A need is a feeling of dissatisfaction that requires action to meet. Needs are based on physiological and psychological requirements that people must fulfill for survival. This includes food, water, clothing and shelter. These needs are ranked higher than desires, which are luxuries that provide comfort and enjoyment in life but do not affect survival. Needs are a topic of interest in philosophy, psychology, economics, sociology and politics.
The most well-known academic theory of human needs is that proposed by Abraham Maslow in 1943. His theory argues that people have a hierarchy of needs that must be met in order for a person to feel satisfied and happy. These needs range from the most basic, such as food and water, to the more psychologically important, such as belonging and self-actualization. People tend to focus on satisfying these lower-level needs first and only move on to higher level wants once they have the basics taken care of.
When people talk about need, it often refers to their individual needs, but they may also use the term in reference to a group of individuals or society as a whole. For example, a country might be in need of foreign aid to help it out of an economic slump.
The need to belong is also a significant driver of human behavior. This need, which is also referred to as the need to love and be loved, can be met in relationships and in communities. This need has been linked to psychological and social health, as it is necessary for people to feel they are connected and cared for in a meaningful way.
In relationships, a key factor in meeting this need is the ability to communicate and express feelings. In addition, it is vital to be able to resolve conflict. This can be accomplished by addressing the underlying need for safety and trust.
People also need to be able to make decisions and take actions to fulfill their needs. This can be done through formal decision-making processes such as democratic voting or informally by analyzing their feelings and understanding what they need to function properly.
The need to survive is one of the most basic and fundamental needs that all humans have in common. Without this need, people would be unable to live in a healthy and sustainable manner. However, this does not mean that other important needs like freedom, self-realization and happiness are not possible for people to attain, as long as they are able to prioritize the fulfillment of their needs over other things in their lives. For instance, some people may value the need to be healthy more than others, and they will spend more time on this priority than others do. They may also choose to have a smaller, less expensive home than someone else who values the need for luxury amenities in their home. This is the kind of trade-off that people must weigh when deciding how they want to live their lives.