The need for more comprehensive development models to capture the behavioural dynamics of peasants in subsistence economies was emphaiszed at the 1976 IAAE Conference (Deaton; Mbithi; and Shapiro). This emphasis is consistent with Polanyi's claim that as a social being, man acts to "safeguard his social standing, his social claims, [and] his social assets" (p. 46). From this perspective, Deaton posited a general model of satisfaction maximization and illustrated the policy significance of the hypothesized behavioural relationships. The purpose of this paper is to extend the above thinking by: (1) presenting a conceptual framework of essential relationships for a satisfaction maximization model by drawing on three bodies of thought--economic anthropology, adoptiondiffusion (sociology), and production economics; (2) analyzing selected interrelationships; and (3) discussing the significance and implications of the model for economic development.