What is good for you is also good for me”Pearson & Podeschi. 1999. “Humanism and individualism: maslow and his critics.” Adult Education Quarterly, vol. 50, No. 1, pp. 41-55.Maslow is not the first to view the individual as having innate human behaviors, however his hierarchy of needs was the first development that explicitly linked individual behaviors to a procession of advancing. In other words, Maslow addresses human nature within the realm of unique individuals with varied and changing needs that do not always follow a specific, designated path. This approach makes his work most tenable to political behavior theory because it allows for both the simplicity as well the complexity of human action. Nor did Maslow’s work deviate markedly from classical assumptions of human goodness and morality. Pearson & Podeschi (1999: 51) note, “For Maslow, despite the impact of social forces, we as individuals have a responsibility to contribute to the possibilities of intrinsic human attributes, with the human need for growth providing a generating force for engaging in a lifetime enterprise of self-creation that has consequences on others.”Maslow’s theory, as it relates to human motivation, revolves around one fairly simple proposition: “It is characteristic of human beings throughout their whole lives that they are practically always desiring something…” (Maslow, 1963: 7). In this sense, humans have specific needs, or desires, which they continually strive to fulfill. These needs begin from the most basic, at the bottom of the hierarchy (physiological and safety needs), to the more advanced and complex needs (belongingness and love, self-esteem, and self-actualization needs).For Maslow, all human beings begin their need requirements at the bottom of the hierarchy, working their way up to the highest need – that of self-actualization. A few clarifications are necessary a...
