Abstract
In many classrooms around the world, teachers encounter challenges with student motivation. However, motivation is a complex construct that is not easily understood. Abraham Maslow began to unravel some of the complexities of motivation in his 1943 publication, A Theory of Human Motivation. Maslow, a humanistic psychologist, believed that motivation is determined by both internal and external factors. He held a holistic view of human motivation and considered an individual as more than the sum of its parts. This chapter examines the life of Abraham Maslow and the development of his theory of human motivation. It investigates Maslow’s hierarchy of needs that motivate individuals. These needs include: physiological needs, safety needs, love and belonging needs, esteem needs, and self-actualization needs. Maslow’s theory postulates that once the most foundational needs are met, other desires emerge to fuel human motivation. The second part of this chapter provides implications of Maslow’s theory for science educators. For each of the needs in the hierarchy, practical strategies are listed to help science teachers understand how to meet and motivate each individual student. The suggested strategies will help teachers strategically and tactfully enhance student motivation and learning in the science classroom.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References
Bouzenita, A. I., & Boulanouar, A. W. (2016). Maslow’s hierarchy of needs: An Islamic critique. Intellectual Discourse, 24(1), 59–81.
Buss, A. R. (1979). Humanistic psychology as liberal ideology: The socio-historical roots of Maslow’s theory of self-actualization. Journal of Humanistic Psychology, 19(3), 43–55.
Cooke, B., Mills, A. J., & Kelley, E. S. (2005). Situating Maslow in cold war America: A recontextualization of management theory. Group and Organization Management, 32(2), 129–152.
Cullen, D. (1997). Maslow, monkeys, and motivation theory. Organization, 4(3), 355–373.
Davis-Sharts, J. (1986). An empirical test of Maslow’s theory of need hierarchy using hologeistic comparison by statistical sampling. Advances in Nursing Science, 9(1), 58–72.
Dweck, C. (2006). Mindset: The new psychology of success. New York: Random House.
Frager, R. (1987). Foreward: The influence of Abraham Maslow. In A. H. Maslow, R. Frager, J. Fadiman, C. Reynolds, & R. Cox (Eds.), Motivation and personality (3rd ed., Rev., pp. 33–41). Noida, India: Pearson.
Gambrel, P. A., & Cianci, R. (2003). Maslow’s hierarchy of needs: Does it apply in a collectivist culture. Journal of Applied Management and Entrepreneurship, 8(2), 143–161.
Goldstein, K. (1939). The organism: A holistic approach to biology derived from pathological data in man. New York: American Book Company.
Hall, M. H. (1968). A conversation with Abraham H. Maslow. Psychology Today, 35–37, 54–57.
Lowry, R. (Ed.). (1979). The journals of A.H. Maslow. Monterey, CA: Brooks/Cole.
Maslow, A. H. (1943). A theory of human motivation. Psychological Review, 50(4), 370–396.
Maslow, A. H. (1968). Toward a psychology of being (2nd ed.). New York: Van Nostrand.
Maslow, A. H. (1970). Motivation and personality (2nd ed.). New York: Harper and Row.
Nevis, E. C. (1983). Using an American perspective in understanding another culture: Toward a hierarchy of needs for the People’s Republic of China. The Journal of Applied Behavioral Science, 19(3), 249–264.
NGSS Lead States. (2013). Next Generation Science Standards: For states, by states. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
Pearson, E. M. (1999). Humanism and individualism: Maslow and his critics. Adult Education Quarterly, 50(1), 41–55.
Shaw, R., & Colimore, K. (1988). Humanistic psychology as ideology. An analysis of Maslow’s contradictions. Journal of Humanistic Psychology, 28(3), 51–74.
Taormina, R. J., & Gao, J. H. (2013). Maslow and the motivation hierarchy: Measuring satisfaction of the needs. The American Journal of Psychology, 126(2), 155–177.
Acknowledgements
The author would like to thank Melissa Jurkiewicz and Ryan Nixon for providing thoughtful feedback on drafts of this chapter.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2020 Springer Nature Switzerland AG
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Navy, S.L. (2020). Theory of Human Motivation—Abraham Maslow. In: Akpan, B., Kennedy, T.J. (eds) Science Education in Theory and Practice. Springer Texts in Education. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-43620-9_2
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-43620-9_2
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-030-43619-3
Online ISBN: 978-3-030-43620-9
eBook Packages: EducationEducation (R0)