“Bakit Ka Kumakayod?” Developing a Filipino Needs Theory of Motivation Jonathan Robert A. Ilagan Ma. Regina M. Hechanova Trixia Anne C. Co Vincent Jullian Z. Pleyto Ateneo de Manila University Copyright @ 2014 psyChologiCal assoCiation of the philippines This study utilized a mixed method sequential exploratory strategy in investigating the needs of the Filipino working population and the relationship between these needs and employee engagement. In the irst phase, workers were interviewed to determine the needs that motivate them. In the second phase, a survey with 302 workers elicited four types of needs: job-related, career-related, organization-related, and family- related. Among these, family is a novel addition to the extant theories of work motivation in the West. The importance and presence of these four factors were all signiicantly correlated with employee engagement. Three models were tested to describe the importance and presence of needs as predictors of employee engagement. The best itting model was the presence of needs as predictors of engagement. Among the needs, it was those related to the job that predicted employee engagement. Keywords: motivation, engagement, Filipinos, workers philippine Journal of psyChology, 2014, 47(1), 117-143 Correspondence concerning this article can be addressed to Jonathan Robert A. Ilagan. Email: jonathanilagan@ yahoo.com Advances in technology and the breaking down of world economic barriers have led to the greater mobility of workers and organizations. Given the growth of Asia as a market and the relative inancial stability in the region, more multinational organizations are entering Asian markets. At the same time, businesses from “Rising Tiger” economies in Asia are invading industries previously dominated by Western multinational companies. All these changes