MASLOW'S THEORY OF MOTIVATION

3. • Maslow's hierarchy of
needs is a motivational
theory in psychology
comprising a five-tier
model of human needs,
often depicted as
hierarchical levels within
a pyramid.
• Needs lower down in the
hierarchy must be
satisfied before
individuals can attend to
needs higher up.
• From the bottom of the
hierarchy upwards, the
needs are: physiological,
safety, love and
belonging, esteem, and
self-actualization.

4. DEFICIENCY NEEDS
vs. GROWTH NEEDS
• This five-stage model can be divided into
deficiency needs and growth needs. The
first four levels are often referred to as
deficiency needs (D-needs), and the top
level is known as growth or being needs
(B-needs).
• Deficiency needs arise due to deprivation
and are said to motivate people when
they are unmet. Also, the motivation to
fulfil such needs will become stronger
the longer the duration they are denied.
For example, the longer a person goes
without food, the more hungry they will
become.
• Maslow (1943) initially stated that
individuals must satisfy lower level
deficit needs before progressing on to
meet higher level growth needs.
However, he later clarified that
satisfaction of a needs is not an “all-or-
none” phenomenon, admitting that his
earlier statements may have given “the
false impression that a need must be
satisfied 100 percent before the next
need emerges”

5. Physiological needs
• These are biological requirements
for human survival, e.g. air, food,
drink, shelter, clothing, warmth, sex,
sleep.
• If these needs are not satisfied the
human body cannot function
optimally. Maslow considered
physiological needs the most
important as all the other needs
become secondary until these
needs are met.

6. Safety needs
protection from elements, security, order, law, stability, freedom from fear.

7. Love and belongingness
needs
• After physiological and safety needs have
been fulfilled, the third level of human
needs is social and involves feelings of
belongingness. The need for interpersonal
relationships motivates behaviour.
• Examples include friendship, intimacy, trust,
and acceptance, receiving and giving
affection and love. Affiliating, being part of a
group (family, friends, work).

8. Esteem needs
• Maslow classified into two categories:
(i) esteem for oneself (dignity,
achievement, mastery,
independence) and
(ii) the desire for reputation or respect
from others (e.g., status, prestige).
• Maslow indicated that the need for
respect or reputation is most
important for children and
adolescents and precedes real self-
esteem or dignity.

9. Self-
actualization
needs
• Realizing personal potential, self-fulfilment,
seeking personal growth and peak experiences. A
desire “to become everything one is capable of
becoming”.
• Maslow used the term self-actualization to
describe a desire, not a driving force, that could
lead to realizing one's capabilities. He did not feel
that self-actualization determined one's life; rather,
he felt that it gave the individual a desire, or
motivation to achieve budding ambitions.

10. 1. Self-Actualized People Have Peak
Experiences
• According to Maslow,1 a peak experience
involves:
• "Feelings of limitless horizons opening up to
the vision, the feeling of being
simultaneously more powerful and also more
helpless than one ever was before, the
feeling of ecstasy and wonder and awe, the
loss of placement in time and space with,
finally, the conviction that something
extremely important and valuable had
happened, so that the subject was to some
extent transformed and strengthened even in
his daily life by such experiences."
• In other words, these are moments of
transcendence in which a person emerges
feeling changed and transformed.
CHARACTERISTICS OF SELF-
ACTUALIZED PEOPLE

11. 2. They Possess Self-Acceptance
and a Democratic World View
• Self-actualized people accept
themselves and others as they are.
They tend to lack inhibition and are able
to enjoy themselves and their lives free
of guilt.
• Not only do self-actualized people fully
accept themselves, they also embrace
other people for who they are. Other
individuals are treated the same
regardless of background, current
status, or other socio-economic and
cultural factors.

12. 3. They Are Realistic
• Another major characteristic of self-actualized
people is a sense of realism. Rather than being
fearful of things that are different or unknown,
the self-actualized individual is able to view life
as it unfolds both logically and rationally.

13. 4. They Tend to Be Problem-
Centred
• Self-actualized individuals
are often motivated by
a strong sense of personal
ethics and responsibility.
They enjoy applying
their problem-solving
skills to real-world situations
and they like helping other
people improve their own
lives.

14. 5. The Self-Actualized
Person Is
Autonomous
• Self-actualized people also tend to
be very ​independent. 4They don't
conform to other people's ideas of
happiness or contentment. This
original perspective allows the
individual to live in the moment and
appreciate the beauty of each
experience.

15. 6. They Enjoy
Solitude and
Privacy
• Self-actualized
individuals value their
privacy and enjoy
solitude. While they also
love the company of
others, taking time to
themselves is essential
for their personal
discovery and cultivating
their individual potential.

16. 7. They Have a
Philosophical Sense
of Humor
• Self-actualized individuals generally
have a thoughtful sense of humor.
They're able to enjoy the humor in
situations and laugh at themselves,
but they don't ridicule or joke at the
expense of another person's
feelings.

17. 8. Self-Actualized
People Are
Spontaneous
• Another characteristic of self-
actualized people is a tendency to
be open, unconventional, and
spontaneous. While these people
are able to follow generally
accepted social expectations, they
don't feel confined by these norms
in their thoughts or behaviors.

18. 9. They Fully Enjoy
the Journey, Not
Just the Destination
• While self-actualized
people have concrete
goals, they don't see
things as simply a
means to an end.
The journey toward
achieving a goal is just
as important and
enjoyable as actually
accomplishing the goal.

19. It is important to note that Maslow's
(1943, 1954) five-stage model has
been expanded to include cognitive
and aesthetic needs (Maslow,
1970a) and later transcendence
needs (Maslow, 1970b).
a) Cognitive needs - knowledge
and understanding, curiosity,
exploration, need for meaning
and predictability.
b) Aesthetic needs - appreciation
and search for beauty, balance,
form, etc.

20. Transcendence
needs
• A person is motivated by values which
transcend beyond the personal self (e.g.,
mystical experiences and certain
experiences with nature, aesthetic
experiences, sexual experiences, service
to others, the pursuit of science, religious
faith, etc.).

21. Some people from the past who
are considered to have attained
self-actualization
• WILLIAM JAMES
• ALBERT EINSTEIN
• ELEANOR ROOSEVELT
• ABRAHAM LINCOLN

22. How to Apply Maslow's Theory to
the Workplace
LOWER LEVEL NEEDS
• Generally, a person beginning their
career will be very concerned with
physiological needs such as adequate
wages and stable income and security
needs such as benefits and a safe work
environment. We all want a good salary
to meet the needs of our family and we
want to work in a stable environment.
• Employees whose lowest level needs
have not been met will make job
decisions based on compensation, safety,
or stability concerns. Also, employees will
revert to satisfying their lowest level
needs when these needs are no longer
met or are threatened (such as during an
economic downturn).
• The first priority of workers is their
survival. It's hard for them to be
motivated if their pay is unfair and if their
jobs are always in jeopardy.

23. • Once these basic needs are met, the employee will want his
"belongingness" (or social) needs met. The level of social
interaction an employee desires will vary based on whether the
employee is an introvert or extrovert. The key point is that
employees desire to work in an environment where they are
accepted in the organization and have some interaction with
others.
• This means effective interpersonal relations are necessary.
Managers can create an environment where staff cooperation is
rewarded.
• Ongoing managerial communication about operational matters is
also an important component of meeting employee’s social
needs. Employees who are “kept in the dark” about operational
matters and the future plans of the organization often feel like
they are an organizational outsider.

24. HIGHER LEVEL NEEDS
• With these needs are satisfied, an
employee will want his/her high level
needs of esteem and self-
actualization met. Esteem needs are tied
to an employee’s image of himself and his
desire for the respect and recognition of
others.
• Even if an individual does not want to
move into management, he/she probably
does not want to do the same exact work
for 20 years. He/she may want to be on a
project team, complete a special task,
learn other tasks or duties, or expand his
duties in some manner.
• Cross-training, job enrichment, and
special assignments are popular methods
for making work more rewarding. Further,
allowing employees to participate in
decision making on operational matters is
a powerful method for meeting an
employee’s esteem needs. Finally,
symbols of accomplishment such as a
meaningful job title, job perks, awards, a
nice office, business cards, work space,
etc. are also important to an employee’s
esteem.

25. • Finally, while work assignments and rewards are
important considerations to meeting employee esteem
needs, workplace fairness (equity) is also important.
• With self-actualization, the employee will be interested
in growth and individual development. He will also need
to be skilled at what he does. He may want a challenging
job, an opportunity to complete further education,
increased freedom from supervision, or autonomy to
define his own processes for meeting organizational
objectives. At this highest level, managers focus on
promoting an environment where an employee can
meet his own self-actualization needs.

26. CRITICISM OF MASLOW’S THEORY
• Researchers have proved that there is lack of hierarchical structure of needs as
suggested by Maslow, though every individual has some ordering for his need
satisfaction.
• Some people may be deprived of their lower level needs but may still strive for self
actualisation needs. The example of MAHATMA GANDHI is one of the most
important. There are always some people to whom, the need for self-esteem is
more prominent than social needs.
• Another problem is that there is a lack of direct cause and effect relationship
between need and behaviour. One particular need may cause different type of
behaviour in different persons. On the other hand, as a particular individual
behaviour may be due to the result of different needs. Thus, need hierarchy is not
as simple as it appears to be.
• Need and satisfaction of needs is a psychological feeling. Sometimes even the
person may not be aware about his own needs. How can the managers come to
know about these needs?

27. • Some people say that hierarchy of need simply does not exist. At all
levels needs are present at given time. An individual motivated by self
actualisation needs cannot afford to forget his food. But this criticism
is solved by Maslow by saying that needs are interdependent and
overlapping.
• Another problem with Maslow’s theory of motivation is the
operationalisation of some of his concepts which makes it difficult for
the researchers to test his theory. For instance, how does one
measure self actualisation?