Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs.pdf

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1. Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs


The hierarchy of needs is a theory put forward by the famous psychologist
Abraham Maslow. It is a charted set of human requirements to be fulfilled to
achieve complete development and self -actualization.
These needs are presented in a pyramidical diagram, showing the different
stages from bottom to top. These needs include:
1. Physiological
2. Safety
3. Love/Belonging

2. 4. Esteem
5. Self-actualization
The pyramid describes how people need to fulfill the bottom -tier needs to
move towards more spiritual needs.
The hierarchy of needs shows the motivations for human actions. The basic
psychological needs like food, water, sleep, warmth, and shelter, need to be
met first before we can think about other secondary needs.
Deficiency Needs vs. Growth Needs
The five-stage needs model can be further divided into two categories, i.e.,
“deficiency” needs and “gro wth” needs.
Deficiency needs include the first four needs from the bottom down,
whereas growth needs include the fifth need for “self -actualization.”
When the first four needs are unmet, they create a deficiency, which
motivates people to take action and o vercome the deficiency.
The longer these needs go unmet, the stronger the motivation will be. For
example, the longer you starve, the more hungry you get.
When we satisfy deficiency needs, we can only then fulfill our growth need of
self-actualization.
The growth needs do not ari se from a deficiency of something, rather it
stems from the need for growth and connecting with your higher self.

3. Although initially, Maslow claimed that we need to overcome the needs on
the lowest level to go up higher. However, we don’t need to satisfy t hese
needs 100%, as they do not follow an all -or-none condition. Maslow cleared
it up later that his earlier sayings got misinterpreted. Developing another
need is not dependent on a hundred percent satisfaction of previous ones.
Even if they are sufficient enough, we can move onto the next level.
Moreover, this pyramid is not unidirectional; life changes and setbacks can
make you go back to a level that you previously had covered. For example,
divorce, losing a job, grieving the loss of a loved one. Major life changes can
change the course of your journey.
Five-stage Model Hierarchy
Maslow suggested that people are motivated by their unmet needs. Some
needs take precedence over others, like food, water, and sleep are the needs
that need to be met before you can think about, let’s say love and belonging.
Our most basic need is our physical survival, and most of our actions are
driven by those needs. However, when these basic needs are met, our needs
evolve too. And then, our actions are defined by those motiv ations.
Following are the five needs that Maslow thought drove human behavior:
1. Physiological Needs
Physiological needs are our most primal biological needs, including air,
water, food, clothing, warmth, sleep, etc.

4. If these are not met, the human body c annot function properly. Therefore,
Maslow declared them the most important human needs as all other needs
become secondary in context to basic physiological needs.
For Example:
Life without oxygen is unimaginable, and we can’t breathe or stay alive
without it. The same goes for food and water. Our bodies would give up
without them.
So to achieve anything else, we need to cater to our biological needs first,
for survival.
2. Need for Safety
Once our physiological needs are fulfilled, we tend to focus more on our
need for safety. Sense of safety and security are integral to our well -being.
We need proper housing, shelter, clothing, health, and safe environments.
Humans need order and protectio n in their lives; our safety needs also
encompass emotional safety, financial stability, law and order, and mental
and physical well-being.
Our need to survive without the fear of the outside world needs to be met
before moving ahead to other needs.
For Example:
Employment, job security, salary, and a safe working environment are
needed to meet our needs for safety and security.

5. Similarly, social institutions like the police, judicial systems, and democracy
are also there to meet our safety needs. We know o ur basic human rights
will protect us from any unforeseeable harm.
Our retirement and passion needs also are a perfect example of the
fundamental human need for safety.
3. Need for Love and Belongingness
Humans are social animals, we need each other for survival. From the
beginning of time humans have stayed in groups, as communities, in order
to have more fulfilling lives.
Once we have fulfilled our physiological and security needs, our focus turns
towards our need for love and belongingness.
Our families and community can make up for that need. This need can be
fulfilled by friendship, achieving intimacy, as well as providing and receiving
affection. Others include feeling the need to affiliate, connect, being part of
a group, trust, and intimacy.
For Example:
Our emotional and social needs fall under our need for love an d
belongingness. In order to avoid mental health issues like depression and
anxiety, which stem from social isolation and loneliness, it is important to
feel loved and accepted.

6. Our need to be a part of something greater than ourselves, to be a part of a
community or a group, is also an example of us looking to meet our
love/belonging needs.
4. Esteem Needs
Self-worth, accomplishment, and respect are important to fulfill our esteem
needs, the fourth level in Maslow’s hierarchy of needs.
The esteem needs are divided further into two categories:
(i) Esteem for Oneself
• Independence
• Dignity
• Mastery
• Achievement
(ii) Respect & Appreciation from Others
• Prestige
• Reputation
Our esteem needs come somewhere in between our most basic survival
needs and higher spiritual needs.
The need to be respected, achieve something big, and be recognized comes
after we have met our other survival needs. Self -respect and being respected

7. by others is an important developmental step. Children, adults, elderly all
need to feel these things to feel valued as an integral part of society.
For example:
These esteem needs can also be seen with the second last developmental
stage by Erik Erikson, which is generativity vs. stagnation.
In this stage, according to Erikson, one of the main conflicts in middle age is
generativity vs. stagnation.
In your middle ages, you are in a place in your life where you have achieved
your basic survival, safety, and love /belonging needs. You are at a place
where you have peaked your career, and the next phase in life feels like
giving back to the community or society.
This need is also an esteem need; some people write their life stories, some
from NGOs to help others, wh ile most have children to leave something
behind in the world when we are no more.
5. Self-actualization Needs
To attain your maximum potential, being the best that one can be is very
spiritual. When our basic deficiency needs are met, i.e., our bodily and
worldly needs are met, it’s time for our soul to grow.
The need to nurture one’s soul, attain peace, and leave behind a legacy for
future generations to benefit from, falls under the umbrella of self -
actualization.

8. It is the desire to realize one’s potent ial, work on self-fulfillment, and
accomplish all needed to connect with one’s highest self.
For example
Buddhist monks give up all their worldly desires, live peacefully, are content,
and live longer lives than most because they are connected with their i nner
self and are in harmony with the universe.
We see billionaires working hard for the betterment of humankind, they have
all the money, but they need something more to meet their self -actualization
details.
For instance, Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk are wor king on the Mars Colony; it
isn’t just for themselves, but the advancement of humanity.
Another important figure who talks about self -actualization is the famous
positive psychologist “Carl Rogers.”
He wrote in his book that,
“The organism has one basic te ndency and striving – to actualize, maintain,
and enhance the experiencing organism” (Rogers, C. (1951). Client -centered
therapy: Its current practice, implications and theory. London: Constable.).
It is interesting because Carl Rogers tells us that our se lf-image (what we
think of ourselves) and ideal self (the person we strive to become) need to
be congruent with each other to self -actualize. When we are connected with
our inner self, we are not exhausting our defense mechanisms and are

9. surrounded by an e nvironment of unconditional positive regard; only then
can we attain self-actualization.
Summary of Maslow’s Model:
Maslow’s theory of motivation stems from the idea that when people don’t
have something to eat, their actions will be motivated by that need i.e.,
hunger. But what happens when you do have that need covered.
In Maslow’s own words:
“It is quite true that man lives by bread alone — when there is no
bread. But what happens to man’s desires when there is plenty of
bread and when his belly is chronically filled?
At once other (and “higher”) needs emerge and these, rather than
physiological hungers, dominate the organism. And when these in
turn are satisfied, again new (and still “higher”) needs emerge
and so on. This is what we mean by saying that the basic human
needs are organized into a hierarchy of relative prepotency”
(Maslow, 1943, p. 375).
However, Maslow kept working on his original theory, so it evolved with
time. In his later editions, he retracted his previous statements saying that
the hierarchy of needs is not as rigid as we claim it to be.
He stated that individual differences and external factors vary, and
individual behavior can be motivated by different needs simultaneously.
Moreover, the priorities are different too for people.

10. For example, some people have a heighten ed need for self-esteem compared
to the need for love and belonging. Some people want artistic fulfillment
more than they need the basic physiological needs to be fulfilled.
Hence, concluding that human behavior is multi -motivated by certain
different or all basic needs simultaneously, rather than one single or
individual need.
To sum it up,
1. Human behavior is motivated by a hierarchy of needs.
2. The hierarchy of needs is organized in a structure that suggests basic
needs must be more or less met before moving on to higher needs.
3. External circumstances and individual differences imply that the order
of needs is flexible and not rigid.
4. Behavior is multi-motivated and is simultaneously determined by more
than one basic need.
Eight-Stage Model Hierarchy
Maslow’s hierarchy of needs has been further expanded over time into a
total of 8 stage models. The additions made include the cognitive, aesthetic,
and transcendence needs.

11. They go in the pyramid as:
1. Physiological Needs
2. Need for Safety
3. Need for Love & Belonging
4. Esteem Needs
5. Cognitive Needs
6. Aesthetic Needs
7. Self-Actualization Needs
8. Transcendence Needs
Cognitive Needs

12. These include:
• Curiosity
• Exploration
• Knowledge & Understanding
• Need for Meaning & Predictability
Humans have this innate desire to learn and expand their intelligence.
Therefore they are prone to gain more knowledge of the world around them,
how it works, and its purpose. They need to develop and mature their
cognitive skills, which are needed to asce nd towards self-actualization. If
cognitive needs are not fostered, it leads to identity confusion and despair.
For example, the continuous evolution of science and technology.
Aesthetic Needs
It includes appreciation and quest for:
• Art
• Form
• Beauty
• Luxury
• Balance
• Symmetry
Beautiful imagery and aesthetics have a positive impact on our well -being.
Connecting with nature lets us see how everything in the universe is
interconnected. We get to see ourselves as a part of something big. They

13. need to be surrounded by nature, and beauty leads to the higher need for
self-actualization. Being able to appreciate the beauty of nature and the
world we live in leads us to see the beauty in life and creation itself. Which
helps us value life.
For example, walking barefoot o n grass can generate feelings of
groundedness, absorbing strong energies from the earth.
Or the need to decorate your house, make your surroundings pretty and
neat, and buy a pretty dress.
Transcendence Needs
Humans actions are motivated by values that tra nscend beyond the physical
self, and these include:
• Mystical Experiences
• Aesthetic Experiences
• Experiences with Nature
• Philanthropic Experiences
• Pursuit of Science, Religion, or Faith
Humans are spiritual beings and have this in -built need for connecting to
something greater than themselves. Maslow divided the top tier of the
pyramid to include the need for self -transcendence. When these needs are
met, it leads to feelings of integrity that go beyond human imagination.
For example, religion helps people connect with something greater than
themselves.

14. Sufi saints and prophets, who sacrificed their lives for a greater purpose,
exemplify transcendence.
Self-Actualization
Maslow said the following about self-actualization in his publications:
‘It refers to the person’s desire for self-fulfillment, namely, to the
tendency for him to become actualized in what he is potentially.
The specific form that these needs will take will of course vary
greatly from person to person. In one individual it may take the
form of the desire to be an ideal mother, in another it may be
expressed athletically, and in still another it may be expressed in
painting pictures or in inventions’ (Maslow, 1943, p. 382–383).
Self-actualization is the realization of one’s potential, to know what you are
capable of and what you can achieve. The need to self -actualize is a growth
need. We can’t say that self-actualization is the happily ever after stage, and
it’s not. I think it is when you start living to your fullest potential. It is an
ever-growing state.
To reach this stage, one needs retrospection, to look within. See yourself for
how you are, get to know yourself, your ego, and shadow self, and nurture
the child inside us. We need to unlearn what we have been conditioned to
believe, resolve our deepest conflicts, and work on bettering ourselves.
Socrates said that he is the wisest man because h e knows nothing, as only a
fool would claim that. So get to know more, spend your life in the pursuit of
gathering knowledge.
Knowing our strengths is important, but we need to see the whole picture to
reach our full potential. Our strengths and weaknesses are alike. Acceptance

15. that we are not perfect is the key. Acknowledging our shortcomings can help
us work on our weaknesses, and only then can we reach our fullest potential.
Self-actualized people have an open perspective towards life and its beings.
They know that being stagnant means only death; they know nothing remains
the same, and the world is ever -changing. So they keep growing and working
on themselves.
Self-actualization is the process of experiencing life for what it is and not
the illusion. The more real and euphoric experiences a person has, the more
self-actualized they become.
As humans, we are all unique, and hence our quest for self -actualization
leads us all down different paths. For some, it’s achieved through art; for
others, it’s excelling in sports, and for some, it can be becoming a religious
preacher. We all have individualistic paths to self-actualization.
Characteristics of Self-Actualized People
We all have it within us, the capability to self -actualize, but only a few of us
can self-actualize. Only 2% of people reach the state of self -actualization.
Maslow studied a total of 18 people and identified 15 traits that are common
to self-actualized people.
These characteristics include:
1. They perceive reality efficiently and are tolerant of uncertainty.
2. They accept themselves and others for what they are.
3. Have spontaneity of thought and action.

16. 4. They are not self-centered but problem -centered.
5. Possess an unusual sense of humor.
6. They can look at life objectively.
7. They possess a high level of creativity.
8. They are usually resistant to enculturation but not purposely
unconventional.
9. Have concern for the welfare of humanity.
10. Great ability to have a deep appreciation for basic life
experiences.
11. Ability to connect and develop deep satisfying interpersonal
relationships with a few people.
12. They have peak experiences.
13. They value their need for privacy.
14. Possess democratic attitudes.
15. They have a strong sense of moral/ethical integrity.
Antecedent Behaviors for Self Actualization:
There are a few behaviors that we can adopt that can lead to self -
actualization. You can adopt the following be haviors to experience your life
to the fullest:
1. Be open to experiencing life like a child, fully absorbing and
concentrating on little details.

17. 2. Be more open to taking risks and trying new things; get out of your
comfort zone, don’t stick to the safe path.
3. Listen to your intuition, your gut feelings in evaluating experiences,
rather than complying with the voice of tradition, authority, or the
majority.
4. Avoid pretense, say no to game playing, and stick to being your honest
and authentic self.
5. Don’t look for popularity; when your views don’t coincide with the
majority, you are prone to be disliked or misunderstood by people.
6. Take responsibility for your actions and strive to work hard to be a
better version of yourself every day.
7. People say that being able to conceal your traumas takes strength, but
the truth is facing them requires more strength and courage. So
commit to identifying your defenses and having the courage to give
them up.
Educational Applications
The dynamic approach that changed the face of psychology was the change
of focus from what’s wrong to what is good and what could be. The shift
from psychodynamic and behavioral approaches to a more humanistic and
holistic approach; was the game -changer.
It centers on the idea that human beings can grow, evolve, and overcome
their shortcomings when treated with unconditional positive regard. It took
the shift from the initial presumed lack of sel f-control and responsibility
that came with the previous school of thought.

18. We take control of our actions when we know that our character, behavior,
and consequences are our responsibility, which again stems from the ability
to self-actualize.
Its practical application has had numerous impacts on various fields of
human life, including the corporate sector, organizations, communities, and
especially in education.
When we say that our behavior is motivated by our needs, we should know
that our actions get affected if not met properly.
A student can’t learn if he is hungry; he is physically incapable of functioning
properly on an empty stomach.
Similarly, if the student doesn’t feel valued or respected, it is impossible to
foster an effective learning environ ment. When we provide them with an
environment conducive to their growth and learning, they grow and prosper
immensely by trusting and respecting the students and their strengths and
needs.
So, by keeping in mind Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, we can create better
learning environments for our students. It can help them become successful
in school and achieve great heights in the future.
We will be producing productive, self -actualized members of society.
Individuals familiar with their potential will go to l engths to keep growing
and evolving, which will lead to a better society filled with individuals who
are aware of their true potential.
As Maslow said:

19. “A humanistic educational approach would develop people who
are “stronger, healthier, and would take their own lives into their
own hands to a greater extent. With increased personal
responsibility for one’s personal life, and with a rational set of
values to guide one’s choosing, people would begin to actively
change the society in which they lived”. (Maslow, 1971)
To learn more about humanistic educational approaches:
READ: (The Farther Reaches of Human Nature NY: Viking, 1971.
[p. 173-188])
Critical Evaluations
Despite being evolved, Maslow’s theory has faced several criticisms over the
years. A few of these criticisms are as follows:
Non-scientific Basis
The research method employed by Maslow was a qualitative analysis of
biographies of 18 self-actualized people. The qualitative method in scientific
research is not valid and accurate and cannot be generalized to different
populations. Moreover, it’s extremely difficult to empirically test Maslow’s
theory in the context of establishing causal relationships.
Biased and Limited Sample
The sample size for this study was very limited; 18 is not a good enough
sample size to be generalized on a large scale. The sample was also
contaminated with personal bias, as these 18 people were self -actualized in
Maslow’s opinion. T hey were all white, cis males who have had success in
life, but their success can’t be measured or seen as absolute.

20. There were a lot of factors, like privilege and access to knowledge and
resources, that led them to self -actualization. But again, who are we to
determine whether they were or not.
Inability to be Generalized
The small sample size and a homogeneous sample limit this theory’s
generalizability. This theory doesn’t consider people from different socio -
economic, ethnic, gender, and racial backgro unds. Hence, lack the scientific
basis to hold for all people.
For example, it didn’t involve a well -distributed sample that involved people
of a different gender. Although Mother Teresa and Eleanor Roosevelt were
part of the study, it’s still not enough t o make assumptions based on a few
women.
Similarly, different races have generational traumas that continue to be
passed down genetically, so we can’t overlook these differences when
considering a scientific theory.
Hierarchical Approach
The later rectifications by Maslow did point out that these needs are not
strictly adherent to the hierarchal stages literally, and there are exceptions.
However, one of the early model’s basic criticisms was that behavior could
be motivated by a higher le vel of needs, even when the lower needs are not
fully met.
For instance, there’s extreme poverty and hunger in India, but people do
need to love and be loved and for a sense of belonging. Therefore,
disproving Maslow’s initial claims.

21. Moreover, there’s pro of that most successful artists have lived in extremely
dire conditions in the history of times, with their physiological needs not
being met. But their art was motivated by their needs of esteem, aesthetics,
and self-actualization.
Conclusion
As a theory of motivation, Maslow’s hierarchy of needs has had several
implications and uses in different industries and sectors, despite the
backlash, criticism, and limitations. It is a part of business studies,
marketing strategies, academics, social st udies, and whatnot.
This theory played an important part in the shift from psychodynamic and
behavioral approaches to holistic approaches in psychology.
Despite the criticism, studies have shown that people worldwide do share
the same needs at one point or another.
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