Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs
Motivators and Deficiency Needs
*1943 paper – “A Theory of Human Motivation”, extended for
human curiosity
*Developmental psychology – stages of human growth
*Studied exemplary people rather than the mentally ill
*
Healthiest 1% of college student population
* Full theory in 1954 book Motivation and Personality
* Bottom most layers most fundamental
* Bottom 4 layers “Deficiency needs”
*
Physiological deficiencies may be physically apparent
* If Esteem, Friendship and Love,
Security, and Physical Needs not met, may lead to anxiety and tension in the
individual’s life
* Basic needs must be met for the individual to desire
and/or focus their motivation toward higher needs
* Metamotivation – goes beyond scope of basic needs to
constantly pursue self-betterment
* Needs may overlap, not seen as boxed in but relative,
general, and primary
* Certain
needs may dominate motivation
* Motivations can be codependent on
different levels of needs, but pyramid outlines primary structural levels
Physiological Needs
Metabolic, Environmental
* Physical needs for human survival
* Metabolic requirements – Air, Water, Food
* Clothing and Shelter to protect from External Environment
* Sexual instinct and competition to maintain the species’
birth rates
Safety Needs
Personal, Financial, Health
* Absence of physical safety can lead to post-traumatic
stress disorder and transgenerational trauma
* Due to
war, natural disaster, family violence, childhood abuse, etc.
* Absence of economic safety can lead to seeking out
security through multiple or various channels
* Job security, worker’s protection
of rights, savings, insurance, disability accommodations, etc.
* Children possess heightened need for safety
* Needs Include:
* Personal security, financial
security, health and well-being, safety net against accidents, illness, and
their adverse impacts
Love and Belonging Needs
Family, Friends, Intimacy
* Interpersonal connections and feeling of belonging
* Can override need for safety
* Abusive
Relationships, Gang and Substitute “Families”
*Need especially strong in children
* Manifest in emotionally significant relationships
* Family
* Friends
* Intimacy
* Neglect, Shunning, Ostracism, isolation, and severe
illness can hinder
* Human need to love and be loved, sexually and non-sexually
* Negative Effects of Deficiency Include:
*
Loneliness, social anxiety, clinical depression
* Need may be overcome by physiological or safety needs
depending on strength of peer pressure
Esteem Needs
External Respect and Internal Esteem
* Human need to feel respected, accepted, and valued
* Manifested in self-esteem and self-respect
* Sense of value or contribution can come from a variety of
sources
* Professional network, community
work, social status, public awards and/or recognition
* Low Esteem can lead to inferiority complexes
* Overt or
covert, can lead individual to seek approval through fame or glory
* Psychological
imbalances, like depression, can hinder a positive self-view
* Lower and Higher version of self-esteem
* Lower –
Need for respect from others
*
Status, recognition, fame, prestige, attention
* Higher –
Need for self-respect & takes precedence
*
Strength, competence, mastery, self-confidence, independence, freedom
*
Deprivation leads to inferiority complex, weakness, helplessness
* Interrelated with other needs, not exclusive
Self-Actualization
Realizing Full Potential
* “What a man can be, he must be.” – Maslow
* Degree of realization of one’s full potential
* To accomplish all that you can must be all that you can be
* Specificity of need varies between individuals
* Must
master previous levels to fully reach this peak of self-actualization
Self-Transcendence
Spiritual Motivation for Higher Connection
* Spiritual dimension of personality
* Individual who seeks to transcend boundaries of ideal self
Criticisms of Maslow’s Model
Evidential Support and Variance
* Sparse evidentiary support of definitive levels or ranking
of hierarchies
* Adjustments for poverty, and varying ethnocentric bases
& influence
* Difference between social and intellectual needs
* Structured to individualistic society, may not account for
collectivism
* Terminology used by Maslow
* Usage of sex in basal level
* Speaks to
individualistic motives
*
Disregards emotional, familial, and community implications
The Role of Circumstance
Culture, Resources, and Current Events
* Not universal, and may vary due to circumstance
* War time vs. Peace time
* Resources by Country and Region
* Self-described ranking of needs and levels vary by survey
* US Peace Time: Survival
(physiological, safety) & Psychological (love, self-esteem, self-actualization)
* US War Time: Physiological,
Safety, & Psychological (social, self-esteem, self-actualization)
* Needs vary across cultures
* Unique, Dynamic,
and Changing
* Differences by Age Group
* Children
have high physical needs
* Childhood
to young adult love need strong
* Esteem
needs highest among adolescents
* Young Adults
highest self-actualization needs
* Old Age
highest levels of security needs
* Social desirability for needs may affect the expression of
the motivation
