Pushing Papers Can Be Fun

587 Words3 Pages
1. What performance problems is the captain trying to correct? The captain is trying to correct performance problems related with the paperwork. The officers hate to do the paperwork and as a consequence the job is frequently put off or done inadequately. This counterproductive work behaviour puts at risk work quality and also leads to losing cases when these get to court. 2. Use the MARS model of individual behaviour and performance to diagnose the possible causes of the unacceptable behaviour. Analyzing the four elements of MARS model will provide us with the possible causes of this unacceptable behaviour by the officers. Motivation is the first element of the MARS model and represents the forces within a person that affect his or her direction, intensity, and persistence of voluntary behaviour. The officers, although they are aware of their task to complete the required paperwork, they put all their effort towards the direction of preventing crime and apprehension of criminals. One factor that could be responsible for this lack of motivation when it comes to paperwork is that their promotions are not linked to the excellence of the paperwork. They just need to stay in the force for a certain number of years in order to get promoted. Another factor is that they are trained to be out on the streets and not to fill forms or write reports. This leaves them with the impression that paperwork is not their duty or is a duty of minimum significance. The second element of the MARS model is ability. As seen in the quote above, officers do not receive training regarding paperwork. Because of this lack of training, regarding paperwork, the officers may not have the required competencies to perform the paperwork correctly and thus try to avoid it or complete it incorrectly. Another important element of MARS model is role perception. Accurate role
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