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Abraham Maslow and the psychology of self-actualization ===
As a pioneer in his field, Abraham Maslow was not always strict with word usage. Under the word “self-actualization”, A. Maslow at different times and different works meant different things, namely, once the process of growth and development of the personality, once the method of this growth, and once the result of this growth.
In the early works, self-actualization for A. Maslow is the aspiration of the individual “upwards”.
“Self-actualization is the continuous realization of potential capabilities, abilities and talents, as the fulfillment of one’s mission, or calling, destiny, etc., as a more complete knowledge and, therefore, acceptance of one’s own original nature, as a relentless desire for unity, integration , or internal synergy of the individual.
At the same time, self-actualization is defined as «full use of talents, abilities, opportunities, etc.» [18, p. 150 — Maslow A. 1970. «Motivation and Personality»].
“I imagine a self-actualized person not as an ordinary person to whom something has been added, but as an ordinary person from whom nothing has been taken away. The average person is a complete human being, with muted and suppressed abilities and gifts” [13, p. 91 — Lowry R., ed. 1973. “A.G. Maslow: An Intellectual Portrait].
In this understanding, self-actualization is a process, a process of full unfolding of personal potential, personal growth due to the natural unfolding in a person of what is inherent in nature.
In later works, he proposed to clarify the concepts and call self-actualization the achievement of human maturity, and development and movement towards self-actualization — personal health.
“I believe that from the point of view of psychological strategy, it would be useful to distinguish between the concepts of maturity, humanization, self-actualization, on the one hand, and the concept of health, on the other. It would be more reasonable to interpret health as “development and movement towards self-actualization”: in such an interpretation, the concept of health is filled with a special meaning and becomes quite accessible for scientific study.” (A. Maslow. «Motivation and Personality»).
Thus, for the mature A. Maslow, self-actualization is not a process, but a result. A self-actualized person is one who has reached a more optimal, efficient and healthy level of functioning than the average person. Self-actualization is the achievement of the highest level of natural personal growth, namely: personal maturity, the maximum expression of the psychological health of the individual, his high psychological culture, sufficient education and sociality.
“I unequivocally connected the concept of self-actualization with people of mature age. The criteria of self-actualization developed by me allow me to state with a high degree of certainty that the phenomenon of self-actualization does not occur among young people…”.
Literature
- 13. Lowry R., eds. 1973. “A.G. Maslow: an intellectual portrait»
- 18. Maslow A. 1970. «Motivation and Personality»