Maslow’s hierarchy of needs is a motivational theory given by the Abraham Maslow. It is nothing but a five tier pyramid model where the basic needs of human gets categorized in five different levels. In this particular model it is clearly visible that there are five different categories of human needs and those are: physiological, safety, love and belonging, esteem and self-actualization.
Important points to be noted
- According to the statement given by Maslow, human beings have their needs in five different tiers.
- this theory of physiology also tells us that the needs situated in the higher needs are emerged by the human beings when they feel that they are already satisfied by the lower level needs.
- although it is never said that the research that has happened later, completely agrees with the Maslow’s theory. But it is true that the theory has greatly influenced other psychologists and kept a huge contribution in the fields of positive psychology.
Two Different Parts of the Hierarchical Pyramid
The hierarchical pyramid that holds five different levels of human needs is basically divided into to different parts:
- deficiency needs and
- growth needs
so the last four levels of the pyramid is called as the deficiency needs and the top most level is referred as the growth needs. so deficiency needs is something that comes into human life from impairment. whenever human beings find themselves deprived and denied, as a normal reaction they eagerly start looking for the way to get out of it. how long they will be deprived, the intention of securing the deficiency needs will become more stronger. in this point you need to understand one thing that the deficiency needs are the most essential for someone to survive in this world.
In 1943 Maslow have stated that one individual must get 100 % satisfied by the deficiency needs. and only after that he can reach to the next tier of needs. but later he corrected himself and said, it is not necessary to fill out the deficiency needs completely to start progressing for the higher needs or growth needs. If a individual get more or less satisfied by the deficiency needs then he will be able to enter in growth needs.
Before explaining about the higher needs we need to understand that higher needs does not come to someone’s life because of impairment or deprivation. after completely satisfy the deficiency needs, one become able to enter the highest tier of hierarchical pyramid called self actualization. After reaching out the self actualization level people tries to make themselves more stable in life. They starts thinking about the journey he had been going through and makes the proper way to build their safest future. However this progress of self actualization can be affected by the lack of lower level of needs. Somehow this chart of progress will not be the same in every individual’s life, this theory is just a glimpse of a random individual’s whole life.
What are the Five Levels of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs?
in order to make our lives more beautiful one must motivates himself for achieving the needs to make a great impact over themselves. so physiological needs are the first and basic needs for someone to survive in this revolutionary world. this is the thing that actually encourages our behavior. Once the level of physiological needs is secured, one can head towards the next level.
Physiological needs
Physiological needs are the most important needs of the hierarchy, as it gives a power resource and a healthy immune system to the human body. for example air, food, water, shelter, sex, sleep these are the basic requirements of the physiological needs. Maslow considered these needs as the most essential because if any one of these needs are not full filled, then one can not easily reach to the next level of needs. for example if anyone is extremely sleepy, it will be really difficult for him to do some other work rather than focusing on his sleep.
Safety Needs
once the physiological needs are successfully satisfied. the next level of needs that comes up is the safety needs. it is also a very important need to survive because even in our childhood the safety needs were discernible. A children always look for a safe and secure shelter and when they are unable find a comfortable environment around them, they typically react to the fear and anxiety. after satisfying the physiological needs become our salient needs. people always tend to make their lifestyle more comfortable and for that they want to have discipline and control in their lives. Maslow once have said that people would like to get settled in well developed countries where the safety needs are more evident. And this particular thing proves that why do people act things like buying an insurance or save money for the future. These are the most important peculiarity of human beings to make a brighter future.
Love and Belonging Need
It is not possible for someone to live alone in this world. yeah! there are some handful of people who are living their lives on their own, but that completely depends upon their past or current situations. Most probably for the maximum number people,after getting well satisfied by the needs of shelter, the next need that arises is the love and acceptance. People always love to get loved by someone. That is why romantic relationships and friendship exists in our society. in order to lead our daily lives we feels that we need social connections for our well being. it is scientifically proven that love, intimacy, trust, friendship etc. always leave a huge impression on our physical and mental health.
Esteem Needs
Esteem needs are the fourth step of the Maslow’s hierarchy. And this level of need involves the desire of feeling the goodness of our inner soul. Maslow divided this level into two different parts
- Self Esteem
- Esteem from others
The first one includes the self confidence and dignity. And the second one includes respect and the desire of reputation by others. People always want to get recognized by the outer world for their achievements and contributions. when the esteem needs are met people feel themselves self-confident and get a chance to know that their contribution to the society is important enough. Somehow if the esteem needs are not satisfied, people may experience the great term used by psychiatrist Alfred Adler called “feelings of inferiority”.
Self Actualization Needs
self actualization is the top most level of the Mslow’s hierarchy. this is the place where people feel themselves self-reliant. Now they are already able to think for their ultimate success. Maslow described this level as the desire to fulfill all the dreams and to become the utmost one can be. For example one individual might have a desire to become economically successful in his life and this is the time when he feel that he will be able to make his dream come true.
Final Words
So guys here i have tried to give all the information about the Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. So it is a humble request for you to check out the whole informative, I hope this will help you out.
Also please let me know if i have missed out something important through the comment section below. I will try my best to fix the problem and update the post as early as possible.