Connections breaks Maslow’s theory

Abraham Harold Maslow (April 1, 1908 – June 8, 1970) was an American psychologist who was best known for creating Maslow's hierarchy of needs, a motivational theory in psychology comprising a five tier models of human needs. Maslow wrote many books in psychology like ‘Hierarchy of needs: a theory of human motivation’, ‘Motivation and Personality’, ‘Toward a psychology of being’, etc.

A.H.Maslow; Adopted by thefamouspeople.com

According to Maslow there are five major need categories that apply to people in general, starting from the basic fundamental needs and leading through a hierarchy of safety, social and esteem needs to the need for self-fulfillment, the highest need of all. When a lower need is satisfied the next highest becomes dominant and the individual’s attention is turned to satisfying this higher need. The need for self-fulfillment, however, can never be satisfied. ‘Man is a wanting animal’; only an unsatisfied need can motivate behavior and the dominant need is the prime motivator of behavior. Psychological development takes place as people move up the hierarchy of needs, but this is not necessarily a straightforward progression. The lower needs still exist, even if temporarily dormant as motivators, and individuals constantly return to previously satisfied needs. (Armstrong, 2009)

Connections breaks Maslow’s theory

None of these needs starting with basic survival on up are possible without social connection and collaboration. Without collaboration, there is no survival. It was not possible, build a secure structure, or car for children while hunting without a team effort.  It’s more true now than then. Our reliance on each other grows as societies became more complex, interconnected, and specialized. Connection is a prerequisite for survival, physically and emotionally. What social media has done is make it infinitely easier for the social connection to take place.

“Needs are not hierarchical. Life is messier than that. Needs are, like most other things in nature, an interactive, dynamic system, but they are anchored in our ability to make social connections. Maslow's model needs rewiring so it matches our brains. The system of human needs from bottom to top, shelter, safety, sex, leadership, community, competence and trust, are dependent on our ability to connect with others.” (Denning, 2012)

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Bibliography

1,Armstrong, M., (2009). Armstrong's handbook of human resource management practice. 11th ed. London and Philadelphia: Kogan page.

2,Denning, S., (2012). What Maslow Missed. [Online]
Available at: https://www.forbes.com/sites/stevedenning/2012/03/29/what-maslow-missed/#3217cef1661b
[Accessed: 06 Dec 2017 at 9.41pm].