Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs and Therapy Insights

The Humanistic Perspective

Because of behaviorism and psychoanalytic theory, the humanistic viewpoint gained popularity in the middle of the 20th century. Humanism is the term used to describe those who stress human potential and the capacity for change. The notion of biological determinism, which holds that the majority of human traits, both mental and physical, are predetermined from conception, is simultaneously rejected by humanism. The humanistic viewpoint stresses a person’s innate desire for creativity and self-actualization and focuses on how individuals grow. The idea that development is seen as an ongoing process that is influenced more by an individual’s social and environmental conditions than by genetics or other natural causes is also fundamental to the humanistic viewpoint. The use of the human viewpoint in a therapeutic setting was examined by several prominent humanistic thinkers, including Abraham Maslow and Carl Rogers. In addition to enabling a better understanding of pain, suffering, and emotions, this guarantees a more optimistic approach to enhance patient and nurse practitioner results. (Boston-Leary et al., 2024)

Functional Medicine’s Influence Beyond Joints-Video

Abraham Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs

The development potential of healthy people was the subject of research by American humanistic psychologist Abraham Maslow (1908–1970). According to him, individuals aspire to self-actualization and begin accepting both themselves and other people for who they are. He saw that a lot of individuals were able to enjoy themselves and live comparatively guilt-free while also losing inhibitions.

Maslow’s hierarchy of needs is a psychological theory that explains a pattern by which human motivations often emerge at the following level by enabling the person to be fully satisfied with the previous level. As a result, many individuals start using it to encourage action. Several distinct underlying systems constitute the basis of motivation in Maslow’s hierarchy of wants; certain motivations are generated and given precedence over others. (Kenrick et al., 2010) Our knowledge of the self has also been substantially enhanced by Maslow’s ideas. The five levels of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs—physiological necessities, safety, love and belonging, esteem, and self-actualization—allow people to evolve. These five phases show how a person develops in order to meet their most basic requirements. 

Physiological Needs

The primary physical need for human life, according to Maslow, are physiological needs, which include food, water, sleep, shelter, sex, and maintaining bodily homeostasis. In order to be motivated by the next level of demands, many individuals must have their physiological needs—such as breathing, eating, drinking, or sleeping—met. As they exhibit stability and endurance and adjust to the changing demands of the healthcare system, many nurses in a healthcare context move away from physiological needs and safety. (Hayre-Kwan et al., 2021)

Safety

Safety, the second stage, takes over and becomes a dominating behavior if a person’s physiological demands are addressed and mostly satisfied. This may be achieved via working, saving money, and looking for safe havens. That individual has time to consider their desires once they are content and feel secure. However, many people may experience or re-experience post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or transgenerational trauma when physical safety is lacking due to environmental factors like war, natural disasters, family violence, childhood abuse, or institutional racism. For this reason, safety needs must include mental, emotional, financial, and physical security.

Another example of how environmental variables impact safety is economic safety, which may be impacted by a financial crisis and a lack of employment prospects. In the absence of economic safety, it must show itself in things like a need for work stability, grievance processes to shield individuals from unjustified power, insurance plans, savings accounts, etc. Since children typically need to feel protected, this level of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs tends to prevail in their lives.

Love & Belonging

Maslow’s hierarchy of requirements places the desire for love and belonging at stage three. Intimacy, friendship, and belonging are all necessary for love and belonging. Many individuals join clubs or subscribe to societies because they want to be near their friends and family. Maintaining a positive nurse-patient connection in a medical context requires professionals to provide affection and belonging to people who are experiencing pain-like sensations. This will provide the person a positive outlook to lessen their suffering and guarantee that their needs and desires are acknowledged. (Xu et al., 2021) In infancy, the demand for safety may be subordinated to the need for love and belonging. This is shown negatively in youngsters who cling to abusive parents. A person’s capacity to establish and sustain emotionally meaningful connections may be negatively impacted by deficiencies in this level of Maslow’s hierarchy, such as institutionalization, neglect, shunning, or ostracism. Additionally, a person’s development may be greatly impacted by these adverse events.

Esteem

The basic human need to be liked and respected by others is known as esteem, and it is the fourth level of Maslow’s hierarchy. Since everyone aspires to be someone at this point, many individuals search for peer regard, self-confidence, and esteem. For instance, a person with money would purchase a high-end watch, while someone with a brain would be able to write, think, and even work a lot. This is because of the drive to compete and achieve at the best level possible. In addition, a lot of individuals will often pursue a career or pastime because ego demands like status or respect are met by these pursuits. Since most individuals desire to feel valued, a lot of people will worry about receiving respect, prestige, significance, and acknowledgment from others. The need of having self-respect and self-esteem follows from this. On the other hand, a person’s self-esteem may suffer if they don’t get positive feedback, which might hinder their progress. As a result, the root causes of their pain and suffering will be addressed. (Carroll et al., 2025)

Self-Actualization

Self-actualization is the last level in Maslow’s hierarchy. The lowest levels of needs—such as the ability to eat, sleep, feel secure, fit in with a group, and yet feel unique—must be met for individuals to reach the greatest level of their existence. At the pinnacle, we are able to relax, be creative, and accept things as they are. Although there is no longer any pressure on particular requirements, it is still possible for any of the needs at lower levels to stay low. The drive to achieve one’s full potential is known as self-actualization. Humanistic theory states that self-actualization is a condition of self-fulfillment when individuals are able to reach their full potential in a way that is unique to them. This requirement may be very particular to many people’s perceptions or attention. There are several instances.

• Someone who aspires to be the perfect parent
• A person who wants to express themselves via sports
• Someone who used their skills and abilities to create art as a means of self-expression.

Questions of the Hierarchal Status

Maslow’s hierarchy of requirements serves as a crucial basis for comprehending the relationship between motivation and drive in the context of human behavior. As one moves up the ladder, each requirement is emphasizing at the levels that need motivation. As one examines the hierarchical structure, a number of significant problems come up.

The first is the issue of how one’s development is directed as one advances both inside and between levels. Maslow first stressed the need of attending to lower-level demands before tackling higher-level ones. From this first idea came the realization that people differed in how they saw and valued each of the fundamental needs. The reproductive demands of females, for instance, may take precedence over those of other species. Maslow asserts that fulfilling every need is not a prerequisite for fulfilling needs at a higher level. Once a person’s essential lower-level wants have been mostly met, their attention shifts to the next level of demands. Self-actualization and other higher-level wants may be satisfied before certain lower-level needs are completely satisfied.

Whether or whether a person travels in a single direction from the base of the pyramid to the summit is a second, related question. There may be multidirectional movement throughout the phases because a person’s requirements at a given time in life might be influenced by a variety of variables. After being laid off, a worker who is considering raising a family—the third level of Maslow’s hierarchy—may need to concentrate on safety, the second stage. Unemployment would be taken into consideration when addressing demands with the second and third levels of Maslow’s hierarchy, even if this employee had created a feeling of safety and security. Human life and growth are dynamic, not static, thus this fluctuation is significant, and the hierarchy must accommodate it. Maslow’s theory’s central claim is that, because self-actualization is the aim, fundamental needs must be satisfied before one is inspired to pursue higher-level wants. In order to achieve self-actualization, this encourages the person to evaluate each need and find a positive association between them. (Taormina & Gao, 2013) As individuals begin to incorporate Maslow’s hierarchy of needs into their daily routines, they will see improvements in their physical and mental well-being and lead better lives.

Injury Medical Chiropractic & Functional Medicine Clinic

We collaborate with licensed healthcare professionals who apply Maslow’s hierarchy of needs to our patients’ pain and suffering in a clinical setting. In addition to posing crucial queries to our affiliated healthcare professionals, we counsel individuals to incorporate minor adjustments into their everyday schedules and provide them a secure environment.This material is envisioned as an academic service by Dr. Alex Jimenez, D.C. Disclaimer.

References

Boston-Leary, K., Alexander, G. R., & Davis, S. (2024). Leveraging Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs to Build Nursing’s More Inclusive Future. Nurs Adm Q, 48(1), 55-64. doi.org/10.1097/NAQ.0000000000000613

Carroll, A., Collins, C., & McKenzie, J. (2025). Physician wellbeing in a national rehabilitation hospital, a qualitative study utilizing Maslow’s hierarchy of needs as a framework for analysis. BMC Health Serv Res, 25(1), 175. doi.org/10.1186/s12913-025-12310-x

Hayre-Kwan, S., Quinn, B., Chu, T., Orr, P., & Snoke, J. (2021). Nursing and Maslow’s Hierarchy: A Health Care Pyramid Approach to Safety and Security During a Global Pandemic. Nurse Lead, 19(6), 590-595. doi.org/10.1016/j.mnl.2021.08.013

Kenrick, D. T., Griskevicius, V., Neuberg, S. L., & Schaller, M. (2010). Renovating the Pyramid of Needs: Contemporary Extensions Built Upon Ancient Foundations. Perspect Psychol Sci, 5(3), 292-314. doi.org/10.1177/1745691610369469

Taormina, R. J., & Gao, J. H. (2013). Maslow and the motivation hierarchy: measuring satisfaction of the needs. Am J Psychol, 126(2), 155-177. doi.org/10.5406/amerjpsyc.126.2.0155

Xu, J. X., Wu, L. X., Jiang, W., & Fan, G. H. (2021). Effect of nursing intervention based on Maslow’s hierarchy of needs in patients with coronary heart disease interventional surgery. World J Clin Cases, 9(33), 10189-10197. doi.org/10.12998/wjcc.v9.i33.10189

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