Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs - Changes To The Hierarchy By Circumstance

Changes To The Hierarchy By Circumstance

The higher-order (self-esteem and self-actualization) and lower-order (physiological, safety, and love) needs classification of Maslow's hierarchy of needs is not universal and may vary across cultures due to individual differences and availability of resources in the region or geopolitical entity/country.

Researchers challenged Maslow’s hierarchical theory from the ranked order to the classification of the needs; they challenged the levels of needs for importance and satisfaction during moments of peace and conflict across cultures with regards to the first Persian Gulf War. Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) of a thirteen item scale showed there were two particularly important levels of needs in the US during the peacetime of 1993 to 1994. These two levels were survival (physiological and safety) and psychological (love, self-esteem, and self-actualization). In 1991, a retrospective peacetime measure was established and collected during the Persian Gulf War and US citizens were asked to recall the importance of needs from the previous year. Once again, only two levels of needs were identified; therefore, people have the ability and competence to recall and estimate the importance of needs. With regards to the importance of needs, two levels of needs regarding satisfaction during peacetime in the US also emerged. However, these two levels varied from Maslow's model because social needs were associated with self-esteem and self-actualization (psychological needs).

For citizens in the Middle East (Egypt and Saudi Arabia), three levels of needs regarding importance and satisfaction surfaced during the 1990 retrospective peacetime. These three levels were completely different from those of the US citizens. For example, due to significant differences in natural resources across countries, during the peacetime water was the least important need for people in the US, but for those in the Middle East, it was the most important need. Changes regarding the importance and satisfaction of needs from the retrospective peacetime to the wartime due to stress varied significantly across cultures (the US vs. the Middle East). For the US citizens, there was only one level of needs since all needs were considered equally important. For example, the most significant increase was the security and safety of the country since it was taken for granted during peacetime. With regards to satisfaction of needs during the war, in the US there were three levels: physiological needs, safety needs, and psychological needs (social, self-esteem, and self-actualization). During the war, the satisfaction of physiological needs and safety needs were separated into two independent needs while during peacetime, they were combined as one.

For the people of the Middle East, the satisfaction of needs changed from three levels to two during wartime. Self-esteem was considered the least satisfied need for people in the US, but in the Middle East, it was a common, albeit rare, finding.

A 1981 study looked at how Maslow's hierarchy might vary across age groups. A survey asked participants of varying ages to rate a set number of statements from most important to least important. The researchers found that children had higher physical need scores than the other groups, the love need emerged from childhood to young adulthood, the esteem need was highest among the adolescent group, young adults had the highest self-actualization level, and while old age had the highest level of security, it was needed across all levels comparably. The authors argued that this suggested Maslow’s hierarchy may be limited as a theory for developmental sequence since the sequence of the love need and the self-esteem need should be reversed according to age. The authors also cautioned that social desirability for each need may have influenced the expression of motivation. For example, the authors argued that love and self-actualization were viewed as “desirable” while security and esteem were viewed as “undesirable.”