Product Description

A touchstone for understanding how we behave on the job

"This is a stimulating and provocative book in bringing together important ideas from different fields, and, thereby, giving us a whole new slant on 'human nature.'" --Edgar H. Schein, Sloan Fellows Professor of Management Emeritus and Senior Lecturer, MIT

In this astonishing, provocative, and solidly researched book, two Harvard Business School professors synthesize 200 years of thought along with the latest research drawn from the biological and social sciences to propose a new theory, a unified synthesis of human nature. Paul Lawrence and Nitin Nohria have studied the way people behave in that most fascinating arena of human behavior-the workplace-and from their work they produce a book that examines the four separate and distinct emotive drives that guide human behavior and influence the choices people make: the drives to acquire, bond, learn, and defend. They ultimately show that, just as advances in information technology have spurred the New Economy in the last quarter of the twentieth century, current advances in biology will be the key to understanding humans and organizations in the new millennium.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #703025 in Books
• Published on: 2001-10-04
• Original language: English
• Dimensions: 1.44 pounds
• Binding: Hardcover
• 352 pages

From Library Journal

Harvard Business School professors Lawrence and Nohria here present a sociobiological theory of motivation, claiming that humans possess four basic drives to acquire, to bond, to learn, and to defend. What makes their theory novel is the way they apply it to the workplace. The authors use historical case studies to show that successful organizations are those that give their employees opportunities to fulfill all of these drives, while those that fulfill only the drive to acquire are ultimately less stable. Examples of both types of organizations are provided. The authors are well versed in sociobiology, and their four-drive theory makes intuitive sense. There are, however, a number of competing drive theories, from Freud's sexual drive and death urge to Steven Reiss's 16-drive theory. The authors acknowledge that the numbers and exact nature of our drives need further exploration and provide suggestions for research projects that would verify their hypotheses. Though this book is accessible to the lay reader or undergraduate, its narrow subject area recommends it mainly to academic libraries. Mary Ann Hughes, Neill P.L., Pullman, WA

Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

Review
"...an interesting book which explores and integrates findings from several disciplines and which contributes further to the field of evolutionary psychology in a readable manner..." (The Occupational Psychologist, April 2002)

Review
"Darwin with an MBA. In this seminal work, Lawrence and Nohria combine their world-leading knowledge of organizational behavior with a deep understanding of our evolved human nature. Both managers and theorists will learn from this wide-ranging opus sure to change the way we view the bipedal ape in the corner office."
— Terry Burnham, coauthor, Mean Genes

"This book provides a fundamental, controversial, and wonderful explanation of human nature. It provokes you to think more deeply and broadly about what drives people and their institutions."
— Andrew H. Van de Ven, president, Academy of Management, and professor, Carlson School of Management, University of Minnesota

"A stunning, pathbreaking view of the natural biological impulses underlying human behavior and guiding organizational systems. A succinct, pungent case for the coevolution of biology and culture in forming human nature. Tom Peters, move over."
— William C. Frederick, author, Values, Nature, and Culture in the American Corporation