McClelland's Human Motivation Theory

McClelland's Human Motivation Theory is also known as Three Needs Theory, Acquired Needs Theory, Motivational Needs Theory, and Learned Needs Theory.

In the early 1960s, David McClelland built on this work by identifying three motivators that we all have. 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. This dominant motivator is largely dependent on our culture and life experiences.

The three motivators are achievement, affiliation, and power. People will have different characteristics depending on their dominant motivator. These characteristics are as follows:

Dominant Motivator	Characteristics of This Person
Achievement	Has a strong need to set and accomplish challenging goals. Takes calculated risks to accomplish their goals. Likes to receive regular feedback on their progress and achievements. Often likes to work alone.
Affiliation	Wants to belong to the group. Wants to be liked, and will often go along with whatever the rest of the group wants to do. Favors collaboration over competition. Doesn't like high risk or uncertainty.
Power	Wants to control and influence others. Likes to win arguments. Enjoys competition and winning. Enjoys status and recognition.

Those with a strong power motivator are often divided into two groups: personal and institutional. People with a personal power drive want to control others, while people with an institutional power drive like to organize the efforts of a team to further the company's goals. As you can probably imagine, those with an institutional power need are usually more desirable as team members!