Contribution to Book
Evolutionary Neuroscience and Human Motivation in Organizations
Organizational Neuroscience
(2015)
Abstract
This chapter introduces evolutionary neuroscience and its organizational applications, especially its usefulness for motivation analysis in macrolevel disciplines such as strategic management. Macrolevel organizational disciplines have mostly lacked a theory of motivation beyond self-interest assumptions, which fail to explain many important macrolevel organizational phenomena. Evolutionary neuroscience provides an empirically grounded, parsimonious perspective on the human brain and brain evolution which helps clarify the profound complexities of motivation. Evolutionary neuroscience’s theory of the physiological causes of self- and other-interested motivation can support better macrolevel motivation analysis and unify disparate, potentially conflicting motivation theories. Examples are offered of how neuroscience-based motivation theory can support more comprehensive strategic management analysis of competences and competitive advantage.
Keywords
- Motivation,
- neuroscience,
- strategic management
Disciplines
Publication Date
2015
Publisher
Emerald Group Publishing Limited
ISBN
978-1-78560-431-7
DOI
10.1108/S1479-357120150000007005
Citation Information
Robert C. Wood, Daniel S. Levine, Gerald A. Cory and Daniel R. Wilson. "Evolutionary Neuroscience and Human Motivation in Organizations" Organizational Neuroscience Vol. 7 (2015) p. 143 - 167 Available at: http://works.bepress.com/robert_wood1/31/