As the technological dimension of society becomes more complex (Huber, 1984), the role played by technologists will become more important. And as this occurs, the question of motivating these individuals also becomes more important. Little prior empirical research has examined the impact of motivation on the performance of technologists--those workers who work primarily with technology in their job. Potential differences between technologists and nontechnologists in organizations which may effect the impact of motivation on performance include: (1) there tends to be a definable and measurable end-point to their tasks: (2) the work of the technologists will have a major impact on a major portion of the organization; and (3) they are preoccupied with things rather than organizational issues (von Heydebrand 1985, Medcof 1985).
/lp/association-for-computing-machinery/improving-the-performance-of-technologists-and-users-on-6Yk6Kx3S0w