Maria is an employee at Lyric Inc. Her colleagues describe her as friendly and gregarious. She is a good team player and is always willing to help others. She also likes socializing with her colleagues outside of work. In the context of David McClelland's three needs theory, Maria is most likely driven by a need for _____.

An employee can be defined as an individual who is employed by an employer of labor to perform specific tasks, duties or functions in an organization.

In this scenario, Maria is an employee at Lyric Inc. and she's described by her colleagues as being friendly and gregarious (sociable or welcoming). Also, Maria is a good team player who is always willing to help her team members and she likes socializing with her colleagues outside of work.

David Clarence McClelland was an American psychologist who was born on the 20th of May, 1917 in New York, United States of America and he died on the 27th of March, 1998 in Massachusetts, United States of America. David was famously known for his work "McClelland Theory of Motivation" in his book (1961) titled "The Achieving Society" where he talked about people's need for achievement and identified the three (3) motivators by all humans;

I. Need for power (N-Pow).

II. Need for achievement (N-Ach).

III. Need for affiliation (N-Affil).

The aforementioned driving motivators are not inherently possessed but instead are developed through human culture and individual life experiences.

Hence, the performance, effectiveness and motivation of an employee working in an organization is influenced by the three needs theory.

An employee with a high need for affiliation (N-Affil) requires having a harmonious relationship with his or her colleagues, a significant personal relationship, cooperative work environment and need to feel accepted by their colleagues.

In the context of David McClelland's three needs theory, Maria is most likely driven by a need for affiliation.