Quality of Life Theory III. Maslow Revisited

Abstract

In 1962, Abraham Maslow published his book Towards a Psychology of Being, and established a theory of quality of life, which still is considered a consistent theory of quality of life. Maslow based his theory for development towards happiness and true being on the concept of human needs. He described his approach as an existentialistic psychology of self-actualization, based on personal growth.When we take more responsibility for our own life, we take more of the good qualities that we have into use, and we become more free, powerful, happy, and healthy. It seems that Maslow's concept of self-actualization can play an important role in modern medicine. As most chronic diseases often do not disappear in spite of the best biomedical treatments, it might be that the real change our patients have for betterment is understanding and living the noble path of personal development. The hidden potential for improving life really lies in helping the patient to acknowledge that his or her lust for life, his or her needs, and his or her wish to contribute, is really deep down in human existence one and the same. But you will only find this hidden meaning of life if you scrutinize your own life and existence closely enough, to come to know your innermost self.

Healthy Life-Style Promoting Behaviour in Turkish Women Aged 18-64

“…The individuals that have actualised themselves are usually aware of themselves, live their life within certain goals and purposes, behave in a creative, efficient and decisive way, and use their full capacity (Ventegodt et al, 2003). The self-actualization score of the women in the study group was 70.6 over a hundred and ranked third.…”

Cooperative Research Projects of Master’s Students (Education Programs) in the Open Informational Educational Environment

“…With issues of motivation we echo the basic ideas of the quality of life which still form the basis of the most coherent theory and provide a base for more actual studies in which happiness and true being of person are disclosed in getting a worthy result (Ventegodt, Merrick & Andersen, 2003).…”

Clinical Holistic Medicine: Tools for a Medical Science Based on Consciousness

“…To do this, it is important to develop as a person into what is known as the natural condition, a condition where you know yourself and use all your efforts to achieve what is most important for you. The holistic process theory of healing [7,8,9,10] and the related quality of life theories [11,12,13] state that the return to the natural state of being is possible, whenever the person gets the resources needed for existential healing. The resources needed are, according to these theories, holding in the dimensions: awareness, respect, care, acknowledgment, and acceptance with support and processing in the dimensions: feeling, understanding, and letting go of negative attitudes and beliefs.…”