Maslow’s hierarchy of needs in relation to employee motivation in contemporary Chinese business
THE DILEMMA OF MOTIVATION Motivation has been recognized as a dilemma that managers must face because what motivates one individual may not motivate another. Another complication of motivation theories is that the theories were developed in the West, primarily the U.S. and Great Britain. The theories may be based upon Western cultural situations that do not necessarily apply to the rest of the world (Triandis, 1995; Hofstede, 1999; Adler,
2008; Robbins & Judge, 2008; McKenna, Richardson, Singh, & Xu, 2010). Motivation is defined as the force or forces that arouse enthusiasm and persistence to pursue a certain course of action (Daft & Marcic, 2008). Motivation, derived from the
Latin word meaning “to move” represents those psychological goal directed processes
(Kreitner & Kinicki, 2007). Needs, values, attitudes, interest, and abilities differ in each individual (Dessler, 2008; Hellriegel & Slocum, 1996). Attitude, an important concept in motivation, is defined as a response to objects, people, or events in either a positive or negative way (Dessler, 2008, Robbins & Judge, 2008). As Child’s (1981) organizational research across various cultures revealed, organizations globally are growing more similar, while the behavior in the organizations is maintaining its cultural uniqueness. Triandis (as cited in Adler, 1991) stated, “culture’s influence for organizational behavior is that it operates at such a deep level that people are not aware of its influence. It results in unexamined patterns of thought that seem so natural that most theorists of social behavior fail to take them into account. As a result, many aspects of organization theories produced in one culture may be inadequate in other cultures” (p. 147). Even three decades later as McKenna, Richardson, Singh & Xu
(2010) explore, there is still a resistance to Western human resource practices in China currently. MOTIVATION: NEED THEORIES Maslow Theory
2008; Robbins & Judge, 2008; McKenna, Richardson, Singh, & Xu, 2010). Motivation is defined as the force or forces that arouse enthusiasm and persistence to pursue a certain course of action (Daft & Marcic, 2008). Motivation, derived from the
Latin word meaning “to move” represents those psychological goal directed processes
(Kreitner & Kinicki, 2007). Needs, values, attitudes, interest, and abilities differ in each individual (Dessler, 2008; Hellriegel & Slocum, 1996). Attitude, an important concept in motivation, is defined as a response to objects, people, or events in either a positive or negative way (Dessler, 2008, Robbins & Judge, 2008). As Child’s (1981) organizational research across various cultures revealed, organizations globally are growing more similar, while the behavior in the organizations is maintaining its cultural uniqueness. Triandis (as cited in Adler, 1991) stated, “culture’s influence for organizational behavior is that it operates at such a deep level that people are not aware of its influence. It results in unexamined patterns of thought that seem so natural that most theorists of social behavior fail to take them into account. As a result, many aspects of organization theories produced in one culture may be inadequate in other cultures” (p. 147). Even three decades later as McKenna, Richardson, Singh & Xu
(2010) explore, there is still a resistance to Western human resource practices in China currently. MOTIVATION: NEED THEORIES Maslow Theory