The need for communication is the reason for one of the types of human activity, thanks to which each individual can feel recognition and support, satisfy their cognitive, social and spiritual interests. In order for a person to develop normally, he needs certain conditions. They are provided by society, which is based on developed communication connections. Cooperation cannot be established without positive and business-like communication, the ability to build relationships and contact with other people.
Communication: goals, functions and need for it
A person feels the need to communicate.
What is a need? This is a need for something: specific conditions, objects, objects, the absence of which slows down or stops the development and existence of living organisms. Need refers to mental states of a special type in which an individual feels or is aware of existing discomfort. The human psyche reflects the discrepancy between the internal conditions of activity and the external ones. It must be said that a person constantly experiences dissatisfaction with the conditions for his development. Conditions are created by society. The human personality must be socialized, and this is impossible without communication. Without communication, human activity cannot exist. The need for communication is a need peculiar only to man; he strives for unification, for joint activity.
The motives for which this need arises are mutually exclusive and complementary. They are completely different directions from selfish, manipulative to altruistic, selfless. When communicating, a person can achieve the goals of gaining power and dominance, while giving the impression of a friendly person. The desire for interaction and friendly relations is called affiliation. This phenomenon manifests a person’s desire to contact other people for the sake of the communication process itself. The discomfort of loneliness is eliminated. Affiliation is characteristic of people who have an increased sense of anxiety, anxiety and nervousness predominate, they often fall into a state of frustration from detachment, social removal, which is forced. These people tend to follow the lead; they need a leader.
Some of the individual characteristics of human needs include:
A person has a lot of needs, they are diverse: conservation, activity, meaning of life, freedom, work, rest, knowledge, communication.
2. Human needs: basic concepts, dynamics.
Need is a type of functional or psychological need or lack of any object, subject, individual, social group, society. Being internal drivers of activity, needs manifest themselves differently depending on the situation. The presence of unsatisfied needs in a person is associated with tension and discomfort, a discrepancy between the internal (desired) and external (real), which are the stimulants and motivation of activity.
Subjectively, needs are represented in the form of emotionally charged desires, drives, and aspirations, and their satisfaction is represented in the form of evaluative emotions. Needs are found in motives, drives, desires, etc. that motivate a person to activity and become a form of manifestation of needs. The number of needs increases in the process of phylogenesis and ontogenesis. Thus, the number of needs increases in the evolutionary series: plants - primitive animals - highly developed animals - humans, as well as in the ontogenetic series: newborn - infant - preschooler - schoolchild - adult.
There are many classifications of needs:
By area
Needs are divided according to the nature of the activity (defensive, nutritional, sexual, cognitive, communicative, gaming).
Separation in connection with those goals that are achieved as the need is satisfied
- biological,
- labor,
- knowledge,
- communication,
- recreation;
By object
Separation due to what is the object of need.
- physiological (food, water, air, climatic conditions, etc.)
- material (housing, clothing, vehicles, tools of production, etc.)
- social (communication, social activities, public recognition, etc.)
- spiritual, (knowledge, creative activity, creation of beauty, scientific discoveries, etc.)
- ethical,
- aesthetic,
- other;
By functional role
- dominant/minor,
- central/peripheral,
- stable/situational;
By origin
There is a division into two large groups - natural and cultural. The first of them are programmed at the genetic level, and the second are formed in the process of social life.
By analogy with conditioned and unconditioned reflexes, needs are also divided into
- congenital,
- simple acquired and
- complex acquired.
Simple acquired needs are understood to be needs formed on the basis of an individual’s own empirical experience (for example, the need of a workaholic for a favorite job), while complex needs are understood to be based on one’s own conclusions and ideas of non-empirical origin (for example, a religious person’s need for confession, based on an externally instilled idea of positive consequences of the ritual, but not on the empirical feeling of guilt and humiliation when performing it).
By subject of needs
- individual,
- group,
- collective,
- public.
Individual, mental, physiological characteristics of a person are the basis of his requests and needs.
The pyramid of needs is a hierarchical system of human needs, compiled by the American psychologist A. Maslow.
Maslow himself identifies 5 levels of needs. Here they are:
- Physiological: hunger, thirst, sexual desire, etc.
- Existential: security of existence, comfort, constancy of living conditions.
- Social: social connections, communication, affection, caring for others and attention to oneself, joint activities.
- Prestigious: self-esteem, respect from others, recognition, achieving success and high praise, career growth.
- Spiritual: cognition, self-actualization, self-expression, self-identification.
Frederick Herzberg's theory of motivation emerged from the growing need to understand the influence of tangible and intangible factors on human motivation. F. Herzberg created a two-factor model that shows job satisfaction. The first group of factors is related to the self-expression of the individual, his internal needs, as well as the environment in which work and study take place. The second group of motivation factors is related to the nature and essence of work or educational activity. The leader here must remember the need to generalize the content of educational activities.
In the science of the 20th century, the concept of the formation of man and society in the process of development of work activity became widespread - the labor theory of anthroposociogenesis, it was proposed by Engels. Having identified 3 human-forming factors - work, social organization and articulate speech - Engels actually traces the complication of human needs and abilities in the course of the development of work and thinking. Biological and social mechanisms interact in the development of needs. Having achieved the development of biological development, a person masters the labor process and rises to a higher quality level of existence. A person not only consumes the substance he needs, but also artificially forms a new sphere of reality - second nature, artificial objects, tools.
needs groups
1. Basic needs: these are the universal needs inherent in all people. Basic needs include: biological, material, social, spiritual needs.
Within the basic needs you can find many of their modifications and additional characteristics. Such needs are a specification of a basic need, characterize one or another aspect of its manifestation and can be called special or additional needs.
Biological ones include a person’s desire to maintain his existence (the need for food, clothing, sleep, safety, sexual satisfaction, saving energy, etc.).
Social needs include a person’s need for communication, for popularity, for dominance over other people, for belonging to a certain group, for leadership and recognition.
A person’s spiritual needs are the need to know the world around him and himself, the desire for self-improvement and self-realization, to know the meaning of one’s existence.
Within the material needs, we can distinguish household needs - the needs for the comfort of housing, transportation, and security. Among the social needs we can highlight the need for personal self-identification, the need to protect the rights and dignity of the individual, etc.
2. The next basis for identifying large groups of needs is the division of needs according to their social-humanistic orientation (value). This will be a group of value-oriented needs. On this basis, one can distinguish between reasonable and unreasonable (perverted) needs, true and false, progressive and regressive. The basis for identifying this group of needs is the classification of needs according to the criteria of their humanistic and ethical orientation, according to their role in the lifestyle and comprehensive harmonious development of the individual.
Society consists of individuals who have their own biological characteristics - health status, characteristics of physiological processes in the body, differences in the structure and functioning of the nervous system, which determine the natural inclinations of a person. One of the main trends in the development of relations between man and society is the individualization of the individual. Economic development and increasingly complex production processes required increasingly qualified, competent and independent workers. Currently, this leads to the gradual formation of an individual style of production activity and an associated individual style of consumption. The mechanism of interaction between the individual and society is modified and rebuilt. This is reflected in the relationship between individual and social needs. The difference between social and individual needs is manifested in the difference in the mechanisms of their awareness. Society or social groups are aware of their needs longer and more complexly than individuals.
Human needs and means of satisfying them. To satisfy their needs, people initially used only
what the wild nature could give them. But with the growth of needs,
la the need to learn how to obtain goods.
People use natural resources to produce the goods of life.
own labor and special devices (tools, equipment, pro-
production facilities, etc.). All these are called “factors of production”.
There are three main factors of production:
1) labor;
2) land;
3) capital.
To satisfy its ever-increasing needs, humanity
forced to constantly seek answers to the main questions of the fundamentals of economic
new life, that is, the main issues of economics:
1. What to produce and in what quantity?
2. How to produce?
3. How to distribute the goods produced?
Types of communication needs
Any need and its satisfaction is a complex process, consisting of several steps. The main stages are motivation and activity. The process involves the emergence of paradoxical moments. When, for example, a person has been waiting for an item for a very long time, has experienced strong tension about it, and begins to avoid it, having received it, despite the existing need.
After a long separation, which was forced, people try to delay the moment of meeting, and during the meeting they show restraint and aloofness, causing a reaction of misunderstanding among others.
Frustration
If you do not constantly satisfy important needs (respect, sincerity, trust, friendship, love) and do not replace them with anything, deep disturbances in personal development may occur. This is expressed in the emergence of a persistent mental state filled with anxiety, worry, mistrust, and suspicion. This state is called frustration. The causes of frustration are:
Reactions to frustration are: aggression, rationalization, reduction in the value of an unattainable object. Long-term failures can cause a buildup of frustration, and this is a direct path to psychosomatic disorders: ulcers, allergies, asthma and fixation reactions that arise against the background of punishment. The psychological consequences of frustration are: excitement, fantasy, apathy, destructiveness, despair. A way of adapting to frustration is activity of a substitutive nature.
The child was prohibited from assembling the construction set because the playing time had ended. He started drawing in the air. An adult uses the technique of conscious/unconscious retreat, that is, he suppresses his hopes and aspirations. Later, they may appear in a person's dreams.
Many people believe that frustration occurs under the influence of an external factor. If a person manages to eliminate the causes of frustration himself, he begins to experience increased emotional arousal and a desire to overcome all obstacles. An energy reserve appears. But with frequent failures of a repeated nature, motivation noticeably decreases. Sometimes a person has a new motive, but most often the motivation is completely absent. Then a person becomes vulnerable, resentment, uncertainty, and underestimation of one’s capabilities appear. A person programs himself for failure.
The problem of the need for communication
What is the status of the problem of the need for communication? The issue is at the level of debate. Scientists debate whether the need for communication exists as a specific need, different from other social needs, or whether it is simply a variety of them. Psychologists N.F. Dobrynin, A.G. Kovalev, A.V. Petrovsky consider the communicative need to be specific. But in practice, it appears on a par with the need for impressions and security. The point of view of L.I. Maryasova explains the hierarchical structure of communicative needs, which serves as the basic vertical of communication. There are 9 groups of communication needs:
Many questions regarding the need for communication remain open. For example, is this need innate, or is it formed in ontogenesis in the process of socialization. There are two opposing points of view here. L.V. Vedenov D. Campbell adhere to the fact that a person has an innate need in the process of communication. This position is shared by B.F. Lomov, S.L. Rubinshtein, F.T. Mikhailov, A.N. Leontiev. M.I. Lisina, observing babies, concluded that the need for communication is formed in the process of life and is the result of contact between an adult and a child.
In the first weeks of life, the child does not respond to requests from adults and does not address them himself. In the third month of life, a child can distinguish between intonation and distinguish between “good” and “evil” facial expressions. The child exhibits reactions: turns his head, moves his hands, opens and closes his mouth. M.I. Lisina identified 4 stages and 4 criteria for the emergence of the need for communication:
M.I. Lisina concludes that the need for communication is formed in a child during his lifetime.
M.Yu. Kistyakovskaya conducted studies in hospital conditions, and they showed that children aged 2-3 years do not show interest in adults. But as soon as an adult begins to contact children, they become active.
M.I. Lisina argues that the need for communication is the desire to understand the world around us and evaluate other people, and through them a person comes to evaluate and know himself.
In ontogenesis, this need is built on two others: the need for organic life needs and the need for new impressions. The child discovers that an adult is the source of all benefits to him. But this source needs to be controlled, so the child selects it and explores it. But this is not communication yet. This is the desire to satisfy your organic needs and obtain information. When a child has a desire to know an adult and himself, and an adult shows attention to the child and indicates his position, we can talk about a communicative need.
Psychologist E.P. Ilyin argued that the need for communication is only one reason for communication as a type of activity. A person receives impressions, recognition and support, knowledge through communication. In foreign psychology, a special term has been introduced: the need for affiliation. This means being a member of a group, being in contact with people. Here it is appropriate to talk about extroverts and introverts, about the peculiarities of adolescents’ communication related to the level of aspirations, about a more pronounced desire for communication in girls than in boys.
A.A. Leontiev concludes that the need for communication is primary, non-derivative, it cannot be reduced to other needs, especially at certain stages of onto- and phylogenesis, regardless of whether it is considered congenital or acquired. The scientist calls the initial needs “animals”. The baby simply needs the care of those around him. When a need acquires a social character, it becomes a connecting thread between the child’s personality and the world around him. At the early stages of development, the need for communication performs the psychological function of satisfying non-communicative social and practical needs. As the child grows up, communication goals and psychological dynamics appear.
N.P. Erastov classifies the motives of communication:
The communicator and the addressee correspond to each other according to three types of motives:
What is its essence?
So, social needs also include the need for security. After all, almost every person thinks about the future, analyzes the present and predicts events ahead in order to remain calm and confident in the future. It is because of this need that a person reaches for stability and constancy. He accepts everyday routine and everyday life better than spontaneous changes and surprises, because his peace of mind and sense of security are disturbed. Thus, human social needs include the need for security.
For most people it is of great importance in life. Because it has a strong influence on behavior, character, sensation and well-being. It means:
- The main thing is physical safety (the situation in society, the imperfection of the legal sphere, unpreparedness for natural disasters, poor ecology).
- Secondary is social insecurity in the areas of health and education.
This need does not always act as an active force. It prevails only in situations with a critical level of danger, when it is necessary to mobilize all forces to fight evil. For example, during military operations, natural disasters, serious illness, economic crises, that is, during any circumstances that threaten unfavorable conditions. Go ahead. Human social needs also include the need for communication.
Goals and functions of communication
Why does a person need the act of communication? In animals, communication does not go beyond biological needs. A person, through communication, satisfies social, cultural, spiritual, cognitive and other needs.
A.A. Leontiev defines the purpose of communication as a problematic situation in which the interaction of individuals occurs, the result of which should be a specific result. A person transmits and receives knowledge, coordinates actions and joint activities, establishes and explains personal and business relationships, convinces and motivates the interlocutor.
B.F. Lomov identifies the functions (goals) of communication:
Goals can be functional or objective in nature. Functional goals include: helping another person, receiving help, searching for an interlocutor, a partner for activity, searching for a person who will sympathize, understand, praise, react emotionally to the situation, searching for a person for self-expression, with whom you can show your mind, courage, awareness, introducing others to one’s own or universal values, changing opinions, intentions, and behavior. Object goals include: searching for a permanent or situational communication partner. The choice of a permanent partner is based on the attractiveness of another person as a person for certain qualities, on the manifestation of sympathy and love. A partner is selected based on the presence of common interests, values, and worldview. You have to choose a partner due to the need for cooperation and teamwork. A partner can be selected based on external factors: proximity of residence.
M.I. Lisina points out that the main function of communication is organizing joint activities with other people in order to adapt to the environment and transform the world around us.
Psychologist B.F. Lomov identifies the functions of communication by content:
A person accepts and transfers knowledge and skills, perceives the experiences and emotions of other people, regulates behavior during communication, regulates it with the help of group and social norms.
With mutual regulation, phenomena characteristic of joint activity are formed: compatibility, common style of activity, synchronization of actions. Here phenomena such as mutual stimulation and mutual correction of behavior appear. It is with the function of regulation that imitation, suggestion, and persuasion are associated.
Let us highlight the functions of interpersonal communication by designating their subject area.
Functions can be the following: contact, information, incentive, coordination, understanding, emotive, establishing relationships, influencing.
Scientists in the field of social psychology have identified the following functions of communication:
Let us dwell on a number of the most common classifications; it is worth noting the classifications of E.V. Andrienko, V.N. Panferov, E.I. Rogov, O.G. Filatova.
E.V. Andrienko identifies three groups of communication functions:
E.V. Andrienko defines the conceptual idea of such a division based on a simple model of relationships: person-activity-society.
O.G. Filatova considers the following functions of communication:
E.I. Rogov identifies five functions of communication:
V.N. Panferov defines 6 functions of communication:
As we see, research into the functions of communication is multifaceted and numerous. Based on all the classifications presented, we can identify the main function of communication - regulatory, which ensures a person’s interaction with other people.
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Communication structure
V.N. Parfenov in his article “Psychology of Communication” identifies 4 components in the content structure of communication - communication, interaction, cognition, relationship.
The essence of communication is the transfer of various information - informative, regulatory or affective.
By interaction, the author understands the process of joint activity of people in solving a common problem.
Cognition, Parfenov believes, is the process of perception and interpretation of human behavior and awareness of it in order to understand the personal essence.
He distinguishes between indirect communication and direct communication. Indirect communication can occur through mass media.
Parfenov examines the problems of communication through the methodological principles of her research - the communicative principle, informational, gnostic, regulatory.
In this model of the structure of communication, says A.A. Leontiev, it is important to go not from the global representation of communicative processes, but in the opposite direction. A.A. Leontiev notes that this model of the structure of communication is built on a logocystic analysis of communication processes, and not on a psychological one.
B.D. Parygin in his monograph “Fundamentals of Social-Psychological Theory” gives a specific characteristic of communication and introduces the category of “mutual understanding,” which, in his opinion, is one of the main characteristics. The scientist identifies levels of mutual understanding - the coincidence of the system of social and individual meanings among communicating people, the coincidence of levels of mutual assessment.
B.D. Parygin identifies the parameters of communication - mental contact during mutual perception of each other, exchange of information during verbal or non-verbal communication, mutual influence and interaction on each other. The scientist believes that there is an internal and external side of communication.
According to A.A. Leontyev, this concept also has a weakness, which lies in the fact that the concept is presented in an individual psychological interpretation of communication processes.
In social psychology in Russia, an analytical model in which the structure of any act of communication consists of three interconnected sides - communicative, interactive, perceptual - has received quite wide recognition.
The communicative side involves the exchange of information, the interactive side means interaction in joint activities, and the perceptual side consists of perceiving and understanding another person.
In addition to these, there are other classifications of the structure of communication.
Note 2
If we proceed from the fact that the structure is a set of stable connections between numerous elements, thanks to which it represents a single whole, then the structure of communication can be considered taking into account the following aspects: dynamic, functional, subject-substantive, operational.
Why is communication necessary?
Communication is one of the main human needs, the satisfaction of which determines our emotional state. But what role does communication play in our lives?
Through communication, we convey our feelings, emotions, experiences and worries. During the dialogue, the other person does the same, due to which an emotional exchange occurs. How often do we notice that the mood of another is transmitted to us, and this effect is achieved solely due to the exchange of feelings and emotions, and this happens unconsciously. In the process of communication, we either increase the severity of the experience or decrease it.
Have you ever wondered why solitary confinement is one of the harshest punishments? It's all about the absence of an interlocutor.
Every person needs recognition in society. It is important for us to know that we are valued, loved and respected. Such confidence gives us strength, lifts our spirits and allows us to overcome even the most difficult obstacles in life!
All people need approval and support. It is important for us to evaluate other people's actions, actions, words or behavior. Through communication, we make comparisons, conclusions, conclusions and changes in our lives.
Through speech and means of communication, we gain knowledge about the world around us, expand our horizons, and become a harmonious and highly developed personality. Thanks to communication, we receive information that allows us to behave correctly and be prepared for different life situations.
Every person has a need for communication, and our physical and emotional state depends on its satisfaction.
What else is it valuable?
We already know that human social needs include communication. It is thanks to him that the individual realizes other needs, the main one of which is receiving support. After all, having felt that he belonged to significant people in society, a person gains confidence that he is recognized. In this case, the person is completely satisfied with the communication and social support provided. Especially if they include the following aspects:
- positive emotional support, which gives confidence that a person is loved and respected and treated sincerely;
- information assistance, when there is access to all the necessary data about the world around us;
- evaluative support that allows you to analyze what is happening, find out the opinions of others, and draw conclusions about your own judgments;
- physical and material support;
- exchange of emotions, because if a person is deprived of communication, he will not be able to share his problems, will not receive support, as a result of which deep depression may occur.
It is through communication that an individual develops such qualities as reliability, a sense of duty, and strength of character. And also humanity, responsiveness, tact, honesty, kindness. An equally important function of communication is the formation of new interests in an individual. This is an impetus for self-improvement and development.
Types of communication needs
In a state of anxiety and deep emotion, even uncommunicative people become talkative. Internal conflict, fears, struggle and terrible excitement - all this contributes to the rapid emergence of a new topic of conversation. Depending on what a person wants to get as a result, communication is divided into the following types:
Fear constrains and at the same time encourages a person to experience a strong need for communication. Strangers start a fascinating conversation only because of the appearance of excitement and worries. Such a need does not in every case give good results, because in this way we can say a lot of unnecessary things, which we would never do under normal circumstances!
This need to start a conversation arises in people who are powerful in character and characteristics, with strong leadership traits. It is aimed at subordinating another to your views, thoughts, tastes and feelings. Dominance in communication brings satisfaction in cases where the other person feels the need to submit. If two leaders encounter a need for dominance in a conversation, then conflict cannot be avoided. It is also difficult to communicate with two other opposites - people who need subordination.
A person who feels the need to communicate in order to draw the attention of others to his individuality strives to express his character, his unusual mindset, his attitude to life. Such people are extremely vulnerable and vulnerable during a conversation, because denial or expression of a different position by his interlocutor causes indignation, bewilderment and even deep disappointment.
To be recognized in society, to receive praise and earn respect is the desire of many people. Often this need is clearly manifested in communication. From the conversation, it becomes clear what the person’s motives are, what he wants to say by this and why he chose this particular method of communication. If you do not control this need, you can lose friends and even ruin your relationship with them.
In order for communication to be harmonious, pleasant and bring true pleasure to both parties, it is important to first think about the interests of the other.
Thanks to communication, we gain new knowledge, information on various issues, explore topics and delve deeper into specialized topics. The need for communication often arises at the moment when we need to receive an answer to a question that has arisen. Satisfaction comes the moment we achieve a goal.
Patronage is a form of caring for other people. Some are eager to start a conversation to provide the help and support they need. However, with an immoderate desire to patronize, a desire for self-affirmation also manifests itself, so balance is important in everything.
Knowing the types of communication needs, it is easier to understand the essence of communication techniques and your role in this process.
↑ Human needs. Basic types of needs.
One of the motives of human activity is need. A need
is a need or lack of something necessary to maintain the life of an organism, a human person, a social group, or society as a whole. Needs are the internal stimulator of human activity.
Needs have different classifications. The main types of human needs are: biological, social, spiritual
.
Biological needs (organic)
are associated with the physical body and their satisfaction is necessary to maintain life and development. These needs include: the need to breathe, consume food and water, move, rest and sleep. These also include a number of other more complex, but vitally important needs such as: thermal comfort, balanced nutrition, procreation, protection from disease.
A person can live: without food for 40-45 days, without water for 7-10 days, without sleep for 4 days, without air for 3 to 5 minutes.
This type of need is characteristic of all living beings. They are also called natural, physiological, natural, biogenic, organic
or
vital
(“vita” - “life”).
Social needs
- this is a person’s need for communication with other people, mutual understanding, social activities, public recognition, etc.
Spiritual (ideal) needs
- these are the needs for self-realization, creating beauty, acquiring new knowledge and experience, and self-improvement. Spiritual needs act as a desire to create spiritual values, creativity, and spiritual communication. There is no limit to the realization of this type of needs, and there are no boundaries in the choice of means and ways to satisfy them.
Biological, social and spiritual needs are interconnected. In humans, biological needs in their essence, unlike animals, become social. For most people, social needs dominate over ideal ones: the need for knowledge often acts as a means of acquiring a profession and taking a worthy position in society.
Communication deficit: consequences
People lack communication for a variety of reasons. Some people are complex and shy people, others are already deeply depressed. Such social isolation is destructive for everyone, and it doesn’t matter what kind of character a person is. The main consequence of a lack of communication is a painful emotional state. It affects all areas of a person’s life, leading to apathy, a negative attitude and even self-hatred.
When such feelings arise, it is necessary to immediately take active measures. If you notice something similar in your friend’s behavior, then immediately strive to correct the situation. Take the initiative in communication!
When you yourself begin to suffer from a lack of communication due to a change of environment, moving to another city, breaking up with a boyfriend or losing a loved one, then even in such critical and difficult situations it is important not to lose heart, not to get upset and not to isolate yourself. Communication is the best way to cheer yourself up!
The need for communication in children, adolescents and adults
Children and adolescents are a category of people who have not yet reached their maturity. That is why they have a huge craving for communication. Every child strives to find a friend or girlfriend; he likes to be in a team, enjoy communication and interesting games. In the process of such communication, the development and formation of a person’s personality occurs.
For teenagers, the process of personality formation is more complicated, which means communication, especially during the transition period, becomes difficult for them. It is important that your child has a friend at this time.
If a person sometimes wants to be alone, this does not mean that he has problems or that he is immature.
Adults are mature individuals who know perfectly well what they want to achieve in life. Therefore, their communication often revolves around satisfying their main needs: recognition, prestige, expression of individuality, gaining knowledge. In the process of communication, do not forget about other people, their needs and interests, because this is the only way both parties will enjoy the conversation!
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Why are they important?
Maslow noted that an individual who does not satisfy biological needs simply will not be able to live and function as a healthy person. The same picture applies to social needs. Without their satisfaction, a person begins to doubt his own worth. Becomes weak, helpless, vulnerable and even humiliated.
This condition forces a person to commit immoral acts and express aggression. Therefore, social needs, namely the need for self-esteem, recognition of oneself as a person with self-esteem, supported by interpersonal relationships, lead to successful self-realization and the acquisition of confidence. Let's figure out what needs are social.
What is the personal need for communication, and what does it consist of?
Educational psychologist. I will help you understand yourself; I’ll convey the idea that life.
Practicing psychologist, Gestalt therapist. Graduated from Togliatti State.
Man is a social being. But no matter how much you sometimes want to be alone, reflect and close yourself off from the whole world, in the end you want someone to be nearby.
There are always people around, uniting in companies of similar interests, making useful acquaintances and expanding their circle of friends.
Adults and children have different needs for communication. But in any case, loneliness attracts few people, and everyone wants to communicate.
Classification by characteristics
Among social needs there are three categories:
- For myself. This is the need for self-realization, finding one’s place in society, and also the need to have power.
- For others. The need for communication, protection of the weak, altruism. Its implementation occurs through overcoming the selfish category “for oneself.”
- Together with others. This group of needs is characterized by the unification of people in communities to jointly solve problems. This is the need for security, freedom, pacification of the rebel, change of the current regime, in a peaceful environment.
The development of an individual is impossible without satisfying needs. Let's talk about them in more detail. So, what are the social needs of the individual?
The need for communication in different people
Children and teenagers are a category of people who have not yet reached their personal maturity. Therefore, more than adults, they have a great desire to communicate with other people. Every child likes to play and spend time with peers.
Children are always eager to make friends and identify someone special among them. It is in the process of forming such connections that a person’s healthy psyche and personality are formed. Adolescence is a special period. Therefore, a growing child who has entered this transitional period may experience problems with communication.
For the development of personality, it is important that a child has a friend. Wanting to be alone is not a sign of immaturity or problems.
Adults can already be called mature individuals. It is believed that they already know what they want to get from life. When a person has matured, his communication can be reduced to satisfying his personal needs, such as: gaining knowledge, demonstrating individuality, recognition and prestige. The main thing is not to forget about the interests and needs of the interlocutors in the process, then the communication will be productive.
Communication and nonviolent communication
Types of communication needs
Anyone, even the most uncommunicative person, in a state of fear, excitement, anxiety and any other internal conflict, can become talkative. Such states lead to new topics for communication.
And depending on what result a person expects to get from this communication, several types can be distinguished:
A person who has a need for others to pay attention to his individuality during communication seeks to express his attitude to life, non-standard thinking, or demonstrate character. These people are extremely vulnerable during communication, because any denial of his position can hurt, confuse or even cause anger.
Fear immobilizes, but almost always pushes a person to communicate, forcing him to experience an urgent need for it. Even a stranger, feeling nervous or anxious, can start a conversation with another stranger somewhere in the checkout line. Such a need may not always give a good result, since in such a state one can say something that would never be said in a normal situation.
The desire of many people is to be recognized in society, to receive praise and deserved respect. And in communication, this need manifests itself quite clearly.
By the way a person talks and behaves, it quickly becomes clear what goals he is pursuing. This need can be stressful and even alienating to others. Therefore, it is very important to control this need and not forget about the interests of other participants in communication.
Through communication, people receive information, acquire new knowledge, and explore areas of interest. A need arises when answers to any questions are required, and when a result is achieved, satisfaction appears.
This need for communication appears in people who are powerful, prone to control, and show clear signs of leadership. It is aimed at subordinating others to the thoughts, interests and feelings of the dominant.
Giphy
The effect is achieved when one of the communication participants is prone to dominance, and the other to submission. Conflict cannot be avoided if two dominant leaders come together in a conversation. And it is also difficult to interact with people who have a need for subordination.
This is a form of caring for the people around you. This need appears when a person wants to show sympathy, save, support, and provide assistance. But it is important not to overdo it, otherwise the need for self-affirmation may appear.
↑ Pyramid of needs by A. Maslow
Of the many different classifications of needs, the most popular is the hierarchical (
hierarchy is the placement of elements from lowest to highest) pyramid of psychologist Abraham Maslow.
PRIMARY (INGENATE) NEEDS
The first two stages are primary or congenital,
since if these needs are not satisfied, a person will not be able to engage in other activities, and all his aspirations will be aimed at realizing precisely these needs.
For example, if he is hungry, then all his thoughts, desires and actions will be about food. A person's life depends on it. Such needs include physiological
and
existential . Physiological needs
are essential for survival. These include the needs for food, water, respiration, shelter, rest and reproduction.
Existential
include needs for security and confidence in the future include needs for protection from physical and psychological dangers from the outside world and confidence that physiological needs will be satisfied in the future.
SECONDARY (ACQUIRED) NEEDS
All other needs A. Maslow defined as secondary or acquired.
Social
needs or needs for belonging and love, for social connections, affection, caring for another person and attention to oneself, participation in shared activities.
Prestigious
or, in other words, the need for self-esteem, evaluation or respect from other people, recognition, success and appreciation, career growth.
Prestige
is a measure of society’s recognition of a person’s merits.
Every person, to a greater or lesser extent, has a need for competition, a desire to stand out, to be better than someone else, and to be respected by others. Therefore, the desire to achieve a higher position in society, to enter prestigious, popular faculties, to make a career, to achieve prosperity - these are prestigious needs.
The following three types of needs (cognitive, aesthetic and spiritual) are the aspirations of the “soul” and are considered the highest human needs.
Cognitive needs
- this is a study of the surrounding world, reality in order to obtain new knowledge, impressions, and the desire for purposeful creative activity.
They are also called cognitive needs .
Aesthetic needs
- this is a person’s spiritual desire for harmony and beauty, art and creativity. Thanks to these needs, the world has theaters, exhibitions, museums, art galleries, ballet, music and dance.
At the topmost step are spiritual needs
or the need to realize one’s potential and grow as an individual
(self-development, self-improvement)
.
Realizing his needs, the individual builds his life in accordance with them.
The needs of lower levels require satisfaction and, therefore, influence human behavior before the needs of higher levels begin to affect motivation. At any given moment in time, a person will strive to satisfy the need that is more important or strong for him. Before the next level need becomes the most powerful determinant of human behavior, the lower level need must be satisfied.
«When the strongest and most priority needs are satisfied, the needs that follow them in the hierarchy arise and require satisfaction. When these needs are satisfied, a transition occurs to the next step in the ladder of factors that determine human behavior.
" Psychologists K. Hall and G. Lindsay
If basic needs are not realized, then they are replaced by pseudo-needs
, for example, the need for luxury goods, alcohol, gambling, etc.
One should remember about reasonable limitation of needs, since, firstly, not all human needs can be fully satisfied, and secondly, needs should not contradict the moral norms of society.
Reasonable needs
- these are the needs that help the development in a person of his truly human qualities: the desire for truth, beauty, knowledge, the desire to bring good to people, etc.
Imaginary needs
- artificially created by man, the implementation of which can be dispensed with (for example, smoking).
Since with the development of a person as an individual his potential capabilities expand, the need for self-expression can never be fully satisfied. Therefore, the process of motivating behavior through needs is endless.
A person experiencing hunger will first seek to find food, and only after eating will he try to build a shelter. Living in comfort and security, a person will first be motivated to activity by the need for social contacts, and then will begin to actively strive for respect from others. Only after a person feels inner satisfaction and respect from others will his most important needs begin to grow in accordance with his potential. But if the situation changes radically, then the most important needs can change dramatically. Needs underlie the emergence of interests and inclinations.
