Summary
Research by Northeastern University shows that employees who look enthusiastic at work often get more tasks, which can lead to burnout. Managers tend to give extra work to those they think are naturally motivated, believing they will handle it well, but this often reduces the employees' job satisfaction.
Key Facts
- The study was led by Professor Sangah Bae from Northeastern University.
- Over 4,300 participants from different industries were involved in the research.
- Managers often assign more tasks to employees perceived as enthusiastic or motivated.
- In one experiment, 55% of managers chose to give extra tasks to the more motivated employees.
- Another experiment showed 74% of managers gave extra duties to enthusiastic employees, affecting their chance to earn bonuses.
- This behavior, called “motive oversimplification,” assumes enjoyment in core tasks means extra tasks will also be welcome.
- Enthusiastic employees reported a one-point drop in job satisfaction when given extra work.
- Simple solutions suggested include tracking who gets extra tasks to prevent overburdening them.
