I suspect that you talk from experience when you make the claim that 'Most programmers got into the game because they love programming.' I currently work in india, and my experience here is that most folks who enter programming do so because of better pay, more glamour, and more international travel. I don't have any studies to back up my observation, just my personal experiences in the last few years.

I also believe that their training/exposure to CS in college is not uniformly good, and that they are put into an environment where they are already expected to know stuff which they have not been exposed to. Good organizations spend quite some time on training, but many do not.

I personally believe that before a programmer is given autonomy, it is vitally important to have people with good, attitudes who are willing to admit to mistakes and learn constantly, who have some measure of comfort with the fundamentals of programming ( which works across languages ), and who are mentored properly ( by which they have people to turn to whenever they get struck and need to figure out how to proceed further ). Most middle managers have no clue as to what programming is and hide behind a layer of techno-talk and they really are often unable to provide a sense of direction or purpose to the programmer.

While i agree with your role for management in creating a good environment for your emplyees, giving them a lot of autonomy, allowing them to master their tools, and having a sense of shared purpose, i believe that these require a few fundamentals to be met before the above environment is productive.

I admit that these observations are biased and not based on any scientific studies, so take them with a pinch of salt.