Maslow's pyramid 5. Maslow's pyramid - a diagram of human needs

Maslow first introduced his concept of the hierarchy of needs in his 1943 paper “A Theory of Human Motivation” and in his subsequent book “Motivation and Personality.” This hierarchy suggests that people are motivated to fulfill basic needs before moving on to other, more advanced needs.

While some of the existing schools of human personality (psychoanalysis and behaviorism) tended to focus on problem behavior, Maslow was much more interested in studying what makes people happy and what they do to achieve this goal.

As a humanist, Maslow believed that people have an innate desire to be self-actualized, that is, to be all that they can be. However, to achieve these ultimate goals, a number of more basic needs must be satisfied, such as the need for food, security, love and self-esteem.

There are five different levels of hierarchy Maslow's needs. Let's take a closer look at Maslow's needs, starting from the lowest level, which are known as physiological needs.

From basic to more complex needs

Maslow's hierarchy is most often depicted as a pyramid. The lowest levels of the pyramid consist of the most basic needs, while the most complex needs are at the top of the pyramid.

The needs at the bottom of the pyramid are the basic physical requirements, including the need for food, water, sleep and warmth. Once these lower level needs are satisfied, people can move on to the next level of safety and security needs.

As people move up the pyramid, needs become more psychological and social. Soon the need for love, friendship and intimacy becomes important. Further up the pyramid, the need for personal dignity and a sense of accomplishment take priority.

Like Carl Rogers, Maslow emphasized the importance of self-actualization, which is the process of growing and developing as an individual to achieve individual potential.

Deficiency needs and growth needs

Maslow believed that these needs are similar to instincts and play a major role in motivating behavior. Physiological, safety, social security and esteem needs are deficit needs that arise due to deprivation Deprivation (Latin deprivatio - loss, deprivation) - reduction or complete deprivation of the ability to satisfy basic needs - psychophysiological or social.. Satisfying these lower-level needs is important in order to avoid unpleasant feelings or consequences.

Maslow called the highest level of the pyramid growth needs. These needs do not stem from a lack of something, but rather from a desire to grow as a person.

Although the theory is usually portrayed as a fairly rigid hierarchy, Maslow noted that the order in which these needs are fulfilled does not always follow this standard progression. For example, he noted that for some people the need for self-esteem is more important than the need for love. For others, the need for creative fulfillment can crowd out even the most basic needs.

Physiological needs

Basic physiological needs are probably pretty obvious - these are things that are vital to our survival. Some examples of physiological needs include:

• Breath
• Homeostasis

In addition to the basic requirements of food, air and temperature regulation, physiological needs also include things such as shelter and clothing. Maslow also included sexual reproduction to this level of the hierarchy of needs, since it has important for the survival and spread of the species.

Safety and security needs

As you move into the second level of Maslow's hierarchy of needs, the requirements begin to become a little more complex. At this level, safety and security needs become a priority. People want control and order in their lives, so this need for safety and security greatly contributes to behavior at this level.

Some of the basic security needs include:

• Financial support
• Health and wellness
• Safety from accidents and injuries

Finding a job, obtaining health insurance and medical assistance, depositing money into a Savings Account, and moving to a safer area are all examples of actions motivated by safety and security needs.

Together, the safety and physiological levels of the hierarchy constitute what is often called basic needs.

Social needs

Social needs in Maslow's hierarchy include things like love, acceptance and belonging. At this level, the need for emotional relationships determines human behavior. Some of the things that satisfy this need include:

• Friendly contacts
• Romantic attachments
• Family
• Social groups
• Community Groups
• Churches and religious organizations

To avoid problems such as loneliness, depression and anxiety, it is important that people feel loved and accepted by others. Personal relationships with friends, family and lovers play important role, as well as participation in other groups, which may include religious groups, sports teams, book clubs and other group activities.

Need for respect

The fourth level in Maslow's hierarchy is the need for appreciation and respect. When the needs at the lower three levels are satisfied, respect begins to play a more prominent role in motivating behavior.

At this stage, it becomes increasingly important to earn the respect and appreciation of others. People have a need to achieve something and then have their efforts recognized.

In addition to the need for a sense of accomplishment and prestige, esteem needs include such things as self-esteem and personal worth. People need to feel valued by others and feel like they are making a contribution to the world. Participation in professional activity, academic achievement, sports or team participation, and personal hobbies may play a role in satisfying esteem needs.

People who are able to satisfy their esteem needs by achieving good self-esteem and recognition from others tend to feel confident in their abilities. Those who lack self-esteem and respect for others may develop feelings of inferiority.

Together, respect and social levels constitute what is known as psychological needs hierarchy.

Needs for self-realization

At the very top of Maslow's hierarchy are the needs for self-actualization. “What a person can be, he must be,” Maslow explained, referring to the need for people to achieve their full potential as human beings.

According to Maslow's definition of self-actualization:

“It can be roughly described as full use talents, abilities, opportunities, etc. Such people seem to realize themselves and do the best that they are capable of doing... These are people who have developed or are developing to the level of which they are capable.”

Self-actualizing people are self-aware, care about personal growth, care less about the opinions of others, and are interested in realizing their potential.

Critique of Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs

Maslow's theory has become wildly popular both within and outside of psychology. The theory has been particularly affected by the fields of education and business. Despite its popularity, Maslow's concept was not without criticism.

The main ones:

Needs do not necessarily follow a hierarchy

Although some studies have shown some support for Maslow's theories, most studies have failed to substantiate the idea of ​​a hierarchy of needs. Wahba and Bridgewell reported that there was little evidence of Maslow's ranking of needs and even less evidence that these needs were in a hierarchical order.

The theory is difficult to test

Other critics of Maslow's theory have noted that his definition of self-actualization is difficult to test scientifically. His research on self-actualization was also based on a very limited sample of people, including people he knew, as well as biographies famous people, whom Maslow considered self-actualized.

So why was Maslow's hierarchy of needs so influential?

Regardless of these criticisms, Maslow's hierarchy of needs represents part of an important shift in psychology. Rather than focusing on abnormal behavior and development, humanistic psychology Maslow was focused on developing healthy people.

Although there has been relatively little research to support the theory, the hierarchy of needs is well known and popular both within and outside of psychology. In a study published in 2011, researchers at the University of Illinois set out to test the hierarchy.

They found that although need satisfaction was closely related to happiness, people from various cultures around the world reported that self-actualization and social needs were important even when many of the most basic needs were not met.

Such results indicate that although these needs can be powerful motivators of human behavior, they do not necessarily take the hierarchical form described by Maslow.

Sources: ☰

All materials are for informational purposes only.

Model modern system material motivation

The problem of labor motivation is one of the most pressing problems facing modern Russian enterprises. As a rule, domestic managers consider the motivation system as a tool based on personal payments to the employee. In the vast majority of Russian enterprises, the motivation system is inseparable from the wage fund calculation system, one of the best options of which can be graphically reflected as (Fig. 1):

Figure 1 Scheme for calculating payroll (material incentives).

According to accepted motivation systems at domestic enterprises, an employee receives:

• Basic salary depending on the hierarchical level of management;
• Awards and bonuses based on the performance of the unit for the reporting period;
• Prizes and bonuses based on the results of the employee’s personal activities (personal bonuses and additional payments for the implementation of projects, commissions, support for students, etc.);
• Awards and bonuses based on the performance of the organization as a whole (annual bonuses);

Options that are relevant mainly for Western countries are not considered in this model, although they carry both material and moral incentives. Russia, unfortunately, is not yet ready to adequately perceive the concept of a “people's enterprise”; the risks and profits of entrepreneurial and managerial activities are still too authorized in the mind.

In addition, the diagram in Fig. 1 does not reflect the components of the “compensation package” that came to us with Western companies. In general, the “compensation package” is a system of material incentives (Fig. 1) plus additional benefits ( organizational events) Fig. 2 and additional incentives for employees Fig. 3.

Figure 2 Composition of benefits applied by Russian companies (in %%).

Figure 3 Additional incentive measures used by Russian companies (in%%)

In fairness, it should be noted that %% Russian companies in Fig. 2 and Fig. 3, using certain benefits and incentives for employees, were determined during a survey of companies that announced the use of a “compensation package”. The sample can hardly be considered representative; its nature is rather qualitative. Most Russian enterprises use a motivation system similar to that shown in Fig. 1. This motivation scheme (Fig. 1) is quite effective due to the low standard of living, and, for most enterprises, remains relevant. However, for example, in the Moscow market, despite the external logic and balance of the scheme in Fig. 1, it is gradually losing its effectiveness.

This is due to the following factors: Firstly, with regular payment of bonuses, commissions and bonuses, the value and motivating impact sharply decreases - the employee gets used to them and regards them as a form of wages, and any reduction in such essentially additional payments is perceived as humiliation on the part of the employer.

Secondly, the initial motivating effect of the variable part of remuneration, as a rule, motivates the employee’s creativity. But, in practice, active creativity is almost never required by the employer. Creativity is perceived as an annoying misunderstanding that interferes with ongoing regular work. Creativity, from the point of view of the modern Russian owner-manager, can be shown either by the owner himself or by the top manager, because they and only they “know better and are responsible.” A conflict arises based on mutual misunderstanding, the motivating influence is compensated by a negative attitude towards creative impulses.

The decrease in the effectiveness of motivational schemes according to Fig. 1 forces the employer to look for new methods of motivating staff. In this case, as a rule, moral “motivators” are not taken into account, since it is not entirely clear why they should be used. The only moral method of motivation traditionally used in Russia is the method of personal communication. The “moral rewards” indicated in Fig. 3 in 85% of cases come down to personal praise and in 10% of cases – to praise (certificate, gratitude, etc.) in front of colleagues. Again, percentages are based on a sample that cannot be considered representative. Thus, the main moral factor is personal communication. There are several motivating factors in this case (the list can be continued):

• The factor of attention and protection from the top manager - there is someone to talk to, there is someone to test your ideas on, there is someone to “cry into your vest” and ask for protection;
• The “guy guy” factor - you want to work with such a leader, you want to support him and indecently deceive him;
• The factor of involvement - proximity to the decision-making center, advanced information and possession of confidential information significantly raises the status of the employee;
• Influence factor - close contacts with the decision-making center provoke the “adviser syndrome”, in which the employee seeks to exert an emotional or intellectual influence on the decisions made. If this succeeds, the employee begins to influence the manager in order to strengthen his status, giving himself weight as the leader of an informal group, perhaps not even formed yet.

In general, Russian traditions of moral stimulation are aptly reflected by the term “access to the body.” As shown above, such motivation methods pose a serious threat to business, since the influence of employees on the manager is not related to the effectiveness of the business system as a whole, but only reflects the desire of certain specialists to strengthen their status in the enterprise.

Praise in front of colleagues - in other words, a call for public recognition of an employee's merits - is beginning to become increasingly popular among domestic managers. This is due to the fact that this type of incentive carries several factors that can be used in management:

• Status factor - if an employee is publicly praised, it means that this employee becomes closer to the manager and receives the moral right to some kind of leading position;
• Team factor - the one who has been publicly encouraged begins to feel like a member of the “team”, he develops a sense of responsibility for the overall result;
• Singling factor - by praising someone, the manager destroys the informal connections of such an employee, especially if the employee was singled out against the backdrop of a negative attitude towards the rest of the group;
• Goal-setting factor - public praise, in fact, is a reflection of the leader’s goals and shows employees the “line of the party and government.”

This list can also be continued, which will not be difficult for an experienced manager.

Other methods of moral motivation and labor stimulation, by the way, have proven themselves well in Soviet time, unfortunately, are not considered by domestic entrepreneurs and managers due to a lack of understanding of their applicability and uncertainty about their effectiveness. Further sections are devoted to consideration of the role and place, but not the practice of application, of non-material methods of motivating personnel.

A. Maslow's hierarchy of needs theory

Abraham Maslow's theory of hierarchy of needs, sometimes called Maslow's “pyramid” or “ladder,” is a fundamental theory recognized by management scholars around the world. In his theory, Maslow divided human needs into five main levels according to a hierarchical principle, which means that when satisfying his needs, a person moves like a ladder, moving from a low level to a higher one (Fig. 4).

Figure 4 Hierarchy of needs (Maslow's pyramid).

Despite the obvious beauty and logic of the theory of the hierarchy of needs, A. Maslow himself noted in his letters that the theory that made him famous is applicable to understanding the needs of humanity as a whole, as a philosophical generalization, but in no way can be used in relation to a specific individual.

However, despite the author’s confidence in the inapplicability of his theory to real people, Maslow’s hierarchy of needs theory has already survived thousands (and maybe tens of thousands) of attempts to apply it to real life as a basis for building a system of motivation and stimulation of work. None of these attempts were successful due to each person's individual and unique value system. Indeed, a hungry artist experiencing hunger, i.e. “physiological need lower level”, will not stop painting his pictures, i.e. satisfy a “higher-level need.” Thus, a higher-level need is not always a logical (hierarchical) continuation of lower-level needs.

To solve the “starving artist problem,” many researchers have used different classifications of needs (motivating factors) into separate groups. To the famous basic theories can be attributed:

• “Theory of SVR” by Alderfer, who divided needs into existence needs “C”, interconnection needs “B” and growth needs “P”. The movement between needs can occur both “up” and “down”. A “starving artist” can be described in this way, but to construct unified system, applicable to a real group of people, one must describe the values ​​of each of them, which is very labor-intensive. In addition, a person's value system changes throughout life, and such descriptions should be repeated;
• “The Theory of Acquired Needs” by McKelland, who identified three groups of needs acquired by a person with experience - the need for involvement, the need for success and the need for power. These are higher-level needs that exist in parallel and independently of each other. Due to their parallelism and independence, “detuning” from the hierarchy is achieved, i.e. consistency, but the disadvantage of this theory is its applicability exclusively to the top management of the organization;
• “Motivational-hygienic theory” of Herzberg, who identified two groups of factors – “hygienic” and “motivating”, which practically repeats the hierarchy of needs. In addition, the results of exposure to hygiene and motivating factors are different for different individuals, and the boundaries between them are blurred. Despite significant contributions to the understanding of motivation, “ hygiene theory” has remained a purely theoretical contribution to specialists’ understanding of the fundamentals of management. In fairness, it should be noted that Herzberg’s theory became the basis for a large number of other motivational theories, which can be summarized by the term “hygienic”.

The list of theories can be continued, but, one way or another, the vast majority of authors (Adams, Porter, Lawrence, Vroom, Locke, Griffin, Hackman, Oldham, etc.) come to the conclusion that motivating factors, needs and expectations exist in parallel, not contradicting each other, but being mutually complementary, and for each individual the combination of motivation factors and needs is unique. Researchers interested in a more thorough study of these theories should first pay attention to the school of L.S. Vygotsky, an undeservedly forgotten major Russian psychologist of the beginning of the century (which is why he was forgotten - after the coup of 1917, other theories of motivation were considered), who first put forward the assumption of the parallelism and independence of motivating factors. Vygotsky’s school is continued by his modern followers in Russia, which gives hope for the development of national theories of motivation that reflect the mentality of the domestic worker.

A feature of all the above, unspecified and new approaches to modeling the system of motivation and stimulation of work is an attempt to connect motivating factors that can be initiated by both moral and material incentives.

It should be noted that this problem can be solved within the framework of the application of Maslow's model.

Transformation of “Maslow’s pyramid”

To mutually harmonize the ideas that developed and supplemented the hierarchical theory of needs, including Vygotsky’s theory of the parallelism and independence of motivating factors, and to simultaneously consider the impact of moral and material incentive systems, it is proposed to consider the typical state of motivation systems in enterprises.

The abundance of theories and approaches that have a certain commonality can be integrated into a certain unified conceptual system only by modeling the existing state of certain real objects, which will make it possible to identify the essence common to all theories and approaches, “filtering out” disagreements and discrepancies. To do this, it is convenient to use “Maslow’s pyramid”, as the most complete from the point of view of a conceptual or generalized description of needs.

For the purpose of such modeling, which allows us to determine the place and role of moral and material stimulants, it is convenient to use the “Maslow pyramid”, rotated by 90° (Fig. 5).

With this transformation of “Maslow’s pyramid” we will get a diagram of the number (volume) of needs satisfied by an organization with a standard (Fig. 1) remuneration system. The rationale for the correctness of this approach is that any organization is a reflection of society, for which “Maslow’s pyramid” is valid, an imperative.

Figure 5 Transformation of Maslow's pyramid

Figure 5 gives us a fundamentally different understanding of the tasks of the organization’s personnel motivation systems. The validity and consistency of the theories of Vygotsky, Vroom, Porter, Herzberg, Adams and others tells us that the organization must provide parallel motivation across the entire spectrum of motivating factors - from higher to lower (according to Maslow).

Application of Maslow's pyramid

Parallel motivation involves giving the management system such characteristics that would allow any employee to receive satisfaction in all categories of needs specified in Maslow’s theory. Thus, the contradictions between hierarchical theories and theories of parallelism of needs are removed.

Undoubtedly, each employee has his own value system, which determines a unique set and balance of motivating factors. Therefore, the motivation system in the organization should provide employees with the widest and most flexible choice of motivating means, within the framework of which each employee chooses for himself what is of the highest value to him.

This approach usually faces the bewilderment of managers - “well, invest money and resources in turning the organization into a social organization, or a circle.” Skillful hands? Not at all. The goals of the incentive system must correspond to the goals of the enterprise, firstly (and, if the enterprise needs it, a cutting and sewing circle should be created), and secondly, they must provide for providing the functions, processes and procedures of the enterprise with necessary and sufficient competencies. And as part of attracting and retaining competencies, it is necessary to provide the most comfortable working conditions for the employee - both in terms of meeting the “physiological” needs and across the entire spectrum of Maslow’s pyramid.

Thus, the main task of the motivation system should be to transform the “triangle” of Maslow’s inverted pyramid into a rectangle, i.e. giving equal incentive weights to all factors influencing a person’s motivation in an organization (Fig. 4).

Figure 6 Graphic display of the objectives of the motivation system

When considering the resulting model (Fig. 5 and Fig. 6), the tasks of various activities that make up the control object of the system of motivation and labor stimulation appear clearly. Moreover, the place and role of organizational, moral and material factors stimulating work can be reflected graphically (Fig. 7).

Figure 7 Place and role of labor incentive factors.

Some needs can and should be satisfied only materially, some only morally, but the overwhelming majority of needs can only be satisfied by a combination of moral (including organizational, i.e., obviously inherent in the management system) and material factors. At the same time, it is important that various categories workers must be motivated in different ways. The ratio of moral and material incentives for the accounting department and the sales department should be fundamentally different. The determination of this ratio lies in the careful formulation of the goals of a specific department or employee in the context of the overall goals of the company. Since there are many employees, and goal setting for each of them should be in line with the overall goals of the organization, it is logical to assume the existence of a certain common system motivation applicable to every employee. Factors stimulating and motivating work can be classified according to the formulation of needs in Maslow’s hierarchy:

• The need for self-expression. One of the most critical needs. It is known that creativity is a “meta-motivator” on a par with “the search for truth”, “service to others” and “tutelage”. Such “meta-motivators” must be kept under control, or even better, managed. To solve this problem you should use:
  • Organizational levers (line 1), such as assigning responsibilities to top managers and creative specialists to work (participate) in commissions, councils, committees or working groups, conducting project work;
  • Intangible (line 2) methods of stimulating personnel in terms of forming clubs, circles, teams, amateur theaters, etc. Unfortunately, many managers do not consider this an effective investment of money. However, the formation of common goals (sports, competitive, constructive, creative, etc.) significantly affects the overall team spirit of the team, unites and motivates it.
  • Material methods (line 3) - stimulation of rationalization and invention (BRIZ of blessed memory), quality circles, support for significant events in the life of an employee, gifts, etc. When an employee's creative contribution is fairly assessed, his loyalty and desire to work for the company increases significantly.
• The need for respect and recognition. Basically, this need exists among company management, for whom driving force is the status. It is characteristic that the main motivating (or demotivating) effect comes mainly from comparison with employees of a neighboring enterprise. To manage this need, you should apply:
  • Organizational levers (line 1), showing the manager the possibility of professional growth and achieving a higher social position (status), which is the main thing when stimulating managers;
  • Intangible levers (line 2), such as job title (status), honorary membership in various associations, publication of articles, use at exhibitions as a company representative, titles of the best in the profession, certificates and gratitude, vouchers, social sphere etc.;
  • Material methods (line 3) – stimulation of employee activity, competitive level of remuneration, support for significant events in the employee’s life, gifts, etc.
  • Image levers (PR, line 4) - the general image of the company, bureaucratic accessories with the name or sign of the company, the status of a successful employee modern enterprise, prestige.
• The need to belong to a certain social group, involvement, support. This factor is important for all employees of the organization, while in the minds of different employees there may be different goals. social groups, to which they would like to belong. As part of managing this factor, the following applies:
  • Intangible levers (line 2), such as participation in management (even if only visible), a feedback system with managers, meetings with management, participation in amateur or social movements, creative teams or interest groups, honorary membership in various associations, publication of articles, use at exhibitions as a company representative, title of the best in the profession, certificates and gratitude, travel vouchers, social sphere, etc.;
  • Material methods (line 3) – stimulation of employee activity, competitive level of remuneration, support for significant events in the employee’s life, gifts, material aid at critical moments of life, insurance for significant amounts, payment for medications, etc.
  • Image levers (PR, line 4) - the general image of the company, the status of an employee of a successful modern enterprise, the prestige of work, corporate events and holidays.
  • Organizational levers (line 5) – informing the public about the long-term prospects of the company’s activities, training staff, giving stability to jobs and prospects for professional growth.
• Need for safety and protection. An important factor that significantly influences employee loyalty, commitment to the organization and persistence during critical periods. To manage this need you need to use:
  • Material methods (line 3) - a competitive level of remuneration that allows you to make insured material savings, a “white” salary (allowing you to attract long-term loans - but this is a separate topic), support for significant events in the life of an employee, gifts, material assistance at critical moments in life , insurance for significant amounts, payment for medications, etc.
  • Image levers (PR, line 4) - a general publicly recognizable image of a strong and dynamic company, lifetime honorary social status of an employee of a successful modern enterprise and its support, corporate events and holidays.
  • Organizational levers (line 5) – informing the public and the team about the long-term prospects of the company’s activities, training staff, giving stability to jobs and prospects for professional growth.
• Physiological needs. Basis for conclusion labor agreements. It is necessary to understand that the term “physiological needs” must mean something more than the conditions of a concentration camp or ITU. Civilization has significantly increased those needs that Maslow called “physiological.” Moreover, there is a division of such needs by country and region. For modern definition such needs, the concept “ social status” a worker of a certain qualification, taking into account historical conditions in a particular labor market. But this is another story, not included in the scope of the issues under consideration. To manage this need you should:
  • Form material incentives (line 3) in such a way that the average material assessment of an employee’s work is not lower than what exists on the market for a specialist of his qualifications. There is another approach related to the market definition of the material component of motivation. If we take the amount of work required by the company as 100%, then the execution of 75% should be paid within the average market cost of a specialist. In other words, the average performance (in terms of volume and quality) of work must correspond to the average salary level of such a specialist. A reserve for the volume of work, and, accordingly, remuneration, will allow us to create healthy competition and attract those who are ready to perform 100% or more, while earning more than a similar specialist in another company.

Undoubtedly, the above roles and tasks of moral and material factors of stimulation and motivation of work are only a hypothesis based on the study of the successful application of various motivational schemes. It is obvious that within the framework of the motivation system, organizational, “image” moral and material levers intersect, which makes it difficult to “purely” isolate them. However, their designation is of fundamental importance for designing a combination of moral and material incentive methods.

The disadvantage of the proposed approach is the failure to take into account such important factor employee behavior as freedom of choice. However, it is obvious that a worker in a free employment market is more likely to choose an enterprise that uses both material and moral methods of motivation and stimulation of work than an enterprise that provides vague and vague information about the motivation system used. But this is also a topic for separate consideration.

Maslow's pyramid of needs is a visual representation of human needs in the form of a hierarchical pyramid. Based on the works of Abraham Harold Maslow, an American psychologist and founder of humanistic verse.

The main idea of ​​Maslow's pyramid theory:

• Each stage is a level of need.
• A more increased need to be is lower, and a less pronounced need is higher.
• It is impossible to satisfy a higher need without satisfying, at least partially, the lower one.
• As needs are satisfied, desires—the needs of a person—shift to a level, step, higher.

Description of Maslow's pyramid:

1. Physiology– base needs of the body aimed at its vital activity (hunger, sleep, sexual desire, etc.)
2. Safety– the need to be sure that nothing threatens life.
3. Sociality– the need for contact with others and one’s own role in society (friendship, love, belonging to a certain nationality, experiencing mutual feelings...)
4. Confession– respect, recognition by society of his success, the usefulness of his role in the life of such a society.
5. Cognition– satisfying a person’s natural curiosity (to know, prove, be able to and study...)
6. Aesthetics– internal need and motivation to follow the truth (a subjective concept of how everything should be).
7. I– the need for self-realization, self-actualization, the highest mission of one’s existence, spiritual need, the highest role of a person in humanity, understanding one’s meaning of existence... (the list is very large - Maslow’s pyramid of needs - is often used by many people and “spiritual” organizations, with different systems worldviews and the elite put their highest concept of the meaning of human existence).

Important Note. It is very easy to characterize the most basic need, and just as easy to satisfy it. After all, anyone can answer what to do to make a person well-fed. But as the height of the position increases, it becomes more and more difficult to answer what is needed to satisfy this particular need. For example, on step 4: recognition– some people only need to win the respect of their parents, while others crave public fame. There will no longer be a universal answer for everyone.

Controversial, disadvantages of the pyramid of needs

Firstly, myself I didn't invent the pyramid Mr. Abraham Maslow, and marketing companies that train their employees to increase sales. Maslow himself devoted half his life to studying human needs. It turns out that this is - a primitive diagram of his works.

She can't stand it constructive criticism. For example, a person fasting (religious fasting) contradicts its concept.

This is a theory, and not an axiom - theories must be proven; proving the pyramid of needs is quite difficult. How to prove - if there is no definite universal tool for every person - "consumer meter"(how to measure the strength of a need?).

Positive aspects of Maslow's pyramid

She is very popular– studied everywhere in universities. It is used both in production - for personnel (even for organizing an employee’s workplace), in trade (searching for supply and demand), in trainings...

She is simple and concise– it is used in the absence of a more convenient theory of needs.

It's universal– suitable for different social organizations.

She's like a prototype– its revised “improved” versions are often found in various psychological concepts.

The history of the creation of Maslow's pyramid of needs. Conjectural thought

In general, I was looking at the pyramid - I had the feeling that this had already been seen somewhere.

A. Maslow himself mentioned that the transition from one need to another is a person’s life (by the age of 50 to the 7th step), but, in my opinion, it is still simpler:

Stages 1 and 2 (physiology and safety): these are the first years of the baby - all his needs are limited to food and the presence of his mother.

Stages 3 and 4 (social needs and recognition): the child has already grown up - he attracts all attention to himself; wants to be taken into account.

Stage 5 (cognition): period of “why”.

Stage 6 (aesthetics): adolescence - understanding what is good and what is bad.

Stage 7 (I - self-actualization): adolescence - maximalism, search - why I live.

P.S. I wanted to experimentally confirm this theory using the example of search queries from Yandex and Google. The idea itself: the higher the level (and the corresponding request), the less they look for it. The idea was partly a success (for example, the word [God] is searched for 1,000 times less than - [piiii...], cut out by censorship), but the problem arose in the objectivity of the evidence.

Reflections and thoughts regarding human needs were expressed by Democritus of Abdera (ancient Greek philosopher, 400 BC). He believed that needs underlie everything we have: intelligence, strength, development. Only many centuries later Maslow decided to understand in more detail what was behind what. Why we do what we do. What motivates us and what we strive for.

1. What is Maslow’s pyramid of needs

Maslow's pyramid of needs is a theory that describes human needs in the form of hierarchy levels (from primitive to spiritual). main idea is that a person cannot experience the need for more high level, until it satisfies the basic (physical) ones. Initially, this hierarchy was called “motivation theory” or “hierarchy theory”

American psychologist Abraham Maslow (1908-1970) developed his theory in 1950 ( latest version was written in the book "Motivation and Personality", 1954). But the general public started talking about it only in the 1970s. At the same time, the author himself did not present his theory in the form of a “pyramid”.

Subsequently, many marketing publications referred to Maslow's research.

Maslow developed the hierarchy of needs to understand the different motivations for human actions. Moreover, these explanations are more philosophical in nature than practical. Based on Maslow's theory, little has been achieved in practical terms in business (although he did not develop his explanation for this direction).

Maslow's pyramid itself has a stepped structure, thereby reflecting a hierarchy. After satisfying the next level, a person has new needs and tasks. In this case, it is impossible to jump from one level to another. However, in reverse side You can drop sharply from high to low.

Note

There is an exception when people are ready to engage in creativity when they have no other needs. There are very few of them.

This theory never gained practical application. Only some conclusions can be drawn, but nothing more.

2. Levels of needs in Maslow's pyramid

1 Physiological needs. These include: food, sleep, sex, oxygen, water, toilet, health. Everything that is necessary for human existence. It is believed that until these basic needs are met, a person is not able to think about anything else.

2 Security. Man is afraid of many things: cold, wild animals, fire. Therefore, we must feel protected in order to live normally. Examples could be: infant, who after feeding wants to cuddle with his mother because he is scared in this new world.

3 Love, society. Everyone strives to be loved by someone. We must also be in society, otherwise our mental condition will be on the verge of collapse. All people are social. Therefore, we must join some community, a group of people.

4 Recognition. The next step is recognition of its importance in society. Everyone takes their role and respects certain rules society, so as not to be expelled. Someone is a leader, someone is a performer, someone is a revolutionary, someone just stands on the sidelines and moves according to the inertia of the “crowd”.

5 Self-improvement, self-actualization. When a person understands why he came into this world and what his purpose is. This also includes some outstanding achievements and discoveries.

The last stage is reached by only 2% of the population (Maslow’s data).

3. A more complete version of Maslow's pyramid

Later, a second version of Maslow’s pyramid appeared, with two more levels. Its author is unknown. The modified pyramid more clearly reflects the stages of needs.

1. Physiological needs (food, water, sleep, sex)
2. Need for security (security, confidence, comfort)
3. Social affiliations (communication, attention, care, support)
4. Esteem and recognition needs (need, significance, recognition, self-esteem)
5. Creative needs (creativity, creation, discovery)
6. Aesthetic needs (love, joy, beauty)
7. Spiritual (personal development, self-actualization)

4. Criticism of Maslow's pyramid

The considered hierarchy represents only theoretical basis aspirations of most of us. In every theory, exceptions can be made and Maslow's pyramid is no exception.

Surely you yourself have met people who are very successful in career growth, successful, rich, but lonely. It's all about what is valuable to them. personal growth than love and attention. They crossed this stage, although the theory did not provide for such a situation.

A person’s need ceases to be one as soon as he is satisfied with it. For example, if we are full, we are unlikely to want to eat again. Likewise with communication, care, love, safety. A person complains about what he doesn’t have without noticing what he already has.

There have been many controversies and critics of this theory. Practical Application it never found it among the broad masses. And Maslow himself in his last works abandoned his own theory.

Scientist John Burton (1915-2010) said that for a person, all needs are equally important. This opinion also holds true and for certain citizens this approach even more accurately describes their aspirations and values.

5. Pros and cons of the hierarchy of needs

• Helps you understand your thoughts, values, and understand what stage you are at now
• Setting up values ​​in life
• Choosing a direction of activity
• Better understanding of other people in society

• This is just a theory that is difficult to translate into practice.
• There are always exceptions
• There are other visions of the value pyramid

Watch also the video about Maslow's pyramid of needs:

Related posts:

Maslow's pyramid of needs- is one of the most famous and frequently used theories about human needs. The theory of needs was first formulated by the American psychologist Abraham Maslow and most fully outlined in the book “Motivation and Personality.”

The essence of Maslow's theory of needs

The main point Maslow's theory of needs is a hierarchy of human needs depending on the importance and necessity in life. Typically, this hierarchy is visualized as a pyramid. At the base of the pyramid are the basic needs of a person, at the top are the highest needs. Without satisfying basic needs, higher ones will not be satisfied. Basic needs:

• Physiological needs - hunger, thirst, etc.
• The need for security - shelter, a sense of security, freedom from fear.
• The need for communication is to be in society, communicate with people, love.

Higher needs:

• Need for respect
• Cognitive needs
• Aesthetic needs
• The need to realize one’s goals, abilities, and develop one’s own personality.

As basic needs are satisfied, satisfaction of higher needs becomes relevant. However, it is worth noting that the satisfaction of higher needs does not necessarily follow each other, and the previous need does not necessarily have to be satisfied 100%

Application of Maslow's pyramid of needs

Maslow's pyramid of needs is widely used in personnel management and is sometimes mentioned in studies. It is primarily studied to understand that material motivation is not as important as many people believe, since it does not require significant Money. Maslow's pyramid of needs shows how much great importance It has, . Based on Maslow's theory of needs, intangible needs are almost never 100% satisfied. And their satisfaction takes much longer than the satisfaction of material needs. Material needs can be attributed to hygiene factors based .

Criticism of Maslow's theory

Despite such great popularity Maslow's theory of needs, enough falls on her a large number of critics. It should be noted that it is very difficult to assess a person’s degree of satisfaction and understand to what extent the need is satisfied. In addition, Maslow himself noted that the need for self-actualization is satisfied no earlier than by the age of 50, that is, it is necessary to make allowances for age. That is, there is almost no way to quantify and prove the validity of Maslow’s theory of needs.

Another problem is related to the fact that Maslow himself noted that often the order of the hierarchy can change, and there are people who are not at all interested in satisfying some needs. Wherein Maslow's theory does not explain why some needs continue to be motivators after they have been satisfied.

It is worth noting that Maslow, when conducting his research, took as an example very successful and active people. Which, of course, influenced the overall picture and other larger studies are required to draw up a pyramid of needs for most people.