Is Abraham Maslow's idea about the "hierarchy of needs" based on something, or is it just another artifact?

Answer 1

It's an artifact just as much as your question.

Answer 2

It isn't "just another artifact"

He identified the needs of humans to show which needs are the most basic and important and how once the most basic and important needs are met the person can "move on" and (for lack of a better term) address the issues of the next-up need on the pyramid.

Someone who may use this pyramid might be someone interested in helping children in third-world countries. Maslow's heirarchy of needs would guide someone doing such work by pointing out that, for example, a child in poverty is not concentrating on any need to belong because he needs to have food first.

Anyone interested in understanding the needs of humans (and particularly human children) would have use to understand Maslow's Heirarchy pyramid.

All it is, and what it is based on, is the formal identification of real needs in humans in order for a person to reach the point where all needs have been met. He put the needs in a certain order because that is the order in which needs must be met first. He didn't design the needs. He identified them and designed a way to show the importance of each.

Answer 3

He was attempting to answer a question about human motivation - "why are we motivated to do the things we do?"