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Essential Learning Theories & Frameworks in IDT: Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs

Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs

Survival needs must be satisfied before the individual can satisfy the higher needs. The higher up the hierarchy, the more difficult it is to satisfy the needs associated with that stage.

Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs: Resources

Maslow, A. H. (1943). A theory of human motivation. Psychological Review, 50(4), 370–396. https://doi.org/10.1037/h0054346

Maslow, A. H. (1968). Toward a psychology of being (2nd ed.). D. Van Nostrand Company.

Maslow, A. H. (1970). Religions, values, and peak-experiences (Viking Compass ed.). The Viking Press.

Maslow, A. H. (1970). Motivation and personality (2nd ed.). Harper & Row.

Chouhan, J., Handsley, S., Herriot, C., & McGowan, M. (2020). Fostering partnership learning communities: The impact of utilizing international student field trips to facilitate and co-create pedagogic community collaborations. Peabody Journal of Education, 95(1), 101–113. https://doi.org/10.1080/0161956X.2019.1702418

Fisher, M. H., & Crawford, B. (2020). “From school of crisis to distinguished”: Using Maslow’s Hierarchy in a rural underperforming school. The Rural Educator (Fort Collins, Colo.), 41(1), 8–19. https://doi.org/10.35608/ruraled.v41i1.831

Frei-Landau, R., & Levin, O. (2023). Simulation-based learning in teacher education: Using Maslow’s Hierarchy of needs to conceptualize instructors’ needs. Frontiers in Psychology, 14, 1149576–1149576. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1149576

Gross, H., Novey, D. A., Triskett, J. L., Ceglie, R. J., Thornburg, A. W., & Abernathy, D. F. (2022). Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs applied to guide teaching and learning. In Schoolchildren of the COVID-19 Pandemic (pp. 1–19). Emerald Publishing Limited. https://doi.org/10.1108/978-1-80262-741-120221001

Hai-Jew, S. (2024). Fostering holistic development: Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs in teaching amidst global challenges. In Navigating Teaching in an Era of Social Distancing and Global Conflict (pp. 181–204). IGI Global. https://doi.org/10.4018/979-8-3693-3382-2.ch008

Lane, J., Robinson, S., Bowen, A., Rattigan, D., & Moses, B. (2020). Post-hurricane schooling in Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands and an adapted hierarchy of needs. Journal of Higher Education Theory and Practice, 20(8), 46–55. https://doi.org/10.33423/jhetp.v20i8.3228

Mason, H. R. C., Webber, A., Wyatt, T. R., Chakraverty, D., Russell, R. G., Havemann, C., Boatright, D., Farid, H., Moss, S., & Nguyen, M. (2025). Understanding the medical education experiences of low-income students through a Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs lens: An exploratory qualitative study. Journal of General Internal Medicine : JGIM, 40(6), 1367–1377. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11606-024-09161-3

Raven, S. (2021). Why does this matter? The value of intersectionality. Cultural Studies of Science Education, 16(4), 1137–1148. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11422-020-10007-7

Robinson-Hill, R. M. (2022). The journey of a science teacher: Preparing female students in the training future scientists after-school program. Cultural Studies of Science Education, 17(1), 99–132. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11422-022-10112-9

Shula, M. (2023). Principals’ servant leadership practices and teacher motivation: Perspectives from South African rural schools’ context. Perspectives in Education, 41(4), 162–176. https://doi.org/10.38140/pie.v41i4.7196

Takyi Mensah, E., Chen, M., Ntim, S. Y., & Gabrah, A. (2023). Analysing Dewey’s vocational aspects of education and Maslow’s theory of motivation in support of vocational education and training. Discover Education, 2(1), Article 18. https://doi.org/10.1007/s44217-023-00042-1

Weiss, E., Levine, B., Sterin, K., & Huff, C. J. (2024). Critical Conditions: Addressing education emergencies through integrated student supports (1st ed.). Harvard Education Press.

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