> Fundamental human needs, according to the school of "Human Scale
> Development" developed by Manfred Max Neef and others (Antonio
> Elizalde and Martin Hopenhayn), are seen as ontological (stemming from
> the condition of being human), are few, finite and classifiable (as
> distinct from the conventional notion of conventional economic "wants"
> that are infinite and insatiable). They are also constant through all
> human cultures and across historical time periods. What changes over
> time and between cultures is the strategies by which these needs are
> satisfied. It is important that human needs are understood as a system
> - i.e. they are interrelated and interactive. In this system, there is
> no hierarchy of needs (apart from the basic need for subsistence or
> survival) as postulated by Western psychologists such as Maslow,
> rather, simultaneity, complementarity and trade-offs are features of
> the process of needs satisfaction.
>
> Manfred Max-Neef and his colleagues developed a taxonomy of human
> needs and a process by which communities can identify their "wealths"
> and "poverties" according to how their fundamental human needs are
> satisfied.
>
> This school of Human Scale Development is described as, "focused and
> based on the satisfaction of fundamental human needs, on the
> generation of growing levels of self-reliance, and on the construction
> of organic articulations of people with nature and technology, of
> global processes with local activity, of the personal with the social,
> of planning with autonomy, and of civil society with the state."
>
> Max-Neef classifies the fundamental human needs as:
>
> subsistence,
> protection,
> affection,
> understanding,
> participation,
> recreation (in the sense of leisure, time to reflect, or idleness),
> creation,
> identity and
> freedom.
>
> Needs are also defined according to the existential categories of
> being, having, doing and interacting, and from these dimensions, a 36
> cell matrix is developed"
>
>
http://www.rainforestinfo.org.au/background/maxneef.htm
Is that like Abraham Maslow's hierarchy of needs?
Abraham Maslow is known for establishing the theory of a hierarchy of
needs, writing that human beings are motivated by unsatisfied needs,
and that certain lower needs need to be satisfied before higher needs
can be satisfied.
Maslow's hierarchy of needs was an alternative to the depressing
determinism of Freud and Skinner. He felt that people are basically
trustworthy, self-protecting, and self-governing.
Humans tend toward growth and love. Although there is a continuous
cycle of human wars, murder, deceit, etc., he believed that violence
is not what human nature is meant to be like.
Violence and other evils occur when human needs are thwarted. In other
words, people who are deprived of lower needs such as safety may
defend themselves by violent means. He did not believe that humans are
violent because they enjoy violence. Or that they lie, cheat, and
steal because they enjoy doing it.
According to Maslow;
there are general types of
needs (physiological, safety,
love, and esteem)
that must be satisfied
before a person can act
unselfishly.
He called these needs "deficiency needs."
As long as we are motivated to satisfy these cravings, we are moving
towards growth, toward self-actualization. Satisfying needs is
healthy, blocking gratification makes us sick or evil. In other words,
we are all "needs junkies" with cravings that must be satisfied and
should be satisfied. Else, we become sick.
Needs are prepotent. A prepotent need is one that has the greatest
influence over our actions. Everyone has a prepotent need, but that
need will vary among individuals. A teenager may have a need to feel
that he/she is accepted by a group. A heroin addict will need to
satisfy his/her cravings for heroin to function normally in society,
and will not worry about acceptance by other people. According to
Maslow, when the deficiency needs are met:
At once other (and higher) needs emerge, and these, rather than
physiological hungers, dominate the organism. And when these in turn
are satisfied, again new (and still higher) needs emerge, and so on.
As one desire is satisfied, another pops up to take its place.
- Physiological Needs
Physiological needs are the very basic needs such as air, water, food,
sleep, sex, etc. When these are not satisfied we may feel sickness,
irritation, pain, discomfort, etc. These feelings motivate us to
alleviate them as soon as possible to establish homeostasis. Once they
are alleviated, we may think about other things.
- Safety Needs
Safety needs have to do with establishing stability and consistency in
a chaotic world. These needs are mostly psychological in nature. We
need the security of a home and family. However, if a family is
dysfunction, i.e., an abusive husband, the wife cannot move to the
next level because she is constantly concerned for her safety. Love
and belongingness have to wait until she is no longer cringing in
fear. Many in our society cry out for law and order because they do
not feel safe enough to go for a walk in their neighborhood. Many
people, particularly those in the inner cities, unfortunately, are
stuck at this level. In addition, safety needs sometimes motivate
people to be religious. Religions comfort us with the promise of a
safe secure place after we die and leave the insecurity of this
world.
- Love Needs
Love and belongingness are next on the ladder. Humans have a desire to
belong to groups: clubs, work groups, religious groups, family, gangs,
etc. We need to feel loved (non-sexual) by others, to be accepted by
others. Performers appreciate applause. We need to be needed. Beer
commercials, in addition to playing on sex, also often show how beer
makes for camaraderie. When was the last time you saw a beer
commercial with someone drinking beer alone?
- Esteem Needs
There are two types of esteem needs. First is self-esteem which
results from competence or mastery of a task. Second, there's the
attention and recognition that comes from others. This is similar to
the belongingness level, however, wanting admiration has to do with
the need for power. People who have all of their lower needs
satisfied, often drive very expensive cars because doing so raises
their level of esteem. "Hey, look what I can afford-peon!"
- Self-Actualization
The need for self-actualization is "the desire to become more and more
what one is, to become everything that one is capable of becoming."
People who have everything can maximize their potential. They can seek
knowledge, peace, esthetic experiences, self-fulfillment, oneness with
God, etc. It is usually middle-class to upper-class students who take
up environmental causes, join the Peace Corps, go off to a monastery,
etc.
http://web.utk.edu/~gwynne/maslow.HTM
http://chiron.valdosta.edu/whuitt/col/regsys/maslow.html
http://www.wynja.com/personality/needs.html
http://honolulu.hawaii.edu/intranet/committees/FacDevCom/guidebk/teachtip/maslow...
http://www.politicalscience.utoledo.edu/faculty/davis/maslow.htm
