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Beyond simply reducing the distinction between overlapping needs, the ERG theory improves upon the following shortcomings of Maslow's Needs Hierarchy:
• Alderfers ERG theory demonstrates that more than one need may motivate at the same time. A lower motivator need not be substantially satisfied before one can move onto higher motivators.
• The ERG theory also accounts for differences in need preferences between cultures better than Maslow's Need Hierarchy; the order of needs can be different for different people. This flexibility accounts for a wider range of observed behaviors. For example, it can explain the "starving artist" who may place growth needs above those of existence.
• The ERG theory acknowledges that if a higher-order need is frustrated, an individual may regress to increase the satisfaction of a lower-order need which appears easier to satisfy. This is known as the frustration-regression principle.
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