Human behavior obeys certain causes that are related to the needs of a person and / or the consequences that result from their actions.

The task of an administrator is to identify the impulses and needs of the employees, that is, to have a minimum of knowledge of human motivation.

TEvery human behavior is consciously or unconsciously motivated.

Broadly, motivation is the impulse that leads a person to perform a certain action or that predisposes them to do it in the near future.

The motive or impulse originates from external stimuli (in the environment) or can be generated internally in the mental processes of the individual.

The impulses or motives arise from the needs (physiological, social, economic, psychological, spiritual) but at the same time it is the product of the cultural environment in which the individual lives, of their experiences, knowledge, expectations.

Motivation is not the same in all people since it is determined by culture, family, values, previous experiences, expectations, etc.

The needs of each individual are not the same. Despite these individual differences regarding motivation, some general premises or principles can be considered that help to understand human behavior at work:

• Human behavior is caused: There are internal factors such as heredity, learning, experiences; as well as external determining factors such as socioeconomic reality that influence human behavior.

• Human behavior is motivated: All human behavior is oriented towards some goal. Human behavior is not accidental or random.

• Human behavior is goal-oriented: All human behavior is motivated by some impulse, desire, reward or need (Chiavenato, 1999, p.69)

Motivational Cycle (based on Chiavenato, 1999, pp. 70-71)

This cycle starts when there is a need. Needs act as a continuous, dynamic force that drives behavior.

Faced with the need, a state of dissatisfaction or imbalance occurs that generates a state of tension.

The individual then looks for a way to get rid of tension or discomfort with concrete actions that can lead to the satisfaction of needs and therefore the tension generated is discharged. By satisfying the needs, the previous state of equilibrium is recovered. Once a need is satisfied, it is not a source of motivation since it is the need that generates tension and the state of imbalance.

(Based on Chiavenato, 1999, pp.71-76 and Davis and Newstrom, 1993, p. 124)

This approach contributes to the understanding of the variable or factor of individual characteristics that affect motivation in an organization.

Needs-based theories of motivation start from the principle that the motives of human behavior reside in the individual himself: his motivation to act and behave is derived from forces that exist within him.

The first needs that must be satisfied are the physiological (primary) needs until reaching the highest or abstract level of human needs, such as the needs for self-esteem and self-realization. Each of the hierarchy needs will be briefly explained:

• Physiological Needs: They constitute the lowest level of human needs. They are the innate needs: hunger, thirst, sleep, rest, shelter. They demand cyclical and continuous satisfaction to ensure survival. There is a continuous and constant search for the satisfaction of these elementary needs that cannot be postponed for long.

• Security needs: They constitute the second level of the hierarchy. They lead the person to protect themselves from any real or imaginary, physical or psychological danger. It manifests itself as a search for protection, a flight from danger, a need for order. They arise when physiological needs are relatively satisfied.

• Social needs: These are the needs for association, participation, acceptance, acceptance by colleagues, friendship, affection and love. They arise in behavior when elementary needs (physiological and safety) are relatively satisfied.

• Self-esteem needs: They relate to self-evaluation and self-esteem, self-confidence, self-confidence, the need for approval and social recognition, status, prestige, reputation and consideration. Meeting these needs leads to feelings of self-confidence, worth, strength, prestige, power, ability, and usefulness.

• Self-actualization needs: They are at the top of the hierarchy, they lead people to develop their own potential and fulfill themselves as human creatures throughout life, it is the impulse to improve themselves more and more. They are related to autonomy, independence, self-control, competence, and full realization of the potential of each person, of individual talents.

Meeting these needs leads to feelings of self-confidence, worth, strength, prestige, power, ability, and usefulness.
Their frustration can lead to feelings of inferiority, weakness, dependency, and helplessness, which in turn can lead to discouragement or compensatory activities.

In summary, Maslow's contributions to the understanding of human motivation can be summarized in the following statements:

• A satisfied need does not motivate any behavior; only unmet needs. Employees are more enthusiastic about what they seek than what they already own.

• At first the behavior revolves around the satisfaction of physiological needs.

• From a certain age, the individual begins a long learning of new patterns of needs. Physiological and safety needs are the primary needs of the individual, and are related to their personal preservation.

• Self-esteem needs are complementary to social needs, while self-fulfillment needs complement self-esteem. The highest levels of needs only arise when the individual relatively satisfies the lowest levels of needs.

• The higher needs do not arise as the lower ones are being satisfied, since they predominate, according to the hierarchy.

• Primary needs require a rapid motivational cycle, while secondary needs require a much longer one.

(Based on Davis and Newstrom, 1993, pp. 129-135 and Stoner and Wankel, 1989, pp. 490493)

The main difficulty of theories that attempt to explain motivation by highlighting individual needs (such as Maslow's) is that they are not easy for managers or administrators to measure or observe.

The modification of the organizational behavior or model C.O. It is the application in organizations of the principle of behavior modification that was developed from the works of Skinner.

Some of the general concepts that help us understand and control human behavior according to this theory are:

• Law of Effect: The C.O. it is based on the idea that behavior depends on its consequences; therefore, it is possible for managers to control or affect employee behavior by manipulating consequences. Model C.O. It is largely based on the cause-effect law that states that a person tends to repeat behavior that is accompanied by favorable consequences.

The manager must be able to identify some consequences that the employee perceives as powerful and then be able to manage them in a way that the worker sees the connection between the behavior and the desired consequence.

• Alternative Consequences: The behavior is fostered primarily through positive reinforcement. Reinforcing or reinforcer is any act, thing, word, object; that makes a behavior tend to repeat itself. Positive reinforcement is based especially on rewards or favorable consequences for the person (money, praise, recognition).

• Negative Reinforcement: These are unfavorable consequences, especially referring to the elimination of some reward.

• Punishment: It is a consequence of performing unwanted behavior in order to eliminate said behavior. But it must be taken into account that punishment has limitations when trying to modify human behavior since it discourages a behavior but does not directly encourage other appropriate behavior, it can also generate insecurity, confusion and resentment in the punished person.

• Extinction: It is a way to eliminate unwanted behaviors by eliminating any consequence that encourages the behavior (both positive and negative consequences can encourage a certain behavior).

• Learning by Shaping: It comes from shaping, doing little by little. When you want to establish a complex behavior for the individual, each small achievement that gets closer and closer to the desired final behavior is positively reinforced.

• Reinforcement Programs: It is an organized and complete way that tries to change or modify a behavior in another person (implies implementing, eliminating or accentuating some behavior). It begins with the creation of a “baseline” that is to establish the frequency with which it occurs. the behavior to modify.

General rules for the effective use of behavior modification by administrators:

• What is reinforcing or rewarding for one person is not for another. Do not reward all people equally, these must be managed based on performance.

• In some situations, only material rewards can be counterproductive.

• Watch carefully and identify consequences or reinforcers that promote undesirable behavior. Specify the behavior that you want to modify. Establish an initial line of conduct (frequency), implement a program aimed at modifying behavior, and evaluate results.

• Staff must be clear about what to do to achieve the reward.

• Not responding or paying attention is also helpful in eliminating unimportant and annoying behaviors.

• Staff should know what they are doing wrong and should be told how to do it right.

• Do not punish, in any way, in front of others.

• Be fair: They must give the rewards they deserve; do not give excessive or insufficient rewards as this loses the value of the reward.

Based on Dicaprio, 1994, pp. 31-81)

Freud is considered by many to be one of the greatest precursors of modern psychology.

His psychoanalytic model makes up a complete body of theories, practices, and therapies. But in reality its application is more oriented to the clinical treatment of people, that is, to cases that require a more "in-depth" psychological care.