Motivations - ODAPHIS index
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The red profile: dominant
The yellow profile: influent
The green profile: stable
The blue profile: Conscientious
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Motivations - ODAPHIS index
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The ODAPHISp4 index focuses on the elements most likely to motivate people's behavior in given circumstances. Put another way, the index identifies what is important to someone and thus motivates them to act: pleasure, security, altruism, etc.
Knowing and understanding your own motivations is an important step towards self-analysis. By the same token, identifying your contacts' motivations can help you to adapt your own expectations and needs, and steer the discussion towards topics which will have a real, concrete impact.
Motivational analysis and the ODAPHISp4 index are directly inspired by the work of Spranger, Maslow and Herzberg (see origins). This powerful tool blends perfectly with the DISCp4 model, enriching and nuancing it in both professional and personal contexts.
The ODAPHIS index in 7 letters
Understanding what motivates someone in their actions and decisions is essential to grasping the full extent of their personality and potential. The ODAPHISp4 index (BRAPHIS in French), an acronym for Objective, Deliberation, Altruism, Pleasure, Harmony, Influence and Security, serves as a guide for exploring the various forces that drive people. Each component of this index highlights different motivational aspects, from the desire to achieve meaningful goals, to the need for security and stability, to the pleasure of interacting with others and committing to the collective well-being. Together, these components offer a comprehensive view of the invisible catalysts that drive people to act in specific ways in various circumstances.
The influence of each component can be numbered from 0 to 7. Several letters may be expressed with equal force in each of us, but no one reaches maximum motivation in terms of all seven components at once.
Risk: Individualism
Risk: lack of flexibility
Risk: slow decision-making
Risk: emptiness or ephemerality
Risk: fear of conflict
Risk: insensitivity and bossiness
Risk: fear of change
Adapted Vs Natural
Like the DISCp4 model, the ODAPHISp4 index distinguishes between an Adapted profile and a Natural profile. In the specific context of motivations, the Adapted profile corresponds to the motivations that people display publically. The Natural profile is more representative of the motivations that truly guide their actions.
Adapted and natural profiles can be the same or different, notably in response to their environment, the context or a situation deemed hostile. What's more, profiles will often differ in professional and personal settings. For example, we could imagine a dad with a natural AHS (Altruism, Harmony, Security) profile in a family context and with an adapted ODI (Purpose, Deliberation, Influence) profile at the office.
However, we must be careful not to come up with a quick and easy caricature, as people's natural motivations remain stable overall. The motivations they display publically, voluntarily or involuntarily, are more changeable.
Spranger
Eduard Spranger, a psychologist, teacher and philosopher from Berlin who was a contemporary of Marston and Jung, made a name for himself through his research into the various ways in which people perceive the world.
In the late 1920s, he published the book "Types of Men", in which he defined six theoretical personality types and their value attitudes: the Theoretical (discovery of truth), the Economic (usefulness), the Aesthetic (form and harmony), the Social (love of people and benevolence), the Political (power) and the Religious (unity).
Contemporaneously with Spranger, Marston published "Emotions of Normal People". These two works laid the foundations for pedagogy and behavioral psychology, and continue to be fundamental references a century later.
Maslow
Abraham Harold Maslow, an American psychologist, is recognized as the founder of the humanistic approach to psychology. In the field of work psychology, he is famous for his research on motivation, often erroneously simplified as a pyramid of needs, with successive steps leading to complete satisfaction.
Maslow was also a pioneer of transpersonal psychology, a field that goes beyond personality to examine the spiritual dimensions of the human being and exceptional states of consciousness.
Herzberg
Frederick Herzberg, an American psychologist, is renowned for his two-factor theory and his research into job enrichment and motivation at work. He looked into relationships and working conditions in industrial environments with a humanistic approach.
In 1978, he published "Work and the Nature of Man", a publication in which he emphasized the ideas initially presented in "Job Attitudes" and developed in "The Motivation to Work" two decades earlier. He criticized industry for having efficiently met people's material needs through the production of consumer goods, while neglecting to satisfy the internal needs essential to their creative fulfilment.
Rosenberg
The Nonviolent Communication (NVC) approach, conceived by Marshall B. Rosenberg, aims to enrich the ability to interact and communicate in a benevolent manner, thereby encouraging others to act in the same way. Initiated in the 1970s, this process places empathy at its heart, echoing the person-centered approach of psychologist Carl Rogers, of whom Rosenberg was a disciple. The adjective "nonviolent" echoes Gandhi's principles and refers to types of communication that avoid harming others, in keeping with the concept of ahimsa. Rosenberg also incorporated economist Manfred Max-Neef's analysis of human needs into his teachings.
The Center for Nonviolent Communication (CNVC) describes this process as "conscious communication", emphasizing three key characteristics: empathy, authenticity and personal responsibility.
Benefits
It's a common misconception to believe that other people function in the same way as we do. In fact, each individual is unique, with specific communication preferences, emotions and motivations.
Make your actions and communication more relevant.
By identifying people's key motivations using the ODAPHISp4 index, you can personalize your approach and how you express yourself. This avoids communication failures such as fruitless discussions, misunderstandings, aborted negotiations or unconvincing presentations, thus promoting a shared and effective vision.
Case study (example)
Let's take the example of Marc, a project manager with an IO profile (Influence, Objective), who assigns a task to Jean, a member of his team with an AS profile (Altruism, Security). Here's what their graphs might look like.
Instinctively, Marc might be tempted to present the task by focusing on the things which motivate him, such as the challenges to be overcome and the benefits in terms of recognition for the team. However, he is addressing Jean, whose motivations differ. Jean will care more about aspects of the task that affect harmony within the company and the well-being of his colleagues, such as improvements in the working atmosphere.
In this example, Marc and Jean's motivations diverge significantly, which highlights the usefulness of the ODAPHISp4 index. However, in reality, team members tend to have closer motivations and more common ground. This is because, in the long term, as team members quit and new ones join, they tend to harmonize their expectations and motivations.