Human social needs - definition, features and types. The individual and his social needs What are the social needs of a person?

Good afternoon, dear readers. Do you know what human social needs are and how to satisfy them? Today I will tell you what needs there are and give brief instructions how to express yourself and realize yourself in society.

Concept and types of needs

Social are the needs for a sense of self as an individual, belonging to a group of people, the need for communication and free exchange of information at any time.

Types of social needs:

“life for oneself” – power, self-esteem, self-emphasis;
“for others” – love, friendship, altruism;
“life with society” – independence, rights, justice, etc.

Satisfying these needs is extremely important for almost all of us. Otherwise, a person may feel flawed, not like everyone else. I have many examples from life when individuals rejected by a group of people received moral trauma, as a result of which they were no longer able to lead their usual way of life.

By carefully re-reading the types of social needs, we can find that each of us has them. And that's quite normal. Each of us wants to stand out and realize ourselves professionally. He longs to be an altruist or to meet altruists (people who do good deeds without reward), wants peace on Earth. This is logical, because we were all brought up by the same society.

Maslow's pyramid of needs

Maslow once composed, which has been more than relevant for many years. It is built in ascending order from the following points:

– food, clothing;
need for security - housing, material goods;
social needs - friendship, belonging to like-minded people;
own importance – self-esteem and assessment of others;
own relevance – harmony, self-realization, happiness.

As we can see, social needs are in the middle of the pyramid. The main ones are physiological, since on an empty stomach and without shelter over your head, there can be no talk of any desire for self-realization. But when these needs are satisfied, then a person has a strong desire to satisfy social ones. Their satisfaction directly affects the harmony of the individual, the degree of its realization and emotional background throughout all years of life.

For a formed personality, social needs are more significant and essential than physiological ones. For example, almost each of us has seen how a student takes up his studies instead of sleeping. Or when a mother, who herself did not rest, did not get enough sleep and forgot to eat, does not leave the cradle of her child. Often a man who wants to please his chosen one endures pain or other inconveniences.

Friendship, love, family are the initial social needs that most of us try to satisfy first. It is important for us to spend time in the company of other people, to have an active social position, and to play a certain role in the team.

Personality will never be formed outside of society. Common interests and the same attitude towards important things (truth, respect, care, etc.) form close interpersonal ties. Within the framework of which the social formation of the individual occurs.

How to satisfy the social needs of a modern person

Excessive self-preservation and lack of communication can be a major cause of isolation. modern man from society. Overconfidence, the eternal lack of time to communicate with friends and family, the lack of common interests with other people make a person withdrawn into himself. Depending on their willpower, such people may begin to abuse alcohol or tobacco, quit their jobs, lose respect and property, etc.

In order to prevent such harmful consequences from occurring, the importance of communication must be clearly understood. It is necessary to develop a desire to feel that one belongs to a group or groups of people.

The existence of social needs is determined by a person’s life with other individuals and constant interaction with them. Society influences the formation of the personality structure, its needs and desires. Harmonious development of the individual outside of society is impossible. The need for communication, friendship, love can be satisfied only in the process of interaction between a person and society.

What is a “need”?

This is a need for something. It can be both physiological and psychological in nature, serves as a motive for action and “forces” the individual to take steps aimed at satisfying his needs. Needs appear in the form of emotionally charged desires and, as a result, its satisfaction manifests itself in the form of evaluative emotions. When an individual needs something, he feels negative emotions, and as his needs and desires are satisfied, positive emotions appear.

Failure to satisfy physiological needs can lead to the death of a living organism, and psychological needs can cause internal discomfort and tension, depression.

The satisfaction of one need entails the emergence of another. Their limitlessness is one of the features of the development of an individual as a personality.

Needs force us to perceive surrounding reality selectively, through the prism of your needs. They concentrate the individual’s attention on objects that help satisfy the current need.

Hierarchy

The diversity of human nature is the reason for the existence of various classifications of needs: by object and subject, areas of activity, temporary stability, significance, functional role, etc. The most widely known is the hierarchy of needs proposed by the American psychologist Abraham Maslow.

The first stage is physiological needs (thirst, hunger, sleep, sexual desire, etc.).
The second stage is security (lack of fear for one’s existence, confidence).
The third stage is social needs (communication, friendship, love, caring for others, belonging to a social group, joint activities).
The fourth stage is the need for respect from others and oneself (success, recognition).
The fifth stage is spiritual needs (self-expression, revealing inner potential, achieving harmony, personal development).

Maslow argues that satisfying needs at the lower levels of the hierarchy leads to strengthening of those above. A thirsty person concentrates his attention on finding a source of water, and the need for communication fades into the background. It is important to remember that needs can exist simultaneously, the issue is only a matter of priority.

Social needs

Human social needs are not as acute as physiological ones, but they play a vital role in the interaction between the individual and society. The realization of social needs is impossible outside of society. Social needs include:

need for friendship;
approval;
love;
communication;
joint activities;
caring for others;
belonging to a social group, etc.

At the dawn of human development, it was social needs that contributed to the development of civilization. People united for protection and hunting, fighting the elements. Their satisfaction in joint activities contributed to the development Agriculture. The realization of the need for communication pushed the development of culture.

Man is a social being and he gravitates toward communicating with his own kind, therefore satisfying social needs is no less important than physiological ones.

Types of social needs

Social needs are distinguished according to the following criteria:

“For oneself” (desire for self-affirmation, recognition from others, power).
“For others” (the need for communication, protection of others, selfless help, renunciation of one’s desires in favor of others).
“Together with others” (expressed as a desire to be part of a large social group to implement large-scale ideas that will benefit the entire group: unification for the sake of opposing the aggressor, for the sake of changing the political regime, for the sake of peace, freedom, security).

The first type can only be realized through the need “for others.”

Classification according to E. Fromm

The German sociologist Erich Fromm proposed different needs:

connections (an individual’s desire to be part of a social community or group);
attachments (friendship, love, desire to share warm feelings and receive them in return);
self-affirmation (the desire to feel significant to others);
self-awareness (the desire to stand out from others, to feel one’s own individuality);
reference point (an individual needs a certain standard to compare and evaluate his actions, which can be religion, culture, national traditions).

Classification according to D. McClelland

American psychologist David McClellad proposed his classification of social needs based on a typology of personality and motivation:

Power. People gravitate toward influencing others and being able to control their actions. There are two subtypes of such individuals: those who desire power for its own sake, and those who strive for power in order to solve other people's problems.
Success. This need can be satisfied only when the work started is successfully completed. It forces the individual to take initiative and risks. However, in case of failure, the person will avoid repeating the negative experience.
Involvement. Such people strive to establish friendly relations with everyone and try to avoid conflicts.

Meeting social needs

The main feature of social needs is that they can only be satisfied through interaction with society. The very emergence of such needs is associated with society at the current stage of cultural and historical development. Activity is the main source of satisfying the social needs of the individual. Changing the content of social activities contributes to the development of social needs. The more diverse and complex the more perfect the system of individual needs becomes.

Significance

The influence of social needs should be considered from two sides: from the point of view of the individual and from the point of view of society as a whole.

Satisfying social needs helps a person feel complete, needed, increases self-esteem and self-confidence. The most important social needs are communication, love, friendship. They play a primary role in the development of an individual as a personality.

From the point of view of society, they are the engine of development of all spheres of life. A scientist, wanting recognition (satisfaction of a need “for himself”) invents a method of treatment serious illness, which saves many lives and contributes to the development of science. An artist who dreams of becoming famous, in the process of satisfying his social needs, makes a contribution to culture. There are many similar examples that can be given, and all of them will confirm that satisfying the needs of an individual is as important for society as it is for the person himself.

Man is a social being and cannot develop harmoniously outside of it. The main social needs of an individual include: the need for communication, friendship, love, self-realization, recognition, power. Diversity contributes to the development of an individual's system of needs. Failure to meet social needs causes apathy and aggression. Social needs contribute not only to the improvement of the individual as a person, but are also the engine of development of society as a whole.

Concept of social need

There are two types of needs:

Natural, that is, associated with the need to maintain the vital functions of the human body.
Social - created by society.

Definition 1

Social needs are human needs for the products of social life, that is, for work, spiritual culture, leisure, socio-economic and political activity, inclusion in family life, as well as in various teams and groups, etc.

Note 1

Social needs arise on the basis of natural needs.

Needs, being a motive and incentive, encourage a person to act, to satisfy his needs; Therefore, we can say that without needs there can be no production. Needs express a person’s dependence on the outside world.

Social needs are an expression of objective patterns of development of various spheres of life of both society and the person himself, and therefore the conditions that surround a person not only give rise to needs, but also create all the conditions for their satisfaction.

Classification of social needs

Depending on the motives of social action. Depending on the social institutions through which social needs are satisfied.

Speaking about the motives of social action, T. Parsons identified typical action variables - that is, pairs that determine the possibilities for choosing actions. These are pairs between: acting in one’s own interests or with the need to take into account the needs of the environment, the desire to satisfy immediate needs or abandoning this in order to satisfy long-term and important goals, focusing on the qualities inherent in the individual or focusing on social assessments, subordinating behavior to rules or taking into account the specifics of the moment and situation .

For example, a person would like to buy a car, however, not having sufficient funds, he can behave in different ways: save money, convince relatives to help him. Individual goal, understood through the lens social relations, connections, expectations and became the motive for social action.

It is obvious that the motive is influenced by the system of values, and by the characteristics of temperament and personality, however, conscious, rational elements play a large role in the process of motivating social action. Therefore, M. Weber based the classification social action puts goal-oriented action.

Note 2

Purposeful action is characterized by a clear understanding of what a person wants to achieve, which ways, means are most suitable, effective, etc. This means that a person correlates both positive and negative means and consequences of his actions.

Speaking about social institutions through which an individual realizes his social needs, we can talk about the categories of social norm and social exchange. If social norms represent certain general rules of interaction between participants in social relations, then social exchange is an exchange that exists between members of society, various organizations and spheres, and, unlike exchange between people, does not contain a personal component.

Social institutions are elements social structure societies, which are relatively stable types and forms of social practice, through which social life is organized, and the stability of connections and relationships is ensured within the framework of the social organization of society. Social needs act as a condition for the emergence of social institutions.

Social needs can be divided into:

vital (their dissatisfaction entails the liquidation of the social subject or its revolutionary change);
needs at the level of social norms ( evolutionary development social institutions);
needs at the level of minimum social norms (preservation, but not development of the social subject);
needs for comfortable functioning and development.

The most important need of a social group is to expand its spheres of activity and transform its environment and social relations.

We can talk about such features of the needs of social groups as mass, stability in space and time, interconnectedness.

Figure 1. Key social needs. Author24 - online exchange of student works

The importance of social needs

The social needs of the individual are placed on the second level after the physical. However, they are more important and necessary for any person.

The significance of social needs is expressed in the following:

Each personality develops only in a social environment. It cannot exist outside of society and the satisfaction of social needs, i.e. an individual will never become a person if he does not satisfy social needs;
physiological needs for procreation are complemented by respect, love, care, building relationships between the sexes based on fidelity, care, common interests, the need for communication and mutual understanding;
without the presence of social needs and their satisfaction, a person is no different from an animal, he is likened to him;
The successful coexistence of people in a social environment is the satisfaction of the needs for social activity, the fulfillment of socially significant roles and work activities, the formation of positive communication connections, and achieving recognition and success in society and the system of its relationships.

Social needs- a special type of human needs - the need for something necessary to maintain the vital functions of the body of a human person, a social group, or society as a whole; internal stimulator of activity. There are two types of needs - natural and socially created. Natural needs- These are the daily needs of a person for food, clothing, shelter, etc.

Social needs— these are human needs in labor activity, socio-economic activity, spiritual culture, i.e. in everything that is a product of social life. Natural needs are the basis on which social needs arise, develop and are satisfied. Needs act as the main motive that encourages the subject of activity to take real actions aimed at creating conditions and means to satisfy his needs, i.e., to production activities.

Without needs there is and cannot be production. They are the initial stimulant of a person to activity; they express the dependence of the subject of activity on the outside world. Needs exist as objective and subjective connections, as attractions to the object of need. Social needs include the needs associated with the inclusion of an individual in the family, in numerous social groups and collectives, in various areas production and non-production activities, into the life of society as a whole.

It is advisable to take into account the following most important “types” of needs, the satisfaction of which ensures normal conditions for the reproduction of social groups (communities):

1) in the production and distribution of goods, services and information required for the survival of members of society;

2) in normal (corresponding to existing social norms) psychophysiological life support;

3) in knowledge and self-development;

4) in communication between members of society;

5) in simple (or expanded) demographic reproduction;

6) in the upbringing and education of children;

7) in monitoring the behavior of members of society;

8) in ensuring their safety in all aspects.

Social needs are not satisfied automatically, but only through the organized efforts of members of society, which are social institutions.

Theories of human needs A. Maslow And F. Herzberg . The theory of work motivation by an American psychologist and sociologist Abraham Maslow(1908-1970) reveals human needs. Classifying human needs, A. Maslow divides them into basic(need for food, security, positive self-esteem, etc.) and derivatives, or metaneeds(in justice, prosperity, order and unity of social life, etc.).

Basic needs are arranged according to the principle of hierarchy in ascending order from the lowest material to the highest spiritual:

- Firstly, physiological and sexual needs - in the reproduction of people, food, breathing, physical movements, housing, rest, etc.;

- Secondly, existential needs - the need for security of one’s existence, confidence in the future, stability of living conditions and activities, the desire to avoid unfair treatment, and in the world of work - for guaranteed employment, accident insurance, etc.;

- Thirdly, social needs - for affection, belonging to a team, communication, care for others and attention to oneself, participation in joint work activities;

- fourthly, prestigious needs - respect from others significant people, career growth, status, prestige, with knowledge and high appreciation;

- fifthly, spiritual needs - the need for self-expression through creativity.

Maslow Abraham Harold is a professor of psychology at Brooklyn College and the University of Massachusetts. He combined academic activities with entrepreneurial activities, founding his own enterprise, Maslow Cooperage Corporation. At the age of 18, A. Maslow entered New York City College. The father wanted his son to become a lawyer, but the young man was absolutely not attracted to a legal career. His interest in psychology arose in his penultimate year of college, and the topic for course work He chose a purely psychological one. A. Maslow began systematic studies in psychology when he entered Cornell University.

He then transferred to the University of Wisconsin, where he became actively involved experimental studies animal behavior. He created the so-called hierarchy of needs, the purpose of which was initially to explain human behavior and which was quickly adopted by managers, since it made it possible to understand the characteristics of employee motivation. A. Maslow became one of the first management figures who used a humanistic approach to personnel instead of an administrative one. Considering that personnel are becoming the key resource of successful companies, Maslow's model as a management concept is becoming increasingly relevant.

The advantage of A. Maslow’s theory consisted in the explanation, interaction of factors, in the discovery of their motive spring, in the fact that he considered the needs of each new level to be relevant, urgent for the individual only after the previous ones are satisfied. In addition, A. Maslow suggested that physiological, sexual and existential needs are innate, and the rest are socially acquired.

Further development of A. Maslow’s concept led to the conclusion that any individual has not one system of needs, but two, which are qualitatively different, independent of each other and have different effects on people’s behavior.

First group- hygiene factors. They do not relate to the content of work, but favor comfortable working and living conditions, well-organized work organization and work schedule, and provision of workers with various benefits and housing. Factors contribute to the development of psychologically comfortable relationships between employees, and as a result, one should not expect high job satisfaction or interest in it, but only the absence of dissatisfaction.

Second group factors - motives - satisfy, from the point of view Frederick Herzberg (b. 1923), internal needs and include recognition and achievement of success in work, interest in its content, responsibility, independence, etc. They determine job satisfaction and increase work activity. Therefore, F. Herzberg believes, satisfaction is a function of the content of work, and dissatisfaction is a function of working conditions.

Herzberg Frederick- American psychologist, professor of management, created his own theory of motivation, specialist in the field of clinical psychology, professor of management at the University of Utah. Herzberg's works are devoted mainly to the personality traits of a working person, but they are popular among management theorists and practitioners because they expand management's knowledge about personnel and allow them to optimize the work of workers. Herzberg created his own theory of motivation, which can be divided into two parts - hygiene and motivation.

By hygiene, Herzberg means the policies and management methods of the company, working conditions, salary, degree of protection; all these factors do not serve as motives for increasing productivity, but create moral satisfaction. The second part of the theory of motivation concerns the work itself, by performing which the employee achieves certain results, receives recognition from others, moves up the career ladder, increases his status, and has the opportunity to do what he loves. Managers must use both factors simultaneously - the hygiene factor and the motivation factor, creating such working conditions that the employee does not experience dissatisfaction.

If an employee can achieve results, gain recognition, find interest, and move up the career ladder, then he will work with maximum efficiency. True, Herzberg has another theory called KITA (a kick in the ass). This theory says: the easiest way to force a person to work is to give him KITA, because improving hygiene (increasing wages, working conditions, providing additional benefits - pensions, paid vacations, etc.) does not provide a long-term motivational effect. Motivation depends on how effectively workers are used, not how they are treated.

The main schools of Western sociology of labor (F. Taylor, E. Mayo, B. Skinner).Sociology of labor(in developed Western countries it is more often called industrial sociology) began to develop in the 20-30s. XX century Investigating problems related to the social essence of labor, industrial sociology places social-labor relations as an important object of analysis. One of the famous modern American sociologists F. Herzberg believes that Western sociology has analyzed the three most important approaches to studying and regulating the production behavior of workers.

First approach - scientific management, based on the one developed at the beginning of the 20th century. theories of the American engineer Fred Taylor (1856-1915). According to the theory, human labor efficiency increases by reducing the production task to simple operations that do not require complex labor skills. Piece, piecework, progressive-bonus wage systems caused an increase in labor productivity even for older and lazy workers. Timing of work operations in order to save movements and simplify work functions, detailed description each operation, thorough instructions, hourly wages and a system of bonuses (large bonuses from the profits of enterprises, usually received once or twice a year for success in work), assembly lines - all this scientific organization production is widely and successfully used in industry to this day.

Taylor Frederick Winslow is an outstanding American researcher and practical manager who laid the foundation for the scientific organization of labor and rationalization in the field of management, the founder of management, and a representative of the scientific school of management. From 1890 to 1893, Taylor, general manager of the Manufacturing Investment Company in Philadelphia, owner of paper presses in Maine and Wisconsin, organized his own management consulting business, the first in the history of management. In 1906, Taylor became president of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, and in 1911 he founded the Society for the Advancement of Scientific Management (later called the Taylor Society). Since 1895, Taylor began his world-famous research on labor organization.

Taylor died on March 21, 1915 in Philadelphia from pneumonia. On his tombstone there is an inscription: “Father of Scientific Management.” Since 1895, Taylor began his world-famous research on labor organization. He is the creator of production planning as a discipline. Taylor researched factors influencing productivity and methods of rational organization of working time. Based on the analysis of thousands of experiments, recommendations were formulated for organizing industrial production and training personnel. F. Taylor put forward the idea of narrow specialization, identified planning as the most important element in organizing production, and believed that professional managers should be involved in production planning.

Main work— “Principles of Scientific Management”, 1911.

The beginning of the second approach of sociology to regulating the production behavior of workers was carried out in the 20-30s. XX century American scientist Elton Mayo (1880-1949) famous Hawthorne experiments at the Western Electric Company near Chicago. Studying the influence of various factors on increasing production efficiency (work conditions and organization, wages, interpersonal relationships and leadership style, etc.), Elton Mayo showed the role of human and group factors.

In the concept " human relations“Elton Mayo focuses, firstly, on the fact that man is a social animal, oriented and included in the context of group behavior; secondly, a rigid hierarchy of subordination and bureaucratic organization are incompatible with human nature and his freedom; Third, industry leaders must focus more on people than products. This ensures social stability of society and individual job satisfaction. The second approach is called human relations management. It was with the second approach that American industrial sociology began. In modern conditions, important labor problems are studied and practically developed within its boundaries.

Mayo Elton- American psychologist, founder of the school of human relations in management, professor industrial sociology at Harvard University, then Professor of Industrial Research High school business and administration. He received a philosophical medical education in the UK, then a financial education in the USA. Directed nearby research projects and experiments, including Philadelphia and Hawthorne. Founded the movement “for the development of human relations.”

One of the founders of the school of human relations. He put forward the idea of humanizing labor at an industrial enterprise. He laid the foundations for the model of an organization as a community, and considered as its most important function the function of satisfying human social needs in the conditions of the crisis of American society, the breakdown of the family, and the decline in the role of traditional social institutions. He drew attention to the social nature of man (based on the thesis of man as a social animal), as well as the importance of a small group, leadership and informal organization in the regulation of human behavior.

He proposed to place emphasis in management on stimulating employee motivation and interest in the content of the activity. Questioned the universality of the role of monetary reward as a motive for activity. He emphasized the importance of intellectualizing executive functions, making the maximum possible use of rich human potential, and self-organization.

Hawthorne experiments— working group under the leadership of E. Mayo at the Hawthorne factories near Chicago in 1927-1932. conducted experiments to study the effects of various technical and social factors on labor productivity; The original purpose of the study was to identify the relationship between workplace lighting levels and productivity levels.

Hawthorne Works- plant of the Western Electric Company in Chicago, telephone equipment was assembled at these plants; the number of workers was 25 thousand people; in 1983 the company was closed.

The third approach to regulating the production behavior of workers associated with the name of the American sociologist Burres Frederick Skinner and called situational management. Material social incentives are used here. Remuneration for work is carefully linked to the achievement of specific goals in the labor process, and the main concern of the manager has become the assessment of the employee’s performance and the provision of material and moral incentives.

The states and needs of people that arise when they need something underlie their motives. That is, it is the needs that are the source of activity of each individual. Man is a desiring creature, so in reality it is unlikely that his needs will be fully satisfied. The nature of human needs is such that as soon as one need is satisfied, the next one comes first.

Maslow's pyramid of needs

Abraham Maslow's concept of needs is perhaps the most famous of all. The psychologist not only classified people's needs, but also made an interesting assumption. Maslow noted that each person has an individual hierarchy of needs. That is, there are basic human needs - they are also called basic, and additional.

According to the concept of a psychologist, absolutely all people on earth experience needs at all levels. Moreover, there is the following law: basic human needs are dominant. However, high-level needs can also remind you of themselves and become motivators of behavior, but this happens only when the basic ones are satisfied.

The basic needs of people are those aimed at survival. At the base of Maslow's pyramid are the basic needs. Human biological needs are the most important. Next comes the need for security. Satisfying a person's needs for security ensures survival, as well as a sense of permanence in living conditions.

A person feels needs of a higher level only when he has done everything to ensure his physical well-being. The social needs of a person are that he feels the need to unite with other people, to love and recognition. After satisfying this need, the following come to the fore. Human spiritual needs include self-esteem, protection from loneliness, and feeling worthy of respect.

Further, at the very top of the pyramid of needs is the need to reveal one’s potential, to self-actualize. Maslow explained this human need for activity as the desire to become who he originally was.

Maslow assumed that this need is innate and, most importantly, common to every individual. However, at the same time, it is obvious that people differ dramatically from each other in their motivation. For various reasons, not everyone manages to reach the pinnacle of necessity. Throughout life, people's needs can vary between physical and social, so they are not always aware of needs, for example, for self-actualization, because they are extremely busy satisfying lower desires.

The needs of man and society are divided into natural and unnatural. In addition, they are constantly expanding. The development of human needs occurs through the development of society.

Thus, we can conclude that the higher the needs a person satisfies, the more clearly his individuality manifests itself.

Are hierarchy violations possible?

Examples of violation of hierarchy in satisfying needs are known to everyone. Probably, if only those who are well-fed and healthy experienced human spiritual needs, then the very concept of such needs would have long since sunk into oblivion. Therefore, the organization of needs is replete with exceptions.

Satisfying needs

The extremely important fact is that satisfying a need can never be an all-or-nothing process. After all, if this were so, then physiological needs would be satisfied once and for life, and then a transition to the social needs of a person would follow without the possibility of return. There is no need to prove otherwise.

Biological needs of man

The bottom level of Maslow's pyramid is those needs that ensure human survival. Of course, they are the most urgent and have the most powerful motivating force. In order for the individual to feel the needs higher levels, biological needs must be satisfied at least minimally.

Safety and protection needs

This level of vital or vital needs is the need for safety and protection. We can safely say that if physiological needs are closely related to the survival of the organism, then the need for safety ensures its long life.

Needs for love and belonging

This is the next level of Maslow's pyramid. The need for love is closely related to the individual’s desire to avoid loneliness and be accepted into human society. When the needs at the previous two levels are satisfied, motives of this kind occupy a dominant position.

Almost everything in our behavior is determined by the need for love. It is important for any person to be included in relationships, be it family, work team or something else. The baby needs love, and no less than the satisfaction of physical needs and the need for safety.

The need for love is especially pronounced during the teenage period of human development. At this time, it is the motives that grow out of this need that become leading.

Psychologists often say that typical behavior patterns appear during adolescence. For example, the main activity of a teenager is communication with peers. Also typical is the search for an authoritative adult - a teacher and mentor. All teenagers subconsciously strive to be different - to stand out from the crowd. This is where the desire to follow comes from fashion trends or belong to any subculture.

The need for love and acceptance in adulthood

As a person matures, love needs begin to focus on more selective and deeper relationships. Now needs are pushing people to start families. In addition, it is not the quantity of friendships that becomes more important, but their quality and depth. It is easy to notice that adults have far fewer friends than teenagers, but these friendships are necessary for the mental well-being of the individual.

Despite a large number of various means of communication, people in modern society very scattered. Today, a person does not feel part of a community, except perhaps as part of a family that has three generations, but many lack even that. In addition, children who experienced a lack of intimacy experience fear of it in later life. On the one hand, they neurotically avoid close relationships, because they are afraid of losing themselves as individuals, and on the other hand, they really need them.

Maslow identified two main types of relationships. They are not necessarily marital, but may well be friendly, between children and parents, and so on. What are the two types of love identified by Maslow?

Scarce love

This type of love is aimed at the desire to make up for the lack of something vital. Scarce love has a specific source - unmet needs. The person may lack self-esteem, protection, or acceptance. This type of love is a feeling born of selfishness. It is motivated by the individual's desire to fill his inner world. A person is not able to give anything, he only takes.

Alas, in most cases, the basis of long-term relationships, including marital ones, is precisely scarce love. The parties to such a union can live together all their lives, but much in their relationship is determined by the internal hunger of one of the participants in the couple.

Deficient love is the source of dependence, fear of losing, jealousy and constant attempts to pull the blanket over oneself, suppressing and subjugating the partner in order to tie him more closely to oneself.

Being love

This feeling is based on recognition of the unconditional value of a loved one, but not for any qualities or special merits, but simply for the fact that he exists. Of course, existential love is also designed to satisfy human needs for acceptance, but its striking difference is that there is no element of possessiveness in it. There is also no desire to take away from your neighbor what you yourself need.

The person who is able to experience existential love does not seek to remake a partner or somehow change him, but encourages all the best qualities in him and supports the desire to grow and develop spiritually.

Maslow himself described this type of love as a healthy relationship between people that is based on mutual trust, respect and admiration.

Self-esteem needs

Despite the fact that this level of needs is designated as the need for self-esteem, Maslow divided it into two types: self-esteem and respect from other people. Although they are closely related to each other, it is often extremely difficult to separate them.

A person's need for self-esteem is that he must know that he is capable of much. For example, that he can successfully cope with the tasks and requirements assigned to him, and that he feels like a full-fledged person.

If this type of need is not satisfied, then a feeling of weakness, dependence and inferiority appears. Moreover, the stronger such experiences are, the less effective human activity becomes.

It should be noted that self-respect is healthy only when it is based on respect from other people, and not status in society, flattery, etc. Only in this case will satisfaction of such a need contribute to psychological stability.

It is interesting that the need for self-esteem manifests itself differently at different periods of life. Psychologists have noticed that young people who are just starting to start a family and look for their professional niche need respect from others more than others.

Self-actualization needs

The highest level in the pyramid of needs is the need for self-actualization. Abraham Maslow defined this need as a person's desire to become what he can become. For example, musicians write music, poets write poetry, artists paint. Why? Because they want to be themselves in this world. They need to follow their nature.

For whom is self-actualization important?

It should be noted that not only those who have any talent need self-actualization. Every person without exception has their own personal or creative potential. Each person has his own calling. The need for self-actualization is to find your life's work. The forms and possible paths of self-actualization are very diverse, and it is at this spiritual level of needs that people’s motives and behavior are most unique and individual.

Psychologists say that the desire to achieve maximum self-realization is inherent in every person. However, there are very few people whom Maslow called self-actualizers. No more than 1% of the population. Why do those incentives that should encourage a person to act do not always work?

Maslow in his works indicated the following three reasons for such unfavorable behavior.

Firstly, a person’s ignorance of his capabilities, as well as a lack of understanding of the benefits of self-improvement. In addition, there are ordinary doubts in one’s own abilities or fear of failure.

Secondly, the pressure of prejudice - cultural or social. That is, a person’s abilities may run counter to the stereotypes that society imposes. For example, stereotypes of femininity and masculinity can prevent a boy from becoming a talented makeup artist or dancer, or a girl from achieving success, for example, in military affairs.

Third, the need for self-actualization may conflict with the need for security. For example, if self-realization requires a person to take risky or dangerous actions or actions that do not guarantee success.