Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs: Made SIMPLE and FUN

Last updated: 8 October 2026

Maslow’s hierarchy of needs is a core component on many curriculums around the world. A psychological theory focussing on motivation, it helps us to understand concepts in many different disciplines- from international development to education to travel and tourism!

Many students study Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs as part of an educational course. This article provides a simple explanation of what the theory is, how it works, its criticisms and how it can be applied to travel and tourism.

Who was Abraham Maslow?

Before looking at the theory itself, it is worth introducing the famous Abraham Maslow.

Maslow is well known among students around the world, largely because of the pyramid associated with his theory. But who was he?

Abraham Maslow was an American psychologist and philosopher. He was born in New York in 1908 and died in California in 1970.

Maslow was an academic. He first studied at the University of Wisconsin and by 1951 he was the head of the psychology department at Brandeis University.

Abraham Maslow was an important contributor in the USA to humanistic psychology, also known as the ‘third force’.

Maslow had two major publications, which continue to be widely cited today. These were Motivation and Personality (1954) and Toward a Psychology of Being (1962).

What is the Hierarchy of Needs theory?

Much of Maslow’s work centred around the underlying principles of his Hierarchy of Needs theory.

Having studied human behaviour for several decades, Maslow felt that the theories at the time did not adequately address the complexities of human behaviour. In an attempt to address this, Maslow presented a paper in 1943 entitled ‘A Theory of Human Motivation‘. In his presentation he proposed that all human activity is directed towards goal attainment.

In other words, Maslow argued that everything people do has a goal or a reason. People go to a bar to quench our thirst or to satisfy a need for human interaction (or both). They go to work to be able to pay our bills and put food on the table. They travel for enjoyment and relaxation. There is a reason or goal behind everything, and people are motivated to do something for a reason.

Maslow wanted to portray his ideas in a way that was easy to understand and apply to different contexts and scenarios. He did this by creating a hierarchy. He suggested that people’s goals begin with basic needs (eating, shelter, rest etc). Once these needs are met, new goals are set, and so on. He proposed that there are five levels of needs.

The importance of Maslow’s theory

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs is an important theory, not only in psychology, but in many different industries.

Maslow’s theory helps us to understand people’s behaviours. It can be applied to any number of situations and circumstances. Examples include:

• Enhancing employee satisfaction and output
• Managing poor behaviour (at school, for example)
• Understanding what types of holidays might sell best
• Understanding customer loyalty
• Designing training programmes

Applying Maslow’s theory to a specific context can seem difficult, but it is more straightforward than it might first appear.

In the most basic sense, Maslow’s pyramid demonstrates that in order to be truly motivated, a person must meet all of the needs levels in the hierarchy.

For example, consider a tour operator, for example. When designing holiday packages, a tour operator needs to make sure that tourists will be able to meet all of the needs levels in Maslow’s hierarchy. The holiday needs to include a place to rest, eat and drink (physiological needs). It needs to be in a safe location (safety needs). It needs to offer a welcoming environment with good customer service (belonging and love needs). And it needs to provide opportunities for respect and self-esteem (esteem needs). Only a holiday that offers all of this (and demonstrates this to the tourist when they are shopping for holidays!) will sell well.

Another example comes from education. A student is misbehaving at school and is not doing his work as requested by the teacher. The teacher wants to find out what is causing the problem so that she can attempt to fix it. Rather than simply putting the child in detention, the teacher could speak with the child. The teacher can use Maslow’s Needs Hierarchy as a guide. Maybe the child is not eating properly. This would identify that the first level of needs is not met. Or perhaps the child is suffering from domestic abuse at home. This would mean that the second level in the hierarchy is not met. If a need is not met then the child will not be motivated.

This shows that Maslow’s theory does have real-world value. It is not perfect, as discussed in the criticisms below, but it has helped many businesses, organisations and individuals.

Maslow’s theory is important because it helps us to understand human behaviour. Understanding a situation makes it easier to manage. This could mean making more money by selling more holidays or it could mean achieving better student outcomes by managing poor behaviour. The possibilities are endless…

What are the five levels of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs?

A simple way to understand the five levels is to imagine climbing a mountain.

A climber needs food to give you the energy to climb. They need rest and warm clothes to protect them from the cold. These things are non-negotiable for survival. They are the physiological needs.

Once these are in place, the climber will think about whether they are safe on the mountain, whether they are in control of the situation and whether they have the resources to reach the top. These are safety needs.

Once they feel safe and secure, they may long for a sense of love and belonging. This is when they bond with fellow climbers, developing trust and forming relationships.

As they near the top, they gain confidence, a sense of mastery and the respect of their peers, and develop self-esteem.

Reaching the summit is the ultimate goal – this represents self-actualisation. At this level a person has autonomy and spontaneity, and has developed and grown personally.

Each of the five stages of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs is explained in more detail below.

Deficiency and growth needs

There are five needs in Maslow’s pyramid. These five needs are split into two categories: deficiency needs and growth needs.

The first four levels (physiological, safety, love and belonging and esteem) are deficiency needs, also referred to as D needs.

Deficiency needs occur when we are deprived of something. When people are deprived of food and water, they are naturally very motivated to fulfil that need, i.e. have something to eat and drink. These motivations become stronger over time- the longer someone goes without food, the more they want it.

Growth needs are identified at the top of the pyramid. You may also see this level referred to as being needs or B needs. Once deficiencies have been eliminated and the first four needs satisfied, people develop a desire to satisfy our growth needs in order to reach self-actualisation.

Each of these needs is explained below.

Physiological

At the bottom of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs are basic physiological needs. These are the things people need to survive. Someone who cannot afford to eat will not be concerned about luxuries.

Physiological needs are needs that must be met to sustain life and to protect the human race (i.e. having babies). Some examples of aspects that are classified as physiological in Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs include:

• Food
• Water
• Breathing
• Shelter
• Clothing
• Sex

Safety

The second level of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs is safety. This is also a basic need.

Once the needs of the first level have been satisfied, people become more concerned with safety aspects.

In today’s world, safety largely revolves around health and economics. Important things might include health insurance, having savings, living in a safe area etc. We can summarise this into three main areas:

• Financial security
• Health and wellbeing
• Safety against accidents and injury

Love and belonging

Love and belonging is the third tier of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs. This tier describes the social needs that a person has.

Social needs covers anything that involves the concepts of love, acceptance and belonging. Human beings need social interaction and there are a range of ways that this can be achieved, including:

• Friends
• Romantic relationships
• Family
• Social groups
• Educational groups
• Work groups and colleagues
• Community groups
• Churches and religious organisations

Esteem

The fourth level of Maslow’s pyramid is all about appreciation and respect.

Once the previous three levels have been met, people begin to focus on their esteem levels. At this level people want to have some recognition for our accomplishments. The two areas that are covered at this level include:

• Self-esteem
• Personal worth

Humans desire a sense of value from others, whether from friends, colleagues, family or anyone else with whom we have social interaction.

This can take many forms. It could be being awarded an ’employee of the month’ award, being a key player in a sports match or receiving lots of likes on a social media post.

People who lack self-esteem can experience feelings of anxiety and inferiority. As a result, they will not achieve self-actualisation- the highest point in Maslow’s pyramid.

Self-actualisation

Maslow claimed that ‘what a man can be, he must be’. In other words, at the top of the hierarchy a person becomes the best version of themselves. BUT this is only achievable IF all of the needs lower down on the pyramid have been met.

Maslow described that self-actualisation is not a fixed end point. A person is always growing and developing. In self-actualisation, a person comes to find a meaning to life that is important to them.

Because everyone is different, self-actualisation looks different in different people. For one person it could be being the perfect mother. For another person it could be being a successful athlete. For another person it could be joining the Peace Corps.

Self-actualisation is difficult to determine from the outside, because nobody truly knows what is going on in another person’s head and whether they are wholly satisfied or not.

The expanded Hierarchy of Needs

Maslow’s original five-level model was later expanded.

Drawing on Maslow’s later writings in the 1960s and 1970s, an expanded eight-level version of the hierarchy is often taught, adding three further levels: cognitive needs, aesthetic needs and transcendence.

Cognitive needs

Cognitive needs represents the lower levels of the growth needs.

Maslow recognised that humans are curious and have a desire to learn. Whether this takes place in a classroom or through versions of experiential learning, cognitive needs must be satisfied in order to reach self-actualisation.

Cognitive needs include:

• Knowledge and understanding
• Curiosity
• Exploration
• Need for meaning and predictability

Aesthetic needs

Aesthetic needs represent the desire for beauty, balance and order. These needs could be met, for example, through going to a yoga class or by having a garden filled with flowers to sit in.

Aesthetic needs can be met through:

• Appreciation
• Beauty
• Balance
• Form/order

Transcendence needs

In Maslow’s original hierarchy, it ends with actualisation of the self. In his expanded version, however, the upper level of the pyramid is about transcending beyond the self. This could occur through mystical or religious experiences, doing good for others (i.e. volunteering) or through certain experiences with nature.

Transcendence experiences can be summarised as:

• Mystical experiences
• Experiences with nature
• Aesthetic experiences
• Sexual experiences
• Service to others
• The pursuit of science
• Religious faith

Advantages of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs has several strengths.

It provides a simple and useful tool to understand human behaviour. Whether the goal is to achieve better grades from students at school, to motivate staff to be more productive or to sell more products, Maslow’s theory can help.

Criticisms of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs

As with any academic theory, there are criticisms. Critique is an important part of academic work, helping to ensure rigour.

For Maslow, the main criticisms of his work are:

• Needs are not always hierarchical
• The theory is too rigid/not flexible
• It has elitist, classist implications
• The scientific evidence is questionable

Maslow suggests that in order to reach self-actualisation, a person must satisfy each need in his pyramid in the correct order. However, needs are not always hierarchical!

For example, people can love their family members or our significant other (level 3) but still be hungry (level 1). Parents, for example, may choose to feed their children before themselves, thus putting love above their own physiological well-being.

Another example could be which job to accept. A person may choose to accept a lower-paying job because it offers more enjoyment than the higher-paying job. This is human nature, but defies the hierarchical structure of Maslow’s theory.

The reality is, that without emotion, people might follow the hierarchical nature of Maslow’s theory. But in reality, life does not always follow a strict order in this way.

One of the biggest criticisms of Maslow’s theory is that his study was based on the imperialist elite- white, Western, successful men.

Anyone who understands basic research methodologies will know that this is not a representative sample and that it therefore cannot be fairly applied to all people in all situations around the world.

Maslow’s theory implies that people who are poor and who don’t have adequate access to food and housing don’t care as much about belonging, self-esteem, and self-actualisation as people who have steady homes and access to food. This is clearly not true.

For many people, particularly academics, the main criticism of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs is that the scientific evidence is questionable.

There are questions surrounding ethnocentricism and subjectivity, suggesting that the results could be subject to researcher bias. The research is made up of a lot of personal opinion, for example- is x person or y person ‘self-actualised’? Maslow made this call himself. And personal opinion is always subject to bias.

As mentioned above, there are also concerns regarding his sample. His sample is not representative of ‘society’, yet the aim of the theory is to apply to concept in societal situations. Maslow’s sample was small and consisted largely of prominent figures such as Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln, Albert Einstein, William James and Aldous Huxley. Although he included a few women, such as Eleanor Roosevelt and Jane Addams, female representation was very limited.

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs example: Travel and tourism

So how can Maslow’s theory be applied in practice?

One of the things that many people find difficult is the application of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs to specific situations.

Maslow provides a very generic description of each level that can easily be applied to a wide range of contexts. This is why his theory has become so famous and is taught in a wide variety of subjects and disciplines all over the world!

Here is an example of how the theory can be applied to the motivation to go on holiday. In tourism studies, Pearce’s Travel Career Ladder (1988) also adapted Maslow’s ideas to explain how tourist motivations change with travel experience.

Holiday facilities

The basic needs identified in Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs can largely be met through the facilities on offer in the holiday destination.

If the destination does not offer appropriate accommodation and food and drink outlets tourists will not go on holiday there.

Economics and politics

When choosing a holiday destination, tourists need to fulfil their safety needs. Two key questions are:

Can I afford to travel here?

Is the destination safe to travel to?

People can only travel when they can afford to, and they generally avoid places that may be unsafe. Recent terrorist attacks, natural disasters, disease or political unrest are all factors that put tourists off travelling to an area because they deem it to be unsafe.

Travel companions

Tourists do not always travel with others, but they still need some form of love and belonging – whether making friends along the way or knowing they have a caring community at home.

This also includes people at the local destination. Tourists want to feel welcome. If the host population are hostile towards tourists (this is an example of a negative social impact of tourism), they will not be motivated to visit.

Personal value

Different tourists want different things from their holidays. They may be seeking ultimate relaxation or they may be an adrenaline-seeker, for example. Whatever it is that the tourist is searching for, they want to feel that they are fulfilled and content.

Satisfaction

The ultimate aim is to feel wholly satisfied. To achieve self-actualisation. This will only occur if all other needs are met. The holiday is perfect for that specific individual.

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs: FAQs

Below are answers to some of the most common questions about Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs.

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs: Further reading

For those studying Maslow’s theory in more depth, key texts include Maslow’s original paper A Theory of Human Motivation (1943), Motivation and Personality (1954) and Toward a Psychology of Being (1962).

If you found this article helpful, the following posts may also be of interest:

• Types of tourists
• Plog’s model of allocentricity and psychocentricity
• Cohen’s tourist typology
• The appeal of tourist destinations
• Why people volunteer

About the author

Dr Hayley Stainton is a tourism academic, examiner and the founder of Tourism Teacher. She has a PhD in tourism and more than 20 years’ experience teaching travel and tourism at school and university level. Read more about Hayley