The difference between 'want' and 'need'

[*Olivia*]

Originally posted by Blazey:

ponder the difference between want and need

<font size="4" face="Tempus Sans ITC, Verdana, Arial">what a great idea for a thread chele [img]smile.gif[/img]

[*Olivia*]

*L* 13 views and no posts??? come on people...ok ok i'll give it a stab...

As humans, we have basic needs to survive and only when those have been met, can we look to other needs....Mazlow with his Hierarchy of Needs set it out like this (think of Level 1 as the base of a pyramid, the largest need, with all the other levels building on top of it):

1. Biological and Physiological needs - air, food, drink, shelter, warmth, sex, sleep, etc.

2. Safety needs - protection from elements, security, order, limits, stability, etc.

3. Belongingness and Love needs - work group, family, affection, relationships, etc.

4. Esteem needs - self-esteem, achievement, mastery, independence, status, dominance, prestige, responsibility, etc.

5. Cognitive needs - knowledge, meaning, etc.

6. Aesthetic needs - appreciation and search for beauty, balance, form, etc.

7. Self-Actualisation needs - realising personal potential, self-fulfillment, seeking personal growth and peak experiences.

8. Transcendence needs - helping others to achieve self-actualisation.

interestingly, only levels 1-4 plus level 7 were published widely when it was first released in the 1950, with levels 5 and 6 kept back until they were also published in the 1970s...and level 8 a very recent adaptation in the 1990s

however....really, the difference between want and need, i guess at a very basic level is this....let's face it, if you won't die if you don't get it...surely that makes it a want not a need?

but then you would get into a discourse of quality of life without the wants as well as the survival needs...sure we can live on air, water, food, light...but without love, appreciation, self-actualisation, feeling of worth, helping others....what kind of life is it?

sometimes it's hard to separate need from want, it seems to be much easier to separate want from need....and each of us will need different things at different times, for our own feelings of completion....greed can make us want more, humility lets us appreciate what we need

well that's my 2 cents worth for now....toddles away still pondering

[demon chloe]

excellent idea....OLIverly....


but since its 630...I shall address it after school because I am enjoying going to school early with spring fever [img]smile.gif[/img] plus being prepared beats that other feeling!!


spins my desk chair fast::::.... [img]graemlins/thumbs_up.gif[/img] [img]graemlins/thumbs_up.gif[/img]

[Blazey]

holy cow..where did that come from.. [img]tongue.gif[/img]

want is a state of mind i think..we want things for various reasons..but need is a greater thing..need is the i cant live without it kinda feeling...hmmm..i will think on this somemore..ive just woken up.. [img]eek.gif[/img]

[demon chloe]

I didn't forget th is thread. HOnest [img]wink.gif[/img] I just had to finish up my report cards and organize all their different progress reports from their specialists.

I can relax now and think [img]smile.gif[/img]

[Meow Kitty]

Everyone has different "needs" in life in order to survive. Some need more food than others, some need only a tent to live in as opposed to a house, some need an oxygen tank to breathe...Needs are about survival.

"Wants" are the extras in life that perhaps we work towards...a goal. Wanting the Louis Vuitton purse, or wanting to go to Europe...life's little extravagances that make living fun.

Although I was once told that "love" is both a need and a want, in order to survive.

P.S. my spelling sucks, hence all the edits!!! *L*

<font color="#70e054" size="1">[ March 11, 2004 11:40 AM: Message edited by: Meow Kitty ]</font>

[demon chloe]

i want a nice body...

i need to get off my ass and take care of it!