Self-actualisation

Fabian Fluche, Kostas Amiridis and Bogdan Costea

Chapter 138 in Elgar Encyclopedia of Historical Organisation Studies, 2026, pp 492-496 from Edward Elgar Publishing

Abstract: Self-actualisation has evolved historically into an important motif in management and organisational thought and practices. Originally conceived by Kurt Goldstein as a holistic drive to adequate functioning as an individual, it was reinterpreted as a programme of self-improvement by Abraham Maslow. In turn, managerialism adopted the Maslowian version of self-actualisation as an extended, open-ended, normative imperative whose logic is that every individual's potential should be actualised through various organisational techniques, programmes and arrangements. Ultimately, self-actualisation seeks to shape how work is understood as part of life overall. However, its open-ended character fuels its appeal and self-actualisation promotes and projects unattainable ideals.

Keywords: Kurt Goldstein; Abraham Maslow; Managerialism; Work; Life; Self (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2026
ISBN: 9781035332922
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