Abraham Maslow
Abraham Maslow was an American psychologist and philosopher best known for his hierarchy of needs and for helping found humanistic psychology.
Abraham Maslow was an American psychologist and philosopher best known for his hierarchy of needs and for helping found humanistic psychology. His work focused on human motivation, self-actualization, and the study of healthy personality development. Maslow is widely associated with the five-level hierarchy of needs, which remains a standard framework in psychology.
Life and career
Maslow was born in New York City in 1908 and died in Menlo Park, California, in 1970. He became a major figure in mid-20th-century psychology and taught at Brandeis University from 1951 to 1969, where he founded its psychology department.
Humanistic psychology
Maslow is regarded as a founder of humanistic psychology, an approach that emphasized human potential, growth, and healthy functioning rather than only pathology. This perspective influenced later positive psychology and human potential movements.
Hierarchy of needs
His best-known idea is the hierarchy of needs, a model of motivation that places physiological and safety needs below belongingness, esteem, and self-actualization. Maslow argued that people are motivated by needs that tend to emerge in a progression from basic survival needs to higher-level growth needs.
Influence
Maslow’s ideas have had lasting influence in psychology, education, management, and later positive psychology, though some later commentators note that the familiar pyramid image was not created by Maslow himself. The hierarchy is widely taught in Canadian psychology, education, business, and health contexts as a standard framework for human motivation.
Key facts
- Maslow is widely associated with the five-level hierarchy of needs: physiological, safety, belongingness and love, esteem, and self-actualization.
- He is considered one of the founders of humanistic psychology.
- Maslow argued that people are motivated by needs that tend to emerge in a progression from basic survival needs to higher-level growth needs.
- His work influenced later fields and ideas, including positive psychology and human potential movements.
Maslow’s hierarchy of needs is widely taught in Canadian psychology, education, business, and health contexts as a standard framework for human motivation.
Frequently asked questions
Who was Abraham Maslow?
What is Maslow’s hierarchy of needs?
What did Maslow contribute to psychology?
Did Maslow create the pyramid diagram?
Where did Maslow teach?
References
- Britannica — https://www.britannica.com/biography/Abraham-H-MaslowSupports: Birth and death dates, nationality, occupation, and overview of his self-actualization theory.
- PBS — https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/aso/databank/entries/bhmasl.htmlSupports: Maslow as a founder of humanistic psychology.
- Simply Psychology — https://www.simplypsychology.org/wp-content/uploads/Maslow.pdfSupports: Maslow’s view of needs progressing from one level to another.
- Brandeis University — https://www.brandeis.edu/now/2013/may/maslow.htmlSupports: Maslow founding the psychology department at Brandeis and teaching there from 1951 to 1969.
- Britannica — https://www.britannica.com/biography/Abraham-H-MaslowSupports: His role in self-actualization theory and broader significance.
- Britannica — https://www.britannica.com/biography/Abraham-H-MaslowSupports: Biographical facts and professional identity.
- Wikipedia — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maslow%27s_hierarchy_of_needsSupports: Original five needs and note that the pyramid diagram was not created by Maslow.