Maslow's Hierarchy of Technology

Maslow’s “Hierarchy of Needs” is a formula for explaining complex human needs and behaviors in simple terms, and has been brought up in many classes throughout my college experience. When Maslow was brought up in the Nanotexts class during the discussion of why people suffer, it was cast aside, and I laughed at the immediate dismissal of this argument. Something about this concept, however, begs further exploration. I couldn’t help but to think there may be a very important nugget of truth hiding between our physiological needs and self actualization. It is something I have come back to several times during the course. Breaking down a complex progression into 5 steps, and using the pyramid symbol to illustrate transcendence contains references to ancient wisdom of Buddhism, the Egyptians, and the holy trinity. This symbolism may just as well be as mundane as the food pyramid, but before casting the idea out, I would like to explore how this theory may relate to technology, and changes experienced throughout the world.

The primary criticism of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs is that it is not based on scientific evidence. This is a valid argument, yet, some of the most widely taught concepts of psychology are based on observations where scientific experiments are simply not applicable. Freudian psychology is not proven by the scientific method, yet it has provided the basis from which modern psychology has developed. The scientific method is not easily applied to theories on spirit, soul, and the subconscious. A lack of scientific proof does not mean that such theories are without value. Our understanding is grounded in correlation data, interpretation, and observation. To simplify life and describe such a massive issue Maslow created this hierarchy to illustrate that there is a pattern to be observed.

Maslow’s Hierarchy provides a template for the discussion of human suffering and the pursuit of fulfillment. I intend to tie this into the concept that technology has changed the way we interact with others, but has not necessarily changed the value or outcome of such interactions. Many people feel that technology has devalued personal interaction, while others praise technology for allowing people to communicate over great distances, and creating a low stress, nonconfrontation means of communication. There are shortcomings of traditional communcation and more modern methods. I would argue that failures of communication itself is not inherent within technology, but in how it is adopted. The need for interaction and the exchange of ideas has not lost its significance and for those who incorporate this technology into their lives, it has proven to expand the ability to communicate.

Similarly, the facts of life have remained the same under the influence of technology. Humans today are bound by the same needs that dictated life two thousand years ago. Maslow imagined that this could be fit into a structure that reads like a recipe for self actualization. First you take those needs like food, clothing, and shelter, induce a sense of safety, add some love, respect and confidence, and if you get everything right *BAM* self-actualization. Maslow put this together as evidence that our progression as a society is bringing us closer to an evolved state of existence. The transcendence past the simple needs with the advent of industrialization and growth of technology has allowed us to focus our attention on higher level needs. I see the same argument made of technology. We are taken past the suffering of having to invest so much time into the more menial of our day to day responsibilities, yet we do not truly overcome these needs. The folly of the developed world is that in our day-to-day life the most basic needs are constantly reinvented with new frustrations, and complications, and are never given full attention. Technology has made it easier to gather and prepare food, but we have not alleviated the need for food altogether. Likewise, our health and personal safety has improved greatly, yet we must tend to new issues such as insurance, job security, and war. Our behavior is not guided solely by these lower level needs, but they still require understanding and effort on our behalf.

We suffer frustrations in life and there is no foreseeable resolution to this. The cessation of some symptoms, climbing the hierarchy of needs, or technological breakthrough, presents the same problem in a new context. Are we going to find technology that invalidates our need for self-confidence and loving relationships? The evidence of social networking, blogging, and Plurk would suggest that moving beyond the need for face-to-face communication did not really change the essence of social interaction. Looking ahead to the potential within nanotechnology, and the evolution of technology that allows us to surpass the current limits on humanity, we have only the predictions of books like Ribofunk and Postsingular, or the movie Technopalypse to anticipate our development. In these examples, human suffering, the pursuit of happiness, and the search for meaning is not relieved by technology. The examples of these books and films illustrate that the more things change the more they stay the same. It changes its shape, and becomes complicated by new terms, but our adaption of greater technology does not make our simple struggles obsolete. Likewise we have psychology theories to guide our expectations of human development, but we do not have answers that will meet the low level needs of all people. Almost as an afterthought, Maslow describes self-transcendence, a concept he discovered later in his life that mirrors concepts of eastern philosophy. By adding this final stage Maslow acknowledges that there may be a level beyond our maximum potential, beyond what we can imagine. The limits we recognize provide a beginning, and a system to progress, but to reach the end is to see fulfillment in the pursuit.

At its foundation Maslow’s Hierarchy is rather intuitive. In most living things, physiological needs are the primary force dictating behavior. Those animals that illustrate social behavior are recognized as being of a higher, more complex order. Like comparing bacteria to sea mammals, there is evidence of technology and an intrinsically greater value to those animals with social structures, more advanced communication, group hunting, and mating practices that illustrate a need for safety/security of family and resources, and the need for love and belonging. The most successful individuals or groups progress towards higher level needs, sharing their technology with others, and in doing so bringing others into the higher levels. Pushing beyond to the uncharted is what inspires others, and can actually have influence reaching beyond the proximal group. The actualization of one person, to demonstrate a need beyond one’s self, to find their calling, and release their ego, has provided the foundation for religion, philosophy, art movements, and nearly every creative endeavor. Maslow based his hierarchy on the levels he observed in nature and I think it has been misappropriated as a structure to simplify the world rather than painting the great complexities of true realization. The actualization of people like Jesus Christ, Chris Sharma, and Arne Naess has given people an example of an ascendance that cannot be recreated. We feel the effects and share the power of such individuals, but this is not the true outcome of such ascension, and I think this is where the main criticism of Maslow comes from. People may see the resulting changes of culture, technology, art, etc as a shared movement onto another level, but if the need is not met for the individual the change in behavior cannot cover the lower level needs. I think this is why so many people are unfulfilled in their lives. The lowest level needs have never really been addressed in the attempt to keep up with those on another level. With weak foundations this hierarchy collapses. If people do not really know how to feed themselves, to love themselves and feel secure, how then can they be expected to provide support to others? There is such a strong emphasis in our culture to move forward, and find fulfillment in something new and different. The commercialization of our culture is a symptom of general discontent, and I think Maslow would say that part of the problem is that we have not reconciled our low level needs. Technology has not alleviated these needs in the past and it is not likely to ever end this cycle of discontent.

The discussion of technology and its effect on society runs alongside the discussion of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, and approaches similar issues of misappropriation. The internet and cell phones have changed communication and may be one of the most incredible tools in connecting people and advancing the spread of information in today’s society, but it is also criticized as the end of sincere communication. The parallel to higher level needs and the explosion of this technology illustrates the failure of incorporating new and more advanced knowledge when the most basic levels are incomplete. The development and adaptation of new technology requires a brave individual or group to implement what are quite radical ideas. The scientist that dares to push the sciences of biologic engineering is not so different than the Buddha transcending his ego. They are casting aside the value judgments imposed by society, journeying into an unknown realm, and realizing a new potential of human ability and knowledge. These pioneers are viewed as radical amongst their contemporaries, but as their accomplishments are demystified, the knowledge provides new methods for society’s struggle to meet lower level needs.

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs is a framework with which we can structure our thoughts about one’s level of actualization. This is a form of technology, and illustrates a set of ideas that are tied to the discussion of technology in our class. It is an old theory, and new ideas have surpassed this explanation for how creatures behave, but just as an understanding of old technology can help one to adopt new technology, Maslow’s ideas should not be disregarded. In this simplistic theory lies an understanding of some of the most amazing strides in human development. As we look forward to the evolution of a new society embracing nanotechnology, there is some wisdom to glean from old Maslow, and in the process of looking at the small and simple, there is certainly value to a system that attempts to define the progress of human kind, from savage to transcendental.