Alderfer’s ERG Theory of Motivation: A Simple Summary
Alderfer’s ERG theory of motivation builds on Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs and states that
humans have three core types of need: Existence, Relatedness and Growth. These needs
may be of different levels of priority for different individuals, and their relative importance
for an individual may vary over time.
Alderfer’s ERG theory of motivation
Clayton Alderfer developed Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs into a three factor model of
motivation know as the ERG model. In this model the letter E, R, & G each stand for a
different human need: existence, relatedness and growth. The ERG model is a content
theory of motivation.
Relatedness includes personal and family relationships.
Alderfer’s model says that all humans are motivated by these three needs.
The most concrete and motivating of Alderfer’s three needs is
existence, which really relates to physical and psychological survival. The next level is
the need for relatedness, a sense of community and a good relationship with yourself.
The least concrete, but still important, of Alderfer’s needs in the ERG model is growth,
which really relates to self-development, fulfillment and the sense of achieving your
potential.
How the model works
Alderfer’s ERG Theory of Motivation states that individuals can be motivated by multiple
levels of need at the same time, and that the level which is most important to them can
change over time. In other words, an individual’s priorities and motivations may be fluid
and can move between the existence, relatedness and growth levels of need over time.
They can move upwards, and they can move downwards.
Comparing Alderfer and Maslow
In Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, individuals need to have satisfied one level of needs
before moving on to the next one. For example, they need to have satisfied their safety
needs before being motivated by social belonging. Alderfer disagreed. In his model,
individuals do not need to have satisfied their existence needs before being motivated by
their relatedness need.
In fact, Alderfer went further and said that different individuals potentially prioritize the
needs in different orders based on their life views. A standard example of this could be
the starving actor who’s motivated by growth through their art, potentially at the expense
of their existence (i.e. they can’t pay their rent but are pursuing their passion).
Alderfer also noted that how individuals perceive their progression in relation to each of
the levels of need is important. If an individual feels they are making great progress at
relatedness, they may be increasingly motivated by growth even though their relatedness
need has not been fully satisfied. Similarly, if an individual feels frustrated with the
progress they are making in relation to growth, they may abandon it and redouble their
motivation in relation to relatedness.
The ERG model in the world of work
Perhaps our needs are more balanced than Maslow thought.
In Maslow’s model, individuals remain at a fixed level of need until they have satisfied it.
This would mean that individuals at work should work towards satisfying their current
stage of need, and that leaders and managers should focus on helping the members of
their teams achieve one specific level of needs at a time.
Alderfer’s ERG Theory of Motivation, though, upends this thinking. Under Alderfer’s model
individuals can be motivated by different levels at the same time, and have their
motivational priorities change in relation to their sense of progress. Given this, individuals
should not focus on one level of need at a time. Instead, they may wish to balance their
motivations across levels. Similarly, leaders should not focus on helping the members of
their team satisfy one level of need at a time. Instead, they should be aware of the blend
of needs that humans can have and help their team members progress in relation to a
blend of needs, which will change over time.
Learning More
We’ve written several articles on various content and process theories of motivation that
you might find interesting. These include articles on Adam’s equity theory and Herzberg’s
two factor theory of motivation. We’ve also written an introductory post of Adair’s 8 basic
rule of motivation and have a guest post on Reversal Theory. You can listen to our
podcast on reversal theory below:
The World of Work Project View
The ways that Alderfer’s ERG Theory of Motivation has built on Maslow’s model are
helpful, particularly the fact that the order of the needs can differ. One of the core
criticisms of Maslow’s model was that while there might be some agreement on the
existence of core human needs, that their order and priority isn’t empirically agreed at
all. This model addresses that challenge to some extent.
However, despite this, the model itself isn’t as easy to relate to as Maslow’s. Nor does it
provide as directional advice, which is something that people often look for. So while the
model is perhaps a bit more robust than Maslow’s, in our view it’s unlikely to be either all
that popular or all that useful in the world of work.