Toward effective motivation of academic library support staff: Identifying and correlating motivators valued with demographic attributes

The support staff comprises a large proportion of an academic library's total employees. In an effort to improve staff productivity and satisfaction, this study examined which motivators academic library support staff valued.Based on Herzberg's two-factor theory of motivation and Vroom's expectancy theory, the purpose of the study was twofold. First, it identified factors which academic library support staff perceived as motivating them. Second, it examined relationships between those motivators and the demographic characteristics of academic library support staff.A combination of interview and survey was used to conduct the exploratory study of the support staff in a single large university library. Interviews of a random sample of the study population were conducted to determine what motivators academic library support staff reportedly valued. A survey administered to the study population required respondents to rate the value they placed on each of sixteen motivators on a seven point scale. Data analysis and hypotheses testing were done using Pearson product moment and point-biserial correlations and t-tests.Sixteen motivators were identified and arranged in a ranked list based on the mean score of the values assigned each motivator by the respondents. The motivators "using skills and abilities" and "intellectual challenge and stimulation" ranked first and second respectively. Correlations between motivators valued and demographic attributes of the study population were generally weak. The t-tests revealed that in the population studied the demographic attributes enrollment in library science courses, length of time in current position, salary, location of job, and area of service were closely associated with certain motivators.The results of the study provide information which may serve as a component in the development of management strategies to increase productivity and satisfaction of academic library support staff. Further studies are recommended.