Evaluation of Maslow's
Hierarchy of Needs Theory
Maslow's work has generated a
great deal of research attempting to evaluate the utility of the theory in
organizational settings. For example. Porter (1961) found that managers at
higher levels of an organization were generally more able than lower-level
managers to satisfy their growth needs. These findings follow from the idea
that upper-level managers generally have more challenging and autonomous jobs
than their lower-level counterparts. As a result, managers in the upper echelons of
an organization are in a much better position to pursue their growth needs.
However, although studies
have been able to differentiate between jobs that allow for growth need
satisfaction and those that hinder it, research has not been able to establish
the validity of the need hierarchy itself. In fact, in an extensive review of
the research findings associated with Maslow's hierarchy, Wahba and Bridwell
(1976) concluded that Maslow's model presents the student of work motivation
with a paradox: The theory is widely accepted, but there is little research
evidence to support it.
The review evaluated three
aspects of Maslow's model. First, no clear evidence was found indicating that
human needs can be classified into five distinct categories, or that these
categories are structured in a hierarchical way. However, there did seem to be
some evidence to support a general classification scheme distinguishing
deficiency from growth needs. Second, the review examined the proposition that
an unsatisfied need leads an individual to focus exclusively on that need.
Some studies supported this proposition while other studies did not. Finally,
the review explored the idea that satisfaction of needs at one level activates
needs at the next higher level. This proposition was not supported by the
research evidence.
Although research findings
have failed to support the needs hierarchy model and have questioned its
conceptual validity, Maslow's theory continues to be useful in generating ideas
about the fundamental nature of human motives. For managers, in particular, the
needs hierarchy idea has a commonsense appeal; it is relatively easy to comprehend
and has clear implications for management. For example, assuming that many
employees have met their deficiency needs, managers can focus on creating a
work situation that is aimed at satisfying higher-level growth needs.
In an attempt to overcome
some of the problems with Maslow's approach, Alderfer presented his
existence-relatedness-growth (ERG) model of motivation.