Bob Heaney Behavioural Theories When it comes to health and fitness, the British (in particular we in the west coast of Scotland) are not renowned for our enthusiasm on the matter. The Scottish Executive is now realising however that this is an issue which needs addressed, and quickly. The strain upon the National Health Service and the deteriorating health of the nation is a worry, and if we are to install suitable values in the population then we must learn how to motivate them. Leading behavioural psychologists have devised a number of motivational and behavioural theories, and this helps us begin to understand the way people behave, and consequently why they behave the way that they do. Abraham Maslow (1908-1970) was one of these psychologists, who produced a piece of work which he named his “hierarchy of needs”. Maslow suggested that there are five sets of goals, which may be called basic needs. Mans primal need is for survival, and the simple physiological needs are thirst, hunger, shelter, sleep and sex. Not necessarily in any particular order however, as the need for a drink may at times overtake the need for food- but if you found yourself with someone’s hands around your throat, then needing a thirst quencher would be quickly forsaken for the need to breathe! Secondary to survival is the need for security. This reflects our desire to be free from danger, however in the 21st century this more resembles the need for job security and financial independence rather than the fear of sabre-toothed tigers and woolly mammoths. This is followed by mans desire to belong or to be loved. Humans are social animals and man has been known to go to extraordinary lengths in order to be accepted as part of a group or society. When these have been satisfied, we come to the desire for self-esteem and self-respect, which are affected by a person's standing reputation,
and his or her need for recognition and appreciation. In the past it may have been the head arrow-maker or swordsmith, whereas now it may be the local football team manager, or anything that may give him/her a title, power or a feeling of prestige. Finally we come to self-actualisation. This is when one has satisfied all the lower needs, and discovered how to maximise our talents and abilities. This may come in the form of job fulfilment, however if this is not the case then we have to consider if sport can fill that gap. Maslow’s theory is normally ...
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and his or her need for recognition and appreciation. In the past it may have been the head arrow-maker or swordsmith, whereas now it may be the local football team manager, or anything that may give him/her a title, power or a feeling of prestige. Finally we come to self-actualisation. This is when one has satisfied all the lower needs, and discovered how to maximise our talents and abilities. This may come in the form of job fulfilment, however if this is not the case then we have to consider if sport can fill that gap. Maslow’s theory is normally expressed in the form of a pyramid style diagram with survival at the bottom; working up to self-actualisation at the top. Maslow himself never initiated this and to my eyes it gives the false impression that in order to move up to the next, the lower needs have to be fulfilled. This would seem to be the norm, however creative people may be more driven by self-actualisation needs rather that the lower levels (Institute of Management Foundation). At around about the same time as Maslow presented his work, another behavioural analyst, D.C. McClelland, was developing his own theory called the “Achieving Society”. McClelland considered peoples needs to be divided into three classes:- the need for power, affiliation, and achievement. When it comes to power, we need to be very careful how it is dealt with. Abuse of power is prevalent in society, however some degree of this need is required to be a successful manager, for example. As long as there is a balance between this and the other two needs then it can be as much a positive influence as a negative one in the other context. The overwhelming need for affiliation in the workplace can be derogatory to actually getting the task done as this can lead to people thinking too much about being a team player, and not concentrating on the task. In a sporting context, you could consider the striker who should shoot when the chance is there, instead of passing the ball to the midfielder in as opportunistic a position. McClelland considers the need for achievement to be a distinct human motive that can be distinguished from other needs. In McClelland’s eyes, achievement-motivated people are not gamblers. They prefer to work on a problem rather than leave the outcome to chance. They prefer to look at a finished article and take satisfaction in knowing they did that, more than the praise or financial reward that they may obtain from it. They look for constructive criticism in their work, as opposed to attitudinal feedback; “How well am I doing”, not “ how well do you like me”. However if this need becomes too great then the team member ceases to be a team member and becomes an individual. Everybody has each of these qualities to a certain degree, however each person is a different mix. Megalomaniac-cum-ethnic cleanser, Adolf Hitler was possibly drawn towards the power side of things whereas Richard Branson is definitely driven by his need for achievement (although not as extreme as Hitler). McClelland's concept of achievement motivation is also related to Frederick Herzbergs’ 2-factor theory. Frederick Herzberg, considered two theories of motivation which he called Hygiene and (strangely enough), Motivation. The first part of the motivation theory involves the hygiene theory and includes the job environment. The hygiene factors include the company, its policies and its administration, the kind of supervision that people receive while on the job, working conditions, interpersonal relations, salary, status, and security. These factors are always considered to be satisfiers, however without the correct style of management they all can become ‘dissatisfiers’. The second part of Herzbergs' motivation theory involves what people actually do on the job. The motivators are generally considered to be achievement, recognition, growth or advancement and interest in the job. If someone considered themselves to be a valuable asset to the company and feel that they are contributing positively to the growth and/or continued success of the company, then job satisfaction would usually be the predicted outcome. Herzberg fells that, from a management point of view, both these approaches (hygiene and motivation) must be done simultaneously. Treat people as best you can so they have as little dissatisfaction as possible. Use people so they feel a sense of achievement, give them recognition for achievement, interest, and responsibility and they can grow and develop as a cog in what will quickly become a well-oiled machine. People and things change however, so what might have been considered to be a basic satisfier say, 50 years ago, would have been food shelter and good health. Now most people would consider things like a television, car and mobile phone to be basic satisfying factors. This is closely linked to Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, as again in the context of a working environment, a job may or may not provide adequate security. Again, most individuals seek a secure job, but there are others including some men on oilrigs, who seek high pay for a limited period but with limited security. A job may also provide an individual with an identity. As a member of a company or organization, he/she carries out a specific function. It also gives the worker the feeling of being a team player, freedom from boredom, and an interest during his working life. It may also provide self-fulfilment for individual where consideration has been given to ensure that the job is creative gives job satisfaction. Sometimes it provides the individual with status. There is a status in all jobs providing the job content is investigated to make the work more interesting. When this is not the case, as stated earlier, we should be looking to promote sport, health and fitness as a way of filling the gaps left by a job that may be considered to be less than rewarding. If I were a street sweeper, I would not look back at 200 yards of clean pavement and think, “I did that”. Douglas McGregor examined theories on behaviour of individuals at work, and he has formulated an idea that he calls Theory X and Theory Y. McGregor considers Theory X people to be of the opinion that the average human being has an inherent dislike of work and will avoid it if he can. Because of this dislike for work, most people must be controlled and threatened before they will work hard enough. The average human prefers to be directed, dislikes responsibility and values job security before anything else. Theory Y people are considered to be of the opinion that control and punishment are not the only ways to make people work, as man will direct himself if he/she is committed to the aims of the organization. If a job is satisfying, then the result will be commitment to the company. All of these theories have been described in a working context, however the same values can be applied in considering peoples commitment to health and fitness. People rarely achieve self-actualisation (Maslow) from their jobs, and may look for it in the form of a sport or physical activity. If they are not recognised for the work they do in their job, then they may look to be recognised as a good badminton player, weightlifter, football coach or another sport related activity where they will get the esteem and feeling of satisfaction they desire (Herzberg). Similarly they may get a sense of achievement from that first trophy they pick up, or the first 2lb they lose, when in their workplace things are monotonous and no sense of achievement is gained (McClelland). Humans are complicated animals. Our psyche is a difficult concept to understand, however so easy to manipulate with a few supportive words or a bit of praise. Bob Dylan once said “if someone gets up in the morning, goes to bed at night, and does what they want in between- that’s success”. It’s not as simple as that.