Abraham Maslow, a well-known psychologist who was deeply interested in human nature, is one of the founders of humanistic psychology. In 1950 he created the concept of human needs. In his opinion, human creativity is the result of a healthy and well-directed development. He believes that this development occurs as a result of the search and implementation of goals that affirm and enrich the life of the individual and give it meaning. A person is what becomes in the course of the implementation of all these goals, namely, the types of these goals determine the needs. Needs (according to Maslow) are given to a person from birth and create a hierarchy in which the satisfaction of lower needs is a condition for the emergence of higher ones. On this principle, he founded the so-called pyramid of needs, consisting of five categories. At the base are physiological needs, then the needs for security, for love and affection, for recognition and appreciation, for self-actualization (Fig. 1).

Figure 1. A. Maslow's hierarchy of human needs.

Physiological Needs

The physiological needs that are usually taken as the starting point for the theory of motivation are the so-called physiological drives and desires.

Physiological needs dominate over all others in the body and are the basis of human motivation. Thus, a person who needs food, security, love, and respect is likely to desire food more than anything else.

At this time, all other needs may cease to exist or be relegated to the background. Therefore, the state of the whole organism can be characterized as a person is hungry, since hunger almost completely dominates consciousness. All the forces of the body begin to serve the satisfaction of the need for food, and the possibilities that cannot be used to achieve this goal are relegated to the background. Those. the desire to buy new shoes, or a car, becomes secondary in an extreme situation.

At the same time, the organism shows a specific feature, which consists in the fact that at a time when a defining need dominates in a person, the philosophy of his future changes. In our example, for a chronically hungry person, utopia seems to be a place where there is plenty of food.

He begins to think that, provided that food is guaranteed for the rest of his life, he will be perfectly happy and will never wish for anything more. Freedom love respect pushed aside like useless knick-knacks. But these are extraordinary circumstances that are rare in a normal peaceful society and for most people it is satisfied.

When physiological needs are satisfied, other, higher according to Maslow, appear, i.e. next security need.

Security Needs

The next group of needs: needs for security, security, stability, patron, protection, absence of fear, anxiety and chaos, needs for structure, order, law and restrictions, patron. According to Maslow, almost the same applies to these needs as to physiological ones. The body can be completely covered by them. If in the case of hunger it was defined as a person striving to satisfy hunger, then in this case a person striving for security. Here again, all forces, intellect, receptors serve primarily as an instrument for the search for security. And again, the dominant goal is a determining factor not only for the vision of the world and philosophy at the present moment, but also for the philosophy of the future and the philosophy of values. By the way, physiological needs, being in a satisfied state, are now underestimated. In everyday life, the manifestation of the need for security is found in the desire to get a stable job with guaranteed protection, the desire to have a savings account, insurance, etc. or a preference for familiar things over unfamiliar things, the known to the unknown. The desire to have a religion or philosophy that organizes the universe and people into a logically meaningful whole. The need for security can become relevant when there is a threat to the law, order, the authorities of society.

But since healthy and happy adults in our culture have largely satisfied their security needs, so it is quite realistic that they no longer have any security needs as active motivators. Accordingly, further higher ones reappear, in Maslow's pyramid these are the needs of the third level, the needs for love.

Needs for love and belonging

If the physiological and security needs are satisfied, the needs for attachment and belonging appear, and all that is said above is repeated again. The need for love involves both the need to give and the need to receive love. When they are dissatisfied, the person is acutely experiencing the absence of friends or a partner. A person will eagerly strive to establish relationships with people in general, for the sake of a place in a group or family, and will strive with all his might to this goal. The acquisition of all this will be more important for a person than anything in the world. And he can even forget that once hunger was in the foreground, and love seemed unreal and unnecessary.

Now the acute pain from loneliness, rejection and unfriendliness is stronger than anything else and, accordingly, he will think that he would be absolutely happy if love appeared in his life. It is very important for a person to feel belonging, good-neighbourly relations in one territory, among a class, company, colleagues, because their desire to stray into a flock to stay together, to be part of a group is natural for them. If a person has love, he loves, and is loved, a new group of needs begins to appear, of a higher level - this is the need for respect.

The need for respect

All people in our society have a need for stable, justified, usually high self-esteem, self-respect, self-respect, and the respect of others. Maslow divides these needs into two classes. The first class includes strength, achievement, adequacy, skill and competence, confidence in the face of the outside world, independence and freedom. Maslow refers to the second class what is called a good reputation or desire for prestige (defining them as appreciation or respect from other people), as well as status, fame and glory, superiority, recognition, attention, significance, self-esteem or appreciation.

Satisfaction of the need for self-esteem causes a feeling of self-confidence, one's value, strength, abilities and adequacy, a sense of one's usefulness and necessity in the world. An obstacle to satisfaction leads to feelings of inferiority, weakness, helplessness. These feelings lead to depression or neurotic tendencies. It should be taken into account that the formation of self-esteem based on the opinions of other people is fraught with danger, because it does not take into account the real abilities of the individual, her competence. The most stable and therefore healthy sense of self-esteem is based on deserved respect from other people, and not on ostentatious fame and fame and unjustified adulation. It is necessary to be able to distinguish between real competence and achievements based on exceptional willpower, purposefulness and responsibility, from what is given naturally, without any labor, only innate qualities of the constitution and biological fate.

Even if all the above needs are satisfied, a person can often, if not always, expect that anxiety and dissatisfaction will soon arise again, they arise if a person is not doing what he was created for.

The need for self-actualization

Musicians must create music, painters must paint, poets must compose poetry in order to remain at peace with themselves. Man must be what he can be. People must remain true to their nature. This need is called self-actualization. It refers to the desire of people to realize themselves, to manifest in themselves, what is inherent in it potentially. It can be defined as the desire to bring out more of a person's inherent characteristics in order to achieve all that he is capable of. The particular embodiment is highly variable. For one, it may be a desire to be an unsurpassed parent, for another an athlete.

Human motivation

Motivation is the process of motivating oneself and others to act in order to achieve personal goals and the goals of the organization. The effectiveness of motivation is related to a specific situation.

Motivation has been around for a long time. The carrot and stick method (one of the first methods of motivation) has been used since the dawn of civilization. However, during the F. Taylor period, managers realized that wages were on the verge of starvation - stupid and dangerous. As the well-being of the population improves, the carrot does not always make a person work better.

A major role in this area was played by the works of Z. Freud, who introduced the concept of the unconscious. The scientists put forward the thesis that people do not always act rationally. E. Mayo's experiments revealed a decrease in staff turnover due to an increase in the prestige of the profession, social, group relations.

Of interest from the point of view of highlighting motivating factors is the theory of human needs, proposed in
40s CC in. A. Maslow (Fig. 9.1).

Rice. 9.1. Hierarchy of needs according to A. Maslow human need

Need is a physiological and psychological deficiency of something. Needs serve as a motive for action. Maslow said that the next need in the hierarchy is satisfied after the need of the previous level is completely satisfied. Although this is not necessary in life, and a person may seek, for example, satisfaction of the need for status before his need for housing is fully satisfied.

F. Herzberg proposed two groups of factors in the 50s. CC in.

• hygienic (external in relation to work), which remove dissatisfaction with work;
• motivation factors (internal, inherent in work).

The first group includes normal working conditions, sufficient wages, respect for superiors. These factors do not automatically determine motivation. The second group of factors suggests that each person can be motivated to work when he sees a goal and considers it possible to achieve it.

The law of result (P. Lawrence and J. Lorsch) states that people tend to repeat the behavior that they associate with the result, the satisfaction of needs (on the example of the past).

D. McClelland singled out three needs: power, success, involvement. Success is not just a result, but a process of bringing to success. Involvement is a sense of belonging to something, the possibility of social communication, a sense of social interaction. He believed that at the present time, when all primary needs have already been satisfied, the enumerated needs of a higher order begin to play a decisive role.

Process theories of motivation

W. Vroom's Expectation Theory. Expectation is the probability of the occurrence of an event according to the assessment of a given person. A reward is anything that a person considers valuable to himself. Internal reward is given by the work itself, external reward is given by the boss.

Vroom identified three relationships. Labor costs are the result. The result is a reward. Valence, i.e. value, satisfaction with the reward, since the preferences of different people are different.

M \u003d Z - R * R - B * Valence

Maslow's hierarchy of needs

Maslow believed that human needs have a hierarchical structure:

• Physiological needs;
• The need for safety and security;
• Social needs;
• The need for respect
• The need for self-realization;

Needs form five levels, each of which can serve as a motivation only after satisfaction of the need located at a lower level. That is, first of all, a person seeks to satisfy the most important need. Only after the satisfaction of the first need, a person begins to think about another. Thus, a hungry person will not think about security or respect or recognition in society until he has satisfied his need for food.

Topic: Hierarchy of human needs according to A. Maslow

Kadyrova R.K.

Questions:

The concept of needs.

Various theories and classifications of needs.

Hierarchy of needs according to A. Maslow.

Description of basic human needs.

Basic needs for daily human activities.

Conditions and factors influencing the way and efficiency of satisfaction of needs.

Possible reasons for the need for care (illness, injury, age).

The role of the nurse in restoring and maintaining the independence of the patient in meeting his basic needs

The role of the nurse in improving the lifestyle of the patient and his family.

The concept of needs

The normal life of a person, as a social being, representing a holistic, dynamic, self-regulating biological system is provided by a combination of biological, psychosocial and spiritual needs. Satisfaction of these needs determines the growth, development, harmony of man with the environment.

Human life depends on many factors that are ordered in time and space and are supported by the life support systems of the human body in the environment.

Need- this is a conscious psychological or physiological deficiency of something, reflected in the perception of a person, which he experiences in the attraction of his whole life. (MANGO Glossary, edited by G.I. Perfilieva).

Basic theories and classifications of needs

The authors of the need-information theory, which explains the causes and driving forces of human behavior, are Russian scientists Simonov and Ershov. The essence of the theory is that needs are motivated by the conditions of the organism's existence in a constantly changing environment.

The transition of a need into deeds and actions is accompanied by emotions.

Emotions are indicators of needs. They can be positive and negative to the satisfaction of needs. Simonov and Ershov divided all needs into three groups:

Group - vital (The need to live and provide for one's life).

group - social (the need to take a certain place in society)

group - cognitive (the need to know the external and internal world).

The American psychophysiologist A. Maslow, of Russian origin, identified 14 basic human needs in 1943 and arranged them according to five steps (see diagram)

Physiological needs are the lower needs controlled by the organs of the body, such as breathing, food, sexual, the need for self-defense.

Security needs - the desire for material security, health, provision for old age, etc.

Social needs - the satisfaction of this need is biased and difficult to describe. One person is satisfied with very few contacts with other people, in another person this need for communication is expressed very strongly.

The need for respect, awareness of one's own dignity - here we are talking about respect, prestige, social success. It is unlikely that these needs are met by an individual, this requires groups.

V. The need for personal development, for the realization of oneself, self-realization, self-actualization, in understanding one's purpose in the world.

Hierarchy of needs (development stages) according to a. Maslow. Essence of needs theory a. Maslow. Characteristics of basic human needs

Life, health, happiness, of a person depends on the satisfaction of needs for food, air, sleep, etc. These needs are self-satisfied throughout life. They are provided by the function of various organs and systems of the body. A disease that causes a dysfunction of one or another organ, one or another system, interferes with the satisfaction of needs, leads to discomfort.

In 1943, the American psychologist A. Maslow developed one of the theories of the hierarchy of needs that determine human behavior. According to his theory, some human needs are more essential than others. This allowed them to be classified according to a hierarchical system; from physiological to self-expression needs.

Currently, in countries with a high level of socio-economic development, where the priorities in meeting basic needs have changed significantly, it is not so popular. For our conditions today, this theory remains popular.

In order to live, a person needs to satisfy the physiological needs for air, food, water, sleep, excretion of waste products, the ability to move, communicate, with others, feel touch and satisfy their sexual interests.

Oxygen requirement- normal breathing, one of the basic physiological needs of a person. Breath and life are inseparable concepts.

With a lack of oxygen, breathing becomes frequent and superficial, shortness of breath appears cough. A prolonged decrease in the concentration of oxygen in the tissues leads to cyanosis, the skin and visible mucous membranes become bluish. Maintaining this need should be a priority for the healthcare worker. A person, satisfying this need, maintains the gas composition of the blood necessary for life.

Needv food is also essential for maintaining health and well-being. Rational and adequate nutrition helps eliminate risk factors for many diseases. For example, coronary heart disease is caused by regular consumption of foods rich in saturated animal fats and cholesterol. A diet high in grains and fiber may reduce the risk of colon cancer. The high protein content of food promotes wound healing.

The health worker must educate the patient and give advice on rational and adequate nutrition to meet the person's need for food.

Restrict: the use of egg yolks, sugar, sugary foods, salt, alcoholic beverages.

Food is better to cook, bake, but not fry.

It must be remembered that an unmet need for food leads to a violation of health.

Fluid requirement- this is drinking liquids, 1.5-2 liters daily - water, coffee, tea, milk, soup, fruits, vegetables. This amount makes up for losses in the form of excretions of urine, feces, sweat, fumes during breathing. In order to maintain the water balance, a person must consume more liquid than he excretes, otherwise there are signs of dehydration, but not more than 2 liters, so as not to cause dysfunction of many organs and systems. The patient's ability to avoid many complications depends on the ability of the nurse to anticipate the danger of dehydration or the formation of edema.

The need to excrete waste products. The undigested part of the food is excreted from the body in the form of urine, feces. Selection modes are individual for each person. Satisfaction of other needs may be delayed, but excretion of waste products cannot be delayed for a long time. Many patients find the process of excretion of waste products intimate and prefer not to discuss these issues. When satisfying a violated need, the nurse must provide him with the opportunity for privacy, respect the patient's right to confidentiality,

Need for sleep and rest- with lack of sleep, the level of glucose in the blood decreases, the nutrition of the brain deteriorates and thought processes slow down; attention is scattered, short-term memory worsens. Studies conducted by American experts show that in a person who did not sleep half the night, the number of blood cells responsible for phagocytosis is halved. Sleep is more necessary for a free person, because it helps to improve his well-being. Despite the fact that a person's susceptibility to external stimuli during sleep is reduced, this is a fairly active state. As a result of research, several stages of sleep have been identified.

Stage 1- slow sleep. Light sleep and last only a few minutes. At this stage, there is a decline in the physiological activity of organisms, a gradual decrease in the activity of vital organs, metabolism. A person can be easily awakened, but if the dream is not interrupted, then the second stage occurs after 15 minutes.

Stage 2– slow sleep. Light sleep, lasts 10-20 minutes. Vital functions continue to weaken, complete relaxation sets in. It's hard to wake someone up.

Stage 3– slow sleep. The deepest stage of sleep, lasting 15-30 minutes, is difficult to wake the sleeper. Continued weakening of vital functions,

Stage 4– slow sleep. Deep sleep, lasting 15-30 minutes, is very difficult to wake the sleeper. During this phase, the restoration of physical strength occurs. Vital functions are much less pronounced than during wakefulness. Stage 4 is followed by stages 3 and 2, after which the sleeper enters stage 5 sleep.

Stage 5- fast sleep. Bright, colorful dreams are possible 50-90 minutes after the first stage. There are rapid eye movements, changes in heart rate and breathing, and increases or fluctuations in blood pressure. Decreased skeletal muscle tone. During this phase, the mental functions of a person are restored, it is very difficult to wake the sleeping person. The duration of this stage is about 20 minutes.

After stage 5 sleep for a short time comes 4, 3, 2nd, then again the 3rd, 4th and 5th stages, i.e. the next sleep cycle.

Several factors can influence a person's sleep; physical ailment, drugs and drugs, lifestyle, emotional stress, environment and exercise. Any disease that is accompanied by pain, physical discomfort, anxiety and depression leads to sleep disturbance. The nurse should acquaint the patient with the effect of prescribed drugs and their effect on sleep.

Relaxation- a state of reduced physical and mental activity. You can relax not only lying on the couch, but also during a long walk, reading books or when performing special relaxing exercises. Loud noises, bright lights, and the presence of other people in a health care facility can make it difficult to relax.

The need for rest and sleep for human life, knowledge of its stages and possible causes that cause a violation of the usual functions of the human body, will enable the nurse to help the patient and satisfy his need for sleep with the means available to her.

Need in movement. Limited mobility or immobility creates many problems for a person. This condition can be long or short, temporary or permanent. It can be caused by trauma followed by splinting, limb traction with the use of special devices. Pain in the presence of chronic diseases, residual effects of cerebrovascular accident.

Immobility is one of the risk factors for the development of bedsores, impaired function of the musculoskeletal system, the functioning of the heart and lungs. With prolonged immobility, there are changes in the digestive system, dyspepsia, flatulence, anorexia, diarrhea or constipation. Intensive straining during the act of defecation, to which the patient must resort, can lead to hemorrhoids, myocardial infarction, cardiac arrest. Immobility, especially when lying down, interferes with urination and can lead to bladder infections, bladder stones, and kidney stones.

And the main problem of the patient is that he cannot communicate with the environment, which has a significant impact on the formation of a person's personality. Depending on the degree and duration of the state of immobility, the patient may develop certain problems in the psychosocial sphere, the ability to learn, motivation, feelings and emotions change.

Nursing care aimed at the maximum possible restoration of mobility, independence when moving using crutches, sticks, prostheses, is of great importance for improving the patient's quality of life.

Sexual need. It does not stop even with illness or old age.

The sexual health of a person can be directly or indirectly affected by his disease, developmental defects. Nevertheless, many people are reluctant to talk about this topic even in the presence of serious sexual problems.

Solving actual or potential sexual problems can help the patient achieve harmony in all aspects of health.

It is necessary when talking with a patient:

develop a solid scientific basis for understanding healthy sexuality and its most common disorders and dysfunctions;

understand how a person's sexual orientation, culture, and religious beliefs affect sexuality;

learn to identify problems that are beyond the competence of nursing, and recommend to the patient the help of an appropriate specialist.

The need for security. For most people, safety means reliability and convenience. Each of us needs shelter, clothing and someone who can help. The patient feels safe if the bed, wheelchair, wheelchair are fixed, the floor covering in the ward and in the corridor is dry and there are no foreign objects on it, the room is sufficiently lit at night; with poor eyesight, there are glasses. The person is dressed according to the weather, and the dwelling is warm enough, and if necessary, assistance will be provided to him. The patient must be sure that he is able not only to ensure his own safety, but also not to harm others. Avoid stressful situations.

Social needs- these are the needs for family, friends, their communication, approval, affection, love, etc.

People want to be loved and understood. Nobody wants to be abandoned, unloved and alone. If this happened, it means that the social needs of a person are not satisfied.

With severe illness, incapacity for work or in old age often arises vacuum, social contacts are broken. Unfortunately, in such cases, the need for communication is not satisfied, especially in the elderly, and lonely people. One should always keep in mind the social needs of a person, even in cases where he prefers not to talk about it.

Helping a patient to solve a social problem can significantly improve his quality of life.

The need for self-respect and respect. Communicating with people, we cannot be indifferent to the assessment of our success by others.

A person has a need for respect and self-respect. But for this it is necessary that work bring satisfaction to him, and rest be rich and interesting, the higher the level of socio-economic development of society, the more fully the needs for self-esteem are satisfied. Disabled and elderly patients lose this feeling, since they are no longer of interest to anyone, there is no one to rejoice in their success, and therefore they have no opportunity to satisfy their need for respect.

The need for self-expression is the highest level of human need. Satisfying their need for self-expression, each believes that he is doing better than others. For one, self-expression is writing a book, for another it is growing a garden, for a third it is raising children, and so on.

So, at each level of the hierarchy, the patient may have one or more unmet needs, the nurse, when drawing up a plan for caring for the patient, must help him realize at least some of them.

famous Maslow's pyramid of needs, which is familiar to many from the lessons of social science, reflects the hierarchy of human needs.

Recently, it has been criticized by psychologists and sociologists. But is it really useless? Let's try to figure it out.

The essence of Maslow's pyramid

The work of the scientist himself and common sense suggest that the previous level of the pyramid does not have to be 100% “closed” before the desire to be realized at the next step appears.

In addition, it is obvious that under the same conditions, one person will feel some need satisfied, while the other will not.

We can say that different people have different heights of the steps of the pyramid. Next, let's talk about them in more detail.

Maslow's pyramid levels

Quite briefly and succinctly, the essence of Maslow's pyramid can be explained as follows: until the needs of the lowest order are satisfied to a certain extent, a person will not have higher “higher” aspirations.

The work of the scientist himself and common sense suggest that the previous level of the pyramid does not have to be 100% “closed” before the desire to be realized at the next step appears. In addition, it is obvious that under the same conditions, one person will feel some need satisfied, while the other will not. We can say that different people have different heights of the steps of the pyramid. Next, let's talk about them in more detail.

Physiological Needs

First of all, it is the need for food, air, water and enough sleep. Naturally, without this, a person will simply die. In the same category, Maslow attributed the need for sexual intercourse. These aspirations are related to us and it is impossible to get away from them.

The Need for Security

This includes both simple "animal" safety, i.e. the presence of a reliable shelter, the absence of the threat of attack, etc., and due to our society (for example, people experience great stress when there is a risk of losing their jobs).

The need for belonging and love

This is the desire to be part of a certain social group, to take its place in it, which is accepted by the rest of the members of this community. The need for love needs no explanation.

The need for respect and recognition

This is the recognition of the achievements and successes of a person by as many members of society as possible, although for some, their own family will be enough.

The need for knowledge, research

At this stage, a person begins to be burdened by various worldview issues, like the meaning of life. There is a desire to immerse yourself in science, religion, esotericism, to try to understand this world.

The need for aesthetics and harmony

It is understood that at this level, a person seeks to find beauty in everything, accepts the Universe as it is. In everyday life, he strives for maximum order and harmony.

The need for self-realization

This is the definition of one's abilities and their maximum realization. A person at this stage is mainly engaged in creative activity, actively developing spiritually. According to Maslow, only about 2% of humanity reaches such heights.

You can see a generalized view of the pyramid of needs in the figure. A large number of examples can be cited, both confirming and refuting this scheme. So our hobbies often help to satisfy the desire to belong to some community.

So they go one step further. Around us we see many examples of people who have not reached the 4th level of the pyramid and therefore experience some spiritual discomfort.

However, not everything is so smooth. You can easily find examples that do not fit into this theory. The easiest way to find them is in history. For example, young Charles Darwin's craving for knowledge appeared during a very dangerous voyage, and not in calm and well-fed home conditions.

Such contradictions lead to the fact that today a large number of scientists reject the pyramid of needs familiar to us.

Application of Maslow's pyramid

And yet Maslow's theory has found its application in our lives. Marketers use it to target certain aspirations of the individual, some personnel management systems, by manipulating the motivation of employees, are built on the basis of a pyramid.

The creation of Abraham Maslow can help each of us in setting personal goals, namely: to decide what you really want and what you really need to achieve.

In conclusion, we note that the original works of Maslow did not contain the pyramid itself. She was born only 5 years after his death, but of course based on the work of the scientist. According to rumors, Abraham himself at the end of his life revised his views. How seriously to take his creation today is up to you.

Maslow's pyramid of needs reflects the basic ideas of the American psychologist Abraham Maslow. He developed a hierarchical theory of levels of human satisfaction in life. Its essence lies in the fact that a person closes his needs sequentially, gradually climbing up the pyramid.

This is what Maslow's pyramid looks like

The hierarchical needs theory itself was framed in the presented diagram after Maslow's death by his students. And initially, the theory of hierarchy, as it is also called, was set out in Maslow's work "The Theory of Human Motivation" in 1943 and further developed by him in his work "Motivation and Personality" in 1954.

Maslow's pyramid levels

Let's take a closer look at what Maslow's pyramid is. Human needs are distributed in its more simplified version on 5 levels.

1. Physiological (organic): breathing, thirst, hunger, sexual desire, etc.

2. Needs for protection: shelter, some constancy of living conditions to replace everyday anxiety and fear and gain a basic sense of security in life.

3. Social needs or belonging: relationships with other people, everyday communication, feelings of affection, caring for other people, getting attention or so-called "strokes" according to Berne, joint activities.

4. Prestige needs or social recognition: achieving a certain level of self-esteem, recognition of merit by others, achieving success and high marks, career growth.

5. Spiritual needs: knowledge, satisfaction of aesthetic needs, self-actualization and self-expression, which is manifested in the realization of one's potential and the discovery of the meaning of life, the fulfillment of a spiritual mission.

A more complex version in which Maslow's pyramid is implemented is a seven-level one. In it, the 5th level of needs is divided into 3, from which cognitive needs are distinguished first (to be able, to know, to explore), then aesthetic (order, beauty, orderliness) and only then the need for self-actualization associated with the realization of the higher meaning of one's existence.

Maslow pyramid 7 levels

So, the first level of Maslow's pyramid is organic or physiological. It is the foundation of the foundations and no one will argue with that. We are in the physical world and are forced to maintain our existence with the help of air, water, food and the administration of natural needs. And that's what Maslow's pyramid tells us about this. Examples obvious. If you have an upset stomach on your way to work, then you will look for the toilet, and not think about the report, trying, for example, to the office for the first reason, and not for the second.

The second level of Maslow's pyramid is the need for security, protection, defense, etc. The basis of this level is a place where you can hide from the dangers of the outside world, that is, a house. You also want to stop worrying about what to feed yourself and your family. Therefore, strive for a stable source of income. In addition, a person wants to part with the background feeling of anxiety for himself and his loved ones. Therefore, the security of the district, kindergartens, schools, universities, etc. is so important to us.

The third level of Maslow's pyramid is the acquisition of an inner social circle. This need is realized in the fact that a person wants to make friends, start a family, join the team at work. That is, in a global sense, it is the need for everyday communication and receiving benefits from it.

The fourth level of Maslow's pyramid is the desire for social recognition and success. Usually reaching this stage is characterized by the need for career growth or building your own business. It is on it that the basis for self-identification (who am I?) and self-actualization (what am I for?) is formed. It is here that the first sprouts of talent and creativity make their way.

The fifth level of the Maslow pyramid is the expansion of the possibilities of cognition. Since a person has already achieved some success, it is quite possible that positive incentives will take him even further. He will not want to stay on his high "plateau", but will try to take the next peak. Therefore, he will learn new things, get additional information, master the missing skills.

The sixth level of Maslow's pyramid is the contemplation and creation of beauty. It is practically expressed in the aesthetics of designing the space around oneself, traveling, visiting art galleries, museums, theaters.

The seventh level is self-actualization. This need is manifested in leadership, confirmation of one's life mission, the need to transfer personal and professional experience and knowledge to others, mentoring, understanding the meaning of one's life.

Maslow's pyramid: just a model?

You must remember that the theory of needs expressed in a simple but visual diagram is an ideal model. When this American psychologist developed his theory of hierarchies, he was guided by the experience of the most prominent representatives of mankind - Albert Einstein, Richard Wagner, Abraham Lincoln, etc.

Human needs may not be met in such a linear fashion. The very sequence of the onset of certain stages may vary from one person to another. In addition, no one can measure the measure of satisfaction of a person who has reached one or another level. And this means that when a person reaches a new level, the previous needs still do not disappear, but require their satisfaction.

Maslow's pyramid: application

Nevertheless, in sales management, namely in the field of employee motivation, the “decoding” of human needs, which was produced by an American psychologist, can be very useful.

It underlies the complex salary that should be applied to sales staff. The complex salary consists of 3 parts:

Fixed salary - about 30% of the total earnings of the seller who fulfilled the plan. It is paid to a subordinate regardless of the result and must cover his basic needs, that is, those that Maslow calls physiological.

The second and third parts of the manager's remuneration - a soft salary for the performance of indicators in the amount of 10-20% and bonuses from transactions - at least 50%, are incentives that can "cast" a person immediately to the 4th level of satisfaction of the need for recognition and veneration.

We've talked about how sometimes people don't grow in the straight-line sequence of the presented needs model. However, the trick is that, most likely, a normal person will never move to the 5th level and beyond until he feels satisfied in the first 4 steps. And here Maslow was generally right about the majority.

A sharp transition from the 1st level to the 5th or 6th, for example, without taking into account the previous ones, is available to rare non-standard personalities. But since you hire normal specialists, then provide them with an equally normal and understandable scheme of material motivation described above.

After that, you, as an employer, are able to stimulate the employee's transition to higher levels. Develop forms of non-material motivation: training and advanced training of employees, contests, competitions. They will push the seller to knowledge and even self-actualization.

We reviewed Maslow's theory of needs and explained how you can put it into practice in order to correctly form motivational mechanisms in your company.