This week, I had an exam in the Introduction to Business course (MIE 201). In studying all week for this exam, I was able to fully immerse myself in the content, and learned about Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. This got me thinking, how can this hierarchy be applied to real life? And what happens when needs are not met? Does this lead to periods of little to no progression? While applying a concept from an introductory business course to one of life’s complex questions may seem tedious, hear me out here.
For those unfamiliar with Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, it is essentially a hierarchical structure that organizes human needs into a pyramid, with survival necessities at the bottom and increasing internal desires as you progress up the pyramid. On a deeper level, Maslow emphasized that human motivation stems from inherent human qualities (Crawford & Krebs, 2008; Dunbar & Barrett, 2007).
As seen above, Maslow’s theory was eventually developed into a pyramid structure. It is important to note that the actual pyramid associated with the hierarchy was popularized later on by Charles McDermid. The base of the pyramid begins with psychological needs. These include food, water, shelter, sleep, clothing, and all other basic human needs. These are the needs essential for survial and reproduction, in the abesence of these, there is no possible progression. Above this are safety needs, which include job and personal security, health, property, and resources. This category is what allows an individual to be a functioning, and contributing member of society. Moving up the triangular pyramid, needs become less tangible than the previous two need categories. Above safety needs are social needs, including love and connection from partners, friends, family, and other important people in one’s life. Above this is esteem, which encapsulates self-esteem, freedom, respect, strength, and general views of oneself. Finally, at the top of the pyramid is self-actualization, the internal desire to be the best one can be.
However, this structure invokes numerous different questions. What happens when needs are met but not completely satisfied? How does this affect one’s progression up the pyramid? For example, while physiologic needs such as sleep, food, and water may be met, if they are not entirely satisfied by drinking adequate amounts of water, having sufficient nutrition, and proper sleep, then it hinders the progression process up the pyramid. I know personally I often check these needs of a mental “list” after I feel they have been met, but have they been fulfilled? For example, I may settle for 6 hours of sleep, mentally check off drinking water after finishing one bottle, or forget to eat breakfast, but make up for it at lunch. This is a similar phenomenon among my college peers, as balancing all aspects of college life successfully is challenging. However, suppose the need is simply met and not completely satisfied. In that case, we will often move up the pyramid, working to satisfy other needs, but this simply cannot happen as effectively if base needs are not being entirely met.
In the 21st century, scientists know more than ever about what is necessary to meet each individual’s needs within the hierarchy. For example, scientists now know that balanced diets with essential nutrients and consistent nightly sleep patterns of 8 or more hours are crucial to physical and mental health. It can be difficult as a college student to meet these needs successfully, I know I am not consistently meeting them. However, when learning about this theory, I thought deeper about what happens to the progression up the pyramid to self-actualization when these basic needs are successfully fulfilled. This led me to feel more internal motivation to more properly meet my pysiological and safety needs. I see it as comparable to what would happen in a biological food pyramid if the producers only provided 50% of what the entire pyramid needs; the higher levels would not be as strong.
All of this leads me to the broader conclusion that society has trained us to accept the bare minimum, even when it comes down to the base physiological needs, and in doing so, the higher levels of human needs, as seen in Maslow’s theory, cannot be entirely achieved. Recognizing this in my personal life, I think the logical next step is working to satisfy these needs more intentionally, and in doing so, I hope to see an improvement in my social relationships, esteem levels, and my journey to self-actualization.