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Abraham H. Maslow (1908 –1970) was argu- ment of his theory and suggest some potential
ably one of the most important psychologists of reasons why an inaccurate version of the the-
modern times. In a recent survey, Maslow was ory has been maintained for more than 3
found to be the 14th-most-frequently cited decades in psychology texts; I then point out
psychologist in introductory psychology text- important implications that Maslow’s later
books; on the basis of various indicators, some theory statement has for theory and research
researchers proclaimed Maslow as the 10th in contemporary personality and social
most eminent psychologist of the 20th century psychology.
(Haggbloom et al., 2002). I have three objectives here. First, I wish to
The hierarchy of human needs outlined by correct the way that Maslow’s theory is de-
Maslow (1943, 1954) is one of his most en- picted in current textbooks; accurate description
during contributions to psychology. However, of a theory is a prerequisite to its scientific
the standard textbook version of this hierar- testing. Second, I wish to promote theory and
chy is inaccurate as a reflection of Maslow’s research efforts regarding motivational self-
later descriptions of his motivational theory. transcendence (described below); I believe that
In this article, I describe Maslow’s later state- this construct has important behavioral implica-
tions. Third, I wish to focus attention on moti-
vational self-transcendence, a construct that
cuts across psychological specialty areas, as a
Mark E. Koltko-Rivera, Department of Applied Psychol-
ogy, New York University, and Research Department, Pro- means to further unification within disciplinary
fessional Services Group, Inc., Winter Park, Florida. psychology.
An early version of some material presented in this article It is also important to indicate what my ob-
was presented at the 104th Annual Convention of the Amer-
ican Psychological Association, Toronto, Ontario, Canada,
jectives are not. I am not primarily interested
August 1996. I thank Kathleen Schmid Koltko-Rivera for here with any of the following: empirical evi-
helpful comments on earlier versions of this article and dence regarding Maslow’s theory; critical ap-
Sonya Grover for assistance in obtaining research materials. praisal of Maslow’s theory; comparisons be-
Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed
to Mark E. Koltko-Rivera, Research Department, Professional
tween Maslow’s theory and other motivational
Services Group, Inc., P.O. Box 3390, Winter Park, FL 32790- theories; attempts to revise Maslow’s scheme in
3390. E-mail: mark@psg-fl.com or koltkorivera@yahoo.com light of other theoretical, rational, or empirical
302
MASLOW AND SELF-TRANSCENDENCE 303
considerations. Although these issues are wor- ing order on the hierarchy. He described self-
thy of attention, they are beyond the scope of actualization this way:
this article. Nor would I wish to give the im- It refers to the 关person’s兴 desire for self-fulfillment,
pression that what Maslow had to say about namely, to the tendency for him to become actualized
motivational self-transcendence is anything but in what he is potentially.
a beginning, something for others to develop. The specific form that these needs will take will of
course vary greatly from person to person. In one
individual it may take the form of the desire to be an
ideal mother, in another it may be expressed athleti-
The Popular Misconception of Maslow’s cally, and in still another it may be expressed in paint-
Motivational Hierarchy ing pictures or in inventions. (Maslow, 1943, pp. 382–
This article is intended solely for the personal use of the individual user and is not to be disseminated broadly.
383)
Maslow’s motivational scheme, as originally
This document is copyrighted by the American Psychological Association or one of its allied publishers.
construed, is depicted in the bottom five entries This formulation still stands as a strong state-
in Table 1 (i.e., physiological or survival needs ment regarding the structure of human motiva-
through self-actualization; Maslow, 1943, tion. By the time of Maslow’s death, many
1954). Maslow posited that human needs are studies had been published about the needs hi-
arranged in a hierarchy: erarchy (Roberts, 1972). The hierarchy attracted
scholarly attention following Maslow’s death
It is quite true that man lives by bread alone—when (e.g., Lester, Hvezda, Sullivan, & Plourde,
there is no bread. But what happens to man’s desires 1983) and continues to attract research attention
when there is plenty of bread and when his belly is today. For example, Chulef, Read, and Walsh
chronically filled?
At once other (and “higher”) needs emerge and (2001) found broad support for Maslow’s the-
these, rather than physiological hungers, dominate the ory in their research into the hierarchical struc-
organism. And when these in turn are satisfied, again ture underlying human goals. Many undergrad-
new (and still “higher”) needs emerge and so on. This uate texts in psychology perpetuate this version
is what we mean by saying that the basic human needs
are organized into a hierarchy of relative prepotency.
of the model, with self-actualization at the top
(Maslow, 1943, p. 375) of the hierarchy (e.g., Atkinson, Atkinson,
Smith, Bem, & Nolen-Hoeksema, 1996; Hall,
In addition to physiological needs, Maslow Lindzey, & Campbell, 1998; Larsen & Buss,
posited needs for safety, belongingness and 2002; Mischel, 1999; Myers, 2003; Pervin &
love, esteem, and self-actualization, in ascend- John, 2001). However, this description was not
Table 1
A Rectified Version of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs
Motivational level Description of person at this level
Self-transcendence Seeks to further a cause beyond the selfa and to experience
a communion beyond the boundaries of the self through
peak experience.b
Self-actualization Seeks fulfillment of personal potential.
Esteem needs Seeks esteem through recognition or achievement.
Belongingness and love needs Seeks affiliation with a group.
Safety needs Seeks security through order and law.
Physiological (survival) needs Seeks to obtain the basic necessities of life.
Note. The earliest and most widespread version of Maslow’s hierarchy (based on Maslow,
1943, 1954) includes only the bottom five motivational levels (thus excluding self-
transcendence). A more accurate version of the hierarchy, taking into account Maslow’s later
work (especially Maslow, 1969a) and his private journal entries (Maslow, 1979, 1982),
includes all six motivational levels.
a
This may involve service to others, devotion to an ideal (e.g., truth, art) or a cause (e.g.,
social justice, environmentalism, the pursuit of science, a religious faith), and/or a desire to
be united with what is perceived as transcendent or divine.
b
This may involve mystical experiences and certain experiences with nature, aesthetic
experiences, sexual experiences, and/or other transpersonal experiences, in which the person
experiences a sense of identity that transcends or extends beyond the personal self.
304 KOLTKO-RIVERA
Maslow’s final statement concerning the moti- most people is via achieving identity, a strong real self,
vational hierarchy. and via basic-need-gratification. (Maslow, 1961/
1999b, p. 125)
dant cognitive activity. Maslow described peak ent contradiction—in combining self-actualization
This document is copyrighted by the American Psychological Association or one of its allied publishers.
experiences, which include such phenomena as and self-transcendence. Third, Maslow recognized
mystical experiences, aesthetic experiences, a sequence: Self-actualization preceded self-
emotional experiences involving nature, and so transcendence. One can see in these points the
forth; he considered peak experiences in several prefigurement of his later thought.
papers in the late 1950s and early 1960s, some After his 1961 paper, Maslow began to think
of which appeared in his hugely popular collec- that Being-cognition characterized a different
tion Toward a Psychology of Being (Maslow, motivational level than self-actualization. At
1959/1999a, 1961/1999b; 1959/1999c; see also least by October 1966, as shown by his unpub-
Maslow, 1962a, 1962b, 1963, 1964). Maslow lished critique of self-actualization theory
addressed the motivational significance of peak (Maslow, 1996), Maslow thought that “self-
experiences in a series of lectures in the early actualization is not enough” (p. 31) for a full
1960s, later published as Religions, Values, and picture of the optimally functioning human be-
Peak Experiences (Maslow, 1964/1970). He ing. Maslow came to a clearer sense of what
called the special cognitive activity that attends
was missing during the following year. As he
such phenomena “Being-cognition,” or “B-
recorded in his private journal in an entry dated
cognition” for short.
May 28, 1967,
Originally, Maslow thought that Being-
cognition was the province of self-actualization, All sorts of insights. One big one about SA 关self-
although in a very paradoxical way: Peak expe- actualization兴 stuff, brought on, I think, mostly by my
riences often led the self-actualizing individual deep uneasiness over 关popular press兴 articles 关on the
to transcend the personal concerns of the very topic兴. . . . I realized I’d rather leave it behind me. Just
too sloppy & too easily criticizable. Going thru my
self that was being actualized. As Maslow put it,
notes brought this unease to consciousness. It’s been
As he 关that is, the person in the peak experiences兴 gets with me for years. Meant to write & publish a self-
to be more purely and singly himself he is more able to actualization critique, but somehow never did. Now I
fuse with the world, with what was formerly not-self, think I know why. I think I had 关used兴 a hidden,
for example, the lovers come closer to forming a unit unconscious 关hence mistaken兴 criterion of selection
rather than two people, the I-Thou monism becomes 关for examples of self-actualization兴 beyond health.
more possible, the creator becomes one with his work (Maslow, 1979, Vol. 2, p. 794; Maslow, 1982, p. 204)
being created, the mother feels one with her child.
That is, the greatest attainment of identity, auton- Maslow here surmised that, in describing self-
omy, or selfhood is itself simultaneously a transcend- actualization, he had contaminated that construct
ing of itself, a going beyond and above selfhood. The
person can then become relatively egoless. (Maslow,
with notions that belonged to another, as-yet-
1961/1999b, p. 117, footnotes omitted) unnamed motivational level. The contaminant was
关In conclusion兴 I wish to underscore one main par- Being-cognition, which properly belonged some-
adox I have dealt with above . . . which we must face where on a level above self-actualization on the
even if we don’t understand it. The goal of identity
(self-actualization . . .) seems to be simultaneously an
hierarchy (i.e., “beyond health”). In this journal
end-goal in itself, and also a transitional goal, a rite of entry, Maslow related an insight: He had mistak-
passage, a step along the path to the transcendence of enly put forth, as examples of self-actualization,
identity. This is like saying its function is to erase people who seemed to exhibit Being-cognition,
itself. Put the other way around, if our goal is the
Eastern one of ego-transcendence and obliteration, of
even though these people had gone beyond self-
leaving behind self-consciousness and self-observa- actualization and operated from a higher state of
tion, . . . then it looks as if the best path to this goal for motivation:
MASLOW AND SELF-TRANSCENDENCE 305
Why did I get so excited over Arthur E. Morgan1 just cording to Maslow, at a lower stage of
from reading his book—so sure he was a self- motivational development than those who were
actualizing person? It’s because he was using the B-
language! What I’ve done was pick B-people 关i.e., motivated to seek experiences of Being-cognition.
mistakenly, as examples of self-actualization兴! In ad- Over the next 3 months, Maslow refined
dition to all the other overt and conscious criteria 关for these insights into a public presentation. On
defining self-actualizers兴. People in the B-realm using September 14, 1967, in San Francisco, Maslow
B-language, the awakened, the illuminated, the “high-
plateau” people who normally B-cognize and who
delivered a public lecture, titled “The Farther
have the B-values very firmly and actively in hand— Reaches of Human Nature,” in which he de-
even tho not consciously. . . . There are plenty of scribed the higher levels of his by-then familiar
“healthy” people & even self-actualizing people . . . needs hierarchy; he then took a large step fur-
This article is intended solely for the personal use of the individual user and is not to be disseminated broadly.
who are far from B-realm and from unitive perception. ther:
I did read into my selectees 关for healthy self-
This document is copyrighted by the American Psychological Association or one of its allied publishers.
“transhumanistic psychology” dealing with transcendent Possible beginning for presidential address: “I will
experiences and transcendent values. choose, as a strategy of presentation, to begin with a
The fully developed (and very fortunate) human vast oversimplification & then later fill in the details,
being working under the best conditions tends to be struggle with the complexities, and so forth.
motivated by values which transcend his self. They are 关“兴Let me call behavioristic psychology the first
not selfish anymore in the old sense of that term. psychology, Freudian psychology the 2nd, and human-
Beauty is not within one’s skin nor is justice or order. istic psychology the 3rd. And then what I think of as a
One can hardly class these desires as selfish in the real possibility, what I am fascinated with, is the psy-
sense that my desire for food might be. My satisfaction chology of transcendence & of ends, the transhuman or
with achieving or allowing justice is not within my transpersonal (really should be “transcendent”关)兴 psy-
own skin . . . . It is equally outside and inside: there- chology ⫽ the 4th psychology.关”兴 (Maslow, 1979,
fore, it has transcended the geographical limitations of Vol. 2, p. 1059; Maslow, 1982, p. 267)
This article is intended solely for the personal use of the individual user and is not to be disseminated broadly.
psychology. (Maslow, 1969a, pp. 3– 4) Maslow, recuperating from a heart attack, never
Maslow here noted that some individuals have delivered an APA presidential address (Hoff-
gone beyond even self-actualization as a salient man, 1999), but he did prepare a different paper
motivation. Such individuals arrive at the top of for the American Psychologist, a sort of
Maslow’s new hierarchy of motivation with a “would-be” presidential address, in which he
strong motive toward self-transcendence. That stated, “I am Freudian and I am behavioristic
is, such individuals seek a benefit beyond the and I am humanistic, and as a matter of fact I
purely personal and seek communion with the am developing what might be called a fourth
transcendent, perhaps through mystical or psychology of transcendence as well” (Maslow,
transpersonal experiences; they come to iden- 1969b, p. 724).
tify with something greater than the purely in- In summary, Maslow identified a construct,
dividual self, often engaging in service to oth- self-transcendence, that went beyond self-
ers. (As Maslow put it in his unpublished Oc- actualization in his motivational hierarchy; he
tober 1966 paper, “the good of other people then helped to establish a corresponding per-
must be invoked” 关Maslow, 1996, p. 31兴. For a spective, transpersonal psychology, that was in-
further discussion of the meaning of transcen- tended to go beyond the perspective of human-
dence for Maslow, see Maslow 关1969/1993c兴.) istic psychology as originally construed, with a
This represented a major course change for corresponding professional journal. Thus, the
Maslow. In a paper published shortly before typical textbook version of Maslow’s hierarchy
Maslow gave his “Farther Reaches” lecture (al- of needs is seriously inaccurate as a reflection of
though likely composed at least a year before Maslow’s later formulation of theory. A recti-
that lecture), Maslow had written about how fied version of Maslow’s hierarchy includes the
self-actualizing individuals were motivated by top line of Table 1, self-transcendence.
metamotivations, devoting themselves to callings The implications of this change in Maslow’s
or vocations “beyond themselves” (Maslow, thought must not be underestimated. The earlier
1967/1993a, p. 291)—that is, devoting them- model positions the highest form of motiva-
selves to aspects of self-transcendence. Yet, in tional development at the level of the well-
the “Farther Reaches” lecture, Maslow clearly adjusted, differentiated, and fulfilled individual
differentiated self-actualization from self-tran- self or ego. The later model places the highest
scendence. form of human development at a transpersonal
Maslow, who had helped to form humanistic level, where the self/ego and its needs are tran-
psychology as a distinct approach within psychol- scended. This represents a monumental shift in
ogy, went on to help found the Journal of the conceptualization of human personality and
Transpersonal Psychology. He defined transper- its development. At the level of self-actualiza-
sonal psychology as a separate “force” within tion, the individual works to actualize the indi-
psychology, differing from the humanistic as self- vidual’s own potential; there is thus, at least
transcendence differs from self-actualization. potentially, a certain self-aggrandizing aspect to
Maslow pondered making this distinction the this motivational stage, as there is with all the
topic for his address as president of the American stages below it in Maslow’s hierarchy. At the
Psychological Association (APA). As he wrote in level of self-transcendence, the individual’s
his journal almost a year after his “Farther own needs are put aside, to a great extent, in
Reaches” presentation (entry of August 25, 1968), favor of service to others and to some higher
MASLOW AND SELF-TRANSCENDENCE 307
force or cause conceived as being outside the There is a subtle but important distinction to be
personal self. Certainly the image of the best- made here. In this passage, Maslow noted the
developed human being that emerges from mutual orthogonality of self-actualization and the
Maslow’s hierarchy is very different, depending experience of transcendence: Self-actualizing in-
on which of these two stages is placed at the top dividuals may or may not have peak/transcendent
of the motivational hierarchy. experiences, and individuals who have peak/
transcendent experiences may or may not be self-
actualizing. However confusing this state of af-
Objections to This Reinterpretation of fairs may have been to Maslow, it has no bearing
Maslow on the issue of a separate motivational stage for
This article is intended solely for the personal use of the individual user and is not to be disseminated broadly.
rected in the third, posthumous edition of Mo- nals, where his later thought also was described,
tivation and Personality (Maslow, 1987). At were not published until almost a decade after
least three factors may have played a part in his death (Maslow, 1979, 1982).
propagating this misconception. Third, the organized psychology of Maslow’s
First, there was little opportunity for Maslow day simply may not have been ready to incor-
to publicize his amended theory before his porate Maslow’s concept of self-transcendence
death. On July 8, 1966, he learned that he had into the quasi-official canon of acceptable the-
been elected to the presidency of APA ory. This interpretation of events would be con-
(Maslow, 1979, Vol. 2, p. 739; Maslow, 1982, sistent with Maslow’s experience. In the 1950s,
p. 192). As noted above, although he began Maslow’s first major paper on Being-cognition
This article is intended solely for the personal use of the individual user and is not to be disseminated broadly.
studying peak experiences in the mid-1950s, his during peak experiences was rejected by both
This document is copyrighted by the American Psychological Association or one of its allied publishers.
sense of the limitations of the self-actualization the Psychological Review and the American
construct coalesced in May and June 1967, just Psychologist (Hoffman, 1999, p. 206; Maslow,
a few months before beginning his term as APA 1979, Vol. 2, p. 774; Maslow, 1982, p. 200). To
president. In the fall of 1967, more or less bring this material to light, he arranged to
simultaneously with the beginning of his presi- present it as his APA Division 8 (Personality
dential term, he began to occupy a 1-year Ford and Social Psychology) presidential address at
Foundation fellowship (Hoffman, 1999, p. 283), the 1956 APA national meeting, a situation in
during which term (in September) he gave the which his ideas could not be rejected for public
“Farther Reaches” talk as his first public pre- presentation; he later published these remarks in
sentation on self-transcendence as a successor a non-APA venue (Maslow, 1959/1999a). Sub-
step to self-actualization. After a few months sequent to this experience, despite a history of
lecturing at Harvard, MIT, and Yale on his more than 20 publications in APA core journals
Theory Z management approach and after ap- from 1932 to 1957 (see publication lists in Hoff-
pearing at a December 1967 conference on tran-
man, 1999, and Maslow, 1987), after 1957,
scendence, Maslow was hospitalized in inten-
Maslow would only publish two more items in
sive care following a serious coronary event.
APA journals: his APA would-be presidential
Much of 1968 was spent in convalescence or in
address (Maslow, 1969b) and the provocatively
working to involve psychologists in the cause of
civil rights (Hoffman, 1999), although Maslow titled comment “Are Our Publications and Con-
was too ill to deliver a presidential address at ventions Suitable for the Personal Sciences?”
the annual APA meeting in the fall of that year. (Maslow, 1961).
Maslow left his long-time teaching position at Fourth, notions concerning self-transcen-
Brandeis in early 1969 for a fellowship in Cal- dence were not well received within APA for
ifornia. Although his time in California was many years after Maslow’s death. This is sug-
productive, it was all too brief: He died of a gested by the dispute in the mid-1980s regard-
coronary attack on June 8, 1970. Thus, there ing the unsuccessful effort to form an APA
simply was very little opportunity for Maslow Division of Transpersonal Psychology (“Debat-
to incorporate the self-transcendence aspect of ing the Legitimacy,” 1986; “In Defense,” 1986;
his needs hierarchy into the theory as it ap- May, 1986a, 1986b). It is interesting to observe
peared in book form. that a book published by APA almost a decade
Second, the journal publication of Maslow’s after Maslow’s death noted that “he was a
amended theory has been difficult for many leader in humanistic psychology and a founder
psychologists to find. Maslow’s clearest presen- of the Journal of Humanistic Psychology” (Hil-
tation of his amended theory (the “Farther gard, 1978, p. 531), omitting what would have
Reaches” lecture; Maslow, 1969a) appeared in been equally accurate to state, namely that
what was, at the time, an obscure venue, as the Maslow was also a leader in transpersonal psy-
first article published in the then-fledgling Jour- chology and a founder of the Journal of
nal of Transpersonal Psychology. By some ed- Transpersonal Psychology. This anecdotal evi-
itorial quirk, the published lecture was not even dence is consistent with the idea that institu-
collected into the posthumous collection of es- tional psychology was largely unwilling to rec-
says that bears the same name as the lecture ognize transpersonally oriented changes in
itself (Maslow, 1971). Maslow’s personal jour- Maslow’s theory.
MASLOW AND SELF-TRANSCENDENCE 309
Fifth, there is no denying that there are prob- However, theories can be described accu-
lems inherent in Maslow’s motivational model, rately without making an impact on a scientific
problems that Maslow failed to resolve. The discipline; the humoral theory of personality,
reality is that so-called “higher” motivations, for example, generates little contemporary
such as self-actualization and self-transcen- scholarship. For a rectification of Maslow’s the-
dence, can appear as the dominant motivations ory to have more than solely historical interest,
in individuals who seem not to have firmly it must offer some advantage to theory or re-
resolved the needs for survival, safety, and so search. As it happens, there are several such
forth. This is a serious problem for a strictly advantages.
hierarchical model such as Maslow’s, where
This article is intended solely for the personal use of the individual user and is not to be disseminated broadly.
lower, prepotent needs must be addressed suc- Implications of the Rectified Version of
This document is copyrighted by the American Psychological Association or one of its allied publishers.
cessfully before higher needs come to the fore. Maslow’s Motivational Theory
It may be the case that, in light of this, subse-
quent theorists were loathe to recognize the The rectified version of Maslow’s hierarchy
addition of yet another level onto the hierarchy. of needs has several important implications for
However, it is clear that Maslow meant to do so, theory and research in personality and social
which settles the question of his theory’s con- psychology. These implications include more
tent, although not its validity. comprehensive approaches to (a) personal and
If organized psychology was resistant to cultural conceptions of the purpose of life; (b)
Maslow’s ideas about self-transcendence, one the motivational underpinnings of altruistic be-
wonders why this might have been so, a ques- havior, social progress, and wisdom; and (c)
tion that falls outside the scope of this article. suicidal terrorism and religious violence; in ad-
Maslow himself was of the (perhaps uncharita- dition, the rectified theory provides a basis for
ble) opinion that many prominent psychologists (d) closer integration of the psychology of reli-
of his day did not understand the psychology of gion and spirituality into both personality and
peak or transpersonal experiences because they social psychology and (e) a more multicultur-
had not experienced these themselves.4 ally integrated approach to psychological the-
Although Maslow’s opinion was highly spec- ory. Each of these areas is addressed below. In
ulative, other observers have noted a tendency some areas, Maslow’s rectified theory allows
among psychologists to avoid issues that in- deeper understanding of a single construct; in
volve spirituality, presumably including mysti- others, the theory allows us to make connec-
cal or peak experiences (see discussion in Rich- tions across theories. Making such connections,
ards & Bergin, 1997). It has been claimed that of course, is highly desirable; it has long been
this may be because of problematic or uninves- recognized that building bridges between for-
tigated assumptions regarding either spirituality merly unrelated theories is important for the
advancement of psychology as a science (e.g.,
or science (Jones, 1994; Slife, Hope, &
Staats, 1981, 1999).
Nebeker, 1999; Sperry, 1988). It has been noted
that, perhaps out of a desire to gain scientific
respectability, psychology has historically Self-Transcendence, Worldview, and
tended to stigmatize serious researchers of reli- Purpose of Life
gion (R. Hogan, quoted in P. Young, 1979).
Sociological and affective reasons have also Worldviews are sets of assumptions held by
been advanced for the neglect of religion by individuals and cultures about the physical and
psychology (Baumeister, 2002). These issues social universe (Koltko-Rivera, 2004). One im-
may have had an effect on the receptivity of portant aspect of a worldview involves notions
disciplinary psychology to the notion of
self-transcendence. 4
As Maslow mentioned in his journal, after putting forth
The preceding exposition demonstrates that U.S. Presidents Eisenhower and Truman as examples of
the accepted version of Maslow’s needs hierar- people who were self-actualizers yet without experience of
Being-cognition, “Same for the APA board of directors—
chy is not accurate as a reflection of his later very capable & sound, etc., but no B-cognition” (journal
thought on the matter. The time has come to entry for May 28, 1967; Maslow, 1979, Vol. 2, p. 794;
rewrite the textbooks. Maslow, 1982, p. 204).
310 KOLTKO-RIVERA
about the purpose or meaning of life; this has the historical record, that despite the association
been described as a central issue for individual of monotheistic religion and violence (Stark,
psychology (Baumeister, 1991). It has rarely 2001), monotheistic religion has been a driving
been noted, but Maslow’s needs hierarchy de- force behind social progress and the advance of
fines a framework that identifies and organizes science (Stark, 2003, 2005). It seems plausible
notions about the purpose of life (Koltko- that some of this effect might be associated with
Rivera, 2004). Maslow noted that each stage of a motivational stance centered in self-transcen-
the motivational hierarchy can be characterized dence, putting aside self in favor of the greater
by a distinctive worldview: good, the search for truth, and so forth.5
关A兴 peculiar characteristic of the human organism when it
Wisdom is traditionally considered to be a
This article is intended solely for the personal use of the individual user and is not to be disseminated broadly.
is dominated by a certain need is that the whole philos- form of the highest human development. It is
This document is copyrighted by the American Psychological Association or one of its allied publishers.
ophy of the future tends also to change. For our chroni- noteworthy that a central aspect of Sternberg’s
cally and extremely hungry man, . . . life itself tends to be (1998, 2003) balance theory of wisdom in-
defined in terms of eating. Anything else will be defined volves self-transcendence. As Sternberg defined
as unimportant. Freedom, love, community feeling, re-
spect, philosophy, may all be waved aside as fripperies the construct,
that are useless since they fail to fill the stomach.
All that has been said of the physiological needs is Wisdom is defined as the application of successful
equally true 关of the safety needs兴. . . . Again, as in the intelligence and creativity as mediated by values to-
hungry man, we find that the dominating goal is a ward the achievement of a common good 关italics
strong determinant not only of his current world- added兴 through a balance among (a) intrapersonal, (b)
outlook and philosophy but also of his philosophy of interpersonal 关italics added兴, and (c) extrapersonal
the future. (Maslow, 1943, pp. 374, 376) interests 关italics added兴, over (a) short and (b) long
terms, in order to achieve a balance among (a) adap-
The inclusion of self-transcendence in tation to existing environments, (b) shaping of existing
Maslow’s hierarchy allows for a richer concep- environments, and (c) selection of new environments.
Thus, wisdom is not just about maximizing one’s
tualization of the meaning-of-life worldview di- own or someone else’s self-interest, but about balanc-
mension. Others have also noted the importance ing various self-interests (intrapersonal) with the inter-
of self-transcendent goals in forming a sense of ests of others (interpersonal) and of other aspects of
the purpose of life (e.g., Emmons, 1999). By the context in which one lives (extrapersonal), such as
making our models of worldview more compre- one’s city or country or environment or even God. . . .
Extrapersonal interests might include contributing to
hensive, we in turn gain a better articulation of the welfare of one’s school, helping one’s community,
theory in personality and social psychology. contributing to the well-being of one’s country, or
serving God 关italics added兴, and so forth. Different
people balance these interests in different ways. At one
Self-Transcendence, Altruism, Social extreme, a malevolent dictator might emphasize his or
Progress, and Wisdom her own personal power and wealth; at the other ex-
treme, a saint might emphasize only serving others and
History has demonstrated that a significant mi- God. (Sternberg, 2003, pp. 152, 154)
nority of the human species functions primarily
from the position that it is more important to serve The relationship between Maslow’s notion of
some selfless greater purpose than to serve one’s self-transcendence and Sternberg’s notion of a
own purposes. (One thinks in this respect of the common good and interpersonal and extraper-
Mother Teresas, Albert Schweitzers, and Gandhis sonal interests is easy to see. Recognition of the
of the world, as well as many lesser known indi- inclusion of self-transcendence into Maslow’s
viduals who put their lives at risk for social justice motivational hierarchy thus allows us to make a
and environmental and religious causes.) A com- connection between Maslow’s motivational the-
prehensive theory of human personality and social ory and cognitive psychology, inasmuch as the
behavior must account for such individuals. There latter is where Sternberg has positioned his the-
are, of course, various scientific approaches to ory of human wisdom (see Sternberg & Ben-
altruism (e.g., Barash, 2003; Sober & Wilson, Zeev, 2001, pp. 325–326).
1998). The self-transcendence aspect of Maslow’s
theory should be seriously considered in relation 5
I certainly would not wish to imply that monotheistic
to these issues. religions have some sort of monopoly on self-transcendence. I
On a somewhat different plane, the sociolo- simply wish to associate the notion of a religious connection to
gist Rodney Stark has asserted, on the basis of science with the construct of motivational self-transcendence.
MASLOW AND SELF-TRANSCENDENCE 311
within a context that we might call the negative Moving from an historical perspective to a
This document is copyrighted by the American Psychological Association or one of its allied publishers.
Jung, 1951/1969a, 1938/1969b; Allport, 1950; psychology in general. Spirituality and tran-
and Maslow, 1964/1970; see also Pargament, scendent experience are domains addressed by
2002.) In the absence of much theory with positive psychology (Pargament & Mahoney,
which to address nonpathological religion, it is 2002; Peterson & Seligman, 2004). The con-
unsurprising that contemporary personality and struct of self-transcendence as a motivational
social psychology have largely ignored religion status can thus build a bridge between positive
and spirituality. psychology and a major theory of motivation.
There is thus plenty of room for attempting to
build a bridge between personality and social Self-Transcendence and Multicultural
psychological theory, on the one hand, and re-
Psychological Theory
This article is intended solely for the personal use of the individual user and is not to be disseminated broadly.
Schwartz’s research, the Self-Transcendence difference. This effort cannot but help to make
pole reflects values promoting universalism for more culturally informed theories of the
(“understanding, tolerance and protection for person and of society.
the welfare of all people and nature”; Smith &
Schwartz, 1997, p. 86) and benevolence (“pre-
serving and enhancing the welfare of people to Conclusion
whom one is close”; Smith & Schwartz, 1997,
p. 86). Thus, it appears that Schwartz’s notion It is time to change the textbook accounts of
of self-transcendence has a great deal of resem- Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. Inclusion of self-
blance to Maslow’s notion (although the two are transcendence at the top of the needs hierarchy
is a more accurate reflection of Maslow’s the-
This article is intended solely for the personal use of the individual user and is not to be disseminated broadly.
important issue is to note that the construct of ory, but there are more benefits to be gained
motivational self-transcendence provides a from this rectification of theory than historical
bridge between the cross-cultural values litera- accuracy alone. The construct of self-transcen-
ture and a major theory of motivation. dence as a motivational status provides a means
Another point of connection involves a dif- to a deeper understanding of other important
ferent construct in the cross-cultural literature: constructs and builds bridges between bodies of
individualism– collectivism. It was mentioned theory that are currently isolated. Incorporating
earlier that there is a certain potential for self- self-transcendence into Maslow’s theory can
aggrandizement implicit within the construct of help psychology develop a better grasp of how
self-actualization that is not present within the different people and cultures construe the mean-
construct of self-transcendence. This tension ing of life. Considering the construct of self-
parallels a dimension of cultural and individual transcendence can help us better understand the
worldview difference, a dimension known as motivational underpinnings of both altruism
individualism– collectivism (Kagitçibasi, 1997; and religious violence, as well as human wis-
Triandis, 1995) or relation to group (Koltko- dom. This construct can allow us to more firmly
Rivera, 2004). This bipolar dimension reflects connect the psychology of religion and spiritu-
an individual’s or a culture’s preference con- ality with the mainstream of theory in person-
cerning situations in which there is a conflict of ality and social psychology. The construct al-
agenda between what the individual wants and lows us to more clearly relate mainstream psy-
what the individual’s reference group requires chological theory to the traditional psychologies
(e.g., I wish to be a poet or a theorist, but my of the world and may ultimately help us to build
family wishes me to be a lawyer or a plumber). a more culturally informed psychology. In sum-
Those who position themselves at the individu- mary, incorporating self-transcendence into
alism pole take the view that the individual’s Maslow’s hierarchy of needs gives us a theo-
agenda should prevail, whereas those who po- retical tool with which to pursue a more com-
sition themselves at the collectivist pole take the prehensive and accurate understanding of hu-
view that the reference group’s agenda takes man personality and behavior.
priority. This dimension appears robustly across
cultures (Hofstede, 1984; Schwartz, 1992) and
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