Maslow vs Hertzberg

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Maslow and Hertzberg had different theories when it came to motivation and stimulation. This essay will compare and contrast Maslow’s ‘hierarchy of needs’ and Hertzberg’s ‘two factor’ theory. Abraham Maslow was born in 1908 and lived until 1970. He developed the “hierarchy of needs model” in 1940’s USA. He developed the hierarchy of needs so he could understand what motivates people by developing five levels of need. Maslow’s model stated that people must satisfy each state in turn, starting with survival. This is a basic need for any person. For example, in his hierarchy of needs triangle the very bottom of the pyramid is survival needs, such as food and water. Once these needs are met, people need safety and security, for example, a safe working environment by having law, limits and stability. Maslow theorised that only when the basic needs of emotional well being and physical wellbeing were met, people could concentrate on higher order needs of influence and personal development. Social needs refer to the feeling of belonging or being part of a group. Once that person feels like they belong, they develop a want to gain a degree of importance. Esteem needs can be categorised by external or internal motivators, self respect, accomplishment, self- esteem are all internal motivators. While promotions, recognition, and attention, social statuses are external motivators. At the very top of the pyramid is self-actualization. Once the person has fulfilled their basic needs, they are no longer motivators. However, there are still opportunities to grow. According to Maslow, self- actualized people have motivators such as truth, justice, wisdom and meaning (Tucker, 2013) (Hoffman, 2006). Maslow’s theory did not come without it critics or criticism. His theory is believed to be over simplified and is purely based on human needs. Every person or employee is not the same;
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