Abstract:
We examine the volitional, non-rational nature of motivation and its impact on symbolic production at work. Based on a ethnographic study on a Brazilian special police force we argue that institutional stability and stable symbolic frames of references have long been taken for granted in studies of motivation, thus leaving aside the role of aesthetical demand in producing active symbolic elaboration at work. Unstable institutional frames of reference are relevant to understand the efforts of internal integration, identity building and relations of alterity at work. In this sense, this article has the main objective of contributing to the studies on intrinsic motivation within organizations.
Keywords:
Motivation; Identity; Alterity; Metaphysics; Symbolism; Meaning