Maslow's hierarchy

of needs

Maslow's hierarchy of needs, represented as a

pyramid with the more basic needs at the bottom[1]
Maslow's hierarchy of needs is a theory in
psychology proposed by Abraham Maslow
in his 1943 paper "A Theory of Human
Motivation" in Psychological Review.[2]
Maslow subsequently extended the idea to
include his observations of humans' innate
curiosity. His theories parallel many other
theories of human developmental
psychology, some of which focus on
describing the stages of growth in
humans. He then decided to create a
classification system which reflected the
universal needs of society as its base and
then proceeding to more acquired
emotions.[3] Maslow's hierarchy of needs
is used to study how humans intrinsically
partake in behavioral motivation. Maslow
used the terms "physiological", "safety",
"belonging and love", "social needs" or
"esteem", and "self-actualization" to
describe the pattern through which human
motivations generally move. This means
that in order for motivation to arise at the
next stage, each stage must be satisfied
within the individual themselves.
Additionally, this theory is a main base in
knowing how effort and motivation are
correlated when discussing human
behavior. Each of these individual levels
contains a certain amount of internal
sensation that must be met in order for an
individual to complete their hierarchy.[3]
The goal in Maslow's theory is to attain the
fifth level or stage: self-actualization.[4]

Maslow's theory was fully expressed in his

1954 book Motivation and Personality.[5]
The hierarchy remains a very popular
framework in sociology research,
management training[6] and secondary and
higher psychology instruction. Maslow's
classification hierarchy has been revised
over time. The original hierarchy states
that a lower level must be completely
satisfied and fulfilled before moving onto a
higher pursuit. However, today scholars
prefer to think of these levels as
continuously overlapping each other.[3]
This means that the lower levels may take
precedence back over the other levels at
any point in time.

Hierarchy

Alternative illustration as a dynamic hierarchy of

needs with overlaps of different needs at the same
time
Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs

Maslow's hierarchy of needs is often

portrayed in the shape of a pyramid with
the largest, most fundamental needs at
the bottom and the need for self-
actualization and transcendence at the
top. In other words, the crux of the theory
is that individuals’ most basic needs must
be met before they become motivated to
achieve higher level needs.[1][7]
The most fundamental and basic four
layers of the pyramid contain what
Maslow called "deficiency needs" or "d-
needs": esteem, friendship and love,
security, and physical needs. If these
"deficiency needs" are not met – with the
exception of the most fundamental
(physiological) need – there may not be a
physical indication, but the individual will
feel anxious and tense. Maslow's theory
suggests that the most basic level of
needs must be met before the individual
will strongly desire (or focus motivation
upon) the secondary or higher level needs.
Maslow also coined the term
"metamotivation" to describe the
motivation of people who go beyond the
scope of the basic needs and strive for
constant betterment.[8]

The human brain is a complex system and

has parallel processes running at the
same time, thus many different
motivations from various levels of
Maslow's hierarchy can occur at the same
time. Maslow spoke clearly about these
levels and their satisfaction in terms such
as "relative", "general", and "primarily".
Instead of stating that the individual
focuses on a certain need at any given
time, Maslow stated that a certain need
"dominates" the human organism.[5] Thus
Maslow acknowledged the likelihood that
the different levels of motivation could
occur at any time in the human mind, but
he focused on identifying the basic types
of motivation and the order in which they
would tend to be met.

Physiological needs …

Physiological need is a concept that was

derived to explain and cultivate the
foundation for motivation. This concept is
the main physical requirement for human
survival. This means that Physiological
needs are universal human needs.
Physiological needs are considered in
internal motivation according to Maslow's
hierarchy of needs. This theory states that
humans are compelled to fulfill these
physiological needs first in order to pursue
intrinsic satisfaction on a higher level.[3] If
these needs are not achieved, it leads to
an increase in displeasure within an
individual. In return, when individuals feel
this increase in displeasure, the motivation
to decrease these discrepancies
increases.[3] Physiological needs can be
defined as both traits and a state.[3]
Physiological needs as traits allude to
long-term, unchanging demands that are
required of basic human life. Physiological
needs as a state allude to the unpleasant
decrease in pleasure and the increase for
an incentive to fulfill a necessity.[3] In order
to pursue intrinsic motivation higher up
Maslow's hierarchy, Physiological needs
must be met first. This means that if a
human is struggling to meet their
physiological needs, then they are unlikely
to intrinsically pursue safety,
belongingness, esteem, and self-
actualization.

Physiological needs include:

Homeostasis
Health
Food
 Water
Sleep
Clothes
Shelter[9]

Safety needs …

Once a person's physiological needs are

relatively satisfied, their safety needs take
precedence and dominate behavior. In the
absence of physical safety – due to war,
natural disaster, family violence, childhood
abuse, institutional racism etc. – people
may (re-)experience post-traumatic stress
disorder or transgenerational trauma. In
the absence of economic safety – due to
an economic crisis and lack of work
opportunities – these safety needs
manifest themselves in ways such as a
preference for job security, grievance
procedures for protecting the individual
from unilateral authority, savings accounts,
insurance policies, disability
accommodations, etc. This level is more
likely to predominate in children as they
generally have a greater need to feel safe.
Safety and security needs are about
keeping us safe from harm. These include
shelter, job security, health, and safe
environments. If a person does not feel
safe in an environment, they will seek to
find safety before they attempt to meet
any higher level of survival, but the need
for safety is not as important as basic
physiological needs.

Safety and Security needs include:

Personal security
Emotional security
Financial security
Health and well-being
Safety needs against accidents/illness
and their adverse impacts

Social belonging …

After physiological and safety needs are

fulfilled, the third level of human needs are
seen to be interpersonal and involves
feelings of belongingness. This need is
especially strong in childhood and it can
override the need for safety as witnessed
in children who cling to abusive parents.
Deficiencies within this level of Maslow's
hierarchy – due to hospitalism, neglect,
shunning, ostracism, etc. – can adversely
affect the individual's ability to form and
maintain emotionally significant
relationships in general.

Social Belonging needs include:

Friendships
Intimacy
 Family

According to Maslow, humans need to feel

a sense of belonging and acceptance
among social groups, regardless of
whether these groups are large or small.
For example, some large social groups
may include clubs, co-workers, religious
groups, professional organizations, sports
teams, gangs, and online communities.
Some examples of small social
connections include family members,
intimate partners, mentors, colleagues,
and confidants. Humans need to love and
be loved – both sexually and non-sexually
– by others.[2] Many people become
susceptible to loneliness, social anxiety,
and clinical depression in the absence of
this love or belonging element. This need
for belonging may overcome the
physiological and security needs,
depending on the strength of the peer
pressure.

Self-esteem …

Esteem needs are ego needs or status

needs. People develop a concern with
getting recognition, status, importance,
and respect from others. Most humans
have a need to feel respected; this
includes the need to have self-esteem and
self-respect. Esteem presents the typical
human desire to be accepted and valued
by others. People often engage in a
profession or hobby to gain recognition.
These activities give the person a sense of
contribution or value. Low self-esteem or
an inferiority complex may result from
imbalances during this level in the
hierarchy. People with low self-esteem
often need respect from others; they may
feel the need to seek fame or glory.
However, fame or glory will not help the
person to build their self-esteem until they
accept who they are internally.
Psychological imbalances such as
depression can distract the person from
obtaining a higher level of self-esteem.

Most people have a need for stable self-

respect and self-esteem. Maslow noted
two versions of esteem needs: a "lower"
version and a "higher" version. The "lower"
version of esteem is the need for respect
from others. This may include a need for
status, recognition, fame, prestige, and
attention. The "higher" version manifests
itself as the need for self-respect. For
example, the person may have a need for
strength, competence,[3] mastery, self-
confidence, independence, and freedom.
This "higher" version takes guidelines, the
"hierarchies are interrelated rather than
sharply separated".[5] This means that
esteem and the subsequent levels are not
strictly separated; instead, the levels are
closely related.

Self-actualization …

"What a man can be, he must be."[5]:91 This

quotation forms the basis of the perceived
need for self-actualization. This level of
need refers to the realization of one's full
potential. Maslow describes this as the
desire to accomplish everything that one
can, to become the most that one can
be.[5]:92 Individuals perceive or focus on
this need very specifically. People may
have a strong, particular desire to become
an ideal parent, succeed athletically, or
create paintings, pictures, or
inventions.[5]:93 Maslow believed that to
understand this level of need, the person
must not only succeed in the previous
needs but master them. Self-actualization
can be described as a value-based system
when discussing its role in motivation;
self-actualization is understood as the
goal-or explicit motive, and the previous
stages in Maslow's Hierarchy fall in line to
become the step-by-step process by which
self-actualization is achievable; an explicit
motive is the objective of a reward-based
system that is used to intrinsically drive
completion of certain values or goals.[3]
Individuals who are motivated to pursue
this goal seek and understand how their
needs, relationships, and sense of self are
expressed through their behavior. Self-
actualization can include:[3]

Mate Acquisition
Parenting
Utilizing & Developing Abilities
Utilizing & Developing Talents
Pursuing goals

Transcendence …
In his later years, Abraham Maslow
explored a further dimension of
motivation, while criticizing his original
vision of self-actualization.[10][11][12][13] By
this later theory, one finds the fullest
realization in giving oneself to something
beyond oneself—for example, in altruism
or spirituality. He equated this with the
desire to reach the infinite.[14]
"Transcendence refers to the very highest
and most inclusive or holistic levels of
human consciousness, behaving and
relating, as ends rather than means, to
oneself, to significant others, to human
beings in general, to other species, to
nature, and to the cosmos" (Farther