ERG theory

Job satisfaction is critical for an employee in any organization. Some people are not aware how important job satisfaction is when performing the job.  ERG Theory of Motivation was introduced by Clayton Alderfer (Alderfer, 1969).

Value-added services could be classified into the three need categories of ERG (Alderfer, 1969).

1- The need for existence, 

2- The need for relatedness,

3- The need for growth

Maslow's basic needs were developed by Alderfer  into existence needs, relatedness needs, and growth needs (Alderfer, 1969). Alderfer proposed the ERG theory based on results of empirical studies to explain the relationship between satisfaction of needs and human desires. His theory was backed by further empirical study (Schneider and Alderfer, 1973). The three needs of Alderfer, existence needs, relatedness needs, and growth needs are explained further.

From the Literature review, all these needs will influence the level of job satisfaction. 

1- Existence needs (Cheng-Liang Yang, 2011).

There are many types of safety, physical, and material needs that people have when they live. Safety mostly refers to protecting people from things like fear, anxiety, threat, danger, tension, and so on. Physiological needs are about how an individual wants to be happy at the level of vitality, like having fun, exercising, and getting enough sleep. Material needs are things that an individual needs to live, like food and clothes.

2- Relatedness needs (Cheng-Liang Yang, 2011).

People who want to be related need to feel safe, be part of a group, and be respected. Having a sense of security means that employees have faith in each other. Having a sense of belonging means that employees won't have to go through things like isolation, loneliness, and distance. As a general rule, employees want to be accepted and become part of a group. Employees who want to be part of a group need to be loved by others or get care from others. Sense of respect is simply a feeling of being respected by others, like being popular, having a high social status, being important, or being complimented. Such a need gives people value to their lives.

3- Growth needs (Cheng-Liang Yang, 2011).

Self-esteem and self-actualization are two of the things that employees need to grow. When someone doesn't believe in themselves, they can't pursue what they want or learn more. They can't control what they do or build confidence. Employees  can't be independent or feel competent. Self-actualization refers to things that people do for themselves, like reach their goals and improve their personalities. The skills to realize one's own potential and help others grow are also part of this list.

This literature review reveals that ERG has been used as a construct to understand what internal perspectives move humans to certain behaviors. As such, the constructs of existence, relatedness, and growth have been developed through qualitative and quantitative empirical studies to understand how employees might improve job performance. The study has been used to look at job satisfaction, self-esteem, co-worker relationships, management influence, and leader styles (Wilcove, 1978).  suggested

adding categories to accommodate the concerns of the military. The theory has even been used to support the cases of those who wish to bring about change in their fields, economic conditions, and even countries (Wilcove, 1978).

Managers must recognize that an employee has multiple needs that must be met simultaneously. According to the ERG hypothesis, if a manager focuses entirely on one need at a time, the employee will not be motivated effectively (Wiley, 1997). ERG Theory's frustration-regression component also has an impact on job motivation (Wiley, 1997).

For example, if an employee in an organization is not given opportunities for growth and promotion, he may revert to a relatedness need such as socializing needs, and if the environment or circumstances do not allow, he may resort to the need for money to meet those socializing requirements. The sooner the management realizes and recognizes this, the more immediate efforts they will take to provide those unmet demands until the employee is able to pursue growth again. In this context, ERG theory is more relevant as compared to Maslow's theory. 

 

References 

Alderfer, C., 1969. An empirical test of a new theory of human needs. Organizational Behavior and Human Performance, 4(2), pp.142-175.

 

 Cheng-Liang Yang, 2011. An empirical study of the existence, relatedness, and growth (ERG) theory in consumer’s selection of mobile value-added services. African Journal of Business Management, 5(19).

 

 Schneider, B. and Alderfer, C., 1973. Three Studies of Measures of Need Satisfaction in Organizations. Administrative Science Quarterly, 18(4), p.489.

 

 Wilcove, G., 1978. The ERG model: Expansion and application to Navy personnel. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 13(3), pp.305-316.

 

Wiley, C., 1997. What motivates employees according to over 40 years of motivation surveys. International Journal of Manpower, 18(3), pp.263-280.