{"id":979,"date":"2024-02-27T17:13:45","date_gmt":"2024-02-27T22:13:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/opentextbooks.concordia.ca\/psyc200\/chapter\/blackstocks-and-maslows-theories-of-needs-and-motivations\/"},"modified":"2025-09-12T19:12:29","modified_gmt":"2025-09-12T23:12:29","slug":"blackstocks-and-maslows-theories-of-needs-and-motivations","status":"publish","type":"chapter","link":"https:\/\/opentextbooks.concordia.ca\/psyc205\/chapter\/blackstocks-and-maslows-theories-of-needs-and-motivations\/","title":{"raw":"Theories of Needs and Motivations","rendered":"Theories of Needs and Motivations"},"content":{"raw":"This section contrasts the perspectives of Blackstock\u2019s Breath of Life Theory and Maslow\u2019s Hierarchy of Needs, offering a rich exploration of human needs and motivations from distinct viewpoints. First, we introduce Cindy Blackstock and the Breath of Life Theory, rooted in the interconnectedness and communal well-being emphasised by Indigenous cultures, challenging the traditional hierarchical models of needs. Next, we revisit Maslow\u2019s well-known theory, examining its evolution and the common misinterpretations that have simplified its complexity over time. Finally, we compare these two theories side by side, highlighting their differences in focus, structure, and cultural inclusivity, and what these differences mean for understanding human motivation. This section aims to broaden our perspective on what drives us, acknowledging the diversity of human experience and the importance of cultural context in shaping our motivations.\r\n

Blackstock\u2019s Breath of Life Theory: Balance as Purpose<\/h1>\r\nCindy Blackstock, a prominent member of the Gitxsan First Nation, is a celebrated advocate for Indigenous children's rights in Canada. Her work, deeply rooted in her Indigenous heritage, has significantly guided our understanding of psychology, particularly in understanding human needs and motivations. The Breath of Life Theory both challenges and expands upon traditional European\/settler psychological models like Maslow\u2019s Hierarchy of Needs.\r\n

What is the Breath of Life Theory?: The Four B\u2019s<\/h2>\r\nThe Breath of Life Theory calls us to shift our understanding of human needs and motivations. It emphasises a holistic view of human existence, underscoring the interconnectedness of individuals within their communities and with their ancestors. The Breath of Life Theory says that human needs are not hierarchical but are interconnected and equally important throughout life (Blackstock, 2011; 2019; 2021). This perspective aligns with many Indigenous cultures' views, which often emphasise the importance of community, the interconnectedness of all life forms, and the continuity of knowledge and wisdom across generations.\r\n
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Seeking balance as our primary motivation<\/h2>\r\n<\/header>\r\n
\r\n\r\nBlackstock teaches us that the overall abiding purpose of our lives is to live in balance. Balance is possible with the ongoing, equitable, \u201cdeliberate and thoughtful actions made by people who position their own survival as codependent with the health of other people across generations and with the universe.\u201d Our growth as humans involves always seeking balance in all relationships, while fully realising that we are blessed, always blossoming, held in an interconnected web of belonging, and that our gift back to all is our being of service (Blackstock, 2011; 2019; 2021).<\/a>\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_976\" align=\"aligncenter\" width=\"2902\" class=\"horiz-picture-small-adjustment\"]\"This Figure MO.12. Breath of Life theory.<\/strong> A visualisation of Blackstock\u2019s (2011; 2019; 2021) explanation of Blackfoot Nation\u2019s Breath of Life theory.\u00a0[Image Description]<\/em><\/a> Source:<\/strong> Breath of Life theory by Rachel Lu is licensed under a CC BY-NC-SA Licence.[\/caption]Here is Blackstock\u2019s theory summarised, using words that start with \u201cB\u201d.\r\n\r\nThe Breath of Life Theory introduces us to four kinds of human needs and motivations that interconnect to shape our lives:\r\n
    \r\n \t
  1. Blessed.<\/strong> First, it emphasises that we are blessed with the Earth's abundance, highlighting our inseparable and interdependent relationship with nature.<\/li>\r\n \t
  2. Becoming.<\/strong> Second, it teaches us that we are always blossoming, born fully developed, or niita\u2019pitapi, a term meaning \u201csomeone who is completely developed, or who has arrived\u201d (cited in Ravilochan, 2021). In Blackfoot culture, \u201cit\u2019s like you\u2019re credentialed at the start. You\u2019re treated with dignity for that reason, but you spend your life living up to that.\u201c (Ravilochan, 2021).<\/li>\r\n \t
  3. Belonging. <\/strong>Third, the theory underscores the importance of belonging \u2014 our connections to community, family, land, water, and all living beings \u2014 fostering trust, harmony, and cooperation.<\/li>\r\n \t
  4. Being of Service.<\/strong> Fourth, it involves seeking a fair balance in all relationships across physical, emotional, cognitive, and spiritual dimensions, and considering the past, present, and future.<\/li>\r\n<\/ol>\r\nSimilar ideas can be seen among other Indigenous groups in North America. For example, Mi\u2019kmaq (First Nations) peoples (Meeg-mah) are the main Indigenous Peoples of Atlantic Canada. Mi\u2019kmaq peoples have an important concept of Netukulimk<\/strong> (Neh-doo-goo-limbk) in their culture. This concept highlights how communities are inseparable from the land and the land\u2019s resources, as they are interconnected and must support one another (Prosper, 2011). In this way, land is a community. This is expressed by the Mi\u2019kmaq saying Msit No\u2019kmaq (mm-sit-no-goh-mah), or \u201call my relations\", which means that all living things and pieces of the earth are Mi\u2019kmaq relatives (Hurley & Jackson, 2020). Another value involving cultural perpetuity comes from the Haudenosaunee (Hoe-dee-no-show-nee) peoples, also known as Iroquois or the Six Nations, which are a group of Indigenous Peoples living in the United States and Canada. The Haudenosaunee peoples have the Seven Generation Principle, which is similar to that of cultural perpetuity; this principle highlights how important it is for community members to make decisions that will result in a sustainable world for the next seven generations (Mclester, 2017).\r\n\r\nBlackstock\u2019s theory, deeply grounded in Indigenous perspectives, underscores the interconnectedness of all life's aspects, weaving together spiritual, emotional, physical, and cognitive dimensions. She says that one of our primary motivations is meeting human needs. This is a communal endeavour, firmly anchored in ancestral wisdom and the sustainability of future generations. This holistic and communal approach sharply diverges from the model proposed by Maslow, which is next in our discussion. Maslow's model, in contrast, is characterised by a hierarchical structure that prioritises individual development and fulfilment. It suggests a progression of needs, where higher needs emerge once lower ones are satisfied, focusing primarily on the individual rather than the collective well-being and interconnectedness emphasised by Blackstock.\r\n

    Maslow\u2019s Hierarchy of Needs<\/span><\/h1>\r\nIn this section we will discover how a renowned psychological theory has been changed and misinterpreted over time. Imagine playing the game of \u201ctelephone,\u201d where a message gets distorted as it is whispered from person to person. This analogy aptly describes the changes and errors introduced into Abraham Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs, a theory that has been reshaped and misunderstood over time.\r\n
    \u201cA musician must make music, an artist must paint, a poet must write, if (they) are to be ultimately happy. What a (person) can be, (they) must be. This need we may call self-actualisation. (Maslow, 1943)\u201d<\/blockquote>\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_978\" align=\"aligncenter\" width=\"768\" class=\"horiz-picture-medium-adjustment\"]\"A Figure MO.13. Maslow\u2019s hierarchy of needs.<\/strong> Famously drawn in error as a pyramid or triangle. In some versions of Maslow\u2019s model, cognitive and aesthetic needs are also included between esteem and self-actualisation. Alt. text:<\/strong> A green triangle with six layers. From bottom to top, the layers are labeled \u2018physiological\u2019, \u2018safety\u2019, \u2018belonging\u2019, \u2018esteem\u2019, \u2018self-actualisation\u2019, and \u2018self-transcendence\u2019. Source:<\/strong> Figure EM.8 as found in Introduction to Psychology & Neuroscience (2nd Edition)<\/a> is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 Licence<\/a>.[\/caption]\r\n\r\nWhen it was first published, Maslow's theory did not make a significant impact in the psychological community. However, it caught the attention of the business management world, where McDermid (1960) oversimplified Maslow\u2019s model for practical use in workplace training. This simplified \u2018pyramid\u2019 version, stripped of Maslow\u2019s complexities, became very popular in the business realm and eventually found its way back to psychology, but in a distorted, oversimplified form. For over 70 years, this misrepresentative model has been widely discussed and depicted as a pyramid, with basic needs at the base and advanced needs at the peak. This image, however, is not what Maslow intended (Maslow, 1943).\r\n\r\nMaslow's original hierarchy, as he proposed in 1943, was more complex. He later expanded it to include cognitive and aesthetic needs<\/strong> and introduced the concept of self-transcendence<\/strong>, the motivation to pursue goals beyond oneself, such as altruism and spirituality (Koltko-Rivera, 2006).\r\n\r\nA more accurate visualisation of Maslow\u2019s Hierarchy of Needs might be a staircase that one can ascend or descend depending on positive or negative life events. Contrary to progressing through our needs in irreversible stages, Maslow theorised that we can ascend the \u201cstairs\u201d of the hierarchy based on the success of personal choices, social and material privileges, personal health history, and various external pressures. When stresses are significant, we may have to move down the stairs. Conversely, when life events are favourable, we move up the stairs of the hierarchy. Our life events deeply affect if and how we self-actualise and at what pace.\r\n
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    Maslow\u2019s Hierarchy of Needs (with 1970 updates by Maslow)<\/h2>\r\n<\/header>\r\n
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