A Theory of Human Motivation summary
"A Theory of Human Motivation" by Abraham Maslow
Eero Ringmäe, 010636IAPM
02. December 2006
Total pages: 21 (+ 8 pages of preface that was published separately)
Total characters (excluding spaces): 51 071
Background
Abraham Maslow (1908 - 1970) was a well-known American psychologist. He made his most important academic contributions in the 1940s and 1950s. He is considered one of the founders of 'humanist psychology'. "The Theory of Human Motivation", originally published in 1943 in "Psychological Review", Vol. 50, NO. 4, pp. 370-396 is one of his best known articles.
The theory consists of two parts. The first part is a short preface, first published in 1943 in "Psychosomatic Medicine", Vol 5, pp. 85-92. The preface describes the most important presumptsions to the motivation theory, while being Maslow's definition of 'humanist psychology'. The main thesis of the theory itself is that all human needs can be categorized into a hierarchy where 'higher' needs emerge only once the 'lower' needs have been (partially) satisfied.
The preface
The presumptions to the theory of motivation, that are listed in the preface, form the author's definition of humanist psychology. The key propositions are the following:
A human being should be viewed as a an integrated unit.
The needs of a human being are felt more unconsciously than conciously, thus cultural and social context do not play a significant role in the theory of needs.
Man is a perpetually wanting animal.
Behaviour is motivated by a complex set of conscious and unconscious needs, as well as the socio-cultural context. Thus, studying one single need is usually too little to explain behaviour.
The theory
As described, the main thesis of the theory of human motivation is that all human needs can be arranged into a hierarchy of pre-potency, where the appearance of a certain need is connected to the satisfaction of the other, more pre-potent needs.
The author proposes a five-level hierarchy. Starting from the most
Eero Ringmäe, 010636IAPM
02. December 2006
Total pages: 21 (+ 8 pages of preface that was published separately)
Total characters (excluding spaces): 51 071
Background
Abraham Maslow (1908 - 1970) was a well-known American psychologist. He made his most important academic contributions in the 1940s and 1950s. He is considered one of the founders of 'humanist psychology'. "The Theory of Human Motivation", originally published in 1943 in "Psychological Review", Vol. 50, NO. 4, pp. 370-396 is one of his best known articles.
The theory consists of two parts. The first part is a short preface, first published in 1943 in "Psychosomatic Medicine", Vol 5, pp. 85-92. The preface describes the most important presumptsions to the motivation theory, while being Maslow's definition of 'humanist psychology'. The main thesis of the theory itself is that all human needs can be categorized into a hierarchy where 'higher' needs emerge only once the 'lower' needs have been (partially) satisfied.
The preface
The presumptions to the theory of motivation, that are listed in the preface, form the author's definition of humanist psychology. The key propositions are the following:
A human being should be viewed as a an integrated unit.
The needs of a human being are felt more unconsciously than conciously, thus cultural and social context do not play a significant role in the theory of needs.
Man is a perpetually wanting animal.
Behaviour is motivated by a complex set of conscious and unconscious needs, as well as the socio-cultural context. Thus, studying one single need is usually too little to explain behaviour.
The theory
As described, the main thesis of the theory of human motivation is that all human needs can be arranged into a hierarchy of pre-potency, where the appearance of a certain need is connected to the satisfaction of the other, more pre-potent needs.
The author proposes a five-level hierarchy. Starting from the most