Can you now explain Maslow's hierarchy of needs?
Maslow's hierarchy of needs is a model for understanding the motivations for human behavior. It maps different motivations onto a pyramid, with each level representing a different human need. These include physiological needs, safety, love and belonging, esteem, and self-actualization.
From the bottom of the hierarchy upwards, the needs are: physiological (food and clothing), safety (job security), love and belonging needs (friendship), esteem, and self-actualization. Needs lower down in the hierarchy must be satisfied before individuals can attend to needs higher up.
Maslow's hierarchy of needs is a theory of motivation which states that five categories of human needs dictate an individual's behavior. Those needs are physiological needs, safety needs, love and belonging needs, esteem needs, and self-actualization needs.
The bottom two levels are physiological needs and safety needs which, together, make up basic needs. Next are social and esteem needs—also referred to as psychological needs. Self-actualization needs are at the top level of Maslow's pyramid.
This theory – invented by Abraham Maslow in 1943 – could be useful for your everyday life. The idea is that our needs range from the very basic, such as the things required for our survival, through to higher goals such as altruism and spirituality.
According to Abraham Maslow it is not possible to skip a level of the Hierarchy of Needs. That is why it is important to fulfil the need that has been skipped or lost at a later date. The lowest level of Maslow's hierarchy of needs is the foundation of the pyramid.
Self-actualization
One of the keys to making sure this need is met is giving employees opportunities that allow them to succeed. Supervisors should focus on their employees' skills and abilities, helping them look for ways to advance their careers without pushing them into roles that will not be good fits.
- Offer support to complete new tasks.
- Give staff and employees a challenge.
- Work should be made interesting.
- Encourage people to think for themselves.
- Keep people informed.
- Ask people what motivates them.
- Stretch people with new work.
- Offer training where possible.
Self-actualization needs are the highest level on Maslow's pyramid of needs. These needs include realizing your potential, self-fulfillment, self-development, and peak experiences. Self-actualization is the desire to accomplish all that you can and unleash all your potential.
The pyramid is based on the idea that certain basic needs must be met before individuals can progress up the hierarchy to more complex needs. The hierarchy places physiological needs at the bottom, followed by safety, then belongingness and love, onto esteem, and lastly, self-actualization.
What is self-actualization examples?
(Maslow, 1943). Extrapolating from this quote, we can see self-actualization in examples like: An artist who has never made a profit on his art, but he still paints because it is fulfilling and makes him happy. A woman who finds joy in achieving mastery in a niche hobby.
Higher esteem needs might include the desire for physical strength, knowledge, competence, independence and freedom. Lower esteem needs might include status, recognition, fame, celebrity, prestige and any form of attention.

The hierarchy of needs shows the general progression of pursuits for people once survival and comfort are assured into the spiritual, the creative and or intellectual. The levels of the hierarchy, starting from the base of the pyramid are: Physiological needs - These are biological requirements for human survival.
But the most powerful motivator of all is fear. Fear is a primal instinct that served us as cave dwellers and still serves us today. It keeps us alive, because if we survive a bad experience, we never forget how to avoid it in the future. Our most vivid memories are born in fear.
People are motivated in their professional lives by certain factors, including money, recognition, power, passion and meaning. These factors can have a major influence on productivity, and an employee might rely on one or more of these areas to foster a passion for their work.
McClelland's Human Motivation Theory states that every person has one of three main driving motivators: the needs for achievement, affiliation, or power. These motivators are not inherent; we develop them through our culture and life experiences. Achievers like to solve problems and achieve goals.
Maslow argued that the failure to have needs met at various stages of the hierarchy could lead to illness, particularly psychiatric illness or mental health issues. Individuals whose physiological needs are not met may die or become extremely ill. When safety needs are not met, posttraumatic stress may occur.
Maslow proposed that motivation is the result of a person's attempt at fulfilling five basic needs: physiological, safety, social, esteem and self-actualization. According to Maslow, these needs can create internal pressures that can influence a person's behavior.
Unmet needs can lead to feelings of resentment, anger, confusion, disappointment, frustration, hopelessness, irritation, sadness, loneliness and embarrassment. Communication gets a lot easier if we fully understand what our needs are. Asking for what we need is not a selfish act. It actually enriches our life.
Maslow's quote refers to self-actualization, which is the highest level or stage in his model of human motivation: the 'Hierarchy of Needs'. According to the hierarchy of needs, self-actualization represents the highest-order motivations, which drive us to realize our true potential and achieve our 'ideal self'.
What are the negatives of Maslow's theory?
The main weaknesses of Maslow's theory are that it fails to acknowledge that humans come from different cultural and social backgrounds and that people can be motivated by intrinsic rewards. Additionally, achievement of needs can not be measured empirically.
Instead, our need for self actualization is intrinsic, and self-actualization itself can be a seen as a cluster of related "growth needs" that can be individual to each person. Over the course of a lifetime, and even within the confines of a single day, learners can move up and down Maslow's pyramid.
For many people, having a job is the most effective way to generate the income that they need to provide for their own physiological needs. When people do have access to an income, they need to budget that income in such a way that they prioritize their physiological needs like food, shelter, and medical care.
Physiological Needs
These include the most basic needs of any human that are necessary for survival, such as food, water, shelter, warmth, clothing, and sleep. To Maslow, these are the primary needs of any person. They, therefore, must be met before motivation to achieve any other needs arises.
#1: Physiological Needs
Physiological needs are the lowest level of Maslow's hierarchy of needs. They are the most essential things a person needs to survive. They include the need for shelter, water, food, warmth, rest, and health. A person's motivation at this level derives from their instinct to survive.
In Maslow's theory, employees whose lowest-level needs have not been met will make decisions based on compensation, safety, or stability concerns. So it is vital that HR professionals ensure that these needs are fulfilled before others further up the pyramid.
LEVEL 1: Physical Survival Needs
The first and most basic of all needs are those to do with physical survival. This is the need for food, drink, shelter, sleep and oxygen. If a person cannot satisfy this basic survival need it dominates their interest and concern.
Self-actualization, in Maslow's hierarchy of needs, is the highest level of psychological development, where personal potential is fully realized after basic bodily and ego needs have been fulfilled.
According to SDT there are three psychological needs (autonomy, competence, relatedness) that are universally important for psychological wellbeing and autonomous motivation. You can think of these universal needs in the same way you think of physiological needs (e.g. hunger, thirst, sleep).
- Why Is It Important To Fulfill Your Basic Needs?
- Eat Well.
- Drink Water.
- Get Your Sleep.
- Exercise Regularly.
- Go to the Doctor.
- Practice Meditation.
- Speak up for Yourself.
What did Maslow's hierarchy of needs teach us?
Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs is a popular motivation theory that is widely referred to in educational circles. In this theory, Abraham Maslow suggested that before individuals meet their full potential, they need to satisfy a series of needs.
Examples include air, food, water, shelter, clothing, warmth, sex and sleep. Safety needs – Examples include protection from elements, security, order, law and stability. Love and belongingness needs – These are the first of social needs, involving the desire for interpersonal relationships and being part of a group.
- Practice acceptance. Learning to accept what comes — as it comes — can help you achieve self-actualization. ...
- Live spontaneously. ...
- Get comfortable with your own company. ...
- Appreciate the small things in life. ...
- Live authentically. ...
- Develop compassion. ...
- Talk to a therapist.
#1: Physiological Needs
They are the most essential things a person needs to survive. They include the need for shelter, water, food, warmth, rest, and health. A person's motivation at this level derives from their instinct to survive.
Self-actualization needs are the highest level on Maslow's pyramid of needs. These needs include realizing your potential, self-fulfillment, self-development, and peak experiences.
– Abraham Maslow
When all levels of Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs are met, students show their full ability and eagerness for learning. The higher up in the hierarchy a student is, the better the motivation and therefore the student will experience more effective learning.
Self-actualization, the fifth and highest level in Maslow's hierarchy of needs, is also the most difficult to achieve. Maslow regards self-actualization as an ever-ongoing process.