 Another
important name in the field of cognitive behavioral science
is David McClelland. In the 1960s and 70s, this Harvard professor
extensively studied achievement motivation and concluded that
successful individuals have a significantly stronger drive
or motivation to succeed than do average or below average
individuals. Here is some background information, presented
for your interest, on Dr. David McClelland.
David McClelland
(1961, 1971)
McClelland
defines a high need for achievement (denoted as n'Ach) as
a self-motivation to high levels of accomplishment. High achievers
are "turned on" by the accomplishment of a task,
the attainment of a skill, the meeting of a challenge, or
the invention of something new. Such goals matter more to
them than secondary, external results such as money, power,
or prestige. For this reason, it is the challenge and achievement
of doing the work that appeals to them, not the actual outcome.
They want to affect the outcome. They are more attracted to
a problem to be solved or something to be improved than they
are to a gamble with high stakes.
McClelland's (1961, 1965) research showed that high achievers
set challenging but realistic goals for themselves. They assume
personal responsibility for solving problems, calculate risks,
set moderate objectives, and want to receive frequent feedback
on results. They are decisive. Although they are self-directed
and self-motivated, they like to receive feedback on how well
they are doing, which serves as encouragement to them to think
of ways to do their jobs even better. Because they are goal
oriented, they prioritize their tasks in order to best meet
their objectives; they do not allow minor tasks to interfere
with the achievement of their goals. Business people who are
in jobs that entail a great deal of responsibility are likely
to be high achievers.
In contrast, people with low needs for achievement tend to
vacillate; they seek direction, motivation, and reinforcement
from others. They are task oriented, and they may well attempt
to do too many things at one time.
People who are high in n'Ach also like to solve new problems;
they tend not to be traditionalists. It is not surprising
that entrepreneurs tend to have high achievement motivation
and to be concerned with accomplishment.
In
their book, The Achievement Motive, McClelland, Atkinson,
Clark, and Lowell (1976) present the results of a study
undertaken to discover why people differ in their levels of
motivation to achieve. They generalize the findings to postulate
that achievement motivation is a necessary and universal human
factor. As they see it, all persons "...are faced with
learning problems from birth - with learning how to walk and
talk, for instance - and the element of learning to solve
these problems well or poorly enters into the experience of
all people to a greater or lesser degree." (p332)
Although achievement motivation generally
seems to be inherent or developed at an early age, McClelland
(1965), in his research discovered that people can learn to
become more achievement oriented. Once the motivation is acquired
or strengthened, the person can maintain it indefinitely.
Characteristics of High Achievers
- Self-Motivated,
Self-Directed
-
Goal Oriented
-
Set Challenging but Realistic Goals
- Goal
is accomplishment or challenge itself
-
Assume personal responsibility for problem solving
-
Calculate risks
-
Set moderate objectives
-
Sequence tasks in relation to goals
-
Prioritize tasks to attain goals
-
Want frequent feedback on results
-
Evaluate by monitoring results and establishing check points
-
Non-traditional
-
Independent at earlier age
Based
on McClelland’s work, Udai Parrek (1986) identified what he
believed to be the six primary needs or motivators relevant
to understanding the behavior of people in organizations and
developed the MAO-B instrument to measure them. The six motives
are:.
Achievement: Characterized by concern for
excellence, competition with the standards of excellence set
by others or by oneself, the setting of challenging goals
for oneself, awareness of the hurdles in the way of achieving
those goals, and persistence in trying alternative paths to
one's goals.
Affiliation: Characterized by a concern for
establishing and maintaining close personal relationships;
a value on friendship; and a tendency to express one's emotions
Influence:
Characterized by concern with making an impact on others,
a desire to make people do what one thinks is right, and an
urge to change matters and (develop) people.
Control: Characterized by a concern for orderliness,
a desire to be and stay informed, and an urge to monitor and
take corrective action when needed.
Extension: Characterized by concern for others,
interest in superordinate goals, and an urge to be relevant
and useful to larger groups, including society.
Dependence: Characterized by a desire for
the help of others in one's own self-development, checking
with significant others (those who are more knowledgeable
or have higher status, experts, close associates, etc.), submitting
ideas or proposals for approval, and having an urge to maintain
an "approval" relationship.
Each of the six motives can have two dimensions: approach
and avoidance. For example, with the achievement motive, the
two dimensions are hope of success (approach) and fear of
failure (avoidance). The latter is dysfunctional. A person's
behavior thus can be analyzed not only in terms of the six
primary motives but also from the perspective of (positive)
approach or (negative) avoidance, reflected by hope or fear.
Table A, which follows, summarizes the approach and avoidance
dimensions of each of the six motives
Table
A: Approach and Avoidance Dimensions of Typical Motives
| Motives |
Approach
(hope of) |
Avoidance
(fear of) |
| Achievement |
Success |
Failure |
| Affiliation |
Inclusion |
Exclusion |
| Extension |
Relevance |
Impotence |
| Control |
Order |
Chaos |
| Dependency |
Growth |
Loneliness |
For further reference please see:
McClelland,
D.C. (1975). Power: The Inner Experience. New York: Irvington.
McClelland, D.C., Atkinson, J.W., & Lowell, E.L. (1953).
The Achievement Motive. New York: Irvington.
McGregor, D. (1966), Leadership and Motivation. Cambridge,
MA: MIT Press.
Murray, H.A. (1938). Explorations in Personality. New York:
Oxford University Press.
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