Motivation is one of the most basic elements of human behavior. Motivation at work is usually seen as an individual phenomenon because all people have unique needs, desires, attitudes, and goals. Understanding motivation is critical to HRD. The success of many HRD programs and processes depends in part on whether the individual is motivated to participate, learn, and use what is learned to improve performance.

Several motivational theories are rooted in the concept of needs. Needs are deficiency states or imbalances, either physiological or psychological, that energize and direct behavior. Two widely cited need-based theories of motivation, Maslow’s need hierarchy theory and Alderfer’s existence, relatedness, and growth (ERG) theory, suggest that needs are arranged in a hierarchy. Once currently activated needs are satisfied, the next most powerful group of needs is felt and will then drive behavior.

A second group of motivation theories, called cognitive process theories, argues that motivation is based on a person’s thoughts and beliefs. They attempt to explain the sequence of thoughts and decisions that energize and control behavior. Expectancy theory, first proposed by Victor Vroom, assumes that motivation is a conscious choice process. According to this theory, people choose to put their effort into activities they believe they can perform that will produce desired outcomes.

A second cognitive theory of motivation is goal-setting theory. The theory proposes that goals can mobilize employee effort, direct attention, increase persistence, and affect the strategies employees use to accomplish tasks. Another cognitive theory of motivation, equity theory, suggests that motivation is strongly influenced by the desire to be treated fairly and by people’s perceptions about whether they have been treated fairly. Each approach offers valuable insight into the design and implementation of HRD programs.