Question

1. The employees of the organization involved people who have different lifestyles and are at different stages in their life. Jessie is a single mother who works for minimum wage and lives in the “divided flat” for accommodation. Jessie wants to improve her living condition to relieve the problem of inadequate basic necessity. Ronnie is a single woman who earns a decent salary and has only a few friends outside her office. Ronnie often feels lonely after work.

   1. (a) Identify and explain the FIVE types of needs suggested by Maslow’s hierarchy of needs.

   2. (b) Describe the basic assumptions of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs.

   3. (c) Taking Maslow's assumptions into account, determine what motivates each of these

      individuals. Justify your answer with an explanation.

   4. (d) You are the Human Resources Manager of this company. What kind of motivators

      will you offer to each of the employees?

Answer 1

Q. (a) Identify and explain the FIVE types of needs suggested by Maslow’s hierarchy of needs.

Ans.- Abraham Maslow put forwarded a theory of motivation in 1943 under which he asserted that people are motivated by 5 basic categories of needs. These 5 basic categories include physiological, safety, love, esteem, and self-actualization. The important thing which needs to be highlighted is that people after satisfying a set of need aspire to satisfy other higher set of needs. In other words, and individual first aspire to satisfy his physiological needs (i.e., air, water, food, clothing, reproduction) then safety needs (i.e., personal security, health, employment, property) then love and belonging needs (i.e., friendship, intimacy, family, sense of connection) then esteem needs (i.e., respect, status, recognition, freedom) and then finally self-actualization needs (i.e., desire to become the most that one can be).

Q. (b) Describe the basic assumptions of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs.

Ans- The basic underlying assumptions of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs can be listed as follows-

· The behaviour of the people is dependent upon their needs.

· The people do not get motivated by their already satisfied needs.

· After satisfying lower needs, people start aspiring to fulfil higher needs.

These are the basic assumption of the Maslow’s hierarchy of needs theory.

(c) Taking Maslow's assumptions into account, determine what motivates each of these individuals. Justify your answer with an explanation.

Ans- It is very clear from the given case study of Jessie and Ronnie that they both are at a different stage of the hierarchy of needs.

As Jessie barely fulfills her basic necessities/needs, she is at the first stage of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs i.e., at the physiological needs. As per the Maslow’s theory Jessie will be aspiring to fulfil the stage of needs that is safety needs. Hence, she will be motivated by the good opportunity of employment, to have a personal property etc.

On the other hand, Ronnie is at the second stage of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. She is able to fulfil it very well. Hence, she would be trying to fulfil the third stage of needs i.e., love and belonging needs. Hence, Ronnie will be motivated by having deep friendship with others, deep conversation with others and sense of belongingness.

(d) You are the Human Resources Manager of this company. What kind of motivators will you offer to each of the employees?

Ans.- As a Human Resources Manager of this company, I will extend a fulltime employment opportunity to Jessie with good salary and will also extend her a personal loan on the behalf of company so that she can either purchase her own house or move to a better locality.

As far as the matter of Ronnie is concerned, I will ask her to join various clubs of my company so that she can made some good friends and may have deep conversation with them and by doing so she will have a sense of belongingness. It will help to motivate her.