Contribution of Abraham Maslow to Organizational Behavior

The applied behavioral science of employee interactions and

organizational procedures in a workplace or corporate setting is known as
Organizational Behavior (OB). OB gives managers an understanding of
how their workplace culture may benefit or disadvantage their employees
and gives people a clear understanding of what to expect from it.
Organizational behavior is composed of the following four fundamental
components: people, structure, technology, and external environment.
Before we dive in to the deep information of Organizational behavior, let
us know the contribution of psychologists on how OB put together,
especially to Abraham Maslow. A general theory of human motivation was
created and perfected over many years by psychologist Abraham Maslow.
His idea of motivation is well-known and extensively researched.
According to Maslow, each person has a complicated set of requirements at
any one time, and the presence of the most pressing need affects that
person’s behavior. He claimed that humans have five different types of
wants, the strongest of which is physiological, and that people behave in
particular ways to meet this need. Only one need is dominant at any given
time because needs are hierarchical in nature. Once the strongest is met, the
second need rises to the top, and human behavior is regulated as a result of
meeting a series of need requirements. Maslow further stated that only one
need-satisfying process is active at any given moment. Once they are there
they remain there. Maslow asserts that there are five categories of
requirements that humans have, starting with the most fundamental and
compelling demands and structured in a hierarchy. He was a social
psychologist who preferred to focus on collective human psychological
needs as opposed to specific psychological issues. His Hierarchy of Needs
Theory is his most famous contribution. Portrayed as a pyramid the
approach prioritizes the various levels of psychological and physical
demands that people have. Maslow explains in his hierarchy of needs, that
human motivation can be defined as satisfaction of multiple demand. These
might include a variety of human aspirations, from fundamental, physical
demands for survival to intricate, emotional needs related to a person’s
psychological well. The demand comprises: physiological needs (food and
clothing), safety needs (job security), social needs (friendship), esteem
needs, and self-actualization needs. The first bottom of the pyramid is the
physiological needs, it includes food, water, oxygen, and shelter that must
met in order for the individual to survive. The minimal wage required for
survival and favorable working conditions are organizational
characteristics that may satisfy these needs. The body can not operate if
these conditions are not met. Most people would undoubtedly view food as
their most pressing needs if they were lacking in three things: food, love,
and safety. The second bottom of the pyramid after physiological needs is
the safety needs, in this section it includes the desire for stability, security,
anxiety-free living, and clean organized surroundings. Safe working
conditions, just and reasonable rules and regulations, job security, a
comfortable work environment, pension and insurance schemes, pay above
the minimum necessary for survival, and the ability to organize are
examples of organizational settings that may satisfy these demands. Once
individuals have basic nutrition, shelter, and safety, they seek to fulfill
higher-level needs. When people have taken care of their physical needs,
they can address the third level of need, which is social, which includes the
need for love and belonging. This level of deficiencies might affect a
person’s capacity to establish and maintain emotionally significant
connections due to neglect, shunning, ostracism, and other oppression. No
matter if it comes from vast social group or a small network of family and
friends, humans need to experience a sense of acceptance and belonging.
Professional associations, clubs, religious organizations, social media
platforms, and other entities can serve as additional sources of social
connection. People need to be loved by others, both romantically and
otherwise. Without these connections, individuals may be ore susceptible
to psychological issues including loneliness, social anxiety, and depression.
When these conditions are severe, they can make it difficult for a person to
take care of fundamental physiological demands like eating and sleeping.
The fourth level is esteem, which stands for the typical human desire to be
accepted and recognized by others, whether through accomplishment or
status recognition, for instance. The ability to do tasks successfully, which
results in feelings of accomplishment and responsibility, is one
organizational component that may meet these demands. Self-esteem,
usually referred to as respect for and acceptance of oneself, is a component
of this level. The number of imbalances might cause an inferiority complex
or low self-esteem. People suffering low self-esteem may find that external
validation by others-through fame, glory, awards, and etc. It only partially
or momentarily satisfies their needs at this level. Self-actualization is the
goal at the top of the pyramid. People believe they have achieved their full
potential and are performing to the best of their abilities at this point. Self-
actualization is rarely a sensation or state that lasts forever. Instead, it
speaks to the constant desire that people have to learn more about
themselves and their place in the world. This involve the desire to express
one’s skills, talents, and feelings in a way that is most personally rewarding
as well as to fully realize one’s genuine potential as an individual.
According to Maslow, self-actualizing individuals have distinct realities,
views, embrace others and themselves, and are free-spirited, inventive, and
appreciative of their surroundings. Having engaging work that has potential
for creativity and growth, as well as relaxation of structure to allow for
self-development and personal advancement, are organizational conditions
that may lead to self-actualization. After achieving a significant objective
or successfully navigating a particular hurdle, self-actualization may take
place, and it may be characterized by a fresh sense of self-assurance or
contentment.

In what way do these requirements, which people may have, serve as

the foundation of a philosophy of motivation? In other words, what
precisely is the motivating principle underlying Maslow’s hierarchy of
needs? Simply said, the category of unmet needs with the lowest level of
satisfaction has the strongest driving power. Therefore, there is no best
motivator; motivation relies on a person’s place in the hierarchy of needs.
Maslow argues that people are motivated to meet their physiological needs
before they show an interest in meeting their safety needs to be met before
social needs may become motivating, and so on. In this sense, needs are
motivating because they have significant impact on a person’s thoughts and
behavior when they go unmet. However, when a certain level of the
hierarchy’s need is met, the person shifts their focus to the level above that.
There is a definite indication in this, that a need that has been met, is no
longer effective. When one’s physiological demands are met and one feels
safe and secure, one stops looking for more of the things that provided for
these needs and instead turns to other sources of satisfaction. Maslow
claims that the only situation where this rule is broken is when a person has
self-actualization needs. He believed that by being satisfied, these growth
demands grow stronger.