Maslow presented the above Pyramid in 1940s
and then did lots of research on it. The first four needs were identified as
deficit needs: i.e if the needs are not met, they make us uncomfortable and we
work towards fulfilling them.
The last four needs, were named as growth
needs.
He also arranged them in a hierarchy such that
we are motivated primarily by a need only if lower level needs have been met.
Thus, before one is motivated by cognitive or self actualization needs, one
should have taken care of basic deficit needs like physiological, security,
belonging and esteem. The needs are defined as
1.
Physiological
needs: These are the basic
animal needs for such things as food, warmth, shelter, sex, water, and other
body needs. If one’s basic biological needs are not met, he or she would
continue in this level and will not try to move to next one.
2.
Safety needs: Once the physical needs relatively satisfied, the individual’s
safety needs take over. These needs have to do with man’s yearning for a
predictable, orderly world in which injustice and inconsistency are under
control, the familiar frequent, and the unfamiliar rare. This need for
consistency, if not satisfied leads to feelings of doubt and shame.
3.
Belonging & Love needs: After physiological and safety needs are fulfilled, the third
layer of human needs is social. This psychological aspect of Maslow’s hierarchy
involves emotionally-based relationships in general, such as friendship, sexual
intimacy and having a supportive and communicative family. If one finds failure
in having such close relationships, then they have problems of dealing with
others.
4.
Esteem needs: All humans have a need to be respected, to have
self-esteem, self-respect, and to respect others.
5.
Cognitive needs: Maslow believed that humans have the need to increase their
intelligence and thereby chase knowledge. Cognitive needs is the expression of
the natural human need to learn, explore, discover and create to get a better
understanding of the world around them.
6.
Aesthetic needs: Based on Maslow’s beliefs, it is stated in the hierarchy that
humans need beautiful imagery or something new and aesthetically pleasing to
continue up towards Self-Actualization. Humans need to refresh themselves in
the presence and beauty of nature while carefully absorbing and observing their
surroundings to extract the beauty that the world has to offer.
7.
Self-actualization needs: Self-actualization is the instinctual need of humans to make
the most of their abilities and to strive to be the best they can.
8.
Transcendence needs: Maslow later divided the top of the triangle to add
self-transcendence which is also sometimes referred to as spiritual needs.
When we look around we find
that many of us or for that matter most of us struggle to remain in the
whirlpool of first 3 levels at best and rarely we see people who move to level
of self-actualization or Transcendence.
Then who or what is to be
blamed for this??
On exploration you will realize
that the kind of issues and lifestyles we are facing in India; don’t let you
move out of the Whirlpool of getting the basics of life – water, air, simple
life requirements. Once you move out you face issues such as poor roads, poor
traffic, lack of infrastructure, un-civic behavior of people, un-called
politics at work-place etc. With this you are always struggling to manage these
challenges and get stuck! To add to this is complicated governmental processes
and systems of taxation, legal, police and basic life management – so you waste
your time here too. In a day - the real productive time is vey less and we are consumed by that.
So we can blame all factors
external to us for our stucked-situation in first few levels of Maslow Pyramid –
Answer is NO.
We are also to blame for this
– as we are part of this system and society and get entangled in all and do not
try to come out. There is fear and then there is a race to get more and not to
fall behind in materialistic gains. We fall for greed of many houses, many cars, higher power and many gadgets and then we are stuck forever! Having aspirations and dreams is not bad; but falling in trap of materialistic world, could harm.
Once you meet people who have
moved to level 7 and 8 – you will realize that they are not saints who have
given-up everything. They are the one’s who manage self ; rather than being
managed by environment or system around us.
Answers to all the issues is
known to most of us – but we have a fear to act and during this time moves on and
by the time we understand the realities of life – its too late. So its simple –
Think and Act !!
