Psychosocial Motives

Unlike biological motives, psychosocial (social) motives are mostly learned or acquired — complex motives that develop out of an individual's ongoing interaction with their social environment: family, neighbourhood, friends and relatives all contribute to how these motives are shaped.

The need for affiliation is the motivation to seek the company of others and to be close to them, both physically and psychologically. Nobody enjoys being alone all the time; as soon as people notice similarities between themselves or develop a liking for one another, they tend to form a group. The need for affiliation is aroused not only when people feel threatened or helpless, but also when they are happy — people high on this need actively seek out others' company and work at maintaining friendly relationships.

The need for power is a person's motivation to produce intended effects on the behaviour and emotions of another person — the underlying goals being to influence, control, persuade, lead or charm others, and, importantly, to enhance one's own reputation in others' eyes. The psychologist David McClelland described four broad ways people express the power motive: first, vicariously — by drawing a feeling of power from an external source, such as following the exploits of a sports star or attaching oneself to a popular figure; second, intrapersonally — by building up one's own body or mastering one's own urges and impulses; third, individually — by having a direct impact on another person, for instance by arguing with or competing against them; and fourth, through an organisation — by using membership in a group (such as a political party) as a channel to influence others. Any one person tends to rely more heavily on one of these expressions of the power motive, though which one dominates can shift with age and life experience.

The need for achievement (often called n-Ach) refers to a person's desire to meet standards of excellence. It both energises and directs behaviour, and even shapes how a person perceives a situation. People high in achievement motivation tend to prefer tasks that are moderately difficult and challenging — neither too easy nor unrealistically hard — and they have a stronger-than-average desire for feedback on their performance, since knowing how they are doing lets them adjust their effort or approach to meet the challenge. Achievement motivation is usually acquired during childhood, drawn from parents, other role models, and the wider socio-cultural environment a child grows up in. …