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Need theory, also known as Three needs theory, [1] proposed by psychologist David McClelland, is a motivational model that attempts to explain how the needs for achievement, affiliation, and power affect the actions of people from a managerial context.
The need for affiliation (N-Affil) is a term which describes a person's need to feel a sense of involvement and "belonging" within a social group.The term was popularized by David McClelland, whose thinking was strongly influenced by the pioneering work of Henry Murray, who first identified underlying psychological human needs and motivational processes in 1938.
David Clarence McClelland (May 20, 1917 – March 27, 1998) was an American psychologist, noted for his work on motivation Need Theory. He published a number of works between the 1950s and the 1990s and developed new scoring systems for the Thematic Apperception Test (TAT) and its descendants. [ 1 ]
In the 1960s, psychologist David McClelland expanded on Murray's work, focusing on the effects of human needs in a work environment. [2] His need theory proposes that most people are consistently motivated by one of three basic desires: the need for affiliation, the need for achievement, or the need for power.
McClelland's learned needs theory states that individuals have three primary needs: affiliation, power, and achievement. The need for affiliation is a desire to form social connections with others. The need for power is a longing to exert control over one's surroundings and wield influence over others.
According to McClelland, these motivators are learned (which is why this theory is sometimes called the Learned Needs Theory). McClelland says that, regardless of our gender, culture, or age, we all have three motivating drivers, and one of these will be our dominant motivating driver.
McClelland’s research led him to formulate psychological characteristics of people with strong need for achievement. According to McClelland and David Winter (Motivating Economic Achievement), the following features accompany high level of achievement motivation: [4] [6] Moderate risk propensity; Undertaking innovative and engaging tasks;
Atkinson & McClelland's Need for Achievement Theory is the most relevant and applicable need-based theory in the I–O psychologist's arsenal. Unlike other need-based theories, which try to interpret every need, Need for Achievement allows the I–O psychologist to concentrate research into a tighter focus.