Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs

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Humanistic Theories Some psychologists at the time disliked psychodynamic and behaviorist explanations of personality. They felt that these theories ignored the qualities that make humans unique among animals, such as striving for self-determination and self-realization. In the 1950s, some of these psychologists began a school of psychology called humanism. Humanistic theories of personality stress the basic goodness of human beings and the need to achieve one's full potential. Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs …is basically a pyramid that explains what we as people need, how much of it we need and in what order we need it. Basic Needs These needs are classified as being the bare minimum one needs to at least be content with their lifestyle. 1. Physiological Needs Can be summed up in one word: Survival. One diagram [of the hierarchy] listed “sex” but this is a fallacy. The only things that should be listed in the physiological needs are those things that ensure that your heart remains beating. 2. Safety Not being safe doesn’t mean you are automatically harmed, but rather the threat of being harmed is present (i.e. bullying, intimidation). The feeling of be safe is the only way to exceed this piece of the hierarchy. Psychological Needs Though safety sometimes blurs this line, this is where the basic needs give way to what we need mentally. 3. Love/Belonging Basically, this covers everything social. To exceed this portion, one needs a feeling of being loved and/or a feeling of belonging where they are. 4. Esteem The phrase “you have to love yourself before others can love you” is a bit of a fallacy as far as this hierarchy is concerned. Maslow’s Hierarchy is actually of the opinion that you need to be loved, safe and surviving to love yourself. We need to feel important. This is where most of us begin to falter because being able to see your influence on
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