Psychology

  1. Home
  2. Education
  3. Psychology
photo of Kendra Van Wagner

Kendra's Psychology Blog

By Kendra Van Wagner, About.com Guide to Psychology since 2005

An Overview of Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs

Wednesday February 4, 2009
Hierarchy of Needs
Maslow's hierarchy of needs is usually depicted as a pyramid.

Numerous questions have emerged about the what motivates us, such as whether or not psychological needs motivate our behavior and which needs must be met in order to remain psychologically healthy. While Sigmund Freud postulated that human behavior is motivated by aggressive needs, humanist Abraham Maslow suggested that both basic biological needs as well as higher-level psychological needs were essential human motivators.

In contrast to many psychological theories that focus on abnormal behavior or negative experiences, psychologist Abraham Maslow's work centered almost exclusively on the positive side of the human experience. His well known hierarchy of needs presents a theory of motivation that focuses on the importance of personal growth and self-actualization.

First proposed in 1943, the hierarchy represents various needs that motivate human behavior. Maslow's hierarchy of needs is most often displayed as a pyramid, with lowest levels of the pyramid made up of the most basic needs while more complex needs can be found at the top of the pyramid.

Learn more about Maslow's hierarchy of needs.

Comments

February 8, 2009 at 6:48 pm
(1) Greg Stewart says:

I was thinking about Maslow’s H.O.N. the other day.
It occured to me, that in the capitalist, “we want the world and we want it now”( Morrison J. 1969) societies in which we live, needs are constantly shifting and things that one can ‘need’ are being created as we speak.
Furthermore, I dont see how one can speak of self actualisation without experiencing it! At least it is like Einstien conveying his theory of relativity to a caveman, or a similar dilemma.

February 11, 2009 at 4:52 pm
(2) Li says:

I believe this hierarchy is a basic rule for good HRM.

Leave a Comment

Line and paragraph breaks are automatic. Some HTML allowed: <a href="" title="">, <b>, <i>, <strike>

Discuss

Community Forum

Explore Psychology

About.com Special Features

How to Ace the GRE

Being well prepared is the first step; here are more essential suggestions. More >

The Business School Lowdown

Everything from choosing a school and applying, to employment after graduation. More >

Psychology

  1. Home
  2. Education
  3. Psychology

©2009 About.com, a part of The New York Times Company.

All rights reserved.