SELF-ACTUALIZATION BY ABRAHAM MASLOW

Self-Actualization by Abraham Maslow

Self-Actualization by Abraham Maslow

Introduction

Although popularized by Abraham Maslow, the concept of “self-actualization” was originally introduced by Kurt Goldstein, a physician specializing in neuro anatomy and psychiatry in the early half of the 20th century. As conceived by Goldstein, self-actualization is the ultimate goal of all organisms. It is the process of an organism fulfilling all of its capacities to become what it is biologically intended to be. Goldstein saw all behaviors and drives as manifestations of this overarching motivation.

While many social theorists resist the notion that humans are driven by innate forces, the term need is well established in everyday use and various traditions of social and economic thought and practice. Need can be explicitly normative, pointing to conditions to be met for human beings to be healthy, happy, free, fully human, fulfilling their potentials, and so on. Such needs do not necessarily become wants, because people may not know that particular conditions are required, or may reject the struggle to be more fulfilled (having decided that it is easier, less painful, or more rewarding to settle for immediate gratification). One critique of consumer culture is that it creates wants (e.g., for junk food) detrimental to satisfaction of needs (for health, etc.). Proponents of consumer sovereignty, seeing this as “we know better than you do what is good for you” elitism, argue that people should be free to satisfy their needs through the exercise of consumer choice. (Though when it comes to children, adults often believe that they know best—hence efforts to restrict advertisements aimed at creating new wants among children.)

Description and Analysis

The “hierarchy of needs” approach assumes that certain lower-level needs have to be satisfied (at least to some extent) before higher-level ones can emerge or be addressed. Designers often employ such an approach when considering requirements that should be fulfilled for the product to be used at all, as opposed to those required for more sophisticated use. More broadly, the best-known generic approach, and the one that has done most to popularize ideas of a needs hierarchy, is that developed by Abraham Maslow. Maslow's account of individual psychological motivation was developed from examining normal and particularly accomplished people, in contrast to the more dysfunctional or troubled individuals emphasized in psychiatry and psychoanalytically inspired psychology. His framework has proved popular among management and market researchers for several decades, though it has little traction among professional psychologists.

Maslow modified his model throughout his career, though core features remained fairly stable. The hierarchy is presented as a triangle, with the basic needs at the base and more sophisticated ones at the apex. As the more basic needs (Maslow described them as deficit needs) are satisfied, the foundation is established for higher-level ones (growth or meta-needs) to be pursued. Basic needs take priority over the higher needs: extreme hunger or insecurity is liable to dampen interest in one's appearance or the availability of good music. When deficit needs are threatened, people who have become used to functioning at ...