Abraham Maslow

He’s just happy to be here; and that’s a belonging need

Image of Psychologist

Basic Information• Born April 1, 1908• Brooklyn, New York• First of seven children• Family of uneducated Jewish immigrants from Russia• Married his first cousin and had two daughters• Died June 8,1970

Education

• Parents pushed him for academic success

• Studied law at the City College of New York

• Transferred to Cornell, then back to CCNY

• Attended University of Wisconsin

• Received BA in 1930, MA in 1931, PhD in 1934, all from UW

QuickTime™ and aTIFF (Uncompressed) decompressor

are needed to see this picture.

Work

• Began teaching at Brooklyn College

• Adler, Fromm, Horney, and several Gestalt and Freudian psychologists

• Head of psychology department at Brandeis University 1951-’69

Psychological Perspective

• Humanistic• Much research with

monkeys• Monkeys and humans

behave similarlyQuickTime™ and a

TIFF (Uncompressed) decompressorare needed to see this picture.

Contributions to Psychology

• Hierarchy of Needs

• Toward a Psychology of Being, Motivation and Personality, and The Further Reaches of Human Nature

Big Idea!!

• According to Maslow, an individual is ready to act upon the growth needs if and only if the deficiency needs are met. Maslow's initial conceptualization included only one growth need--self-actualization.

• Self-actualized people are characterized by: 1) being problem-focused; 2) incorporating an ongoing freshness of appreciation of life; 3) a concern about personal growth; and 4) the ability to have peak experiences

Influence on Modern Psychology

• Hierarchy of Needs

• Concept of Self-actualization

• Co-founder of Journal of Humanistic Psychology

References

• Boeree, G. C. (1998). Abraham Maslow 1908-1970. Retrieved 9/14/10 from http://webspace.ship.edu/cgboer/maslow.htm

• Huitt, W. (2007). Maslow's hierarchy of needs. Educational Psychology Interactive. Valdosta, GA: Valdosta State University. Retrieved 9/16/10 from http://www.edpsycinteractive.org/topics/regsys/maslow.html