McClelland's Human Motivation Theory

The Achievement Motivation Theory, also known as the Acquired Needs Theory or the Learned Needs Theory, was developed by David McClelland in the 1960s (Ondabu, 2014). According to Schermerhorn (2003), the achievement motivation theory explains that there are three major needs that employees, irrespective of their level, will acquire over their lifetime as a result of the experiences in their career or in their own personal lives. Furthermore, he says the managers should first understand the employees' needs and preferences in order to motivate them.
According to McClelland’s theory, most of the needs fall into three general categories of needs, which are classified as needs for achievement, affiliation, or power. The McClelland’s needs theory provides a clear picture for the organization and the managers to know which types of jobs are suitable for the employees and which types of people can make the organizations grow (Acquah 2017). 

Ø  Need for Achievement

A person's need for achievement describes a person’s drive to excel with respect to some established set of standards. Individuals satisfy the need for achievement by actualizing their own purposes relative to and regardless of the situations of others (Yamaguchi, 2003).

According to Daft (2008), the drive for achievement is divided into four categories: the desire to accomplish something challenging, achieve a high standard of success, master complex tasks, and surpass others.

Individuals who strive for achievement seek to accomplish realistic but difficult goals. Such people will act in ways that will help them to surpass others, meet the standard of excellence, or do something unique (Schmidt & Frieze, 2007). According to Eisenberger et al. (2005), individuals with a high level of achievement are more satisfied in their jobs, which involve high skill levels and difficult challenges., therefore, to keep achievement-motivated people satisfied, the managers should make sure to give them new, and challenging assignments on a regular basis.

Ø  Need for affiliation

Ondabu (2014) says that this is one of the most important motivations that employees need but is least talked about. This is the need to be accepted by others, the need of building a healthy relationship with others. “The need for affiliation is the unconscious concern for developing, maintaining, and restoring close personal relationships” (Lussier & Achua, 2007. P.43).

According to McClelland (1985), it has been argued that the necessity to establish and maintain positive relationships with people conflicts with the demands of leadership. Furthermore, he states that affiliate leaders are hesitant to monitor their followers’ progress, their performance, or critique as they mainly focus on personal relationships. They make decisions based on feelings rather than business needs, and they are overly concerned with being liked by their followers. Therefore, the leaders should have a moderate affiliation with their subordinates. 

Ø  Need for power

Daft (2008) says, People with a need for power have the desire to control or influence others. They also like to be responsible and have authority over others. Managers with a greater need for power have the ability to create a greater sense of responsibility and team spirit in their organizations. People with a strong desire for power should be given the opportunity to manage others. In addition, this also provides a guideline for the manager to follow and to become a good manager because a manager who seeks institutional power is more successful (Wagner and Swanson, 1979 cited in El-Sherif, 2014)

McClelland, (l961) cited in El-Sherif, (2014) states that good managers are not high achievers, as the high achievers usually concentrate more on their own success than on the organizations. Also, individuals who are striving for power are usually low in affiliative needs.

Advantages of McClelland’s Human Motivation Theory

Ø  According to Parikh (2018) the most significant benefit of this theory is that employees of the company are assigned to the tasks according to their needs, which helps in motivating employees.

Ø  Parikh (2018) also states that organizations can have satisfied employees by using the McClelland Theory, which can prove to be a most valuable asset to the company in the long run.

Limitations of McClelland’s Human Motivation Theory

Ø  Ogut & Attar (n.d) states this theory is criticized by Geert Hofstede that ‘achievement motivation’ takes different forms in different organizational cultures due to diverse senses of individuality.

Ø  McClelland’s needs theory focuses only on needs for achievement, power, and affiliation but ignores basic needs like food, shelter, and safety, which are primary needs and must be satisfied before concentrating on other needs (Parikh, 2018).

Ø  If an individual comes under the need for achievement matrix, he or she is likely to be stereotyped and may never work in a department that requires the need for power or affiliation, even if the employee has the necessary qualifications for the job (Parikh, 2018).

References

Acquah, A., (20117). Implications of the Achievement Motivation Theory for School Management in Ghana: A Literature Review [online]. Available at:https://www.researchgate.net/publication/316672421_Implications_of_the_Achievement_Motivation_Theory_for_School_Management_in_Ghana_A_Literature_Review. [Accessed on 01 May 2022]

Daft, R. L. (2008). The leadership experience (4th ed.). Mason, OH: South Western, Cengage Learning

Eisenberger, R., Jones, J. R., Stinglhamber, F., Shanock, L., & Randall, A. T. (2005). Flow experiences at work: For high need achievers alone? Journal of Organizational Behavior

El-Sherif, H. M., (2014). Applications of Management Theory. [online]. Available at:https://www.researchgate.net/publication/271530940_Applications_of_Management_Theory. [Accessed on 02 May 2022]

McClelland D. C. (1985). Human Motivation. Glenview, IL: Scott, Foresman and Company

Ogut, A., Attar, M., (n.d).THE LIMITATIONS OF CONVENTIONAL MOTIVATION THEORIES IN THE CONTEXT OF THEARGUMENT THAT MOTIVATION IS ‘A SURROGATE FOR MEANING[online]. Available at: https://www.academia.edu/22469538/THE_LIMITATIONS_OF_CONVENTIONAL_MOTIVATION_THEORIES_IN_THE_CONTEXT_OF_THE_ARGUMENT_THAT_MOTIVATION_IS_A_SURROGATE_FOR_MEANING. [Accessed on 02 May 2022].

Ondabu, I. T., (2014). A Theory of Human Motivation: The Tirimba Grouping Theory of Motivation [online]. Available at: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/270897954_A_Theory_of_Human_Motivation_The_Tirimba_Grouping_Theory_of_Motivation. [Accessed on 01 May 2022].

Parikh. V., (2018). Advantages and Disadvantages of McClelland Theory [online]. Available at:https://www.letslearnfinance.com/advantages-and-disadvantages-of-mcclelland-theory.html. [Accessed on 02 May 2022].

Schermerhorn, J. (2003). Organizational behaviour (9th ed.). London: John Willey & Sons, Inc.

Schmidt, K. S., & Freize, J. T., (2007).  Study of achievement motivation in relation to academic achievement success of students. International Journal of Educational Planning and Administration, pp. 419-435

Yamaguchi, I. (2003). The relations among individual differences, needs, and equity sensitivity. Journal of Managerial Psychology. Pp. 324-344.