Many psychologists agree that people are motivated by their needs. In the “sci- entific management” school of the early 20th century, the needs that money could satisfy were thought to be the main motivators. Today, inner needs are often just as important. Theorists’ views differ about which needs are most important.
Abraham Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs
Psychologist Abraham Maslow believed that most people fulfill their needs in a certain order. Before you can bloom into your full potential, you must take these steps of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs in the order that follows. 4 (See Figure 5.3 .)
1. Physiological needs include necessities for life such as air, food, warmth, and water. These needs are often referred to as primary needs because they are necessary in order to stay alive. After these needs are met, you can move on.
2. Safety and security needs include physical safety from harm and the ele- ments, as well as financial security. These are the next most important needs in the hierarchy. They include everything from having a danger- free and orderly way of life to buying health insurance. After meeting these needs, you can move on.
3. Love and belongingness needs include acceptance from family or friends. Everyone needs to feel love and affection, and these needs drive
Maslow’s hierarchy of needs
Shows that people tend to satisfy their needs in a certain order: first, physiological needs, then safety and security, belongingness and love, esteem, and finally, self-actualization.
physiological needs The most basic of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs having to do with the satisfaction of physical needs, including food, water, air, and shelter.
safety and security needs
In Maslow’s hierarchy and include physical safety from harm and the elements as well as financial security.
love and belongingness needs
Include complete acceptance from family and friends.
The third level of Maslow’s hierarchy.
figure 5.3
MASLOW’S HIERARCHY OF NEEDS
Maslow’s theory states that people must satisfy basic needs before moving on to higher levels. At which level do you see yourself right now? Do you see yourself in more than one level at once?
Source: “Hierarchy of Needs” from Motivation and Personality, 3rd ed., by Abraham H. Maslow. Revised by Robert Frager, James Faiman, Cynthia McReynolds, and Ruth Cox. Copyright 1954. © 1987 by Harper & Row, Publishers, Inc. Copyright © 1970 by Abraham H. Maslow. Reprinted by permission of HarperCollins Publishers, Inc.
Self-actualization
Esteem
Belongingness and love Safety and
security
Physiological
people to seek out others for meaningful relationships. Finding compan- ionship and friendship are very important on this level. Then you can move on.
4. Esteem needs include recognition from peers and colleagues. The development of self-confidence and a healthy self-concept at this level builds self-esteem. At this level you experience some success and a feel- ing of having achieved something worthwhile. You begin to appreciate yourself. Then you can move on.
5. Self-actualization means reaching one’s full potential. This is the highest level of the hierarchy. If you reach this level, you will have ful- filled your own inborn potential as a creative, unique person. Maslow believed that not all people would get to this level, but since people are all different, there are different areas in which they might feel self- actualized. Maslow himself made a list of suggestions to increase your self-actualization (see Figure 5.4 ).
Maslow’s theory makes the following assumptions:
1. Needs that are not yet satisfied will motivate or influence a person’s behavior.
2. When a need has been satisfied, it will no longer motivate the person’s behavior—at least not nearly as strongly.
esteem needs In Maslow’s hierarchy, self-esteem needs include recognition from peers and colleagues.
self-actualization Highest level of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs; occurs when one has fulfilled his or her potential.
figure 5.4
HOW TO INCREASE YOUR SELF-ACTUALIZATION Maslow offers several helpful suggestions for finding out what you want and how to get it. What is holding you back in your progress toward self actualization?
Source: Abraham Maslow, The Further Reaches of Human Nature (New York: Viking Press, 1971).
Experience life fully: Be alive and absorbed with what you are doing at the moment.
Learn to trust your own judgment and feelings in making life choices, such as marriage and career.
Be honest with yourself and take responsibility for what you do.
Whenever possible, choose growth rather than safety or security.
Recognize your defenses and illusions, then work to give them up.
Even though peak experiences are temporary, keep the aspiration of these moments of self-actualization alive in your everyday thoughts and actions.
Remember that self-actualization is a continual process; it is never fully achieved.
Commit yourself to concerns and causes outside yourself, because self-actualization comes more as a byproduct of developing your capacities fully than by the self-focused pursuit of growth itself.
3. Needs are arranged by order of importance.
4. A need in the hierarchy will not be a motivator until those below it are already satisfied.
According to this theory, a starving person might willingly give up the need for self-respect just to stay alive. However, once a person’s basic needs have been met, that person is likely to look to higher needs. These higher needs will now motivate the individual to achieve the next level, and so on.
In its basics, Maslow’s theory is quite simple. Applying it in order to affect the motivation of others and of yourself, though, is a bit more complicated.
Maslow himself has pointed out that what seems to be motivating someone might not be what really is motivating that person at all. 5 He also pointed out that although the general needs in his hierarchy apply to people every- where, people are motivated by factors that are motivating only to them as individuals, or only to people in a particular culture.
To complicate things, you might move around on the hierarchy ladder as you try to meet several needs at a time. You may go out of order, for exam- ple, if esteem needs and recognition from others are more important to you than the friendship and affection you would get from the love and belong- ingness needs. In addition, there are cognitive and aesthetic needs—that is, needs for learning and for beauty—that some people have in great amounts.
Maslow agreed that these needs are very important for some people, but admitted that they didn’t fit into his “hierarchy of needs” very well.
For managers, Maslow’s main lesson on motivation is to notice the needs level of employees. When a manager is in touch with the employees’ basic needs, he or she can be much more effective in getting employees to per- form. For example, an employee might be at the level of esteem needs. The manager might make positive statements to build the employee’s self-esteem;
in turn, the employee will feel better about job performance and will work more effectively. In needs theory, people are more interested in the internal or intrinsic factors that make someone perform well.
According to management experts Richard Steers and Lyman Porter, Maslow’s theory is useful when applied to organizational climate: “When the needs-hierarchy concept is applied to work organizations, the implication for managerial actions becomes obvious. Managers have the responsibility, according to this line of reasoning, to create a ‘proper climate’ in which employees can develop to their fullest potential.” 6
As mentioned earlier, organizational climate is an important motiva- tional factor that should be considered when applying other theories as well as Maslow’s.
Alderfer’s ERG Theory
A scholar named Clayton Alderfer created a theory that is based on Maslow’s hierarchy, but which in some ways improves on it. Instead of Maslow’s five levels, ERG theory has only three areas: existence, relatedness, and growth.
ERG Theory
A refinement of Maslow’s hierarchy that includes only three needs areas: existence (mostly physical needs);
relatedness (needs linked to relationships; and growth (internal esteem needs and self-actualization).
1. Existence needs are the needs that have to do with making your way in life in a physical sense. Your physical well-being as a human is the issue.
2. Relatedness needs refer to what Maslow called “belongingness” needs and the part of esteem needs that are external, or socially fulfilling.
3. Growth needs are the more internal esteem needs that we all have, along with what Maslow called self-actualization. 7
ERG theory presents three very important differences from Maslow’s famous “hierarchy.” All three should be noted when applying this theory.
First, unlike Maslow’s theory that includes the same order of progres- sion for all people, ERG theory teaches that the order in which you progress through the three stages can be different for different people. This makes the theory more flexible and more generally useful. Second, some people can even approach these needs steps simultaneously, in other words, some people might be progressing in all three need areas at the very same time.
Most important, ERG theory features the frustration-regression principle . According to this principle, someone who fails to reach a higher need level will sometimes become frustrated and regress (go back) to a lower need level, and stay there for some time—perhaps forever. For exam- ple, someone who has been attempting to fulfill growth needs might decide to settle for just making a living when frustrated in the attempt at career growth.
Both of these needs theories are useful in that they illustrate the importance of workers getting involved with such factors as participative decision mak- ing, increased worker freedom, and personalized work space. If you are a worker, they help you understand your own development; if you are a man- ager, they help you ask the correct questions about the needs level of the workers. 8
McClelland’s Manifest Needs Theory
Like Maslow, David McClelland believed that all people have certain needs that motivate them both in life and on the job. Unlike some needs theories, McClelland’s manifest needs theory isn’t a hierarchy. McClelland, a Harvard University psychology professor, found through years of research that all peo- ple have three basic coexisting needs: power needs , affiliation needs (the need to interact with others), and achievement needs . Every person has all three needs, but everyone has them in different amounts and combinations;
nearly everyone will feel one need more strongly than the other two needs. 9 Power Needs
When McClelland first started his research on motivation, he saw power as a basically negative force. Later he found that power, like the other two needs, can be either positive or negative, depending on how it is used. According to McClelland, a manager without a need for power will generally be less effec- tive than one with a strong power need. 10 A person who has a strong need
frustration-regression principle
A principle that says that someone who fails to reach a higher need level will sometimes become frustrated and regress (go back) to a lower need level, and stay there for some time—perhaps forever.
manifest needs theory Developed by David McClelland to show that all people have needs that motivate them in life and on the job. These three needs include power needs, affiliation needs, and achievement needs.
power needs
Desired by individuals who want to control and influence other people.
affiliation needs Occur in people who want to be accepted and liked by others.
achievement needs Occur in people who are goal oriented and take personal responsibility for achievements.
The Manifest Needs Theory
The manifest needs theory makes no judgment about whether any particular need is better or worse than others; instead, the focus is simply on which needs are the primary sources of motiva- tion in people’s lives.
mo re a b o u t...
Developing Your Motivational Needs David McClelland says that a need is like a muscle;
it will develop and grow when it is exercised.
mo re a b o u t...
for power wants to control and influence other people. This person is also competitive and wants to win. This type of person also usually likes conflict—
even confronting others and being confronted.
Affiliation Needs
Most people need to be with other people, to develop friendships and acquaintances. According to McClelland, some people have this need so strongly that it motivates them to go to work every day. These people often have an intense desire to be accepted and liked by other people. They usu-
ally like parties and other social activities, and they tend to join clubs and other groups. McClelland feels that someone with a strong affiliation need will generally not make the best manager. 11
Achievement Needs
A person with a high need for achievement is usu- ally very goal oriented, has a high energy level, and wants to take personal responsibility for achieve- ments. This type of person tends to be attracted to careers such as sales and business ownership and likes to have some type of concrete feedback on how much he or she is achieving. If the work doesn’t contain enough challenges, he or she will find a challenge elsewhere. 12
More research has been done on the achieve- ment need than the other two needs. High achiev- ers have been found to differ from low achievers in several ways. People with a high need for achievement usually set goals that are moderately challenging. These goals are not so difficult that they are impossible, and not so easy that they do not present a challenge. Both high-risk and no-risk situations are seen as a waste of time. A businessperson with a high need for achievement would become successful taking a moderate risk that is more likely to pay off than a high risk that has little chance of success.
McClelland believes that successful entrepreneurs are driven more by a high need for achievement than by the profit margin.
High achievers are more likely to credit their successes to their own hard work, ability, talent, and persistence. When they fail, they do not place blame on others, on bad luck, or on fate; they look to their own behavior for an explanation. On the other hand, people with low achievement needs seem to be motivated more by a fear of failure than an expectation of success.
They set impossibly high goals or very low, simple goals. They blame their failures on their own lack of ability, on bad luck, or on fate. 13
Although McClelland did not recommend developing one of these needs and ignoring the other two, recent researchers have found that a high or low need for achievement can become a consistent personality trait. This
is generally good news for high achievers who more often excel in school and in their careers, but the news is less happy for low achievers. Low achievers in school are less likely to finish college, maintain a job, or stay married. 14
According to McClelland, these three needs are not factors that people are simply born with. They are developed through life experiences. If, in later life, you wish to develop more in one of the three areas, you can make that happen. To McClelland, a need is like a muscle; with exercise, it will grow.
Herzberg’s Two-Factor Theory
In his two-factor theory, psychologist Frederick Herzberg describes two forces that are often confused with each other. He calls them hygienes and motivators . Hygienes are factors connected with a job that make working there better. They are factors that workers don’t want to go without. If some- one were to take any of them away, workers would be unhappy—even to the point of quitting the job. However, even though people feel that way about them, hygienes—in themselves—do not motivate. They are not what get you up in the morning and out into traffic (see Figure 5.5 ).
Some examples of hygienes are piped-in music, attractive carpeting, a good health plan, or good relations with the supervisor. According to Herz- berg, factors such as these will keep workers from becoming dissatisfied; for that reason they are also called dissatisfiers. But they won’t be the factors that make you feel “pumped up” and ready to give the job your all—especially not over a long time period.
The factors on the job that really do motivate workers are called, appro- priately, motivators. These are factors that are intrinsic—that is, they are found either within the work itself or within the worker. They include feelings of accomplishment, of worth, of a job well done, or of doing meaningful and interesting work. For example, if an experienced engineer is doing the work that any draftsperson could do, then the pay, the fringe benefits, humane treatment, and pleasant working conditions, although perhaps very real, will not be enough to motivate the engineer. He or she will simply not be getting a sense of meaning or accomplishment from the job. This theory is based on a belief that employees find self-fulfillment in work and are motivated by it.
hygienes (also called
“dissatisfiers”)
The qualities in the workplace that are outside the job itself (examples: company benefits, workplace policies, job security). When these factors are weak or missing, motivation will fall; however, when they are high, motivation will not be strong or long term.
motivators (also called
“satisfiers”)
The factors in Herzberg’s theory that cause real, long- term motivation, usually containing intrinsic motivation factors (examples: interesting and challenging tasks, advancement, achievement, growth).
figure 5.5
HERZBERG’S TWO-FACTOR THEORY
Hygiene factors Motivators
The Environment The Job
No dissatisfaction Dissatisfaction
Pay Status Security
Working conditions Fringe benefits
Policies and administrative practices Interpersonal relations
No job satisfaction
job satisfaction Meaningful and challenging work
Recognition for accomplishment Feeling of achievement Increased responsibility
Opportunities for growth and advancement The job itself
For motivation to take place, according to Herzberg, both the hygienes and the motivators must be used. First, the hygienes have to be in place;
then the motivators can take over. If you have meaningful, fulfilling work, but the building where you work is damp and uncomfortable, the motiva- tors won’t be as strong as they otherwise would be. You might even quit, if you find a job with a more comfortable environment and an equal sense of accomplishment.
Hygienes include a person’s desire to avoid unpleasant working condi- tions in both the physical and the psychological environment. For exam- ple, many businesses in the midst of downsizing have found that as morale becomes lower, even employees who were not going to be laid off sometimes decide to resign because the work environment has become too unpleasant. 15
Job Enrichment as a Motivator
If your work isn’t meaningful, what can be done to change the situation?
You could find another position with a different set of tasks—maybe. If you are the manager, you could think about upgrading the job—that is, adding elements to the job that might make it more enjoyable, meaningful, and fulfilling. To Herzberg, this upgrading of the task, or job enrichment , is the only real way to motivate a previously unmotivated worker for any long period of time.
Herzberg says that if the job is not enrichable, that is, if management can’t make it more interesting or rewarding, it should be eliminated or automated. The era of robotics and other technological developments have made the choice to automate jobs much more likely than even a decade ago.
Thus, according to Herzberg, making jobs more challenging and fulfilling is the only appropriate approach to meaningful motivation. Herzberg also conducted international research that seems to support his claim that the two-factor theory of motivation is valid around the world. 16
To enrich a job often means complete restructuring of the tasks related to the job, to make them more meaningful and fulfilling—giving the job more intrinsic motivators. Several factors are necessary for job enrichment to be effective. These are skill variety, task identity, task significance, auton- omy, and feedback. 17 Figure 5.6 describes job enrichment in greater detail.
Skill Variety and Task Identity
If you work at a job where you have to use a number of different skills, you are much more likely to be motivated to work hard. You are also more likely to take pride in the job you do. Also, if you are able to start a job and see it through to its completion, the job will seem much more meaningful to you.
If you have ever worked at a job on a factory assembly line or in any other situation that calls on only one skill, you probably know how important skill variety and task identity can be. Those who make midlife career changes often do so because they are looking for a job that is more meaningful to them.
job enrichment The upgrading of a job that makes it more interesting, meaningful, or rewarding and provides long-term motivation.
skill variety
The opportunity and ability to use numerous different skills in one’s position at work.
task identity The worker’s perception of the meaningfulness of a job, often based upon the worker’s permission to start a job and see it through to completion.