table 1.

Table 1

Motivational and semantic relations of employees

          The conducted research showed that 85.7% of the organization's employees believe that management control is a necessary means to improve the efficiency and quality of performing functional duties.

94.6% of respondents believe that effective management control has been formed in this organization. In addition, 80.2% of employees believe that the control exercised in this organization by non-mediocre managers contributes to improving the efficiency of their work.

The vast majority of employees of the organization 85.7% believe that the organization lacks total managerial control by the heads of the organization, in turn, the attitude of employees to total control has a negative connotation, so the vast majority of employees 91.9% perceive total control as a restriction of freedom and independence.   

According to 30.3% of employees, 62.2% of employees disagree with the statement that lack of control on the part of managers prevails in the organization.

16.1% of employees answered positively to the question that the organization carries out superficial managerial control related to checking the employee's presence at the workplace, 81% disagree with this statement, 0.9% abstained.

In order to establish the motivational and semantic relations of employees to their professional activities, the employees of the organization were asked questions concerning their attitude to managerial control by managers. Thus, 81.2% of employees disagree with the statement that the heads of the organization impose excessive managerial requirements on employees.

The personal relationships of employees in relation to the management of the organization showed high values, so 79.5% of employees believe that there is trust in the performance of their functional duties in relation to the employees themselves.

91.9% of employees believe that the heads of the organization take into account the individual responsibility and effectiveness of employees when exercising managerial control, as well as employees have the opportunity to make independent decisions and exercise self-control.

In addition, according to 81.3% of respondents, employees are regularly encouraged in the organization for conscientious performance of official duties, as well as the results of their work do not go unnoticed.

92.9% of the organization's respondents believe that the decisions made by management on production and organizational issues are consistent, and they also have access to the necessary information related to the performance of functional duties.

The statement on the definition of the relationship between the head and the subordinate showed a high value, as 81.3% of employees receive feedback from managers with the necessary support in solving production problems. 91% of the organization's employees disagree with the statement that managerial control by managers interferes with professional activity.

Only 2.4% of employees have a desire to change their professional activities due to the negative impact of management control on their attitude to professional activity.

During a conversation with employees of the organization to determine the socio-psychological climate in the organization, it was found that a favorable atmosphere had developed in this team. According to employees, a democratic management style prevails among managers in the organization, powers are distributed in accordance with the official duties of employees. Direct managers, when solving production issues, listen to the opinion of subordinates, and collegial decisions are made when making general decisions. Favorable relationships have been established among the employees of the organization. In the opinion of employees, these relationships have a positive impact on improving efficiency in the professional activities of employees.

Thus, based on the conducted research, it can be concluded that an effective managerial type of control is applied in the organization. According to employees, an effective type of management control is a necessary means to improve the efficiency and quality of performing functional duties. At the same time, the negative attitude of employees is expressed in relation to the total, uncontrolled and superficial type of control.

Based on the results obtained, it can be concluded that the psychological aspects of management control consist of factors such as motivation, personal characteristics, relationships with colleagues and have a significant impact on the effectiveness of management control. High motivation and positive personal meanings contribute to more accurate and responsible task performance, and good relationships with colleagues can increase the effectiveness of teamwork. However, negative factors such as stress, conflict, and low motivation can hinder successful management and control.

Therefore, in order to achieve high results in management, it is necessary to take into account and work with psychological aspects, creating a favorable and supportive environment for employees, favorable motivational and semantic attitudes to the performance of professional duties.

The main conclusions of the study are that management control has an impact on the motivational and semantic relationships of a person in professional activity, which in turn directly depend on the type of management control chosen and on the individual characteristics of managers and their subordinates. The importance of choosing a certain type of management control is to find a balance between management control and the formation of a favorable environment in the organization, ensuring maximum motivation and efficiency of the individual.

In order to increase the effectiveness of professional activities and improve the motivation and personal meanings of employees, heads of organizations should remember that excessive or ineffective management control has negative consequences. Total control causes employees to feel anxious and anxious, which increases stress levels. With a decrease in initiative and creativity, employees feel overly controlled, they can restrain their ideas and suggestions.

Unfair or ineffective control can lead to distrust and conflicts within the team. Therefore, it is important to maintain a balance between the need for managerial control and maintaining employee autonomy and initiative. The leaders of the organization should strive to create a work environment that will motivate employees and support their development, without limiting their freedom and creativity.

Managers need to strive to create a work environment that supports the autonomy and initiative of employees, while providing the necessary level of control and support, carrying out activities will achieve the goals of the organization, while maintaining the well-being and motivation of employees.

In order to increase the effectiveness of professional activity and improve the motivation and personal meanings of employees, heads of organizations are recommended:  

- maintaining the growth and development of employees (training, advanced training);

- encouraging collaboration and innovation (encouraging teamwork, sharing ideas, creating an atmosphere in which openness and initiative are welcomed);

- recognition of professional achievements of employees;

- ensuring a work-life balance (flexible work schedules and leisure opportunities).