Motivational Theories

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This article is orphaned as few or no other articles link to it. Please help introduce links in articles on related topics. (November 2006)

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding reliable references. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (April 2007)

The introduction to this article provides insufficient context for those unfamiliar with the subject. Please help improve the article with a good introductory style.

During the past century, a variety of theories have emerged which come to determine the ways in which people develop their levels of motivation. Motivational Theories identify the social factors that push people to engage in deviance. Two variants of motivational theories are strain theories and learning theories. Whilst varying in structure, theories of motivation are almost exclusively grounded in the field of psychology and usually rely on the view that people ultimately seek to maximize 'pleasure' and minimise 'pain' in their lives.

Motivational theories provide for a useful reference in areas of social psychology as well as corporate/organisational management. Over the last 50 years, the most influential theorists within this area have been Abraham Maslow, Clayton Alderfer , David McClelland and Frederick Herzberg.